Nothing Completely Changes A Motorcycle Faster Than A Sick Set Of Decals

There's an inherent emotionality to being a motorcycle enthusiast in the U.S. because these machines are built into the culture as icons of adventure and speed with undertones of danger in a way that cars can't even match. Unlike Europe or Asia, where motorcycles are seen as competent commuters, Americans largely view motorcycles as toys instead of transportation conveyances. Everyone knows that the best toys are the ones that allow you to tinker on them, and even when it's a quick and simple aesthetic change the result can really make an impression. We had a nice and warm sunny day here in Northeast Ohio recently, so I decided to finally get around to installing the decal kits I picked up for my motorcycles. Break out the Goo Gone and an old blow-dryer, it's vinyl time. 

Bradley Brownell

Since I bought this 1996 BMW R1100 GS back in 2021 I've ridden it across the country a couple times, racking up some miles on the competent highway cruiser. I gave the bike some much-needed maintenance, including a new set of hybrid on/off-road tires and a hot G.P.R. exhaust to really wake up the bike's sound. At this point there isn't much on this motorcycle that hasn't been modified, considering the original owner threw the entire Touratech parts catalog at the thing in the mid-1990s. I have loved everything about riding this old machine, but the original 1996 graphics were getting a bit tired. 

Whether it was age, sun damage, or drips of gasoline washing away the factory silver reflective graphics, they'd seen better days. Getting the old decals off was quite easy, as they're about as thick as my thumb nail. Removing the residue left behind by these thirty-year-old decals was actually more labor intensive, as it took a couple of applications of Goo Gone on a shop rag to get it all stripped. Before applying the new decals I gave the bike a wash and rubbed the tank with an alcohol wipe to get rid of anything that might prevent a good stick.

Bradley Brownell

I bought this set of Paris/Dakar decals from Germany on eBay. It's important to know that they're not modeled on anything BMW ever offered from the factory on the R1100 GS. In fact, by 1996 BMW had shifted its Dakar bike to the F650 chassis instead of the trending-larger GS lineup. This M-colors design is based on the earlier air-head R80 GS race bike, but updated to fit the R1100 GS tank. While designed around a white motorcycle, I figured it would look pretty cool on my Kalahari Yellow example, and after a bit of struggling to get them lined up right, my wife and I got them installed and proved I was right. For just under $100 shipped to my door, I was able to completely change the look of my GS in a way that still looks vintage, but not dated like the original decals had become.

If there's one bike I love more than my GS, it's my 2020 Harley-Davidson LiveWire. This is unequivocally the best bike Harley has ever built, and possibly the best bike America has ever built. But it just didn't grab me visually, and I had to change that. When I purchased the bike a couple of years ago, I settled for an example with black plastics at a heavy discount. I was really looking for an orange or electric lime green LiveWire, but it would have been at least a couple thousand extra at the time to get one of the exciting colors, so black it was. I've never been happy with a non-color, so I started looking for ways to change it.

Bradley Brownell

Next I purchased a set of the matte silver and white 2022 model year LiveWire One bodywork, really just the headlight fairing and two "tank" sides. Because LiveWire had spun off as its own company, there was a new graphic package and I thought this would make me happier, but I found the white almost as boring as the black had been. At the same time I bought LiveWire's carbon fiber package, which includes a carbon "speed screen" section of the cowl, a pillion cover, a rear control cylinder cover, a transmission "accent cover," and a carbon applique for the top of the tank, and installed a tail tidy kit from Motobox to move the license plate up and delete the rear wheel fender. This cleaned up the bike's look a lot, but nope, this wasn't exactly it, either.

Bradley Brownell

Once I figured out that the bike needed some color, I talked to my painter and asked if he could do a quick three-piece paint job for me while he was in the middle of my 996 Turbo color-change project. Ever the Porsche fanatic, I settled on Porsche GTS Red for my LiveWire's bodywork, while keeping the front fender gloss black for a bit of contrast, and I didn't want to draw that much attention to the fender anyway. That extra pop of color really makes this bike look a whole lot better, in my eyes. Without any logos, though, how was anyone supposed to know I was cranking an authentic electric hog?

I eventually found a simplified bar and shield graphic that I liked on Etsy in an appropriate four-inch by five-inch size. If you have a vinyl cutter at home, you could plot this out and do it yourself for way less, but I don't, so I paid about $35 for two of them shipped to me. I'll take that trade-off. I spent way more than that on the paint anyway.

Bradley Brownell

There's a lot to be said for doing some quick aesthetic-only modifications. Not only does the updated look make me excited to get out and ride these bikes, but I'm happier to show them off, too. If the bike is already killer to ride and you have fun with it, why not make it your own with some simple and relatively easy modifications? If you're getting bored with your bike, don't sell it to get something new, the economy is way too turbulent for that. Instead, spend a few bucks on a new array of decals or a carbon fiber accent kit or something. It'll get you jazzed about your bike again, and it's a whole lot cheaper than whatever you'd spend at the dealer for a new ride. Just keep it classy and time-period appropriate, and you'll never go wrong.

Plus new decals on a bike add at least 15 horsepower, don't you know?