{"id":21670,"date":"2012-07-01T10:38:19","date_gmt":"2012-07-01T14:38:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/motorcyclemojo.com\/?p=21670"},"modified":"2019-12-31T13:08:57","modified_gmt":"2019-12-31T18:08:57","slug":"featurebike_whittleton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/motorcyclemojo.com\/2012\/07\/featurebike_whittleton\/","title":{"rendered":"Feature Bike – The Whittleton Special"},"content":{"rendered":"
July 2012 feature bike<\/strong><\/p>\n Many people might claim they can improve upon fine German engineering, but actually doing so is a totally different story. Bob Whittleton, however, was as good as his word, even if it took him 13 years to finish the job.<\/p>\n Bob took delivery, literally, of this leftover 1977 BMW R100RS in 1978, when it was dropped off in his driveway, still in the original shipping crate.<\/p>\n Over the years, Bob puttered away, disassembling the bike, including the engine, right down to the last nut and bolt. Maybe he just wanted to make sure the workers in the BMW factory did a good job. After all, you can never be too cautious about another person\u2019s qualifications and work ethic.<\/p>\n Bob\u2019s objective from the start was to make the bike as light as reasonably possible and blueprint every component before reassembly.<\/p>\n They say that when you start a diet, you lose a lot of weight really fast and then you plateau. Luckily for Bob, he was able to unload the large RS fairing to a friend who had dropped his bike the year before, causing serious damage. Other major weight losses, totalling about 14 kg, were achieved by removing the electric starter and replacing the oversized original battery with a smaller unit that now resides in the caf\u00e9 tail section.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Bob then moved on to the engine. Of course, the weight loss continued when he removed metal from the crankcase and drilled and balanced all moving components that weren\u2019t being replaced with lighter bits. In addition to measuring and documenting every part, it also meant adding some very trick components in the process, like Carillo rods, sport camshaft, Nykasil-coated cylinder sleeves, and Mahle slipper pistons with lightweight wrist pins, just to name a few items.<\/p>\n Bob had good intentions during the engine\u2019s rebuild when he installed Krauser four-valve heads for better breathing and with the hope of increased power, but this turned out to be a mistake after only 3000 km. The pushrods operated at an awkward angle, and there was so much load on the camshaft that it quickly wore and distributed metal throughout the engine.<\/p>\n Usually he would have sold off the original heads, but he admits that in an unusual display of common sense, he kept the original \u201977 heads, so after an extensive rebuild that included resleeving the cylinders, he consulted with Tim Speigelburg, Canada\u2019s premier Ducati tuner, about possible head work.<\/p>\n July 2012 feature bike Many people might claim they can improve upon fine German engineering, but actually doing so is a totally different story. Bob Whittleton, however, was as good as his word, even if it took him 13 years to finish the job. Bob took delivery, literally, of this leftover 1977 BMW R100RS in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21718,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[373,78],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n
\n Owner:<\/td>\n Bob Whittleton<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Make:<\/td>\n BMW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Model:<\/td>\n Whittleton Special<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Builder:<\/td>\n Bob Whittleton<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Time to Build:<\/td>\n 13 years<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Engine<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Year:<\/td>\n 1977<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Builder:<\/td>\n BMW\/Whittleton<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Displacement:<\/td>\n 1000 cc<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Cases:<\/td>\n BMW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Heads:<\/td>\n BMW\/extensive rework by Tim Speigelburg<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Lower End:<\/td>\n BMW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Carburetor:<\/td>\n Mikuni TM 38:86 Pro Series<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Ignition:<\/td>\n 1981 BMW electronic, dual coils<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Exhaust:<\/td>\n BMW 40 mm headers with Staintune 40 mm sport mufflers<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n <\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Transmission<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Year:<\/td>\n 1981<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Builder:<\/td>\n BMW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Type:<\/td>\n RS close ratio<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Clutch:<\/td>\n 1981-style<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n <\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Frame<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Year:<\/td>\n 1977<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Builder:<\/td>\n BMW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Final Drive:<\/td>\n Shaft<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Shocks:<\/td>\n Ohlins Piggyback<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Modifications:<\/td>\n Steering head braced, lateral braces<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n <\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Front End<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Year:<\/td>\n 1974<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Builder:<\/td>\n BMW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Triple Trees:<\/td>\n Stock<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Modifications:<\/td>\n Fork Brace from lower triple clamp<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n <\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Wheels<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Front Size:<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Builder\/Manufacturer:<\/td>\n BMW\/Sun\/Buchanan stainless steel spokes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Tire Make and size:<\/td>\n 110\/90-19 Metzeler Lasertec<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Rear Size:<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Builder\/Manufacturer:<\/td>\n BMW\/Sun\/Buchanan stainless steel spokes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Tire Make and size:<\/td>\n 130\/80-18 Metzeler Lasertec<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n <\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Essentials<\/td>\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Gas Tank:<\/td>\n 23 litre \/7 Police tank with tool box<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Footpegs:<\/td>\n Terrozi rearsets<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Seat:<\/td>\n Short RSS<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Handlebars:<\/td>\n Telefix clipons<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n <\/td>\n Special thanks to Tim Speigelburg for expertise and headwork<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"