[Steeda]

Okay-- i love the look of the C- im not a fan of the cast wheels though - and am thinking of putting some R spokes on her.

I have 2 concerns im wondering if any R owners can help me with:

1. Maintenance- Are spoke rims a pain in the arse? Any problems using spokes>

2. Balance- Is a spokes wheel more prone to vibration or imbalance? My bike is smooth to 110 + and i want to keep it that way...



THoughts? :choppersm

 

[Retro Rich]

:hmm2: My gut instinct says no, shouldn't be any problem with vibration to my knowledge compared to a cast wheel, especially if you have the wheels balanced properly. I would also think that they would weigh a little less than cast wheels, may give you another mph or so on top end . This will be interesting, first time I've heard of someone changing out wheels to spokes on a C model. One word of advice, your tire choices (brand) are going to be a little more limited on the R/S model wheels (cast or spoke) than they are with C wheels.

Only big complaint I hear about spokes are cleaning them; it's like anything else though, you keep up with them they'll probably continue to look good. Or, you could have them powder coated like Big-X did.

Let me know if you decide to get rid of your C wheels; I'd be interested.

 

[Steeda]

Rich- Are the tires different sizes?

If I do this, you have first crack at the c's

 

[Retro Rich]

Yes, different size tires/wheels than the R. The R/S wheels are pretty much limited to Dunny's on the front, rear is either Dunny or Metz to my knowledge. C's at least allow you to get Avon's if you choose to, might be some others out there as well.

 

[epiphysis]

If Rich isn't interested in the rims......I might be!!!!:bleh:

 

[coley]

In my opinion.....I didn't like the spokes. Hard to clean and Honda doesn't use the best quality metal, so the spokes tend to discolor.....I guess the same as the cast leaves water markes and spots.

On of the first things I noticed when I went from spokes to cast was the ride was a lot smoother. I also heard this from someone else, so I don't think it's just me.

The back tire is the same size, the front is 19" compared to 17" on the spokes.

 

[Toadman]

Spokes do loosen and require occasional wheel trueing. Weight-balanced spoke rims can go out of kilter as spokes loosen over time. Is there a spoke wrench in the R toolkit?

 

[DAR]

Have you thought about chroming your stock rims or buying new chrome aftermarket wheels? Easy to take care of and looks great.

 

[Retro Rich]

That's very interesting to hear about the difference in ride quality between spokes/cast like Coley states. Does make sense though on ride quality, since it should be a "heavier" wheel and smooth things out some. Coley knows what he's talking about, that's for sure so I'd definitely take that word as gold. BTW, no spoke wrench in the R toolkit that I've ever seen/heard of.

Chroming is a good option (but costs some $$), but I've decided against that myself and decided to just polish them up like chrome over this winter. Easier to touch up, and chrome can be nick/scratch prone. Only option you have then...re-chrome. At least with polishing them out, you can get just about the same look (I've seen some that look exactly like they're chromed after polishing) and easy to touch up nicks/scratches just by re-polishing. Just my couple o' pennies.

 

[ibified]

This brings up a question I was thinking about today. Has anyone looked into changing out the stock spokes with something a little flashier? I seem to remember seeing some diamond cut spokes that looked REALLY good on some Harleys. Is anything like that available for us 1300S guys? Also, how much $$$ would we be talking to do that?

 

[Shutterbug]

Here's something else to think about: Spokes require tires AND inner tubes. I've had numerous flat tires in the old days when I had spokes. Only had one flat with a cast wheel in 20 years.

 

[OneDrinkOneDance]

Just remember, if you run spokes you must run with a tube, no more tubeless. Hence, no quick fix with a flat

OneDrinkOneDance

 

[Steeda]

The more i think about it... And the more I Read, the more I want to save my pennies for Some RC Components Rims.

I looked all afternoon and didn't see anyone that made nice spoke wheels for the VTX_ only the ones from American Wire Wheel (a division of Dayton) - and those are all Harley Only Wheels.

Thanks for all the input guys- I appreciate it!

 

[jadams401]

Will VTX 1800S Spoke wheels work?

 

[desert rat]

This is a C mod. thats been spoked with a 140 frount. The set up is stock from the S mod. They were disasembled and the hubs /rims powder coated.

 

[mooneydriver]

Buddy of mine is having a rust problem with his "R" spoke wheels. Wishing you a nice day.

 

[topstring]

Or you could paint them