Help - how do you make a 1150 GSA into an off roader...

[Mike F]

I will trawl thru the forum when I have a moment, but maybe there's a couple of friendly experts out there that can help. This is the plan....

I have a 52 plate GSA with 50k on it that I commute daily from Reading to London. Thats my bikes day job and it has to carry on doing that.

But I have done a few green lanes and I want to do some LDTs. I am booked in to the Witley one coming up soon.

I am lucky enough to have a spare set of wheels and have put Conti TKC 80s on - big difference.

So what I am thinking of is to:

- Fit renthal bars and Barkbusters
- Fit off road levers and switch gear
- I guess retaining mirror(s) would be smart
- Lose the clocks and windshield
- Decent folding tip gear and brake pedals
- Engine bars (any recommendations for serious off roading, need to slide rather than dig in)
- Smaller tank

I'd like to keep my plastic panniers and mounts as I plan to ride to events with dry gear in them and the off road wheels strapped on the back, sort the bike when i get there and lock panniers and road wheels to a tree or something.

Now the things I am worrying about are:

- need a fuel light or a reserve switch
- can I easily replace the huge BMW brake and clutch master cylinders and all the electric gubbins
- Will a trail tech style speedo go on OK
- keeping the heated grips would be nice

And the biggest worry is, at the end of the day, is the whole lardy GS and shaft drive just a bad combination and I may as well save time and effort and buy a KTM? But I do suspect it'll be fun on the beemer, she's kind of family now.

Maybe someone who's done it has some good advice.

Any help much appreciated,

Mike

 

[Crapaud]

I entered the Dawn to Dusk on my 1100 so I guess I'm qualified to answer your question.

I would leave it as much as standard as possible. It is a big heavy bike and realisticly whatever you do to it, it will still be a big heavy bike.

Smaller tank is a good idea. I managed to obtain an original 1100 plastic tank which is around 22lt and very light. The big advantage is that it will save your decent tank from getting dented and damaged. If you transfer over all the internals the fuel gauge will work roughly enough to show when the low fuel light comes on. You can change the float arm if you want it more accurate.

Decent crash bars are essential. I have the TT ones and they are very good, they have paid for themselves 100 times. Any crash bars can cause a slight problem with digging in but its the lesser of two evils.

On the 1100, the front lower mud guard is a problem as it is too close to the tyre and can get clogged up with mud too easily. I'm not sure how the 1150 is but you might want to either remove it or buy a second hand one and cut it down.

Decent suspension helps. I changed my tired original units for custom set up Wilber units and they transformed the bike.

As for the clocks etc, I would leave as is. You won't save much weight and I don't think its worth the hassle. I have crash tested my bike numerous times and so far the only damage has been a broken front indicator and a scratch on the 41lt tank (which is now swapped for smaller one).

Let me know if you want more info.

Sid

 

[Packer]

It would probably be more cost effective to buy a second, more dirt orientated bike.

You can use the big bikes off road but the sheer weight of them and the restricted suspension travel will always be limiting factors. An 1150 plus fuel, plus pilot, plus riding gear = ~ 350kgs, i.e. over 1/3 of a ton. When it starts to get away from you down a muddy hill it takes some stopping. When I take mine off road I always have the worry in the back of my head that if I do it any serious damage I'm not going to be riding it home and it's going to get expensive.

A great rider can do amazing things off road with an 1150 but could do even better with a lighter more suitable bike.

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

I will trawl thru the forum when I have a moment, but maybe there's a couple of friendly experts out there that can help. This is the plan....

I have a 52 plate GSA with 50k on it that I commute daily from Reading to London. Thats my bikes day job and it has to carry on doing that.

But I have done a few green lanes and I want to do some LDTs. I am booked in to the Witley one coming up soon.

I am lucky enough to have a spare set of wheels and have put Conti TKC 80s on - big difference.

So what I am thinking of is to:

- Fit renthal bars and Barkbusters
- Fit off road levers and switch gear
- I guess retaining mirror(s) would be smart
- Lose the clocks and windshield
- Decent folding tip gear and brake pedals
- Engine bars (any recommendations for serious off roading, need to slide rather than dig in)
- Smaller tank

I'd like to keep my plastic panniers and mounts as I plan to ride to events with dry gear in them and the off road wheels strapped on the back, sort the bike when i get there and lock panniers and road wheels to a tree or something.

Now the things I am worrying about are:

- need a fuel light or a reserve switch
- can I easily replace the huge BMW brake and clutch master cylinders and all the electric gubbins
- Will a trail tech style speedo go on OK
- keeping the heated grips would be nice

And the biggest worry is, at the end of the day, is the whole lardy GS and shaft drive just a bad combination and I may as well save time and effort and buy a KTM? But I do suspect it'll be fun on the beemer, she's kind of family now.

Maybe someone who's done it has some good advice.

Any help much appreciated,

Mike

Sell it and buy something more appropriate

 

[Hairnet600]

wr250

 

[Spout]

Steering lock stops!

(See East Midlands do )

 

[Mike F]

Thanks Sid

I'll check this out and crack on at the w/e.

I do fancy going that bit further with the bars etc, will keep you posted.

Seems there's quite a consensus to go down the different bike route but I do like a challenge and I am thinking the Pyrenees next summer would be a hoot.

Thanks for the tips and if anyone else has any.....

 

[Mike F]

any tips on how to add 'em? Does it involve welding?

 

[Timolgra]

best mod is a 21" front wheel which I may happen to have for sale

 

[Losttheplot]

any tips on how to add 'em? Does it involve welding?

Touratech do a hardpart which bolts onto the front wishbone, and prevents broken lock stops. cost about £80 IIRC, and worth every penny. on the 1150 the steering stops are on the frame, which is cast. you don;t want to be breaking this.

As far as crash bars go, i wouldn't bother- i had some wunderlich bars on my bike, and they kept breaking at the same point- mostly due to vibration.

Get yourself a pair of steptoes head protectors instead, these will do more to protect your rocker covers than any set of crash bars.

Also, wind the preload right up on the bike if you have any intentions of going fast. Even the slightest hump will have the bike airbourne, followed by a liberal amount of surfing along on the bash plate while your shocks try and sort themselves out if they haven't been preloaded properly. DAMHIKT

Apart from that i;d agree with lots of other comments raised- if you have a choice get something lighter and more appropriate instead

 

[DollyRocket]

Been there - done it - done my back in

They are heavy buggers and a real handful - however, Darren (Horse1200) does amazing things on his.

Kept my 1150 in road trim, bought a lighter one instead - Much more fun without the worry about whether it would get me to work on a Monday.
There is some machismo about riding the biggest heaviest things you can find off-road, but i find it more fun to finish a trail day with my limbs working and intact.

Horses for courses really. The bikes can do it - but as with everything it all comes down to the nut on the end of the handlebars.

 

[Fanum]

Yegods what a lot of frikking twaddle

Steering stops at 80 quid worth every penny?



Do a search here and you'll find a very effective steering stop mod that will cost you nothing, or at most , a few quid for bits.
(Basically a couple of knobs from a TKC attached with cable ties)

Tourtwat steering stops are for posing nancies who turn up at the ACE cafe with full but totally empty panniers, wearing the latest twat suit and post ride reports up of their latest franticly awesome big trip down to Brighton


If you are going to ride on rocky stuff, losing the screen may be sensible....otherwise, just loosen things off a bit and it will give enough 'squidge factor' to get away with 95% of falls.

I have NEVER seen a handlebar lever getting broken on a GSA, and I've never had a problem with he bog standard hand guards either.....they do the job well....I HAVE seen a gear change footlever get snapped off on more than one occasion though, although it hasn't left the bike stuck, just hard to ride.
(I've just fitted a Touratwat extendible change arm, mainly because I have feet to match Shep's barge and with my offroad stomping boots on and pivot pegs fitted, I couldn't change gear effectively, if at all)

Pivot pegs by the way, nice, comfy for standing up for a long period but not high on the list of priorities for Offroading a gs)



Get a grille over your lights...that glass is expensive and it only takes one roostering from a mate ahead of you to crack them.

Get rid of the stupid TUV rules plastic bump guard off the rear end.....it can easily get caught up and dragged around the wheel.

A 21 inch front is nice, but the standard one will do fine.

If you're going to get offroad with luggage/pillion, get a couple of fillets of strengthener put in the frame around the rear subframe joint.

A gel battery is safer when the bike is over on its side (or further, which often happens when riding ruts or rocks) as it wont be pissing acid out, and will e less likely to throw a plate and conk out totally after a good few hours of shaking about

Suspension......definitely upgrade if you can...you can put some of that £80 I just saved you towards that


I wouldn't bother with a smaller tank either tbh......if you can find an old tatty one, bung that on and just don't fill it up as full!!

The weight isn't in the tank metal, its in the liquid contents, so that's another few hundred beer tokens saved

Mirrors.......leave on, just make sure they are a fraction loosened.

Crash bars yes, definitely.

Steptoe head guards yes, if you can find a set, or (and it sticks in my throat saying this ) the touratwat head guards...you should see the state of mine after 7 years offroading in Morocco but I haven't cracked a head yet

Bash plate yes, centre stand fill-in bash plate yes (best used for sliding over rocks rather than getting stuck ON a rock)

Clocks? No need to change at all, unless this an exercise in posing rather than functionality...get a decent GPS and a RAM mount and that will give you all the data recording that you need, plus on most now, you can load up OS maps or TOPO maps for many many areas

Get a decent, light but sensible toolkit sorted out....chemical metal and a tampon will fix a holed head, cable ties and gaffa tape can strap up a broken frame securely enough to get out of a sticky place (been there done that ) and a couple of long thumb-catch webbing straps (available Gratis from your local BMW Mottorad if you ask nicely) will pull a bike out of a watered rut or out of a deep hole, or even tow a dead bike home
Gaffa some long tyre levers to a frame member, and take some rat-tail type puncture repair stuff and a cheapo Halfords bike pump cable tied on somewhere.

The lights on an 1150 adv are weak, and no good for the slow gnarly stuff that you may one day find yourself stuck on at dusk.
We've come down out of the mountains past midnight before now , even though we planned to never let it happen...sometimes, shit just happens, and you'll really appreciate some extra lights....even cheapo fogs will illuminate the ground drekkly in front of you so you can get down tough stuff, and an HID main in the forests will mean you can make sensible progress after the sun falls (a good head torch is handy as well, for many reasons)
(Don't even consider the OEM BMW fogs for anything more than being on tarmac....they have brackets made of chocolate plastic and are guaranteed to snap the first time your bike takes a rest )

Ignore the ones who tell you to get something more appropriate....most of the pleasure of offroading a barge like a GS is the fact that you CAN, albeit a bit slower and with stops BEFORE an obstacle section to assess it and gird your loins rather than just attacking on sight like you can on a serow of some but of orange madness.

90% of the equipment you need to take a GS offroad successfully is actually in your head....it's your attitude and approach, not bling or mods


Have a look back at the ride reports and you'll see what I mean

 

[Timolgra]

Have a look back at the ride reports and you'll see what I mean

Mmmm, see what you mean

 

[Kav]

Full but totally empty panniers???????

 

[Fanum]

Mmmm, see what you mean

Eggzakkerly

You can see the bash plate, centrestand guard and the head protectors there......I did have my screen on and that always came away unscathed, and the ADV OEM crashbars with the headguards made sure there was no engine damage

It wasn't long after that photo that I smashed the 'zorst up on some rock steps though, so from that point on I ran with a stubby on the OEM cat (drilled out a bit )

 

[Fanum]

Full but totally empty panniers???????

I meant full set of, including a fully stickered up metal topbox covered in stickers bought from e-bay for 80p a pop

PS Timmyoneblonde, congratulations for finding a photo of probably one of the only times I have EVER dropped it

 

[Losttheplot]

Yegods what a lot of frikking twaddle

Steering stops at 80 quid worth every penny?



Do a search here and you'll find a very effective steering stop mod that will cost you nothing, or at most , a few quid for bits.
(Basically a couple of knobs from a TKC attached with cable ties)

Well compared to having to replace the frame (£1500 at the time for this), and wrecking a good adv tank when the frame lugs snap off and the bars hit it(£700 ish for a new one), it did seem like a sensible option.

And after spending the best part of £10k on a bike, why would i want to cut corners with zip ties and lumps of recycled rubber?

Agree the buzz with riding these bikes off road is in the challenge

 

[Horse1200]

You can really get these beasties going fast enough to any real damage. Unless the water is deeper than you think.... Most of it is down to the rider, good riding and you should know your and your bike limits.

 

[MickDB1]

If yer really want to spashout instead of Fanums cut knobblies get 2 rubber doorstops as I did once to me 1100

 

[Mike F]

Top Tips as they say - thanks. Esp the steering lock.

You've only got to look at mine to see posing is not too high on the agenda...

Managed to bend the bars (a bit, still OK) and scuff the tank on my first excursion with the Berks TRF guys 'n girls on Sunday. Bit nervous of straightening OEM bars, any comments?

Plus also wrapped the back brake round the footrest, and you could see if had gone down on the left hand side in the ruts the alloy gear lever would, I suspect, snap straight off. So am keen to toughen those up. Or stop falling off, but more realistically the former.

Its not the weight of the tank but the size of the thing! I managed to put a dent in it with my knee too (I think).

Hmmm, Morocco - now these's a thought. Or a divorce. One of the two.

Thanks again

Mike