R26 front disk brake

Begonnen von wb7nzg, 25 Juli 2005, 04:41:08

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wb7nzg

While surfing the internet I have seen pictures of R50 and R60 bikes that have been retrofitted with a front disk brake on an Earles fork. I have wondered if this is also possible on an R26 and would it be a good idea for safety reasons. Does anyone know anything about this?

Best regards from Tampa, Florida - Richard
Richard

wb7nzg

Richard

groovebuster

Actually I never saw a R26 or R27 with a disc brake so far. I think it would be possible (like almost everything when you have the time and the resources) but don't really see the point, since these motorcycles are not very heavy anyway and the drum brakes work well enough. I think a disc brake wold look horrible on a R26 or R27, but I guess that it really comes down to personal taste.

Greetings from Berlin,

Christian

Heiko

Hi,

i have never seen this before and it isn´t necessary to fit a disk brake on a R 26 or R 27, because the original brakes are really good, if they are adjusted in the right way!

Heiko
Ariel motorcycles... upon which the sun never sets.

† odeon8

Hi Richard,

do u know about this thread in our forum ?

The described "DD" brake will be a piece of improvement in our bikes.
The "Fontana" brake in my /5 prevented me several times in some kind
of emergency situation from hitting somebodys rear fender (Heiko  ;) )

Greetings from bavaria - Thomas
HUBRAUMISTDURCHNIXZUERSETZENAUSSERDURCHNOCHMEHRHUBRAUM

Heiko

... and don´t forget Thomas,

you are always looking on the road and not at the countryside like St.....  :-X

Heiko  ;)

@St...  :blumen:
Ariel motorcycles... upon which the sun never sets.

wb7nzg

Hello Christian, Heiko, and Thomas,

WOW, I never expected so much feedback on this! After reading all of your comments you all have me convinced to stick with the original drum brakes. I am sure you are all right, it is adequate for solo riding. If one had a sidecar it might be good to have better braking but it is unlikely I will ever do that. On the other hand my wife said she might even go with me if I had a sidecar!

Even though I have seen pictures of r50/60 bikes with a disc brake I wonder if that might also mess up the handling of the Earles fork.

I should tell you all a little of the history of my R26. I bought it in 1963 when I was in the Army in the state of Maryland on the east coast of the United States. A few months after I bought it I received orders to go to Germany!

As a young man I did not really know what to do with the R26 and I could not sell it quickly and I did not want to anyway.

So from one day to the next I decided to ride it home. That does not sound so bad but my home was in Seattle, 2800 miles (4500 KM) away!

I had $26 dollars to make the trip with! I made the trip in six days without any problem. I tell people today about the trip and they cannot believe that you can go that far in six days with 15 horsepower up and over the Rocky mountains. I think this says a lot how good BMW bikes are.

A lot of interesting things happened on that trip that I could tell about later if anyone is interested.

Best regards from Tampa Florida - Richard
Richard

groovebuster

Cool! Interesting story! I want to hear more!

Regards,

Christian

Karl

Hello Richard,

yes please - tell us more  :D

Your trip over the Rocky Mountains reminds me on MekGuyvers (?) idea to make a trip over the Alps ... so it seems to be possible!

Thanks,
Karl
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groovebuster

Doesn't it sound like it was meant to be?

:bike:

A R26 and 26$ (!!!) in the pocket? Probably no coincidence!!!

:poet:

Christian


Karl

This means 1 $ per 108 miles ... okay, gasoline is cheap in the states; compared to germany: 1L of gasoline in germany is nowadays 1,30 Euro -> 1,57 US$. If you assume an average consumption of 4L / 100km you would reach today only 414 km with 26 US$.

Kind regards,
Karl
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groovebuster

You also have to consider that he did his trip 40 years ago... Back then 26$ were still alot of money (about 160$ today, taking inflation into account).

Still cheap to go 4500km with it in comparison with german gasoline prizes these days (1,25€/L), but it puts it a little bit into perspective.

Considering the fuel consumption of 4L/100km you mentioned, you would need 180L of gasoline for the trip. That makes about 225€ (around 270$).

BTW... interesting link:

http://www.halfhill.com/inflation.html

Regards,

Christian

sjeuf12

26 USD wasn't that bad for that trip.
Estimated on 10-15 USD cent/gallon would give me 260 gallon...that's 1000 or so liters.
More then enough...
I guess he also spent something on food and drinks.. ;)

Please tell more about this trip
Ser

wb7nzg

Good evening everyone,

I am amazed at how much interest there seems to be about the trip. I know at first it does not seem like it is possible I made it with $26 but it was no problem.

At an average gas consumption of about 50 miles per gallon I needed about 56 gallons and it was selling for 25 cents a gallon which would be $14.

I did need some money for food but it was not much. Hamburgers were selling for 10 cents then. I also started the trip with a small amount of food and I was often offered food from other travelers.

For example the day I left I started in the town of Frederick, in the state of Maryland. I got a late start the first day and did not leave until around 1100.

I arrived in Columbus, Ohio very late in the evening, around 0200 in the morning of the next day. That was a distance of 370 miles.

I had planned to camp at state parks to save money. I did not have map of the local area that showed state parks so when I saw a police motorcycle (Harley) I stopped and asked the officer where the next state park was. He explained it was about an hour ride.

The police officer also asked me where I was going and I told him Seattle. He was quite surprised I was going that far. He also asked if I was in the military and I told him I was and because I had little money I was going to camp.

So I rode off and headed for the state park. About five minutes later I saw the big Harley behind me again and he turned on his red light for a second or two so I pulled over. It was the same officer. He said I looked very tired and thought it might not be a good idea if I keep riding.

He then told me to follow him back to the police station and he would find a place for me to sleep. When we got to the station he offered me the sofa in their break room. That looked pretty good to me. On top of that he also got me some food. They were really a nice bunch of police officers and it was hard to leave them in the morning.

There are other things that happened along the way but I will tell more about that later.

Best regards from hot and humid Tampa Florida - Richard
Richard

rolf

#13
Hey Richard,
"it was hard to leave them in the morning" ;D
I Think many other guys had the same problem ::)
Rolf D(alton)

wb7nzg

Hi Rolf and everyone,

Yes it was hard to leave but it was also good to get back on the road. In today's world I don't think that such a thing would happen, but one never knows. These days I get the impression that most people are suspicious of the police. Back in those days every policeman was your friend if you needed help. There are still many around like that but I can understand how some develop an attitude against people. With the number of crazy drivers on the road these days it is a wonder that the police officers get through a day alive.

But back to the story. I have often thought it would be interesting to check into some of the places I passed through back then and see how things are today. I would not be a bit surprised if I went to a police station in Columbus and told my story that I might still get a warm welcome. It would be even better if I wrote a letter ahead of time. Perhaps I will try to do that someday.

I am getting a bit old but I still dream of making the same trip again if I get my R26 restored. Now that would be a real adventure. Of course I would not try to do it in six days. I would take my time, perhaps over several weeks and enjoy the traveling. I am sure that I would attract some attention if I did it. The R26 alone would attract attention. There really is something fascinating about old motorcycles and BMWs are some of the best.

Good evening from Tampa - Richard
Richard

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