XR650R Wheels... RGV? Talon? XR wheels?

[Phildo]

Righto, after sitting in the shed for four years, my XR650R is in one piece, and as of last Thursay afternoon, road licenced.

I have a set of spare wheels that came off another XR650R and my intention was always to lace up Supermoto rims. But it turns out that that's not only more complex than I expected but also bloody expensive. In fact, by the time I get rims, spokes and labour to put it all together, I might as well just buy a complete set of wheels (Talon hubs, Morrad rims) for $1640.

I'm now looking at the option of Suzuki RGV wheels. There's a set from a 1993 RGV at a nearby wrecker for $500 without discs or $600 with discs. I've got a friend who can make up spacers, and he's got a friend who can machine the back wheel to fit.

So that option would be cheaper (ie well under a grand) and look better (ie I would probably get the RGV wheels power coated in matching red).

What are the disadvantages to this? Speedo drive won't be a drama - the standard XR speedo is crap and I'll be replacing it with a Trailtech soon anyway. The wheels that I am considering are in extremely good condition.

Is there some hidden bad news that makes RGV wheels unsafe or dangerous? Does anyone know about the legalities of fitting them to an XR for road use?

[Wobbly]

RGV rims will be fine for road use - many don't like mag wheels on motards because they are a bit more fragile than spoked wheels, so if you intend on landing some decent sized jumps then I'd be a bit cautious. But for just hammering around the place and acting like a loon they should be fine, just a bit more friggen around with in order to machine down, and depending on hub width you may need to have a cush drive adapter machined up from billet.

I'm surprised it's so expensive to get your standard hubs relaced though ... would have thought you could get rims for around $750 a pair, plus $100 either end for spokes plus labour, say about a grand plus disc kit?

[Flash]

You can't jump alloy wheels!! so if you plan to do some jumping don't.
Black looks good on them!!

[Muzzard]

Put the wheels in Phil, and I'll jump test it for you mate... :lol:

[kingralph]

can someone tell me wether you can put a 5 inch rim and 160 tyre in the back of an xr650r, or should I go 4.5 rim and a 150 rear

[Flash]

Yep you can, the Doctor had a 5.5 I believe!

[Tom]

I've got a 5 inch rim and 165 tyre on my XR650R and it fits fine.

I've also got a spare 4.25 inch Excel rim and a white brothers exhaust (and a whole stack of bits and pieces) for an XR for sale too if you're interested. PM me for details.

Antti has cast wheels on his XR, and i don't think he has had any problems. But spokies are stronger and i reckon they look better.