When lab coat clad German engineers crafted the almighty BMW S1000RR little did they know that the custom bike scene would soon take the engineering marvel to another level.
Forget lap times, controlled feedback at maximum lean angles and breakneck top speeds, this stretched special isn't of go-fast proportions. Instead it was built to turn heads and kill the streets. And while Myrtle West wasn't the first to build a custom S1000RR, it is however the first to stuff a 360 rear tire under the tail.
"Instead of the traditional bikes most people associate with customs, we wanted to push it to the next level with something upscale-like the BMW," Jon Martin of Myrtle West said.
This Bimmer was the first of its kind to roll through Myrtle's front doors, but luckily it proved to have a steep learning curve.
Martin told us that the S1000RR wasn't really any harder to build than the Japanese bikes, but that it was just a lot different and took some time to get used to. For example, the bar-mounted switches have computer chip boards inside the housings.
Along with a menagerie of high-tech hardware, the German missile also trades traditional hex-head bolts for Torx heads that are anything but normal to us SAE folks. The DIYers will certainly have a surprise when they realize their toolbox is now inadequate to actually wrench on their new BMW.
Myrtle knew it had a tall order when it began design work on the 360-capable swingarm, and actually shut down other production work for nearly a week to bring all hands on deck to help design, engineer and fabricate the part.
The end result was a 12-over setup tucking a 360 tire that's hung by an AirFX air ride system, and the trio ties up the back end of the BMW nicely.
After the one-off swingarm was finished, the bike was stripped to a pile of parts. Where typically just the fairings would get a spray, this project received a thorough paint job on the engine cases, subframe, swingarm...you get the idea.