Topic: best handling

[tinyrobot]

Yeah, I don't run a speedo.  Besides the speeding ticket will tell me how fast I was going j/k

[wannabridin]

well from the looks at it, i'm at 19" up front and a 16" in the rear.  i checked it last night, and unless my eyes were totally deceiving me, it's a 16".  it's a '76 K model, but i'll go downstairs and double check everything here in a minute.  thanks for the info so far!  i figured it would help the turn in feeling and quickness of steering. 

so in addition to this, if i have to get new rims and spokes, i probably will since there's quite a bit of rust and pitting on the rims and spokes i think the shouldered aluminum rims and some stainless spokes will be in order.  any tricks and tips for lacing the wheels to add some strength?  or should i just give buchanan's a call and tell them to hook me up and drain my wallet?  haha!

oh ya, what's a good rule of thumb for selecting a tire.  i think i want to get a vintage looking tire with raised white letters.  what is an ideal rim width front and rear and what tire sizes, respectively?  thanks again guys, this is SUPER helpful!!!

[wannabridin]

so i have a 130/90 16 on the rear and a 100/90 19 on the front.  so 16 and 19, looks like i'll need 2 new rims to maximize my handling huh?  WOOOOO, more money!!! :-D

[wannabridin]

bump??

[fishhead]

JMO.....

 Use the 16/19 combination and see how you like it. What some people prefer maybe a weird/stupid choice in other peoples eyes.
  Then, if you dont like it, go with the rim change(s)(look for some wheels on feebay in the meantime). You may find that the 16/19 suits you just fine.

  Buchannons and the wallet drain would be the quickest route.

[Ecosse]

and if you want to go with 19/16 i think early gl's have that. you could use just the rims and i think they're aluminum.

please correct me if i'm wrong. 

[wannabridin]

and if you want to go with 19/16 i think early gl's have that. you could use just the rims and i think they're aluminum.

please correct me if i'm wrong. 

i think i've heard that as well.  and if found some GL wheels, then i could use their center hubs for my GL front end swap.  see, the 18/18 makes sense to me, getting both gyroscopic effects to be equal and negating any differences between front and rear.  now why did Honda make the rims 3" apart in size?

[Ecosse]

and if you want to go with 19/16 i think early gl's have that. you could use just the rims and i think they're aluminum.

please correct me if i'm wrong.  

i think i've heard that as well.  and if found some GL wheels, then i could use their center hubs for my GL front end swap.  

couldn't be too hard to find, right?  

see, the 18/18 makes sense to me, getting both gyroscopic effects to be equal and negating any differences between front and rear.  now why did Honda make the rims 3" apart in size?

pay back for the 'a' bomb? that and the crap factory radio in my civic.  

one reason for differing tire/ wheels is differing loads and static weight bias. or looks. 

[ColinMc]

The GL are not 19/16...the rear is 17 I believe. I'll double check though since mine is the GL complete front wheel, and a GL rear aluminum rim laced to a CB750K rear hub.

[wannabridin]

The GL are not 19/16...the rear is 17 I believe. I'll double check though since mine is the GL complete front wheel, and a GL rear aluminum rim laced to a CB750K rear hub.

thanks!!  it'll be interesting to see what my other, cheaper, options are...

so what's a way to stiffen things up without getting new shouldered rims?  will stainless spokes on stock rims help out at all?

[tinyrobot]

the GL is an 18" rear

[ColinMc]

the GL is an 18" rear

Yup, sorry i didn't verify earlier...beat me to it lol. The GL1000 rear rim is indeed an 18" and the nice aluminum DID one just like the front GL rim of course 

[wannabridin]

the GL is an 18" rear

Yup, sorry i didn't verify earlier...beat me to it lol. The GL1000 rear rim is indeed an 18" and the nice aluminum DID one just like the front GL rim of course 

and pics of this setup?  i guess i need to figure out if going with a GL wheel is worth it over DID wheels.  brain fart, but how many spokes do we have front and rear on the 750K hub?  i mean i dont think it would be that big of a deal spending a little extra for a nice wheel setup. 

any input for lacing and balancing wheels at home?  i plan on running dyna beads so i can avoid paying to balance the wheels.  this means you MCRider, Lord knows how many times you've done this!   

[wannabridin]

so i found some '75 and '76 front and rear GL wheels, and the front is a 19" and the rear is a 17", so what's the deal with that?  

front:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1976-Honda-GL1000-Gold-Wing-Front-Wheel-Tire-19x1-85_W0QQitemZ370287456088QQcmdZViewItemQQptZMotorcycles_Parts_Accessories?hash=item5636da2f58

rear:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1976-Honda-GL1000-Gold-Wing-Rear-Wheel-Tire-17-x-2-50_W0QQitemZ320446276004QQcmdZViewItemQQptZMotorcycles_Parts_Accessories?hash=item4a9c1621a4

i'm confused now....  i mean $60 is a decent deal for a rim, hub and rotors.  i'd need new spokes and bearings.  and the rear is $60 as well, so i'd be looking at $162 shipped for everything, opinions?

[fishhead]

The stock GL1000 rear wheel is 17 inch/front wheel is 19 inch.  I have seen Lester wheels for the GL1000 in 18 inch (front and rear).
 The GL front wheel uses the same hub as the CB 750 and will interchange. The aluminum GL wheel is lighter than the CB steel wheel.

[eurban]

As Fishead says, spoked wheel GLs (75,76,77?) use 19" front rim and a 17" rear.  These are identical in size and width to the rims used on the 77 and 78 750Ks but are alloy rather than chromed steel.  They are DIDs rims with 40 spokes.  Here's a pic although the bike has an entire GL front on it . . . .

[Quorthon]

I have a friend who runs digital bicycle speedometers on all his bikes.   Just stick the magnet on the spokes.  It looks really clean and he says it works well.   Any of you guys tried this?

[wannabridin]

I have a friend who runs digital bicycle speedometers on all his bikes.   Just stick the magnet on the spokes.  It looks really clean and he says it works well.   Any of you guys tried this?

there's plenty of people who run this, just try a search.  it's a very useful tool

[Quorthon]

Why search when I can just ask the same question that has already been asked hundreds of times!?

[Ecosse]

 
as for the bike speedo check your laws; some states don't allow it.

[wannabridin]

i've used one on an old 600 f3 i had, set up as a street fighter.  i had to buy some rare earth magnets, as the kits magnets weren't strong enough to cause a reliable and accurate pickup signal.

but now to bring this thread back on topic, what kinds of problems are stainless spokes and aluminum rims going to cause?  sure the increase on handling would be very nice, but would i have to worry about a lot of galvanic corrosion due to dissimilar materials?  i know it won't be a lot, but for those that have this set up, have you noticed any problems?  thanks!

[MCRider]

i've used one on an old 600 f3 i had, set up as a street fighter.  i had to buy some rare earth magnets, as the kits magnets weren't strong enough to cause a reliable and accurate pickup signal.

but now to bring this thread back on topic, what kinds of problems are stainless spokes and aluminum rims going to cause?  sure the increase on handling would be very nice, but would i have to worry about a lot of galvanic corrosion due to dissimilar materials?  i know it won't be a lot, but for those that have this set up, have you noticed any problems?  thanks!

I built and ran Borrani on front, Akront on rear rims and Buchanan spoked wheels in 1980. Put 50,000+ on them in all kinds of weather. Parked it in 1995. Sold the front rim and spokes disassembled to Terry in Australia last year. Sold the rear rim and spokes to a guy in NJ.

Never any problems. They never needed retruing. Came apart easily.

[wannabridin]

sweet deal then.  hopefully with about $450-500, i can have buchanans get me a set of rims and spokes.  now would it be worth it to lace and true them up myself, being as i've never done this before, or should i send them my hubs and have them do this for me?  i just want to get the damn bike back on the road, but i know i'll have a lot more surprises for me once i start tearing into this.  i hope to have a nice detailed build thread one of these days...

[MCRider]

sweet deal then.  hopefully with about $450-500, i can have buchanans get me a set of rims and spokes.  now would it be worth it to lace and true them up myself, being as i've never done this before, or should i send them my hubs and have them do this for me?  i just want to get the damn bike back on the road, but i know i'll have a lot more surprises for me once i start tearing into this.  i hope to have a nice detailed build thread one of these days...

Their labor is very reasonable I think, so if expedience is the priority I'd have them do it. It will be right, likely forever.

It is one of those skills which most humans can master and is very fulfilling. But being your first you'll be doing a lot of posting (there is a very good tutorial from a member in the FAQs) and you may feel the need to buy a truing stand for 60 to $150. Tho it can be done on the cheap using your own swingarm and such.

[wannabridin]

i'd rather learn myself, as it can be a very rewarding skill to possess i believe.  and i have a bunch of harbor freight coupons to use for 20% off, and i've heard decent things about their stand.  then it's just a matter of overcoming my ADD and biting the bullet and just doing the dang thing!  then in order to keep the powdercoat/paint on the rims, i'll run some dynabeads.  i've read good things about those on here. 

now what about tire choices...  if i go with 18's front and rear, what width rims should i get, and consequently, what size tires??  also, what is a good tire with the raised white letters?  i think that's a pretty timeless look!!