BMW Collector In Sharon Turns K75 Into Stunning Café Model

SHARON, CT – It’s not a stretch to suggest that Scott Rabeler became a BMW motorcycle enthusiast and collector by happenstance. Had dealers selling other brands been better stocked or shown more interest when he walked in their door, he likely wouldn’t have ended up with a basement workshop and a barn in Sharon filled with eight BMW models, both recent and vintage. 

And he certainly wouldn’t have purchased and customized a 1987 BMW K75 model, creating the one-off café creation that he’s been happily riding round the Litchfield Hills since spring.

It was 11 years ago, a year before retiring as a high school principal, that Rabeler decided to return to street riding after a layoff of two decades. He bought a 2013 Yamaha WR250R dual sport but soon felt the need for a larger model. So, he went shopping. When dealers selling other brands either failed to have a suitable model in their inventory or ignored him because of what he rode in on, he turned to the German brand BMW.

The 64-year-old Rabeler now owns six classic Beemers. In addition to the K75, there’s a 1952 R67/2, a 1959 R60, a 1976 R75/6, a 1980 R80RT police model and a 1991 R100GS. His modern BMWs are a 2018 R1200GSA and a 2021 R18. (He also had a dog named Beemer.)

The K75 was acquired three years ago during the COVID-19 pandemic from a friend in Salisbury. “It was in nice shape. Everything worked on it,” said Rabeler, recalling that it came with another 1987 K75 for parts and enough other parts to fill the bed of a pickup. The tab was $2,000.

“They’re wonderful machines and they’re cheap,” he said of the K75. “I don’t think people value them anymore. They’re really beautiful built bikes.”

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It took Rabeler two years – he took one year off – to turn the K75 into a café model. Its color went from blue to bright red. A custom solo seat with red leather replaced the two-person original saddle. The frame and rims got painted red and the engine went from being silver to black. Forks and front brakes from a 2014 BMW R Nine T also got added, along with LED lights. 

A digital instrument cluster was installed along with a keyless ignition via a CAN Bus that controls the starter, horn, turn signals, and security system. “There’s no key. My phone is my key,” he said, referring to an app on his phone.  A sportier exhaust and rear rack were added, too, the latter “to carry the dog.” 

While Rabeler didn’t disclose how much he has into the revised K75, he acknowledged, “It was a lot more than I planned on spending on it.” 

The café project was a challenge. “It was harder than restoring a bike because with restoring you know exactly what you have to do or you can ask somebody how it’s supposed to be,” he said.

The result is a model that’s “a little more forward than the original, more rider forward” with rearset foot pegs. “I had to move things around a lot. It was fun.”

Rabeler is pleased with his creation even if some other BMW owners have questioned his conversion. 

“I’ve got about a thousand miles on it. It’s a rider. It rides great, with modern suspension,” he said. “I’ve had a few people say ‘You’ve ruined what was a beautiful bike,’ but in my opinion it looked like an old man’s bike.”