R100 / Union motorcycle

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" There is much fascination with Bol D’or endurance bikes in the brains of a lot vintage bike enthusiasts. Luke and Mike are included in this lot.

Same old Union formula (sort of). This go around Union focused on what BMW might have done with an endurance racing R100. One of the guys rode with a friend in the early 90s who had an early R100 autobahn police special with a Hienrich tank. The look of that bike played a role in this design. Goal was also to make it ultimately work very well on the street. Contemporary BMWs embrace an asymmetrical world. This asymmetry influenced subtle features throughout the bike. Much work went into making the Showa inverted fork work with the frame and most importantly to Union – the stock front wheel. They thought it was very important that the Akront be retained for quality and spoke pattern match to the rear wheel.

A handformed aluminum tank is the center of the bikes profile. Union always wondered how much the German engineers looked at the main hoops of a featherbed frame. The shape of the tank was in their mind for a Norton frame for a long time. Tank form is dictated by the swooping frame hoops. Knowing that the tank idea would never work with a featherbed - the guys thought the idea was correct for this BMW. A hammer buck was made and all the aluminum panels were shaped and welded in house. Fairing design has some obvious Laverda inspiration. Glass from the Past made the mold and now the fairing is available on their website, in racing form."

-  Union motorcycle