Parrothead Jeff & Friends

Yeah, I know it’s been a while since I’ve posted anything but I figure y’all will understand.  I finally had something really worth posting for a change, so I figured I’d do it while I had a few moments

BMW Motorcycles of Las Vegas held an open house yesterday with free food and drink, free dyno runs,  a raffle, plenty of cool old bikes, great vendors, and lots of great people   I wasn’t about to miss out on a fun time like this

28 April 2012 - 1969 BMW with a sidecar

28 April 2012 - 1969 BMW with a sidecar

28 April 2012 - 1950 BMW R5 1/2

28 April 2012 - Unknown vintage BMW motorcycle

28 April 2012 - Unknown vintage BMW motorcycle

28 April 2012 - Unknown vintage BMW motorcycle

 If you like vintage BMW motorcycles, this was the place for you to be yesterday   I really don’t know all that much about these specific bikes, but if you’re interested there’s a great documentary here

28 April 2012 - My V-Star 650 Classic on the Dynojet mobile dynomometer

28 April 2012 - Horsepower and torque curves for my V-Star 650 courtesy of Dynojet

28 April 2012 - Horsepower and torque figures for my V-Star 650 courtesy of Dynojet

 I’ve wondered for quite some time just how much horsepower my V-Star has.  There are no factory figures published anywhere that I can find and everyone else has just been guessing.  Some thought it might be mid 40′s.  Turns out it was quite a bit less than that.

The averages for the three runs were 33.62 HP and 34.1 lb-ft of torque.  I’ve only had 33 HP hauling my 550+ pound motorcycle and my substantial posterior everywhere 

I actually had a pretty good laugh at myself over this because I’d been worried before I got a motorcycle that the 423 pound (with fuel etc.) G650GS only has 50 HP and I thought that might not be enough

28 April 2012 - BMW R1200C

 An “R” designation on a BMW motorcycle means that it has a horizontally opposed, two cylinder engine with a shaft drive to the rear wheel.  They’ve been making this type of engine since the very beginning just after WWI.  Over the years, there have been several different styles of bikes with this powertrain and some have lasted longer than others.  The most popular is the R1200GS which is a dual sport on and off road bike.  They also currently make a sport tourer called the R1200RT and a roadster which is the R1200R.

The R1200C was dropped from the lineup a few years ago with BMW citing the unsuitability of the engine for the cruiser tastes in the U.S.  They’re not too expensive (relatively) on the used market and I’d really like to have one someday

28 April 2012 - Advertisement on the Dynojet mobile dyno truck

28 April 2012 - Dynojet mobile dyno truck

 I did remember to get a couple of pics of the Dynojet setup!  Really, these guys are great

28 April 2012 - Akrapovic Morsus custom motorcycle

28 April 2012 - Akrapovic Morsus custom motorcycle

28 April 2012 - Yours Truly on the Akrapovic Morsus

 Last, but certainly not least was a surprise to me.  Akrapovic is a European exhaust manufacturer.  They mainly make systems for sport bikes, but have branched out recently to make systems for bikes like Harley Davidson and the BMW K1600GT and GTL.  They showed up to show off the new products and they brought a treat for everyone in attendance.

The Morsus is a custom motorcycle that Akrapovic commissioned a while back which won quite a few awards.  I’d seen pictures of it online and even the video above, but I never thought I’d see it in person so I was very happy to have this opportunity

That’s all for now, but I’ll try to post more soon.  Have a great day everyone

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