Behold BMW’s Newest Custom, The Blechmann R 18

When BMW finally dropped its long-awaited production R 18 cruiser last April, you could sense that the new machine would spawn a slew of factory-bike-based customs in its wake. Munich didn’t disappoint: Roland Sands’ R 18 Dragster came screaming off the line a couple of weeks back, setting the stage for the second variation on the R 18 platform we’re seeing now: the Blechmann R 18. Once again, the build is a collaboration between the manufacturer and a carefully chosen customizer, one Bernhard Naumann, also known as Blechmann.

Related: Roland Sands Gives Us The BMW R 18 Dragster

Seen from just the front end, this R 18 gives off a kind of performance bagger vibe, but the Austrian builder’s moniker might give you a better clue as to his custom’s focus. Translated from German, “Blechmann” means “tin man,” a not-so-veiled reference to the renowned Naumann’s reputation for shaping metal. So, yes, there’s lots of curvy sheet metal to take in here, but that doesn’t mean Blechmann approaches his custom projects in the usual manner. No preliminary sketches are drawn, and no prototyping or mockups are constructed to clutter the process; it’s all mostly organic. 

“My work begins by removing parts of the original version until a white canvas remains. As the construction progresses, the design develops,” the customizer says.

Related: A Timeline Of The 2021 BMW R 18 Launch

Fortunately for Naumann, the factory R 18′s design is one that relies on classic motorcycle essentials rather than complex formulations, giving the builder freedom to make only subtle changes to the frame and utilizing the original mounting points. Which leads us back to Naumann’s organic process, where he gathers his inspiration and eventual direction for the bike while he’s working on it.

“I draw my design directly on the object using the final material. This allows me to directly respond to the requirements and to keep an eye on the proportions at all times,” the designer explains.

In some cases, that meant working backward toward final fabrications—though the original steering angle strongly influenced the basic layout. To nail the proportions of the hand-formed, elegantly swoopy front fairing, for instance, Blechmann said he at first had to “put the cart before the horse” with the rear fender, seat, and pillion (all of which are based on the original’s supporting structure). The Tin Man then went to work on the fuel tank, extensively modifying it to make it narrower, sportier, and employing knee indents to give it a more athletic emphasis. Together with the lines of the fairing, the effect serves to expose that huge boxer engine even more.

But with that fairing serving as a powerful focal point, not just any headlight would do, so Blechmann customized the headlight frame into a subtle kidney-shaped design with a filament lamp placed squarely in the center, and covered by a one-off Plexiglas lens. For the final touches, Naumann and his crew lavished the skin of this custom with a classic BMW motorcycle paint job, all black and white with white double pinstripes to seal the heritage angle.

But if Blechmann says he usually works alone on his craftsmanship and designs, he also acknowledges that for the final product it takes a village of hand-picked professionals: “You can’t do anything in this world on your own. I am more than glad to have a reliable personnel infrastructure.” In total, Blechmann and his team put in 450 hours to transform a factory R 18 into a piece of rolling art. Clearly time well spent.