In 1990, Marcus Walz established WalzWerk Motorcycles in Schwetzingen, Germany. The custom shop originally specialized in Harley-Davidson customs, riding the custom chopper fad of the aughts to great success. By 2012, Walz turned his attention to the budding café racer trend and home country OEM BMW with his Schizzo project.
Ever since, WalzWerk has become synonymous with the nostalgic yet minimalist style. With more than 30 years under its belt, the garage recently undertook its 1,000th motorcycle project. In true WalzWerk fashion, the team bestowed its trademark style on a 1990 BMW R100RS.
Gallery: WalzWerk Motorcycles: 1990 BMW R100RS
Giving the birth-year Beemer its proper dues, the custom shop first stripped down the old sport-tourer. The builders lopped off needless frame tabs, sandblasted the structure, and re-welded all the critical joints. Walz maintained the model’s 1,000cc capacity but updated the boxer’s crank, heads, ports, and valves. A racing-oriented cam, electronic ignition, and Dell’Orto carburetors now push the engine to 85 horsepower.
WalzWerk placed just as much emphasis on the boxer’s exterior, bead-blasting and clear-coating the unit for an immaculate finish. Contrast-cut black valve covers add an extra touch of class while a custom two-into-one stainless steel exhaust system streamlines the silhouette. New internals and progressive springs now bolster the front end, but a YSS Suspension Sidewinder kit governs the rear.
“I got the very first kit for this special bike,” Walz told BikeExif. “Up to today, this is still the first and only bike worldwide with this kit installed.”
Up top, a modified 1970s Honda CB fuel tank, a Harley-Davidson fairing, and WalzWerk’s trademark GT seat elevate the project. That saddle rides atop the shop’s proprietary subframe, but there’s more where that came from. The 18-inch wheelset, brake discs, calipers, and rear-set controls also hail from WalzWerk’s catalog.
The finishing touches include CNC-machined triple trees, clip-ons with Daytona grips, KustomTech levers, and integrated push buttons along with a Motogadget speedo. More than 30 years and 1,000 builds in, it looks like WalzWerk Motorcycles is here to stay.
