Let's talk rims, hubs and lacing

[Beau]

So I picked up a 21" wheel and tire of CL for $50. It looks to me like it's for a wide glide front end. I have no idea what fork I will stumble upon right now, but it got me thinking.

What factors go into lacing rims and hubs?

I have built hundreds of bicycle wheels and for the most part, the rims and hubs can be laced to anything as long as there is the same amount of spoke holes.

But on motorcycle wheels the holes in the rim seem to be drilled at angles. This leads me to believe that lacing hubs from different bikes on to the Harley rim may not work unless the flange diameter is similar.

I apologize if this subject has been brought up and feel free to delete this post if it has. If you know of any good sites with information please post them otherwise!

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Helpful links I have found and people who can help -

http://www.buchananspokes.net/

 

[5twins]

Yes, the spoke holes in motorcycle rims are angled so when swapping to a different hub, the width and diameter would need to be very nearly the same.

 

[Travis]

It also depends a lot on the rim as to how adaptable it is... things like whether it's steel or alloy, dimpled or not...

I think the factors that go into it are: the width between the flanges, the diameter of the flanges (which could be different left and right), and the offset of the hub (if any), from the original hub to the one you're thinking about using.

I called Buchanan's once and told them I have such and such wheel and I want to use the rim from it on an XS650 front hub. They said they could make the spokes and he was pretty sure the rim would have to be slightly re-drilled. Now I'm not sure if he just thought it might because he knew what the original hub looked like, or if his computer told him that it would require it.

 

[xstwin]

Does anyone know if you can use one of mikes 19 inch wider front rims on the back with a stock drum hub without getting too crazy with spoke sizes.

 

[Teebs]

I don't know, but it stands to reason that you're going to have to modify the holes since the front hub is so much smaller in diameter. As far as lengths... Buchanan's will definitely have the info for both the rear hub and 19" rim to dial in the correct length.

 

[hooktool]

If it's a Harley wheel, it has too many spokes to be laced to your hub. 40 vs 36.

John