Topic: I'm about to buy wheel hoops and spokes. ?'s

[Honda?]

Hey guys. I'm building a bike for the track right now and I have a few questions about the types of wheels I can buy for it and what would be best for track use.



Hoop wise I want to get aluminum wheels around 2.50"x18" front and 3.50"x18" rear. Light weight stuff and whatnot.

What I really need to know is the difference between:

Shouldered/Shoulderless wheels. Pros/Cons + what you recommend
Dimpled/Non Dimpled. Pros/Cons + what you recommend
Deep Drop Center or not? Pros/Cons + what you recommend

Thanks for all of your help!!

-Tyson

[Old Scrambler]

It might help if we knew what type of track racing you are planning on.  If you want to qualifiy for some of the vintage racing, each class will tend to have requirements as to originality or period-correctness. If you are building a track bike for local club racing or just to get started I would go for the most modern rim you can afford.  Be careful about the rim widths to match up with tires for chain and fork clearance issues. 

[Sam Green Racing]

It would also help if we knew what sort of bike. I take it from the 2.50 front that it's a small capacity bike.
If it's classic or vintage, you want to look for aloy flanged rims to keep it looking period.
When ordering rims, you need to tell the supplier the size of the hubs as the angle that the holes are drilled through the rim are different for different sizes of hub.
Lots of people buy second hand rims thinking, because the rim has the right amount of spoke holes they will fit their hub. A rim designed to fit an 8 inch drum brake will be wrong for a 6 inch hub and way out for a small disc braked bobbin.
Give us more details.

Sam.

[Honda?]

I won't have to qualify for any vintage requirements and stuff. Just taking my bike to nearby tracks for fun.

I have a 1975 CB750f and I have not been able to find the max size rim/tire you can fit on my bike. In the FAQ however I have found what metric tires should be matched with what standard sized rims.

I would be buying from Buchanans. They keep wheels in stock and then drill the holes according to your bike hubs. Disc or drum. Number of spokes. and diameter I think. I have disc front and rear and I will be using stock hubs.

  Thanks for the help so far!

[754]

Choose carefully or discuss with Buchanans.. if you get the right rims, your spokes will work, if you dont add 100 per wheel for new spokes..

[Honda?]

I will need new spokes for my front wheel since I will be going from 19" stock to 18" aftermarket. I would like to save some money if I can reuse my rear spokes but I might just buy new for peace of mind.

[MaaseyRacer]

If you are asking about weights of the rims call Buchanans and then post the weights here for future reference. 

[Honda?]

I'm not really worried about the weights. Pretty much no matter what I get it will be lighter than my stock wheels.

What I want to know is the difference in and reasons for getting a dimpled rim vs non dimpled, shouldered vs non shouldered, and deep drop vs non deep drop. Also what would work best on a short 1.5 mile track since I won't be touring or anything on this bike.

[754]

Non -dimpled.. cleaner look for customs

Flanged or shouldered, heavier, and hold water and dirt.

Deep drop, easier tire changing, less clean look.