By Muriel Farrington #89517
I MET CHRISTOPHER AND BARBARA Betjemann several years ago and knew they restored vintage BMW motorcycles. I also knew Chris was a retired emergency room physician and had transferred his skills of methodology and precision to his love of vintage BMWs, while Barbara, a true part- ner, has worked by his side during their 50 years of marriage. After a visit to their shop, I now know they are the go-to people for all things old BMW motorcycle. After about 20 years of restoration on
their personal machines, they founded Barrington Motor Works, LLC, and have been in the business for 16 years. Bar-
ringtonmotorworks.com gives you a good idea of what they are all about, but I wasn’t prepared for how impressive an operation they run. Add that to the fact that I am not particularly mechanically inclined, and it was a challenge for me to absorb the sights, sounds and volume of information reso- nating within their cozy shop in the woodlands. The shop is located out in the country,
and I enjoyed my ride there on a perfect May day. I found their small cluster of buildings ringing a circular drive, and Chris and Barbara greeted me warmly at the entrance to their shop which was framed in lilacs that were just bursting into bloom. As I entered the shop, I could see a
Granada red R 60 café racer just inside the door; its engine and frame match and once belonged to a Doug Morrison/Phil Rose parts bike. Chris wanted to make it into something fun. It now has Italian Ceriani forks, clip-on handlebars, Suzuki leading- shoe front brakes, a custom-fabricated alloy tank, and part of a rear fender they found while hiking. This project is on Chris’ list for freshening up as soon as time permits. A black 1953 R 51/3 on the lift is in pris-
tine condition. The owner approached Chris to inquire about a restoration. Chris asked if the engine and frame matched and the answer was “Yes.” The bike arrived, and although the engine number did indeed match the frame, the number was on the
Granada red cafe racer.
R 51 /3.
right, which is the wrong side of the engine case – at least until 1955. It was a phony number on a later engine case! Chris and Barbara had a second engine in storage with a serial number showing it had been manufactured two days earlier than the
Left: Lilacs welcome visitors to Barrington Motor Works, LLC. October 2015 BMW OWNERS NEWS 69
frame. Chris’ solution to the phony num- ber problem was to rebuild and install their engine on the customer’s bike. Barbara unveiled a 1950 R 51/2 engine
being rebuilt, the 200th engine built after World War II. Chris explained how the
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