Wire Wheels on a R65 can we make it work?

[chewy4x4]

Oh steve what is the rear fender in your cafe from?

[steve hawkins]

The are two front hub for wire wheels, the two rib hub and the 3 rib hub.

The three rib hub was fitted on all the old ate swinging caliper bikes

The two rib hub is required for all brembo equiped bikes as the spokes had to clear the calipers.  The two ribbed hubs we fitted to all GS and ST models and any other model where wire wheels could be fitted as an option.  So they are about, but an 18 or 19 inch wire wheel always attracts a premium.

I do no know any thing about K100 forks although I actually used to have a K100RS, but that was before my airhead days.

I have considered fitting an R65 yoke setup to my R100 though, but the R65 yokes are wider - i.e. they hold the fork legs further apart, and they have more offset, which will change you rake/trail angles.  The rake and trail angles are the same as the larger airheads, but the R65 axle is in the centre of the fork and the R80/100 axle is on the front of the fork - this is why there is a difference in the yokes.

The fenders, I bought at a classic bike show and were a generic set for a BSA or some such bike.  They were sold as aluminium blanks, but polished up okay.

[Justin B.]

Hey, Steve, long time...

[steve hawkins]

Yes it has been a long time.  I have been very busy.

The wife wanted a VW Camper last year and I am still rebuilding it - although at least it is running and on the road now - Its what you chaps would call a Vanagon and what I would call a rolling restoration.  Not that I am restoring it - just making it usable.

The wife is also trying to get me to decorate the house, sort out the garden and generally trying to give me a stress related illness.  Not to mention the 2 kids and the full time job....

I have also been trying to sail my classic dinghies, and have a Classic Merlin Rocket (1959) and a vintage National 12 (1948).

Biking has definately been taking a back seat this year.

The R65 is under a blanket in the garage and the R100 is only getting very occasional use...

Things have got to change.

Too many 'hobbies' and too little time.

[Semper Gumby]

I would take the R100 hub and lace a 2.5 inch 18" rim to with Buchanan.  Then you could have a properly fitted 100/90-18 tire on the front that you don't get with the stock 1.85 inch width rim.  

I have a 1988 K100RS front end on with its 2.5-18 inch rim.  Handles like a dream with the K100RS sport front forks and triple trees.  Turns out the steering head bearing is the same part number as the R65!!!

The 2.5 inch rear rim is actually just the right size for the 4.00-18 or 110/90-18 rear tires that go on our bikes.

[chewy4x4]

Semper Regarding the K100rs front was it as simple as unbolt the r65 and bolt on the K? Also in regard to what steve just said the ability to find wire wheels would become easier with the K set up no? If I got a set of Brembos with the forks

[steve hawkins]

No I said I had no experience with wire wheels a K100 forks, so cannot comment. :-?

[chewy4x4]

Yes I understood that Steve. My question was directed toward the Forum in that instance. I was just deducing the fact that the K forks use Brembos so (i figure) ergo the use of the K forks would enable be to use the Wire wheels off of more than just the R80st.

Also it was said that all of the wheels form 74 on would work correct? I thought the front axle changed on the Airheads in 75. I could be and I probably am wrong.

[nhmaf]

Chewy - wire wheels from 74-> can work on the REAR wheel position.
On the front wheel position, you have the limitations discussed above.  

[Semper Gumby]

Semper Regarding the K100rs front was it as simple as unbolt the r65 and bolt on the K? Also in regard to what steve just said the ability to find wire wheels would become easier with the K set up no? If I got a set of Brembos with the forks

The part numbers for the steering head bearings are the same.  So yes you can un-bolt the R65 stuff and bolt on the the 1988 K100RS forks.  What ever year you get you should go on the AScycles web site and make sure the steering head bearings are the same part number.  Then it will work.  The forks are longer than the R65 but I have found no reason to run the triple trees down the forks yet.  I know of no wire wheel set up in the K100rs front ends but then I wasn't looking for wire wheels.  I really wanted the wider tubeless alloy wheel and the thicker axel.  

I was also looking for the same for to wheel axel relationship.  The R65 has the axel on the bottom of the fork.  I stayed away from K100 Forks that had axel on the front of the fork (like late model R100GS) although I was willing to try if the price was right.

But I had decided on what I wanted because I was tired of dealing with my wobble R65 front end - K100 forks with the axel on the bottom - complete.  Then one night I was lurking on ebay and a set of complete forks -- Triple trees, forks, fork brace , fender, wheel, brake rotors, calipers and axel came up for a Buy it now Price of $400.00.  I quickly hoped over to A&Scycle site to check the parts fisch for the steering head numbers.  Then I went back and pounced on it.  If I had bought all those bits from BMW I have no idea what it would have cost.  Oh and I got a good Bridgestone BT45F 100/90V18 tire on it as well.  All showed up for $75.00 shipping 4 days later.  I hauled the whole kit and kaboodle over to Boxerworks and Nathan and Dean installed it for another $400.  

The only downside to doing this is my stock R65 instument bracket while bolted in the top is tye wrapped at the bottom.  This i can fix when I want to.

The other thing is that the K100RS font end has rubber isolators between the handle bars and the top tripple tree.  Normally this is not a problem because the K100RS has low euro bars.  My bars a 12inch pull backs.  So now the bars move about (fore and aft).  I have gotten used to this. But when somebody who hasn't ridden it gets on and tries it they get a shock the first time they hit the brakes.

Bennies - Razor sharp handling above 65mph rock steady all the way to 90mpg with my draggy Lufty fairing and heavy Givi bags.  Oh and I have traded my ATE brake callipers for Brembos.

It took me a long time do decide what I wanted and then to hunt down kill it and bring it home.   I tried everything to make the stock set up work better at speed but nothing worked.  Not the Teliflex fork brace, not the progressive springs.  The only thing that helped at all was tightning the rear pivot bolts to the max torque of its allowed range.  

Actually that's not true.  I didn't try the frame brace tube from below the steering head to behind the tranny.  I also didn't try the San Jose rear swing arm brace.  People I talked to (Eddie James for one) said that the frame brace didn't work.  The said that the rear swing arm brace helped a bit but that it wasn't worth the money and time to tear everything apart and have it sent off and get it back.  SO I went with changing the front end and scored bigtime. [smiley=bmw_smiley.gif]

[chewy4x4]

OK I now understand the ease and the possible complexity behind this swap. Thanks y'all. Now to add more to this thread Ill ask another question that might be harder to answer or it might be as simple as no cant happen.

In the cafe spirit of use what you can get and the modern cafe interpretation of use what it takes to make it look cool. Could I make a set of K75 wheels fit?

[Semper Gumby]

<snip>
In the cafe spirit of use what you can get and the modern cafe interpretation of use what it takes to make it look cool. Could I make a set of K75 wheels fit?
 

Rhuogh?  (I think I just popped a circuit breaker)  

Scroll backwards though time on this web site for what you seek grasshopper...
http://www.bikeexif.com/

And then search the parts fisch here?

http://www.ascycles.com/

[nhmaf]

?!?

Monolever/single sided swingarm rear wheel no worky on dual sided R65 chassis swingarm, unless you want to also customize rear subframe and swingarm ... in which case anything is possible.  But, if you balk at the mere $600+ price tag for a BMW OEM 18" spoked front wheel, wait till you get the bill for a custom chassis build.  8-)

[tvrla]

If you opt for a K front end, I think any of the R100R, GS, R1100, 1150 hubs will work. It may even be possible to make the earlier airhead hub work, but have no idea what sort of bearings would work, or if they'll work at all. If using the cross-spoked hub (that's what the newer tubeless wheels are called) it is possible to lace in a standard non-tubeless rim.

You'll have to do some research cause I've never looked into axle diameters of the newer bikes, but it seems possible they're compatable.

[wirewrkr]

monolever, paralever airheads, and old K bikes (thru97) have a 25mm axle, oilheads and the like it is 20mm, (also URAL and /2, /3) etc.