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Message started by Dejan on 06/10/22 at 07:30:50

Title: Rear wheel mods
Post by Dejan on 06/10/22 at 07:30:50

This is my first post. I am looking to turn a just acquired '06 cruiser into a more standard setup - not necessarily cafe. An 18" rear wheel seems the normal recommendation. Can anyone with experience or insight see any reason to NOT use a 19" rim for the rear wheel (its what I have - off a Royal Enfield Bullet)? Thanks, Dejan

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by Ruttly on 06/10/22 at 08:33:27

An 18” hoop requires swingarm to be altered , a 19” hoop and tire might not make it. But good luck with it. I think front & rear 19”” would make my tracker look sharp , but I’m happy with 18”. A set of 17” might make it look like a Grom
Two cents

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by Gary_in_NJ on 06/10/22 at 13:10:05

An 18" rear does not require any swingarm mods, if you keep the total diameter below 25.5 inches. My rear is 130/70-18. I don't believe that you can go any wider (the closer you are to 25.5", the less side-to-side room you have). Dave will be here soon to tell you that the perfect 18" fitment is 110/80-18. He is correct. 130/70 looks better, but 110/80 provides a larger contact patch.

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by TheSneeze on 06/10/22 at 13:20:03

I mounted a 120/80-18 tire to mine and had to notch the swing arm for the diameter to clear. I had to remove 1/2".

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 06/10/22 at 13:20:32

Dave?
Daves not here, man..

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by TheSneeze on 06/10/22 at 13:21:53

No, I AM DAVE!!! hahahaha!! ;D

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by ohiomoto on 06/10/22 at 14:38:43

3E34303A31383C356B6D69590 wrote:

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Correct. It's more about tire selection than rim size.

There are some skinny 19" tires like the Shinko SR241 that would fit if you are going for that old-school speedway look. (Which is a build that I have in the back of my head.)

I currently have a 100/90-18 Shinko 712 on my bike with a stock swing arm and belt. It has plenty of room.

I also had 120/80-18 Shinko 705 Dual Sport pictured below that was 25.55 inches in diameter and had close to 1/2" of clearance.

http://suzukisavage.com/yabb2.2/Attachments/IMG_20161204_180134199.jpg

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by Dave on 06/11/22 at 03:45:17

4D5254534E4978487840525E15270 wrote:

Dave?
Daves not here, man..

Here I am!!!!

An 18" rim can work without a swingarm notch - it really depends on the tire size. My first rear rim had a 18x2.50 rim.....and I followed the RYCA lead and installed a 130/70-18 tire with a frame notch because everybody said so. I discovered the 130 tire is not designed to fit a 2.50" wide rim, and tire tread profile is distorted and made to be too round.......it causes the center of the tire to wear quickly and you never get over onto the side tread as it is rolled over too far. A 130-70-18 tire squeezed onto a 2.50" rim resulted in a tire that had a tread width of only 116mm.

I laced up another wheel with a 3.50" wide rim and the 130/70-18 tire fits it nicely - it is far more rubber than the Savage really needs but looks good. The tread width is very close to the claimed 130mm.

On the 2.50" rim I installed a 110/80-18 tire and used it for a few summers. The tire looked a bit skinny and the tread width measured 108mm. The tire worked just fine and I never experienced any problems with a lack of traction and never felt anything unusual. (Early Norton, Triumph, BMW and similar motorcycles all used tires that were this skinny.....and they often weighed more and had twice the HP).

The 3.50" rim and 130/70-18 tire looks nice if you are used to seeing wide rear rims and tires on modern bikes and it works well. The extra weight of the wider tire is noticeable when you are mounting the tire/wheel assembly - but not so much while riding.

If you are going to run a 2.50" wide rear rim - I believe a 120/80-18 tire may be the proper size to use. It will have plenty of rubber for the savage and it's low HP and weight.

I am still running my notched swingarm - but I don't need it. If you install a Kawasaki front pulley it will pull the rear tire forward all the way to the forward end of the adjustment slot and depending on the diameter of the tire you are using - you may need a notch with the Kawasaki pulley. I am now running a Kawasaki front and rear pulley and that moves the axle all the way to the back of the adjustment slot and provides plenty of room for the tire to clear the swingarm.

Summary.......The swingarm notch really depends on the tire size and look you are after and drive pulley you use.

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by Armen on 06/11/22 at 03:46:49

I did an 18” rear with a decent sized tire and had to modify the swingarm. No big deal. I added a brace in front of the existing one, and cut away the back side of the original. Added some flat stock (that I curved) to the cut away part. Looks pretty tidy, and is probably stiffer than stock. Also gives more range in belt adjustment. I did the Kawasaki front pulley, which moves the wheel forward.

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by TheSneeze on 06/11/22 at 08:04:38

031C393E343D31223B500 wrote:

I mounted a 120/80-18 tire to mine and had to notch the swing arm for the diameter to clear. I had to remove 1/2".

Note - I only notched my swing arm to clear the tire when it is adjusted all the way forward. The tire contacted the swing arm when there was 1/4" of slot left before being all the way forward. Since I am using a chain, I wanted to start as close to all the way forward in the slot so I have all the adjustment range for chain stretch.

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by Dejan on 06/12/22 at 12:02:20

I just got the bike home and am getting familiar. Thank you all for the helpful comments and I will try to document and post whatever I do.
Dejan

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by och on 06/12/22 at 12:31:51

Stock rim is 15, right?

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by Dejan on 06/12/22 at 16:33:28

Yes 15". I see now that 19" wont fit without grinding. BTW, from you who have done these mods, are there any noticeable effects resulting from the taller rear end gearing? Also, any possible advantages - if I can actually get a 19" rim in there?
Dejan

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by Gary_in_NJ on 06/12/22 at 16:40:09

A 19” wheel will require modifications to the swingarm. Typically the swingarm is cut and lengthened for such a large diameter wheel/tire.

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by ohiomoto on 06/12/22 at 17:07:38

5C565258535A5E57090F0B3B0 wrote:

A 19” wheel will require modifications to the swingarm. Typically the swingarm is cut and lengthened for such a large diameter wheel/tire.

Not if said 19" tire has a diameter less than ~25.5".

2.75-19 P 43 1.40~1.85 25.16 in.

EDIT: That might be a typo..the Shinko site the next size up is nearly an inch and a half larger??????

3.50-19 P 57 1.85~2.15 26.57 in.

This means Gary is correct again. ;D

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by Ruttly on 06/13/22 at 22:30:42

Yeah ok , both of those tire sizes are for front tire sizes , what about a 4.10 or a 4.25 -19 both rears and considerably taller than that. And yeah it might fit but you also have a belt or chain to adjust as well.
Just sayin

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by LANCER on 06/14/22 at 03:35:19

If you want room for a 19” rear without cutting the swingarm, you can add extensions to the swingarm. RYCA made them, I have a set.
It’s about a 2.5-3” extension.
If used, you would need to order a new longer belt or switch to chain drive.

If interested, $50 + shp.

Title: Re: Rear wheel mods
Post by ohiomoto on 06/14/22 at 16:50:05

67404141594C350 wrote:

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On top of that, the smaller size has to be a typo and is probably over 26" so it would work anyway! Whoever claimed they found a 19" tire that would fit with a stock swingarm is a big dumbass! ;)

But Lancer has the right idea though.