The companies Heinrich and Hoske made, as it was called in the 1960s, 'highway tanks'. In the beginning, they only did this for BMWs and sheet steel. But later, like the Dutch E-Glass and, for example, the British Churchgate, they also made tanks with a larger capacity for other brands. Just think of the CB 450 K1 DOHC Honda that we recently had a picture of.
If you find a Heinrich or Hoske tank, then in nine out of ten cases you end up with items made for BMWs.
That the upgrading of those motorcycle tanks was a serious business is clear from the fact that Heinrich and Hoske made tanks with a capacity of almost forty liters. And the makers of those tanks were a few true artisans: Ernst Hoske and Carl Heinrich.
A childhood memory
As an adolescent I was confronted for the first time with such a huge tank when the supplier of my most weekly serving of adolescent motor happiness in the form of the 'Weekblad Motor' had adorned his BMW R60 / 2 with such massive growth. The local entrepreneur had further provided his pride with an E-Glass seat from Rijssen or thereabouts and a couple of Hoske megaphones.
You have to get used to it
An oversized Hoske or Heinrich tank is an 'acquired taste', because at first glance they seem to disrupt the elegant lines of a BMW R50, R60 / 2 or an R69S. But these handmade artworks will become more beautiful the longer you look at them. They add a very special look to every vintage BMW. They also have a functional side because they offer a greater range between tank stops. Because with 40 liters under the cap you can go a long way.
Collectors items
Fuel tanks made by hand by Ernst Hoske and Karl Heinrich are collectors' items nowadays sought after. For me, the angular Hoske tanks are more attractive than the convex Heinrich designs.
Ernst Hoske
Ernst Hoske was born in 1921 in Germany. He was a successful BMW motorcycle racer and rode in the 500cc classes. He later opened a small store and began manufacturing aftermarket gas tanks, seats, exhaust systems and various racing equipment for BMW motorcycles. Hoske's workshop was eventually taken over by Kurt Straubel in 1969. Hoske's son-in-law later inherited the company. Ernst died in 1976. Today the workshop is located in Hameln-Hottenbergsfelda and is a BMW dealer called Fuchs. Reproductions of his famous exhaust pipes are still being made.
Karl Heinrich
Karl Heinrich also designed and produced large BMW fuel tanks from the 1960 years to the 1980 years. He created a large number of different tanks in different sizes. But all those tanks share stylistic similarity because they are formed in a "rounded" way. Heinrich tanks usually have a recess for the brace of the sidecar connection on the bottom right.
Preferably no polyester
There are also many fiberglass-reinforced polyester tanks made for the classic BMWs. They are much cheaper than Heinrich and Hoske tanks, the prices of which can now exceed the 1.000 euro. But don't be too quick with the purchase of such a polyester tank. The polyester resin and the modern gasoline do not go well together. The resin dissolves. The carburetors become dirty and the tank starts to leak.
