I got motivated yesterday and powered through putting the K100RS back together. Yun came over to help for a few hours and I have to say having someone else around really helps keep me motivated. I confess that I do not like turning wrenches alone.

While I pulled the old roached rotors off the front wheel, Yun cleaned up the front of the bike.



Racetech cleaned the forks pretty well and slapped some relatively tasteful black and yelllow Racetech stickers on.



The ABS toothed wheel needed to be moved from the old rotors to the new one. Unfortunately, the allen bolts holding it on had been secured with loctite red. It required an application of heat to remove.



The new rotors really clean up the front wheel. The rotors that were on there were the original ones. They are of the "full-floater" variety as are the replacements. The old ones are quite lose on the hub. The new ones don't move at all. As is the case with the front suspension I think I waited way too long to do this work.



We got the fork tubes bolted into place. I rechecked the torque like 10 times. It seems to me the factory torque settings on the cinch bolts for the upper and lower triple clamps is way too low.



Yun had to leave. Unfortunately, I failed to notice that the bolts used to mount the reflectors were also used to hold the front and rear parts of the fenders in place and that they were too long to insert with the wheel in place.

So I had to do everything twice.

But in the end I did manage to get the bike all put back together again by 9:30 in the evening.



My bike sporting stainless steel brake lines, Michelin Pilot Road II tires, a rebuilt Ohlins BM4200 rear shock, Racetech rebuilt front forks and EBC rotors and pads in addition to a Remus street exhaust.

I never thought I'd make this many aftermarket but necessary modifications to this bike.



I took it for a short 16 mile test ride.

Ummm. Everyone said that I would notice a large difference in the handling of bike but there's quite a difference between hearing the words and then actually experiencing the difference.

In the words of the 20somethings, "OMG".

It's like a new bike. It handles completely differently and feels more like the R1100S now than some old touring bike. It feels /right/. All the front end handling issues I was suffering are gone.

The brakes don't feel right however, I think maybe the pads and rotors need to be broken in or maybe I failed to do something right but they are not grabbing how I would like. In addition, the ABS is kicking on much more easily but that may be due to me not having torqued the ABS sensor correctly. I'll know more on the next test ride.

The bike is a beast now and once I get the tires scuffed in and the brake issue sorted (or it goes away), this thing is going to be fun.

All the remains for me to do is change the oil and filter in both bikes then they are ready for Deal's Gap.

I can't wait.

Those new rotors look SWEET! My local shop has two new PR2's for me but I've been debating whether to replace the tires or not...it's a little early but....

You? Debate? Tell me it ain't so!? <laugh>

Yea, I hear ya. If you have less than 2K on your existing tires they are probably good enough. More than 3 and you'll probably be regretting not replacing them after running a day on the Dragon.

Ok, I won't tell you that the back has just over 10K and the front just over 8K! Wait, I just did...DAMMIT.

Congrats! Glad to hear that the fork overhaul was a success. This'll give your old bike a well deserved new lease on life.

Did the brakes just feel weak? Maybe they need to be bedded in. Since you didn't change the lines or fluid at the same time, you wouldn't have introduced any air into the system. The calipers are still in decent condition?

@jpcfjr Damn, those tires have to be close to showing cords at this point.

fix or floating rotors?

double check your hardware stock vs your EBC parts and/or if any hardware changes were required for installation.

you may not be getting even braking/clamping to each side of your rotor.

They look to be an exact replacement.

I've still got a few thousand miles of tread left actually. The rear is starting to square a little but there are a few mm to go before the wear bars are hit. The front is cupping a little but could still go 2k.

Michellin PR2s are designed to go 15K on the back and somewhat shorter on the front. That said, I'll put another 700 on them before we leave so for comfort and handling sake I'll probably switch them out. It's not a safety issue however.

After 7K miles the set on my bike were done, down to cords.

I always replace tires in pairs and given how much I ride them at Deals' Gap a run down there is a set of tires ...

That's amazing because I've never heard of anybody getting that few miles out of PR2s. I know different bikes and riding style can make a big difference. I am very easy on equipment usually and I do a lot of highway miles for which these tires are designed. I would think you should get a minimum of 10K out of a rear.

My tires are worn in the middle but Deals Gap is mostly turning and therefore I'd probably wear the sides to match the middle. Certainly the handling will be much improved. I hate to throw away good tires though...$$

Having seen how much crap Yermo had strapped onto the back of his bike last summer I wouldn't be surprised if the weight to tire size ratio had something to do with it. He keeps the tire pressure up nice and high, so that's not the problem.

The tires that I saw that DID get down to cords were not the Pilot Roads, but Metzelers. What, M6? How many miles were on those? Hell, maybe it was stuff like your adventure riding in Telluride that contributed to the wear on those tires.


Or maybe it's all the burnouts Yermo does, I dunno...