About R90X

It's got to STOP!

   I have been riding, repairing and improving vintage BMWs and other motorcycles for over 30 years.  My love for the simple yet durable Airhead and my appreciation for the community that rides them is key to inspiring this endeavor. 

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   When I bought my first R90/6 airhead over 30 years ago it had a single 260mm front disk brake with a single piston ATE caliper. This probably seemed great in 1975, but proved sketchy at best for twisty mountain road riding and added to the aggravation of navigating every day city traffic. Too many deer + back bumpers + cell phone zombies = too many close calls!

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  In the late 90's I upgraded to BMW's solution....dual front 260mm rotors and ATE calipers from the legendary R90S.

Now I had 2 pistons and twice the disc surface. Guess what?  Braking improved dramatically! I rode it this way for over a decade. There were far fewer "close calls."  But, I still wasn't able to unleash my potential or the hidden capabilities of this machine while covering the brake lever with four fingers every time things got interesting. The brakes were better, but still a far cry from great. 

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   In 2014 I decided to make something that had been milling around in my head for a few years. When I first saw a radial caliper on a modern bike I immediately saw it's potential.  Axial mounted calipers would be next to impossible to mount to 1975 airhead forks, but the symmetrical radial calipers seemed like an obvious solution. The OEM mounting ears for the swinging ATE calipers run exactly 90 degrees from the axle and are perfectly centered. With a small modification to the fork leg an adapter could be made to mount a modern 4 piston caliper. With the use of a hub adapter, large 320 to 330mm floating rotors could be installed. 2 finger braking becomes a reality!

    I have not quit with the upgrade of the early disc brake airheads.  I will not be satisfied until I have created something for all of the 1973 to late 90's flat twins ...and beyond.

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