As custom BMW boxers go, the BMW R100R doesn’t get nearly as much love as its older siblings?but it should. BMW released it in the early 90s as a road-focused version of the popular R100GS dual-sport, but also as a modern classic of sorts.
With an adventure bike fuel tank and seat, ‘retro’ chrome on the headlight and dials, and classic peanut-style valve covers, the visual mash-up didn’t quite work. But under all that awkwardness lay a rock-solid bike. The 980 cc boxer motor had reached its zenith, plus the R100R came with tubeless wire-spoke wheels and the R100GS’ new-style Paralever swingarm.

This BMW R100R scrambler from Deus ex Machina in Australia proves the stout boxer’s potential. Deus’ French-born head wrench, Jeremy Tagand, has heavily tweaked the R100R while leaving just enough original parts intact to recall the original. A custom bike’s finishes are usually the last thing on the list, but they sat at the top of the brief on this project. Deus‘ client is a jeweler; he was responsible for the copper plating on the frame and the hand-smelted BMW roundels. With that settled, black was an obvious choice for almost everything else.

But this custom BMW R100R is not just about flash. Jeremy dropped a set of YSS internals into the forks to upgrade them and installed an Ikon shock at the back. The stock 18F/17R wheels were wrapped in Continental TKC80 tires for a little go-anywhere appeal, and the OEM Brembo fron...