Everybody knows anything goes when building motorcycles and mixing used segments with new is now standard. But why not consider venturing out into unknown territories and choosing combinations of components that have never ever been mixed in the past? Yeah, many times you'll can bust out the grinder and torch to make both pads fit in, however, when referring to wheels it will require a stack of info, extra care, and some luck.
On our bike build mission we would like some good wheels that were different from others and seemed traditional, but had sound parts and wouldn't explode and kill us when ridden.
We looked for some direction and presented our pals Gary and Dave at Wheel Works a phone call. Acquiring decades of experience in customizing wicked motorbike concepts and custom made bike wheels professionally since 1976, these cowboys have basically done and seen anything and everything related to Harley wheels. As soon as we discussed what we hoped for, Gary and Dave gave us some good tips when looking for vintage and outdated wheels.
They listed us quite a few quick advice a lot of people know already like do not use bent or rusted rims, or ever re-use spokes are a give in. However, these people put some true knowledge on us just like hunting for rims that have not been drilled. This is because every single motorbike has diverse thickness hubs and many already-drilled old MX wheels won't securely work with a lot of chopper hub offsets and widths simply because the spokes are forced in the rim as severe angles. This causes binding, which results in cracked hub flanges and wheels.
Talking about hubs, if you find quite a few old ones, make sure you can still get the appropriate bearings and inner spacers for them or they're every bit as good as a paperweight. When setting up rims for our homemade projects we typically pick a quality pair of stock hubs whatever the year and model merely because alternative parts are around every corner. We also like using the re-pop V-Twin Mfg. hubs with regards to classic style and up to date bearings. Out front if the spool hub should be put into use, we usually always opt for a fresh aluminum or steel unit. The truth is these parts were under significant tension for many years and not made of the best metals to begin with.
As far as spokes go, almost all rims must be refurbished making use of fresh spokes, since even still intact used spokes are stressed from many years of being drawn in one direction and may typically break up when being tightened again during the tuning process. One more thing would be to go with rubbed stainless spokes. They are every bit as good as chrome, but don't get the chrome plating crack off and rust after a while due to the tension they are under.
More on spoke tension; our friends at Wheel Work told us this might be the only biggest part of a wheel project other than getting round. The right tightened feeling will guarantee that your rim is true in two ways: Laterally (sideways) and radial (roundness). The correct spoke tightened feeling is really important with motorbike rims, because of the torque given to the rim through the brakes or engine. Loose spokes over a rim fatigue rapidly and bust, commonly where they connect to the hub. And we don't want that.
Once the wheels are completed and true, they also recommend covering a fresh tire around the refurbished rims. Old tires are normally decayed on the inside and basically when installed to a brand-new rim and fitted with 40 psi or more, they are a ticking time bomb with a blowout being almost always eminent. Also, the rubberized compound applied 40-50 years ago has dried which will deliver limited to no grip at all on the road, wet or dry. Don't worry; you will not have to put on some tires that appear as if they came off a super bike. There are an increasing amount of re-popped old style tires to your ride. They have all of the looks of a vintage tire, but have enhancements in casing elements and perform far better on our present-day road surfaces.
On our bike build mission we would like some good wheels that were different from others and seemed traditional, but had sound parts and wouldn't explode and kill us when ridden.
We looked for some direction and presented our pals Gary and Dave at Wheel Works a phone call. Acquiring decades of experience in customizing wicked motorbike concepts and custom made bike wheels professionally since 1976, these cowboys have basically done and seen anything and everything related to Harley wheels. As soon as we discussed what we hoped for, Gary and Dave gave us some good tips when looking for vintage and outdated wheels.
They listed us quite a few quick advice a lot of people know already like do not use bent or rusted rims, or ever re-use spokes are a give in. However, these people put some true knowledge on us just like hunting for rims that have not been drilled. This is because every single motorbike has diverse thickness hubs and many already-drilled old MX wheels won't securely work with a lot of chopper hub offsets and widths simply because the spokes are forced in the rim as severe angles. This causes binding, which results in cracked hub flanges and wheels.
Talking about hubs, if you find quite a few old ones, make sure you can still get the appropriate bearings and inner spacers for them or they're every bit as good as a paperweight. When setting up rims for our homemade projects we typically pick a quality pair of stock hubs whatever the year and model merely because alternative parts are around every corner. We also like using the re-pop V-Twin Mfg. hubs with regards to classic style and up to date bearings. Out front if the spool hub should be put into use, we usually always opt for a fresh aluminum or steel unit. The truth is these parts were under significant tension for many years and not made of the best metals to begin with.
As far as spokes go, almost all rims must be refurbished making use of fresh spokes, since even still intact used spokes are stressed from many years of being drawn in one direction and may typically break up when being tightened again during the tuning process. One more thing would be to go with rubbed stainless spokes. They are every bit as good as chrome, but don't get the chrome plating crack off and rust after a while due to the tension they are under.
More on spoke tension; our friends at Wheel Work told us this might be the only biggest part of a wheel project other than getting round. The right tightened feeling will guarantee that your rim is true in two ways: Laterally (sideways) and radial (roundness). The correct spoke tightened feeling is really important with motorbike rims, because of the torque given to the rim through the brakes or engine. Loose spokes over a rim fatigue rapidly and bust, commonly where they connect to the hub. And we don't want that.
Once the wheels are completed and true, they also recommend covering a fresh tire around the refurbished rims. Old tires are normally decayed on the inside and basically when installed to a brand-new rim and fitted with 40 psi or more, they are a ticking time bomb with a blowout being almost always eminent. Also, the rubberized compound applied 40-50 years ago has dried which will deliver limited to no grip at all on the road, wet or dry. Don't worry; you will not have to put on some tires that appear as if they came off a super bike. There are an increasing amount of re-popped old style tires to your ride. They have all of the looks of a vintage tire, but have enhancements in casing elements and perform far better on our present-day road surfaces.
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Just be sure to request tips in putting in extra accessories for your bike such as harley hand grips from knowledgeable Harley technicians.
