Lighter wheels

[bolidemichael]

I'm going to have the suspenders on my VFR1200F upgraded by Darren of MCT Suspension in February -- he's going to uprate them with Nitron compenents, which he rates very highly and advises that I should use -- who am I to argue, particualry at 60% or so of the cost of Ohlins.

I'm thinking of lighter wheels too. Why? Well, I'm not going to be getting a sports bike for a little while and this VFR will be a 'do-all' machine for me -- transporting various members of Clan Bolide both near and hopefully, far, in the coming years -- in addition to giving me the occasional kicks on road rides and track days.

With the V4 pushing out a healthy amount of power within a heavy bike, I figure that with good suspension and lightened unsprung mass, it'll go some way to countering the effect of the weight, in order to hustle somewhat more respectably than stock, whilst retaining the comfort of a VFR.

Do you have any road experience of lighter wheels?

[black-k1]

I had the K1300S MotorSport with the forged wheels and couldn't tell the difference from standard.

I've fitted BST carbon wheels to my H2 SX and the difference is really noticeable.

I'd pay for carbon wheels again.

Edited by black-k1 on Monday 11th October 10:42

[bolidemichael]

That's quality, thanks. With the H2 - have you had them for long? Durability and comfort - both improved/compromised?

[rodericb]

Have a look at the weight of tyres. They can differ and the effect can be quite noticeable too.

[bolidemichael]

I'm pretty keen to get the Metzeler M9RR actually, as I've always liked their character.

[KTMsm]

I ride a 990 SM I bought a 990 SMR because many said there was a noticeable difference due to lighter forged wheels etc

It felt the same to me - admittedly the standard SM wheels are light weight marcheseni so there may be more difference if your bike has heavy wheels as standard TBH I suspect the money would be better spent on training

[ThreadKiller]

I like the idea of lighter wheels… but do they affect stability (less weight… less inertia… less stable). Obviously the purpose will be to increase flickability (by reducing stability)and make suspension work less hard… but is there a downside?

[Tango13]

Do it!

I upgraded to Ohlins suspension and forged PVM wheels and the difference was staggering.

Edit...

Don't ffs use magnesium wheels on the road, go carbon fibre or forged alloy. Magnesium wheels are a big no no on the road, the late Robert Dunlop found that out the hard way

Edited by Tango13 on Monday 11th October 10:19

[black-k1]

bolidemichael said:

That's quality, thanks. With the H2 - have you had them for long? Durability and comfort - both improved/compromised?

I've had them for just over 2 years/about 12k miles. The still clean up like new and I've had no issues with them. I can't say I've noticed any difference in comfort as the comfort level (or lack of!) of the H2 SX for me is focused entirely on the seat.

There has been no noticeable loss of stability but turn in is definitely easier as is speed of direction change. They are hugely expensive but have made such a noticeable difference to the way the bike feels that I really would be spending that money again if I were in the same situation.

[KTMsm]

Tango13 said:

Do it!

I upgraded to Ohlins suspension and forged PVM wheels and the difference was staggering.

I like the Speed Triple (I haven't yet ridden the 2011 on as I prefer the look of the earlier bike) but have seen several mention that the Ohlins are too stiff / make no difference on the road (being most suited to track) I'm looking to buy another and wondering whether to pay a bit more for an R

Did you fit them together / do you know which made the most difference ?

What kinds of speeds / roads / track is it noticeable on ?

[bolidemichael]

In theory, it is noticeable with the speed of revolutions, as the 'flickability' of a bike is related to the gyroscopic force that the speed generated. The heavier the rim of the alloy is, the great effort is required to alter the direction of the spinning wheel. That's why a lighter wheel is the most immediate upgrades that can be done to a motorcycle.

Perhaps the KTM might have seen a lesser effect as it has very flat and wide bars i.e. leverage and that also the weight gains were -18% or so as opposed to the -30% +/- that Black-K1 has experienced.

Also with respect to the suggestion of training -- with the amount of time that I've been not riding regularly -- absolutely! But in terms of my own abilities on a motorcycle, I know where I'll be picking up from and what I need to do to the big, heavy, low CofG, powerful V4 in order to make it into a do-everything machine.

[Tango13]

KTMsm said:

Tango13 said:

Do it!

I upgraded to Ohlins suspension and forged PVM wheels and the difference was staggering.

I like the Speed Triple (I haven't yet ridden the 2011 on as I prefer the look of the earlier bike) but have seen several mention that the Ohlins are too stiff / make no difference on the road (being most suited to track) I'm looking to buy another and wondering whether to pay a bit more for an R

Did you fit them together / do you know which made the most difference ?

What kinds of speeds / roads / track is it noticeable on ?

I used to live about 6 miles from Harris Performance so I had them fit the wheels & suspension at the same time and set it up for road use.

I never use the bike on track but whatever the roads the tyres always wear with a rough orange peel texture without any 'stepping' of the tread blocks and the Michelin man has been decapitated front & rear

Speaking to Steve Harris at the time he mentioned somethimg about Triumphs running a different linkage ratio on the rear to most manufacturers iirc.

I used to get mine serviced at On Yer Triumph, both their mechanics commented on how much better it handled and about 18 months later Triumph started selling bikes with Ohlins/PVM