Brunhilde's progress

Who (or what) is Brunhilde                                                                Return to index Page

Brunhilde is my current project bike. She is a 1976 BMW R60/6. I bought her in Mid July. She was 'taxed and tested' and in running order... indeed I rode her for a couple of days... but my intention was, and still is, to restore her to near showroom condition. Once complete, she will be my day to day commuter and will take a bit of the strain off 'Shadow', my BMW R100RS, which is clocking up the miles at an alarming rate. When the restoration is finished, my next project is intended to be the restoration of 'Shadow' to a similar condition. If, that is, something else doesn't come along first.

 

 

Why Brunhilde?

Brunhilde (Brunhilt, Brünnehilde, Brynhild)
is a heroine from Germanic legend (Notably the Ring saga). She was an Icelandic Princess, imprisoned in a ring of fire by ODIN, she was rescued by and became the lover of the Hero Seigfreid (Sigurd). She subsequently killed herself on discovering that Sigurd had betrayed her with another woman (Gudrun) not knowing that he had been bewitched into doing so by the witch Grimhild. (Boy that's some excuse!)

 
There's also a historic reference but that's a bit more mundane try.. http://womenshistory.about.com/library/bio/blbio_brunhilde.htm

So why call a motorbike Brunhilde...

I haven't been able to find a translation for Brunhilde but it doesn't take a lot of imagination to see it as Brown Hilda. The colour of the paintwork on the bike is a sort of metallic brown so, what with that and the German connection, It seemed like a good name for a German Bike. 

The purpose of this Web Page is to chronicle the progress of the restoration.  The page will be set out in table form and will be updated periodically with progress to date. There will also be links to photo albums where appropriate.
Date Observations Work completed
16/7/03

Bike purchased and ridden home, around 30 miles. Bike is fitted with 'horrible' aftermarket mini-windscreen. Trip meter does not work. Steering lock is jammed. No front brake lamp switch fitted. Steering damper not working correctly (appears to be always partly on). Otherwise bike performs satisfactorily at all reasonable road speeds. No apparent handling problems. Trace pinking under load.

Windscreen removed.
17/7/03 Bike ridden on local journeys and daily commute. No further apparent problems

Reference photos taken                                           Initial reference Photos prior to disassembly
26/7/03 Update. Initial problems noted while riding addressed. 1) Speedo assembly dismantled. Trip meter was jammed, gear loose on Odometer shaft, square section on reset shaft broken off... Dissasembled, cleaned, repaired and reassembled. Now works satisfactorily

2) Steering lock removed. Broken key extracted. Now works perfectly with ignition key

3) Steering damper dismantled. Was incorrectly assembled. Put right. Now works correctly.