Custom wheel help.

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bwolfie

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I am going to build up a set of lightweight wheels for my alloy bike. What hubs are available. I am fine with 36 spoke wheels. Spokes and rims are easy, it's the hubs that pose the problem. Bearings are easy. I want to eventual do a dual disk on the front. I used a harley hub on my featherbed project, but it seemed heavy. I am fine with a drum on the back, but open to disk options. I will need to retain the cush drive. I know Ludwig has a trick setup. What are racers using? Thanks for the input, Brent

Part of me thinks I should make my own.
 
bwolfie said:
I am going to build up a set of lightweight wheels for my alloy bike. What hubs are available. I am fine with 36 spoke wheels. Spokes and rims are easy, it's the hubs that pose the problem. Bearings are easy. I want to eventual do a dual disk on the front. I used a harley hub on my featherbed project, but it seemed heavy. I am fine with a drum on the back, but open to disk options. I will need to retain the cush drive. I know Ludwig has a trick setup. What are racers using? Thanks for the input, Brent

Part of me thinks I should make my own.
Click to expand...

Did you not see Jeanr last build?
 
swooshdave said:
Did you not see Jeanr last build?
Click to expand...

Drums are not light, big drum even less. If you want lightweight wheels look at motocross wheels, they are maniacs about unsprung weight, you can go even lighter with aftermarket disks.

Jean
 
If ya insist on vintage spoke rims there was only a few years in late 70's that factory bikes had hubs for disc brake, cushion and bolt on sprocket. Not that light compared to the MX craft but less costly. Then there's the solid wheels in various materials as ya can afford.
 
I'm leaning toward modern super moto/dirt stuff. They look uber light and strong. With the new wheels the bike will weigh in right around 300 pounds.
so the MX stuff should be more than adequate. I have some MX friends, I'll have to steal some of their spares for measurement.

I'm at 325 pounds right now with a factory rear drum and RGM floating disc and grimeca caliper. I'm thinking some super light discs and calipers front and rear. Should be great.

Now just to sell my project so I can afford to build these wheels.
 
I used Z1000 wheels on mine with alloy rims disc at rear and twin fronts Im not sure they are as light as the new stuff
 
No longer need to build up wheels, I purchased a pair of Kimtab Magnesium snowflake rims.
 
.........."No longer need to build up wheels, I purchased a pair of Kimtab Magnesium snowflake rims"........Pictures please!! they sound juicy
 
Well done! I believe something very similar was the first
cast wheels I saw back in the 70s and they were shown
in the advert on a Triumph twin.
 
Have you considered the safety aspect of those decades old magnesium wheels? Is is a show bike or will it be given a caning - if the latter, getting some metallurgical checks to establish that they are functionally sound - may be advisable..
 
J.A.W. has touched a serious issue with aged Mg parts, ESPECIALLY wheels. Exam all ya like but thin Mg wheels are not meant for street use with pot holes and lips and lumps and may fracture in flight. I know I couldn't thrust em and here's some reasons why I fear for ya. Mg is one the worse to work on or weld on and once ignited don't use water try to cover in sand if time enough then run like hell as it spreads into explosive furry. Then again is these are major brand DOT road wheels then likely not all that much Mg in them to worry about.

http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/hon ... sage/20125
 
I had a set of 3 spoke Dymags on my T160, and on holiday in Spain the rear split lengthways between two of the spokes. Lucky I noticed it and had to get the bike recovered back to England.
I had no idea how old they were when I got them. I've had better days !
sam
 
Old MG wheels are a very bad idea. I read a interview with Lenno once & he talked about ridding a 70's era 750 SS Duck hard through the canyons up to the Rock store & after parking it he heard a load " clink". A big chunk of the rear wheel just fell off. That & the fire hazard makes them a bad idea for a street bike.
 
I'm just about finished with making bearing carriers and adapters for a friend of mine to fit Kimtab wheels to his Honda 550-4.

Custom wheel help.


Custom wheel help.


We talked about the problem of old mags, so he had them both inspected for cracks before sending them to me, and they passed. He's planning to use them to run the bike at Bonneville. I probably wouldn't use mag wheels for that, but he's comfortable with it. I've run a lot of mag wheels on race bikes, but I think I'd stick to aluminum for the street. Just a personal preference.

Ken
 
Are they true Mg? or some alloy-did the maker provide a material safety sheet document?
I guess you could do an Archimedes displacement test to check - if keen, -EUREKA!
 
As far as I know, all magnesium wheels are some sort of magnesium alloy. Just as all aluminum wheels are some sort of aluminum alloy. Neither pure mg nor pure al would be suitable for wheels.

I have no idea what alloy Kimtab used when they made these wheels back in the 70s. I know Electron was used for some mag wheels in Europe at the time, but I think the Kimtabs were made in the US. Might have been a Mg-Al-Zn alloy that was used for some cast wheels on autos, but could have been any one of a number of Mg casting alloys available at the time. I'm sure they didn't provide MSDS. Those weren't required in the US until OSHA made them mandatory for manufacturers in the mid 1980s.

Ken
 
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