19 Vs 18 Wheels (2015)

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jaguar

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I need to changed the wheels on my 850 Commando due to rust.
Got me thinking about swapping to alloy hoops.

Should I get 19s front and rear? 19 front 18 rear? 18s front and rear?

Looking for a more performance oriented set up.
Open to any and all advice.

Thanks
 
18 gets you a wider choice of tyres but 18 both ends seems to cause issues handling wise going by past comments. As the Avon Roadrider is available in the right sizes front and rear for 19 and is an excellent tyre then it would seem a 19 on the rear is not a disadvantage. 19 on the front is even better covered as 19 front wheels are still being used on production bikes. What would be useful is a WM3 or 4 on the rear so the rim fits Avons recommended width of rim as WM2 is not included but I fit them to WM2 anyway as most do.
 
kommando said:
What would be useful is a WM3 or 4 on the rear so the rim fits Avons recommended width of rim as WM2 is not included but I fit them to WM2 anyway as most do.
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What he said...

I laced an 18" WM3 on the rear back in the late 70's when 19" rear tires were pretty much unheard of. That, and I thought it looked cool. Whatever... Running the Avon Road Riders front and rear, and couldn't be happier (with the tires).

Nathan
 
I prefer the handling of a narrower front tire. I usually go with a 90/90-19 or 3.25 on the front. I currently run 110/90-18 on a wm3 on the rear and a 90/90-19 on a wm2 on the front of my '73 850. The bike turns in faster and feels lighter steering to me.
 
So WM2 in the front WM3 for the rear?

No real difference 19 or 18 rear then?
 
jaguar said:
Would you go wider on the front wheel too?
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It pretty much depends on your tyre choice...

I use Avon Roadriders. 100/90/19 front and 110/90/18 rear. The correct rim width for both is 2.50" (but there is a min / max range of widths that are OK according to Avon). Beauty is in the eye of the beholder of course, but to my eye, the 100 / 110 combo looks great, not 'chopper-ish' but nice and purposeful looking. The handling and ride is fantastic.

Interestingly, I had to argue quite strongly and insist on 2.50" rims as the builder was adamant they were too big, even though Avon confirmed their recommendation to him!

They also do similar, but slightly narrower imperial sizes, which use narrower rims.

It is worth noting that a universal tyre has less tread depth than a dedicated rear tyre, so whilst they make great front tyres, they have a short life on the rear.

Lots of info here: http://www.avon-tyres.co.uk/motorcycle/roadrider

Here's mine:

19 Vs 18 Wheels (2015)
 
I have run the Avons on a few other bikes and would defiantly be using them on the Commando.

So now onto choices of alloy wheels.

What have you guys used?
 
I highly recommend Buchanan's Spoke and Rim, and have been happy with their Sun and Excel rims on other non-Norton bikes. This time around I am going to pay the extra $100 bucks to have them polish them. The anodizing is very difficult to remove, so it would be worth every penny. Maybe they would sell a set un-anodized? I was going to ask about that when I get to that point, because polishing just the bare aluminum is fairly easy.
Bill
http://www.buchananspokes.com/
 
FWIW here is a chart showing Avon's recommendations on rim width vs. tire size for the AM26 and they show WM3 as the minimum for a 100/90 tire. Many people run them on WM2 rims but the profile is visibly not right while a 90/90 tire does fit and look right profile wise. (but the 90/90 AM26 is front only, the AM9 universal comes in 4.10-19 and is OK on WM2 per Avon)

19 Vs 18 Wheels (2015)
 
If a Leprechaun snuck into your garage at night and swapped your 19" for a 18", I doubt you would notice the difference riding on the street. Maybe our racer friends could tell once on the track. There is so little difference between the circumference of a 100/90-19 on a WM-2 or WM-3 and a 120/90-18 on a WM-4 rim that it would be imperceptible when riding. I think having a wider footprint on the rear is better. It certainly wears longer.

As for alloy vs. steel, unless you are going for concours condition there should be no question.
 
I have been considering this same dilemma for over the NZ winter next, and think I will be going with Excel shouldered alloy rims + AM26 90/90-19 F and AM26 4.000-18 R. That should give me better options later if I want to shift to BT45s or another tire if the Avons dont suit.
 
I fitted an 18" rim on the back end. The main reason was for greater tread depth. I got sick & tired (HO! HO!) of replacing 100/90 x19" Roadriders every 2700 to 2800 miles. They only come with 5mm tread depth. I believe this is due to their universal fitment. I have just replaced the 4.00X18" RR after 3900 (7.5mm tread depth). The handling between 18/19 rear is no different on my bike . Norman White told me that the best handling road going Commando he had ridden, had 18" front & rear. I might give this a try in the future.
 
Fast Eddie said:
It pretty much depends on your tyre choice...

I use Avon Roadriders. 100/90/19 front and 110/90/18 rear. The correct rim width for both is 2.50" (but there is a min / max range of widths that are OK according to Avon). Beauty is in the eye of the beholder of course, but to my eye, the 100 / 110 combo looks great, not 'chopper-ish' but nice and purposeful looking. The handling and ride is fantastic.
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Your wheels do look good (the whole bike does). Bridgestone BT-45's and Continental Classic Attack's come in 100/90-19 front and 110/90-18 rear sizes as well. I have good experience with BT-45's on two different bikes, but I'm very curious about the radial construction Conti's. I googled for reviews on them and did find some favorable ones from some BMW airhead riders. My plan is to lace up a new front wheel this winter, and I'm really leaning toward putting a Conti on it.
Bill
http://www.continental-tires.com/mo...res/classic-classic-racing/conticlassicattack
 
jaguar said:
I have run the Avons on a few other bikes and would defiantly be using them on the Commando.

So now onto choices of alloy wheels.

What have you guys used?
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Thisi is a pretty good thread: why-light-wheels-make-your-bike-turn-easier-t17454.html

comnoz said:
swooshdave said:
comnoz said:
My preference is Excel rims.

I get them from - http://www.buchananspokes.net/
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What is the weight difference between the stock steel rims and the Excels? Buchanans makes it sound like there isn't much.
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No there isn't a big difference between an Excel and a stock steel. You will notice a difference when you change however. They do make the bike feel lighter. The Excels are about bulletproof.

I will not use the lightweight aluminum wheels anymore [Sun] after jerking the spokes out of one on a rough section of track at PPIR. One time is once too many.

Now if you want a night and day difference try replacing an old pair of SR500 mag wheels with spoke wheels from a TT500. You wouldn't think it was the same bike. It almost transforms them into a decent handling motorcycle. Jim
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I know the hot set up for a CB750 is 18/18, thought the same might hold true for the Nortons.

Not looking for a restoration of keeping it stock.
I want to do meaningful changes that improve how the bike performs.

Buccannons is a name I know, anyone else more "budget" friendly or is it better to just bite the bullet?
 
Central wheel in the UK will save you a few hundred over Buchanan's. I have Sun rims by Buchanan's on a bike, they are nice but so are the flanged alloys from Central. These are like the old Akronts and in fact are made at the original Akront factory in Spain. Central bought the factory, which had been sitting idle for some years.

Glen
 
I bought a set of flanged alloy rims from Central, and quite honestly, was a bit disappointed. Both rims have a noticeable wiggle where the ends have been welded up - probably a mm or so. I wrote to Central about this, but didn't even get a reply :-( It was also annoying that they did not mark the front rim to indicate which was the disc side - a small point, but useful with this extreme lacing pattern.

I could have returned them of course, but they had been sitting for over a year, were slightly scratched from the spokes, and it costs a fortune to return them from Denmark.

I may have been unlucky of course, YMMV
 
My experience with Central Wheel was similar, badly burred holes and a kink where the weld was. So have been using Indian stainless rims where they can be used (not the front disc, only the full width brake hubs) and no worse but 1/2 the price.
 
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