Day 326
On March 31, 2016 I had an accident while riding Otus. Both of us were beat up badly. Both the long bones in my right forearm were broken and the tendon that makes the last knuckle on my right index finger work became detached. One botched surgery followed by a successful surgery got me on the road to recovery but Otus remained largely neglected in the garage while I tried to heal and chased parts. While I thought I had created a pretty exhaustive list of broken and missing parts it wasn’t until I started repairing Otus in earnest that I identified all the broken bits. This led to me buying a quite extensive parts cache from a new friend in the Bay Area while also placing several orders with Bob’s BMW. I’m unwilling to calculate how much my pilot error cost me in dollars spent on Otus. Here’s what I’ve replaced as a result of my accident:
- LED headlight: The lens and headlight bucket ring were recovered but the LED headlight bulb was nowhere to be found. I replaced it with another Cyclops.
- Headlight wiring plug/harness: This was an adventure.
- Turn Signal wiring: This was another adventure. A ground wire broke as a result of the wiring getting tangled up. I got to remove the handlebars, triple clamp, and all related goodies to swap in another wiring bit from my parts cache.
- Windshield: I ordered a replacement Givi windshield but haven’t installed it yet. I want to make sure I’m done messing around on the front of the bike before I install it. This will be the last replacement bit I install.
- Handlebars: It was actually pretty hard to come up with the correct handlebars for the R100/7. I had a set of S bars as part of an earlier experiment and ended up with two more pair from the parts purchase. I may yet install S bars but I’ll need S cables too…
- Mirrors: I has installed hand guards last winter so I removed my bar-end mirrors and went back to the classic mirrors. Those got mangled so I ordered a set of long stem reproductions. Hand guards are sitting on the workbench and bar end mirrors have been reinstalled for now. The jury is out on using the reproduction mirrors.
- Instrument Cluster: The instrument cluster was beat up badly. The tachometer glass is gone and the face was bent. The speedometer glass sustained a big chip and the boots were mangled beyond use. The speedometer survived so I have preserved the “original” mileage by using the old speedometer in a “new” housing from the parts cache.
- Start/Stop Switch: This was a knock-about of pure fun. The red switch that shuts down the bike was snapped. The remains of the switch still worked, and I could have left things as is, but I had two in the parts cache and felt obligated to replace it. Between the spring, the c-clip, and my partially functioning right hand, I eventually got it installed. Extra large fun indeed.
- Classic Panniers: The old panniers I had were kinda rough but completely serviceable. The only problem with them was a lack of keys. I tried a couple of times to solve that but to no avail. So a pair of reproduction panniers will allow me to haul all my stuff again!
- Top Case: I’ve yet to replace the top case. The one I had (still have actually) was a fiberglass model and the top was basically ejected from the bottom half. When I bought the Givi top case for Strix I also bought a universal mounting bracket for Otus. In spite of that, I continued to use the “classic” top case until the end. I have the universal mount reinstalled on Otus and will decide what to do about the top case later.
I also had to replace my helmet, go back to my old coat and order a new Bob’s BMW t-shirt (over-zealous first responders with their scissors…). I’m sure I will continue to find items needing attention for some time but the grand old man is rolling again (Otus, not me).
