There is already a thread on this subject. You might start by looking at that.

I have done the "fairing-ectomy" on my 1984 R80RT, and although not difficult, there are a few parts you'll need to acquire in order to do it.

If the '86 is generally similar, then at a minimum you need headlight ears for the forks, along with the rubber parts to mount them, as well as turn signals and the stalks to mount them on. The ignition switch can be removed from the fairing, unplugged from the connector board in the headlight shell, and re-used with the correct fork ears and headlight shell/hardware, to mount it on the left side of the headlight as done on stock bare "R" bikes. The main wiring harness has an extension section that goes to the fairing, which can be unplugged and removed, but you will need to add front turn signal wiring, which runs through the fork ears into the T/S stalks.

There are other issues, such as front brake line routing/mounting, etc.

Steevo- Thanks for taking the time to reply and provide some insight. Really appreciate all the detail. The reason for even considering this is that the fairing is bent/out of alignment and off center after the previous owner dropped the bike so it causes the bike to lean and be weighted to one side on the road. Nothing I can't live with, just more annoying than anything. I actually took the bike to Max BMW in NH upon purchase to see if they could straighten up the fairing supports but they were not able to.
Thanks again for the info. Very helpful.

You might try Re-Pscyle in Ohio, or e-bay to find the parts you need. I had an R100RS with the same issue. It had been dropped and the whole fairing shifted to the left about as far as it could go without interfering wit the handle bar. I ended up with w serviceable fairing bracket that was not bent after a few weeks of scouting on e-bay. I know that Mark at Re-Pscycle has a trove of airhead parts. He used to advertise in Airmail. Another source would be Galen Parry who lives in Indiana. His operation is known as Perry's Beemer Exchange. Unfortunately, I can't find Galen's card at the moment.

Thanks so much for the suggestion. I'll definitely look into that. I appreciate your help.

Hello. Since you've done this already, wondering if you can provide more insight into the actual job- Once I locate a fairing bracket that's not bent, how difficult a job is it to replace the existing one? I'm assuming I'd have to break down the whole fairing, as well as the ignition and turn signal wiring harnesses since they're attached to the fairing and then reinstall everything? I'm just getting back into motorcycling after a 25 year break, have zero 'wrenching' experience on bikes and this is my first Airhead. I'd like to learn and am anxious to dig into it, but just want to make sure it's not too big a job and that I don't get in over my head the first time out. Thanks in advance for any insight.

The RS is not exactly the same with regard to mounting points, but not too different either. The way I did the job on my bike is as follows.
First, I took off the lower fairing parts. Then I removed the turn signals, key switch, clock and voltmeter. For the turn signals, clock, and volt meter you will have to pull the wiring connectors after those parts are loose, so be sure to make good notes about what color wire goes to what terminal. The retaining ring on the main key switch will be a challenge unless or until you find the pin wrench with the correct span to loosen it. When the retaining ring is off, you should be able to push the switch body backward thru its hole without pulling wires loose from the switch.
There are 6 screws/bolts holding the fairing on to the bike. 4 on the front bracket, and 2 more on the rear bracket that protrudes from under the fuel tank. The main fairing should lift off when the 6 bolts are out. A second set of hands is necessary for this operation. Since my goal was a different fairing to install, I took the headlight lens, gasket, etc, off the fairing befor removal, but you may not have to do that. The headlight is mounted on the front fairing bracket and is not attached to the fairing itself.
The front bracket has 2 short bolts holding it on to the steering head. Getting these bolts started in is kind of challenging
Re-assembly would follow the removal operation in the reverse.
If you are not very experienced with wrenching, why not try to find a helper in your geographic area using the dAIRectory?

Thank you so much for taking the time to provide all the detail. I really appreciate it. Very helpful.