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Kingston Custom BMW Bobber

When a BMW 75/6 goes to the hairdresser…

Once upon a time there was a BMW 75/6 that was no longer beautiful – and went to the hairdresser. He picked up scissors, Flex plus a paint bucket, and when the BMW got back on the road … but read for yourself.

E.t is not particularly difficult to make cool eye-catchers out of old two-valve boxers, ”says Dirk Oehlerking, staying completely Westphalian dry. The man is the owner and mastermind of the Kingston Custom company from Gelsenkirchen and leans casually on his last creation, a feather-light bobber based on a BMW R 75/6. “It’s actually a mix,” says Dirk. “Because the 75/6 engine is in a 90/6 frame.” Aha. You stand in awe in front of it and think: It’s crazy how different a BMW can look. How small. How small. How colorful. The color, by the way, is called Citroën Bullat red metallic. The rest is a crude mix of all sorts of motorcycle parts that somehow have come together under the direction of Oehlerking. “There is good news and bad news,” Dirk grumbles dryly. “The good one: You can drive. The bad: I just sold the machine. She’s going to New York. "

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Norton style muffler.

The 32 Bing carburettors are perfectly synchronized, because the boxer accepts gas cleanly and without spitting. It sounds eerily beautiful, bassy and potent even when he sprints. However, the two-valve engine has to be turned if you want to fully feel the 50 hp – the 745 cubic boxer only produces its maximum output at 6200 rpm. Compared to modern units, this engine is slightly phlegmatic. In contrast to the built-in brakes, which decelerate quite well. And the bobber probably won’t refuse to go on a major tour.

But its strength is the big appearance at the ice cream parlor. Parking has rarely been more casual. While the boxer kicks his pistons to both sides, jerking back and forth, you kick out the side stand and lean the machine on it. That alone is a real eye-catcher because it consists of a 24 mm ring spanner, cranked. Hardened and tempered. German production. This is not only popular in New York.

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Quilted, delicate leather saddle.

If curious eyes could look away, the bobber would have disappeared a hundred times a day. Because somehow there is nothing on the machine that seems inappropriate or unsightly. Starting with the quilted leather saddle via the hand lever, the choke, the indicator activation, the round instrument to the casual handles in retro style. The wheels with their partially polished rims and stainless steel spokes are also beautiful. It’s a shame that you can only observe all of these features while standing and not while driving.

“This bobber is not only an uncompromising driving machine, but also a motorcycle that you toast to in your garage in the evening and that makes your heart beat faster when the gate opens. Such a motorcycle lives from emotions and senses, ”says Dirk. One thinks for a moment to contradict, to interject that the comfort is written in the lower case, the sound of the horn is rather restrained or you don’t see much in the mirror … But then it’s silent. Better this way. And finally, the bad news is unfortunately really bad: sold to New York. A pity.

Portrait of Dirk Oehlerking

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Home call. Dirk Oehlerking is sitting at his living room table.

Home call. Dirk Oehlerking is sitting at his living room table. Four meters long, white, on a waxed, light oak floor. Ceiling height 3.60 meters. Black and white photos and paintings in vintage frames adorn the wall, sculptures on the cupboards. Huge window areas.

Technical specifications

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“You can load it up,” says Dirk. "The engine and gearbox were dismantled and completely overhauled."

Engine:
air-cooled two-cylinder four-stroke boxer engine, bore x stroke 82 x 70.6 mm, displacement 745 cm3, two valves per cylinder, power 37 kW (50 hp) at 6200 rpm, two Bing-
Carburettor, Ø 32 mm;

Landing gear:
Double loop tubular steel frame of the R 90/6, telescopic fork, Ø 36 mm, Sachs Hydrocross suspension struts, spring travel f / h 60/50 mm, double disc brake at the front, Ø 260 mm, drum brake at the rear, wire-spoke aluminum rims, seat height 530 mm, wheelbase 1415 mm, tank capacity 7 liters, weight with a full tank 205 kg;

Top speed:
about 150 km / h;

Price:
15,000 euros;

Info:
http://kingstoncustom.blogspot.de/

Tighten the screw from morning to night

Dirk’s dream of building motorcycles according to his ideas came true two years ago. When his first project, a converted Yamaha SR 500, was very well received at the custom bike fair in Bad Salzuflen, he got started. Sold his motorcycle specialist shop and moved to a small workshop where he "can work from morning to night without anyone standing behind me". Because it’s about freedom. While driving. In life. When screwing. The inspiration often only comes to him when he has stripped the motorcycle and is on stage. If you want to compare your bikes with others, names like Deus ex Machina, Roland Sands or Blizz Motorcycles come up. And they also started small …

Reduction to the essentials

His surroundings are just as stylish and clean as the motorcycles he has been building under the Kingston Custom label for almost two years. He wears a denim jacket, sneakers and a T-shirt from his own collection. The 50-year-old consciously doesn’t pretend to be young. He really stayed that way. If you bring the topic to the motorcycle, your eyes start to sparkle like those of a new lover. Because that’s really been his thing since he won his first off-road race at the age of 13. The affinity for off-road sport culminated in 1985 with the title of German champion and participation in the six-day race in Spain. Well over 200 trophies adorn his small workshop, in which the Kingston custom items are handcrafted.

You rarely find a customizer like him. And certainly not in Germany. Because commissioned productions sometimes go like this: Customers can choose a motorcycle as the basis, determine the style and color – but Dirk Oehlerking alone determines what it looks like in the end. He is always on the lookout for used motorcycles from the 1970s and 1980s. Air-cooled motors are particularly suitable because there are no coolers and hoses.

His finished one-offs all have one thing in common: the reduction to the essentials. Dirk is concerned with clearly visible forms. Classic shapes. Two wheels. Engine. Tank. Bench. The frame as a connection. You don’t need more. Kingston Custom is ultimately the dream come true of a master two-wheel mechanic who was tired of constantly changing oil, checking valves or swapping lightbulbs.

Why is the news bad? Well, actually just in case you fall in love with the bobber while driving. Because Dirk builds each vehicle only once. In his small, but posh workshop, all unique items are created. “When the BMW was completely stripped on the lift, I thought to myself: You have to lower it. Make flat. Flatter than anything that’s been there before. ”His first step was to shorten the fork by 80 millimeters. Hydrocross shock absorbers are installed at the rear, which normally work in an old 250cc Sachs off-road motorcycle. But the BMW got the proper styling through the tank of a Yamaha FS1, a Mokick from the seventies. It’s long. It’s flat and narrow. And it only has a volume of seven liters. “It doesn’t matter,” says Oehlerking, “a Harley Forty-Eight only has a 7.9-liter tank. Anyone who wants to ride a tour should buy another motorcycle. "

The pressure on the electric starter is followed by a brief engine shake and hearty, bubbly bubbling from the Norton-style silencers. And so wonderfully low-speed that it almost sounds like a heartbeat. A haven of calm. “That should be around 750 rpm,” Dirk sums up when asked about the idle. Older carburettor Harleys don’t gasoline that much either. Got up. At just 530 millimeters, the seat height is pleasantly low and the original handlebars sit comfortably in the hand. However, you shouldn’t have really long legs, otherwise your knees will hit the carburetor and cylinder. The footrests can be adjusted in height, but mounted comparatively far back. “You can load it up,” says Dirk. “The engine and transmission were dismantled and completely overhauled.” Well, that’s what the American can expect for a retail price of around 15,000 euros. So step in and off you go.

Dirk Oehlerking speaks of 205 kilograms ready to drive. You don’t want to contradict. The two-cylinder flyweight, paired with the low center of gravity, is wonderfully light-footed, handy, casual. And that’s how you feel as a driver. Freed from the daily gravity and from everything superfluous. No rush. No disk. No plastic. No bulky plastic tray. No front fender. Hopefully it doesn’t rain. Speaking of fenders: Dirk simply mounted the front one at the rear. And speaking of omission: he also omitted the driving comfort. The bobber chassis tells you exactly which side of the dime you rolled over: heads or tails. The target group won’t care. Because if you want to be cool, you have to suffer. Missing weather protection? “My skin is waterproof. Not yours? "

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