There aren’t many new ways left to customize classic R-series BMWs, and that means it’s harder to make them stand out. You either need to build something wild or, like Roughchild Motorcycles of Los Angeles, keep it simple… and extremely tasteful.
Founded by Robert Sabel, the Roughchild team works exclusively on BMWs?and has been doing so for over a decade. They can assemble an airhead with their eyes closed, and they know exactly what mods are ‘must dos.’

A while ago they took a classic BMW R75/5, bored it out, slimmed it down and modernized the running gear. They called it the RSWB, for Reisesport Short Wheel Base, and immediately locked in orders for nine more builds using the same approach.
This is the first one to roll off the bench, and it’s a stunner.
The donor for this project was a 1973 R75/5?but it wasn’t exactly running when it arrived. ?The donor came in as a dilapidated basket case out of the Pacific Northwest,? Robert tells us, ?but it came with a title. The story goes that the seller?s father had stashed two bikes in the basement as restoration projects, and didn?t get to them in time.?
?Everything needed to be rebuilt, and any original parts that weren?t salvageable were replaced with parts from inventory.?

Once the BMW was torn down, Roughchild started by repairing, bracing and de-tabbing the frame. Then they added a subframe of their own design, with a combination LED taillight and turn signals integrated in...