We thought we were tired of seeing classic BMW boxers with skinny seats, but as it turns out, we were wrong. Bolt Motor Co. have just delivered an ultra-sharp bobber-cafe hybrid—and even though it treads familiar ground, it operates at a higher level than most bikes of this style.
It’s the sort of quality we’ve come to expect from Bolt. If you’ve followed their career up until now, you’ll know that they’re related to the Campos Racing team—Adrián Campos is the race director and also runs the custom shop, and the companies share a workshop. And the skills applied in the racecar division clearly bleed into their classic custom bike builds.
Stylistically, this airhead is one hundred percent what Bolt’s client ordered. “The owner wanted a very low cafe racer, with a bobber style seat,” Adrián tells us. “Classic but with a modern touch.”
“He had really clear ideas, and all the examples he sent us were boxer BMWs.”
Bolt managed to source a 1977 BMW R100 RT in tiptop shape, which meant there was very little restoration work to do. After a service with a new set of gaskets and seals, plus a fresh coat of engine paint, they got cracking on the fun stuff.
A big part of getting the look right involved massaging the stance of the custom BMW. So Bolt installed a set of K100 forks, shortening them by 100 mm in the process. Then they fitted custom-built Hagon shocks out back.
A pair of 16” rims were laced up to the OEM BMW hubs, and wrapped in classic Avon treads. The original rear drum brake is still in play, but the front’s had a huge upgrade by way of a twin Brembo arrangement.
There’s some neat detail work here too, with custom adaptors, Bolt logos cut out of the rotors, and color-coded brake lines.
Bolt built a new subframe, deleted the passenger pegs and added new rider peg mounts and Tarozzi rear sets. They topped it off with a super-slim seat, and embedded a small LED taillight in the rear loop. There’s a custom made license plate bracket lower down, which also hosts a pair of teeny Motogadget turn signals.
There’s an LED headlight up front on a custom mount, and Motogadget turn signals in the bar ends. The digital speedo’s from Motogadget too—embedded in a custom made top yoke.
The cockpit’s finished off with TRW clip-ons, Biltwell Inc. grips, a new throttle and new levers. Bolt installed Motone switches too, and even safety-wired the grips.
The crew also poured plenty of hours into under-the-hood work. There’s an all-new wiring harness, built around a Bluetooth-capable Motogadget m.unit blue controller, and an electronic ignition.
Most of the important bits are hiding under the BMW’s stock fuel tank, attached to mounting points that were welded to the frame. Bolt also installed a Lithium-ion battery from Ballistic, and stuck it in a hand-made box under the swing arm mount.
A pair of K&N filters handles intake duties, while custom-bent exhaust headers, running into a Spark silencer under the seat, expel the gasses. (It’s a similar setup to the one on their last BMW build, a street scrambler.) Bolt made a pair of heat shields on the sides, and added insulation to the seat’s underbelly to help it stay cool.
And since the headers run near the old airbox, there’s nothing inside it—the team simply kept it there to help visually round off the motor.
As with all of Bolt’s builds, there’s not a hair out of place, or an inch of the BMW that hasn’t been considered. The paint scheme is stellar too—a stylish combination of black, brushed silver and red, carried through to the rims and contrast stitching on the saddle upholstery.
According to Adrián, the customer is as proud as punch of his new ride. And why wouldn’t he be? This custom BMW is so slick, it gets a free pass from us on the skinny seat.
Bolt Motor Co. | Facebook | Instagram | Images by Mario Rodrigo
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