San Jose fork brace: what the heck do I have?

[vanzen]

Stands to reason that a later cat would have more brace options,
as changes to models were made through the years,
and SJ wanted to cover all of the airhead bases, eh ?

I do remember that the "one-piece" style was first introduced to accommodate the forks w/Brembo calipers.

ANY after-market fork brace will require owner / installer adjustment to fit correctly –
ANY after-market fork brace that is fitted without this personal involvement
is a recipe for stiction.

[CVA-42]

Okay, y'all got my curiosity up. I went out and took another look at the brace on the R100 and it does have the wider barstock braces between the hoops. I pulled out two CC Products catalogs that I got from Competition Accessories way back when - - one from '92 and one from'93. They both show a picture of the brace that Tim has but they both say "available in many special models to fit almost every BMW twin". $59.95 in '92 and $69.95 in '93. A few months ago I saw a set of the hoops on eBay - - no braces, just the hoops. Didn't go for them because I wasn't sure what they would fit. Now I realize they were probably CC.

[Deleted User 62]

Wasn't CC Products the R&D side of San Jose BMW, or were they separate entities?

[Littleleroy]

I don't know the compele and technical history, but for practical purposes, they are the same. Back in the 70s, people referred to San Jose BMW when talking about these performance upgrades.

[Major Softie]

Yeah, I believe they started out as one in the same, and then they were split apart to sell one or both.

[wirewrkr]

Okay, Okay, I'll give a brief history, just so these silly theories can get laid to rest.
C.H. worked at SanJose Bmw for many years in the service department, then service manger.
Then he left San Jose BMW, went out on his own, and started CC Products.
Many years passed and one day SJBMW was up for sale.
So, He and his wife bought it.
They still own it today. Their oldest son W.H. is now in the service department, and I suspect the torch will pass to him someday.
He is a very good mechanic, and is a very good rider.
The fork braces fit fine if your forks were straight and you followed instructions to the letter. Some folks had bent forks and some were not as mechanically inclined as they thought they were.
The two piece hoops were ( IIRC) made by Luftmeister.

[Roy Gavin]

Flatracer have four types picture here http://flatracer.com/#/bmw-package-deals/4538147751

[vanzen]

...
The fork braces fit fine if your forks were straight and you followed instructions to the letter. Some folks had bent forks and some were not as mechanically inclined as they thought they were.
The two piece hoops were ( IIRC) made by Luftmeister.

Following the instructions to the letter:

The instructions that I have on hand from a two piece Lufty set of braces intended for a '78 clearly states
that the hoops must be fitted precisely to the individual fork set –
bent or shimmed so that the hoops do not introduce any stress into the forks system
and that this process is a necessary part of a proper installation.

The later CC products cats touted that their part:
"does not require shimming and will not distort fork tubes !"
If you want to believe that and simply slap them onto your forks ...
So be it.

Even when assembling stock forks with stock parts –
I will test the system as each component is added and torqued
to be assured that no static friction is introduced by that part.
I certainly have seen enough stock BMW sheet-metal braces
that have been distorted from riding and causing stiction ...

Assembling stock forks without concern for proper technique and sequence
is another sure recipe for a suspension that behaves badly.
Careful attention to proper technique and sequence always results in a smoother more capable system –
with no other "changes" being made !

[Major Softie]

Okay, Okay, I'll give a brief history, just so these silly theories can get laid to rest.

Hey, mine was hardly "silly," it was simply exactly backwards.

[Deleted User 62]

Flatracer have four types picture here http://flatracer.com/#/bmw-package-deals/4538147751

Thanks Roy, but none of those pictures match mine. I've emailed SJ BMW, maybe they can tell me what it is.