Photo: Granted Photography
That handsome, brown leather upholstery and blue paintwork go together like bread and butter.
There aren’t many people who would have a 1958 BMW R50 customized rather than simply restored, but that’s exactly what Alex had in mind. Although the guy lives in Chicago, he commissioned the project to Analog Motorcycles of Harrison, Tennessee around 2014, and what Tony Prust’s artisans have come up with is worth looking at even today!
Alex wanted a mixture of chunky dual-purpose tires, blue paint, and brown upholstery, though Analog’s makeover goes a lot further than these three aspects. Once the classic Bavarian had been taken apart, Tony began envisioning a selection of billet aluminum parts to replace the weary OEM units.
Among others, he penned a fresh top clamp, modern-looking tank badges, and a stylish taillight assembly, as well as an intricate bracket for the seat. Free Form Design turned the sketches into digital renderings, subsequently having each component CNC-machined out of 6061 aluminum. The new saddle support is particularly interesting, as it rests on a pair of tiny shock absorbers to offer additional comfort.
Having shaped the actual seat out of foam, Analog enlisted the help of Rod’s Designs to get it wrapped in cross-stitched brown leather. Unsprung territory is occupied by stainless-steel spokes and 18-inch aluminum rims from Buchanan, sporting Shinko 705 knobbies on both ends. Up north, we still find the R50’s factory headlamp bracket, but it now looks squeaky clean and is held in place via CNC-milled headlight ears.
Right behind all this equipment, we see a modified handlebar adorned with brown Biltwell grips and a single underslung mirror on the right-hand side. Additionally, there’s more billet hardware to be found out back, in the form of skeletal struts which clasp a custom-built rear fender and the taillight bracket we’ve mentioned earlier.
Tony’s squad fitted a handmade battery tray in between the Beemer’s bespoke fender and stock airbox, then they replaced its ancient wiring and lighting components. In terms of mechanical upgrades, the air-cooled 494cc boxer-twin engine was thoroughly refreshed by Dan Neiner of Cycle Works.
Its carbs got cleaned and tuned, while the exhaust headers were ceramic-coated, treated to internal baffles, and ultimately topped with aftermarket mufflers from Emgo. Analog’s bike-modding surgeons took care of overhauling and resealing the creature’s fuel tank in-house, but the paint job was outsourced to Crown Auto Body and Brando. The former applied that stunning blue base and the latter executed the pinstriping.
Following the project’s completion, this reimagined R50 was aptly nicknamed the Blue Baron, ticking all the right boxes on the design brief originally pitched by Alex. You’d be correct to assume that he was delighted with the way it turned out, though we’ve got no idea how much dough was needed to make it happen.
Alex wanted a mixture of chunky dual-purpose tires, blue paint, and brown upholstery, though Analog’s makeover goes a lot further than these three aspects. Once the classic Bavarian had been taken apart, Tony began envisioning a selection of billet aluminum parts to replace the weary OEM units.
Among others, he penned a fresh top clamp, modern-looking tank badges, and a stylish taillight assembly, as well as an intricate bracket for the seat. Free Form Design turned the sketches into digital renderings, subsequently having each component CNC-machined out of 6061 aluminum. The new saddle support is particularly interesting, as it rests on a pair of tiny shock absorbers to offer additional comfort.
Having shaped the actual seat out of foam, Analog enlisted the help of Rod’s Designs to get it wrapped in cross-stitched brown leather. Unsprung territory is occupied by stainless-steel spokes and 18-inch aluminum rims from Buchanan, sporting Shinko 705 knobbies on both ends. Up north, we still find the R50’s factory headlamp bracket, but it now looks squeaky clean and is held in place via CNC-milled headlight ears.
Right behind all this equipment, we see a modified handlebar adorned with brown Biltwell grips and a single underslung mirror on the right-hand side. Additionally, there’s more billet hardware to be found out back, in the form of skeletal struts which clasp a custom-built rear fender and the taillight bracket we’ve mentioned earlier.
Tony’s squad fitted a handmade battery tray in between the Beemer’s bespoke fender and stock airbox, then they replaced its ancient wiring and lighting components. In terms of mechanical upgrades, the air-cooled 494cc boxer-twin engine was thoroughly refreshed by Dan Neiner of Cycle Works.
Its carbs got cleaned and tuned, while the exhaust headers were ceramic-coated, treated to internal baffles, and ultimately topped with aftermarket mufflers from Emgo. Analog’s bike-modding surgeons took care of overhauling and resealing the creature’s fuel tank in-house, but the paint job was outsourced to Crown Auto Body and Brando. The former applied that stunning blue base and the latter executed the pinstriping.
Following the project’s completion, this reimagined R50 was aptly nicknamed the Blue Baron, ticking all the right boxes on the design brief originally pitched by Alex. You’d be correct to assume that he was delighted with the way it turned out, though we’ve got no idea how much dough was needed to make it happen.
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