Collecting the new project bike - 'Hans' the BMW 1984 R65
A couple of weeks ago, on a Tuesday night, Gareth noticed an Instagram posting from a friend saying he was selling his project bike as he didn't have the time to complete it. By Wednesday we had agreed to buy 'Hans', by Thursday I was transferring funds and on the Saturday morning I was picking up a Large Van from Enterprise van rental (turns out it is pretty difficult to hire a standard transit van in London on late notice for a weekend).
I have always fancied something lighter than the Triumph Sprint GT that I have for touring and I really like the look of the Cafe Racers that are popping up around London (read Hoxton), even if I'm not too sure of the scene. Added to this, the VFR project is complete and Gareth, though far from itching to do another one, really enjoyed what he learnt on Project No 1 (a 1989 VFR 400).
We collected 'Hans' from Swindon and loaded him easily enough into the van. On the centre stand, with three tie down straps, newly purchased from Halfords, he was nice and secure. I then insisted that we used a cable tie and tied the front brake lever - just in case. This is a great tip and came into its own, as going through Chelsea, we heard a great thud behind us which was Hans lurching off his centre stand - there was no damage and after a quick re-secure, we were on our way to Oval Motorcycles (OMC) in Wandsworth where Hans will be staying until we can get him on the road.
In the cold light of day of course, Hans doesn't look quite as clean as the photos, but we are hoping that it won't take a huge amount to get him through his MOT. The plan is to ride around for a few months, whilst we decide on designs, then dismantle and rebuild over the winter. We'll see.... !
