Another thing to please Rasher

[Sgt Bilco]

As my 1200GSA is nearly 5 years old and has done 67000 pretty tough miles with no real problems, I've decided to give the old girl a complete overhaul in the Autumn. I've got 2 Alaska trips fully booked in 2012 so she is going to have to ratchet up nearly 18,000 miles in 3 months and can't let me down.

AS wll as a new rear subframe which is a bit bent (my fault) I'm going to have the FD rebuilt properly and not just bodge it up in the garage or have some back street oufit do it. There is nothing wrong with it but it's good preventative maintainence

Chatting with Steve Scrimmeger this morning and he reckons he can do a complete rebuild, replace all the bearings with the latest good stuff, put a breather in etc etc for around £150 + parts which sounds brilliant. Steve has more knowledge about BMW's in his little finger than most dealers know

Why would you buy a new one if you can get yours rebuilt?

So Rasher, you could have all your FD worries put aside by having Scrimmager engineering rebuild it for around the price of a years warranty. Sounds like a no brainer for Mr Worried from Oxfordshire

 

[Wapping]

I think that Rasher already has a 'racing mate' who rebuilds them, or knows about bearings or summat like that. Maybe wrong, though*



*That's me, not Rasher, or his mate (either or both of whom I may have dreamed up, in my vivid imagination)

 

[forest biker]

As my 1200GSA is nearly 5 years old and has done 67000 pretty tough miles with no real problems, I've decided to give the old girl a complete overhaul in the Autumn. I've got 2 Alaska trips fully booked in 2012 so she is going to have to ratchet up nearly 18,000 miles in 3 months and can't let me down.

chatting with Steve Scrimmeger this morning and he reckons he can do a complete rebuild, replace all the bearings with the latest good stuff, put a breather in etc etc for around £150 + parts which sounds brilliant. Steve has more knowledge about BMW's in his little finger than most dealers know

Why would you buy a new one if you can get yours rebuilt?


What are the parts costing sgt bilco if you dont mind me asking, are they coming in at about £300ish are they ??

 

[Sgt Bilco]

What are the parts costing sgt bilco if you dont mind me asking, are they coming in at about £300ish are they ??

Not sure at the moment and he is coming back to me with the estimated cost. It's only a few bearings and seals so I wouldn't expect a kings ransom

Steve is a great bloke though and he rebuilt an 1100 gearbox for me a few years ago and it was slicker than a slick thing.

 

[Rasher]

That sounds sweet

If £300 can sort an FD long term and £85 gets me a reliable FPC that is 90% of my concerns about the bike resolved.

I do not have any mates that could do it, I do know a supurb engineer locally who could probably do a good build, but as it is not something he has done before I would end up paying for time spent making required tools.

Still reckon I want a new bike before summer 2013 so hopefully my FD can last until then (no more than 20k).

I suppose the key is catching them early before all the bearing housings get damaged

Even sounds a better bet than extended warranty as that may, or may not cough up if it did fail, will stick £350 in my "FD Pot" instead when warranty comes due in October.

 

[Merv]

3000 miles on my 77 pound ebay final drive with no play or noise and im for poland in 3 weeks but Rasher has got me paranoid so im takin my spare

 

[coded2112]

OMG, i have covered nearly 2500 miles on my 2011 GSA.

I am going to trade it in this weekend for a new one before something fails!

 

[Merv]

Put it on a trailer and take it to the dealer,i wouldnt chance it any further with those miles

 

[Stretchamus]

As my 1200GSA is nearly 5 years old and has done 67000 pretty tough miles with no real problems, I've decided to give the old girl a complete overhaul in the Autumn. I've got 2 Alaska trips fully booked in 2012 so she is going to have to ratchet up nearly 18,000 miles in 3 months and can't let me down.

AS wll as a new rear subframe which is a bit bent (my fault) I'm going to have the FD rebuilt properly and not just bodge it up in the garage or have some back street oufit do it. There is nothing wrong with it but it's good preventative maintainence

Chatting with Steve Scrimmeger this morning and he reckons he can do a complete rebuild, replace all the bearings with the latest good stuff, put a breather in etc etc for around £150 + parts which sounds brilliant. Steve has more knowledge about BMW's in his little finger than most dealers know

Why would you buy a new one if you can get yours rebuilt?

So Rasher, you could have all your FD worries put aside by having Scrimmager engineering rebuild it for around the price of a years warranty. Sounds like a no brainer for Mr Worried from Oxfordshire

This is more like it, thanks Sgt Bilco

 

[BBB61]

Interestingly enough, James Sherlock quote the price of a new FD at £487.51. That is a hell of a long way from the £900 that Rasher has been quoting

The price of various bearings from Sherlocks is as follows:-

Crown wheel output bearing £43.20
Crown wheel input bearing £25.91

 

[Rasher]

Interestingly enough, James Sherlock quote the price of a new FD at £487.51....
Crown wheel output bearing £43.20
Crown wheel input bearing £25.91

Bloody hell, I thought they were about £1000 from what I had read around here, plus fitting.

I am sure others have had much higher bearing prices as well, however that is not all of the bearings listed there, so how much for all bearings and seals required to do the job properly?

What spec FD is that? Do you have to get the same one as came with bike, or could you fit the latest 2010 one to an earlier bike?

Assuming the latest ones cost about that amount, can be fitted to earlier models and prove to be more reliable I would rather just spend £500 on a new one than £300+ on the old unit.

 

[Sgt Bilco]

Bloody hell, I thought they were about £1000 from what I had read around here, plus fitting.

I am sure others have had much higher bearing prices as well, however that is not all of the bearings listed there, so how much for all bearings and seals required to do the job properly?

What spec FD is that? Do you have to get the same one as came with bike, or could you fit the latest 2010 one to an earlier bike?

Assuming the latest ones cost about that amount, can be fitted to earlier models and prove to be more reliable I would rather just spend £500 on a new one than £300+ on the old unit.

I think there are some differences with the FD's so they don't all fit.

I for one would be happier having mine rebuilt by a specialist like Scrimmeger. His tolerances etc will be better than factory I would hope but £500 for a new one sound's like a great deal

Just proves that you don't have to go to the dealer.

 

[BBB61]

Bloody hell, I thought they were about £1000 from what I had read around here, plus fitting.

I am sure others have had much higher bearing prices as well, however that is not all of the bearings listed there, so how much for all bearings and seals required to do the job properly?

Those were the prices for the only bearings listed. There would be other seals and bits and pieces too but they were not bank breakers. Fitting a new FD is not a long job.

What spec FD is that? Do you have to get the same one as came with bike, or could you fit the latest 2010 one to an earlier bike?

It was listed as a silver FD with a 33/12 final drive ratio. If you have a 2004-6 GS then the later drives would not be compatible. They changed the internal ABS ring in 2007 and this ring is not compatible with the sensor on the 04-06 bikes. One of the guys here found that out after buying a later FD on Ebay.

Assuming the latest ones cost about that amount, can be fitted to earlier models and prove to be more reliable I would rather just spend £500 on a new one than £300+ on the old unit.

If Scrimminger could do a repair for £150 + parts I would be inclined to go that route for the same reasons put forward by Sgt Bilco.

 

[ianran]

Could you all stfu about Scrimmingers otherwise how will he have time to do my work??

 

[Deleted account 190920001]

Could you all stfu about Scrimmingers otherwise how will he have time to do my work??

Self, self, self, that's all you think about

 

[Rasher]

Does that mean 2010 FD's will fit 2007 onward bikes?

 

[Steptoe]

Chatting with Steve Scrimmeger this morning and he reckons he can do a complete rebuild, replace all the bearings with the latest good stuff, put a breather in etc etc

Chris, did you ask if having a breather means you could increase the oil capacity so the bearing gets to run in oil instead of being splash lubricated .

 

[Sgt Bilco]

Chris, did you ask if having a breather means you could increase the oil capacity so the bearing gets to run in oil instead of being splash lubricated .

He mentioned that by having a breather, you could keep the oil at at a decent and not have to reduce it.....I think. He was talking technical and my eyes were glazing over