Spoked wheels worth saving?

[SpookyWizard]

I have some unknown spoked wheels that I picked up for £20gbp. What I wanted to know is ... What's a cheap with good results way to refurbish them?

And also what drum brake plate do I need to get this working?

Cheers

 

[Wingedwheel]

IMHO those spokes are shot but replacements are available! How much effort are you wanting to invest in DIY Because I also believe nothing is sexier than a shiny spoke wheel!

 

[Grimly]

nothing is sexier than a shiny spoke wheel!

So ZZTop said, and I believe them.

 

[5twins]

I think bead blasting may be your best option. Remove the tires, then if you plan to do the re-spoking yourself, take plenty of pics of both wheels so you can get the spoke patterns right. I'd also remove and save the wheel weights, you can re-use them. Here's a "before" and "after" shot of a front hub I bead blasted .....

I leave the centers as is and polish the outer flanges. I leave the centers because once the spokes are in, you can't get at them to keep them polished. Blast the brake drum as well, it does a nice job of cleaning the rust off .....

As far as drum brake plates go, any year will work. In my opinion, the very early ones ('70-'73) and the '78-'80 plates are the best looking. Here's a write-up I did a few years back on them. Everything you need to know, and more, lol .....

https://www.xs650.com/threads/650-rear-drum-brake-plates.51046/

 

[gggGary]

That rear is pretty bad, but you won't know til you remove the tires.
I've had some rims that were beyond saving due to extensive corrosion.
Aluminum that looks like that may have very DEEP corrosion, Start by removing tires, cut out the spokes, try to get the bearings out and seeing if going further is worth the effort?
Aluminum oxide is larger than the base metal, the corrosion can REALLY fuggle bearing bores and such.
Other than rivet counters stock rims are somewhat out of fashion, wider replacements that aid handling and appearance are pretty popular and eliminate near endless sanding/buffing up through the grades to shiny, a goal that may never be achieved. That front looks closer to savable.
Who said custom or restoring was going to be cheap?

bolt cutters are faster/neater/safer than an angle grinder to remove spokes.

 

[toglhot]

No such thing as 'cheap' when restoring bikes or bike parts. But, nothing is beyond repair. These handlebar switches came up pretty good, not many would have bothered. The wheels pictured were pretty bad before I refurbished them, rusted spokes, oxidised, lots of damage from screwdrivers, tyre levers, etc. It all depends on how much time and effort and dollars you are prepared to spend on them. Those wheels don't look too bad.
Rim walls can be cleaned up with 240 grit on an angle grinder, inner part with a nylon fibre wheel before polishing. Hubs just need hitting with a nylon fibre wheel, bead blast the inside, followed by polishing. Stainless spokes always look good and won't oxidise. Alternatively, bead blast the lot and paint.

 

[5twins]

Yes, even if you do all the work yourself, it's still not going to be cheap. Figure a good $100 for new bearings and stainless spokes. Add another $80 to $100 to that if you buy a new rim. That's why I don't like to pay much for old wheels. I know what it's going to cost me to fix them up, lol, so I try to get them for around $30 or less. Here's one I pulled from my dealer's boneyard. It was a bit "rough" when I retrieved it from the boneyard, but that was my own fault because I'm the one who put it there many years ago, lol. That was before I had a 650 so I didn't have a use for it. It's from an XS500 and I grabbed it to try and adapt it for 650 use. Why? Because it has a cush drive sprocket and I figured that would be a nice upgrade, ease the strain on those damper springs in the back of the clutch hub the 650 uses for it's drive line damper .....

So, this wheel got the whole nine yards - new rim, bearings, and stainless spokes. I figure I'm into it for about $150 but didn't mind as the dealer let me have it for nothing, lol. It cleaned up nicely and is in fact on my 650 right now and working well so far .....