That TKC sure looks sexy back there! As much as I wanted to go 18" on my rear, I'm glad I ended up with a 17". The tires are cheaper, and far more plentiful than 18" tires. I haven't noticed any adverse effects either. Now that we know the Dakar wheel works just fine, this should open things up for a lot more people to Terra-fy their Stradas, and for a lot cheaper too.
And I saw a bunch more regular GS spoked wheels than just "Dakar" wheels on eBay....some with extra bosses for the tone ring. Those should be able to be used the same....just move over the Strada ring....maybe even a bit cheaper.
Well DAMN, that looks good! Between you and Riding Donkeys I am slowly being swayed back to the dark side. Must... resist... spokes...
The UPS and Fedex man have been double-teaming me this week. More goodies arrived today! The transformation surgery is going well. While I'm impressed with the build quality and utility of the Wolfmann gear so far (the rack bolted up easily and precisely), there's more straps on the bags and optional bottle storage than a Victorian era corset! Bejeezus! I'm just hoping my choice to mount it desert fashion makes sense. The saddlebags straps are going to definitely be rearranged.
The TR650 was my first foray into the Wolfman expedition bags. When I first got them I thought I'd made a huge mistake. After a while things started to click and now I'm sold. Yes, they are strappy, but I find them quite functional. Yours look great, but need more dirt.
Are you talking street tyres or more 50:50 tyres? Because I thought that the exact opposite was true, that 18" tyres are cheaper than 17" and for non-street use there is a much wider choice of 18" than 17" treads.
The same width TKC-80 in 17" is $159 vs. $132 in 18" (140mm)...so in that case it's true. However, the 17" Dakar rim was $345 vs. about $1100 in Woody's trim....or about $650 in Terrra. Best case is about $300 delta....or meaning you could buy about ten 17" tires before you'd break even. See above about the used Dakar rim price. I *could* send the Dakar rim to Woody's, they use the silver hub (BMW rear hubs run $750 new alone), and re-lace with an anodized black 18" rim for another $500.
That always tended to be the case for me on street tires, and my K60 was a couple bucks cheaper in 17" trim than 18". However, after just checking a few websites, it seems this is not always the case.
Tried to mount the new front rim up, but either the spacers they included aren't right....this hub doesn't appear to be a bolt up for our application. I'm certainly not a machinist, but think the shoulder-side spacer is WAY to long...and might not work even if shorter as the long shouldered shaft we have on these bikes extends into the hub cavity if I don't use a spacer. Also, I think the thread side spacer is a bit too close, it probably needs to be just a bit longer to accommodate the ABS ring. Also tried swapping spacers and using the the spacer creatively on the stock rim..all with no joy. We'll see how Woody's wants to proceed next week. I wanna make this work. Meanwhile, back to the Strada front rim...I'll just have to go camping gently.
Update: I e-mailed Woody's on Sunday and hadn't heard as of this morning...so called. Nice folks to talk with and I'm certainly amenable to try and help them so they can provide an option for Strada folks to utilize a billet hub. We talked a bit as they looked over pictures I provided and kind of confirmed my suspicion that the axle rod on TR's isn't probably compatible with the spacer choices they made. They suggested they did this based off a Terra they had access to and we both wondered if the axle rod might be different part numbers, wheel spacers, and/or wheel dimensions. I'm going to go home and try my best to measure axle dimensions for them and some hub details on the stock Strada rim. In parallel, however I confirmed the microfiche for Strada and Terra shows both the same axle rod and same single spacer part number...so not sure. I suspect maybe they eyeballed the Terra and assumed it was the same as another Husky model with a shorter shouldered axle rod they'd had experience with. Don't know what the resolution will be, but hoping different spacers they ultimately provide will resolve thing. Alternatively, if a different axle rod does the trick...I maybe wouldn't mind that very much. But if it's a case that the existing axle rod had to be machined down....probably not very amenable. I still want to make this rim work...it's sweet. Will keep posted. I guess I'm going camping with a dual sport this weekend in the middle of a sex change operation. Planning to take it easy on some FS roads north of Lake Chelan.
There will be separate accommodations. I'll be in the tent and he/she will be on its side stand over by a tree.
Another update: I provided detailed measurements of the Strada rim along with axle details and they confirmed the hub they used won't work with spacers. They'd either need to redo the wheel with a different hub or suggested a 2nd axle and they'd machine down. As I've already mounted a tube and tire and a 2nd axle is in the $50 range (which they'll cover)...I'm inclined to go this way. They assure the modified spacers will keep the center line consistent.
Another update: Woody's tried buying a spare front axle and was going to machine it down to fit, but it's hollow to far along the shaft. So, I boxed the WHOLE wheel up including mounted tire, sent it back on their label, and they're are trying again. I don't need it this season and will get it sorted out one way or another this winter.
Just enjoyed reading this thread start to current, sorry it's dragging out! But can't help feel this is a pretty simple fix for a machine shop. If the hub dia is equal to OEM, spacers or bushing would be a cinch. Had a similar issue one time on an earlier Aprilia powered Rotax. Swapped out the front end for a WP and wound up having a stainless spindle machined and new bushing. Either way you go, looking good and will be worth the wait!
A VERY Important Update: The spare axle idea didn't work out because it's hollow for quite a length. They changed the spacers instead and resent my wheel. It bolted up this time, ABS sensor spacing was correct, and rotor turns freely. Initially, I had some reservations, but stuck with Zach via e-mail in this land of custom. I was concerned about wheel appeared biased to the axle nut side by a substantial amount and didn't understand how to adjust it. I tried pinching the forks closer together, but that messes with stiction. I thought maybe pinching the axle towards the shaft head side, but that would push the ABS ring and rotor off. By appearance with the front fender I figured it was 3/8" off, but after Woody's e-mailed me some more I did some more precise measurements and found that it was either 0.07 or 0.05 depending on whether I measured from knobby edge to fork body or from hub to centerline of the fork. Their suggestion was to adjust the rim relative to the hub. At 3/8" I wasn't keen on it, but at 0.05-0.07 I figured I'd give a try. I loosened one set of spokes (the nut side) 1/3 turn (essentially the distance you could get an end wrench to turn in one movement) and then tightened 1/3 turn on the axle shaft head side. Remeasured from the knobby to the fork tubes and it was very close. Close enough that I couldn't accurately measure a difference. The fender is a still a tiny bit off, but I *think* it's the fender. Wheel alignment to center line. Resolved The other issues I experienced were: Ride height totally off. (I knew this since the 21" front wheel vs. 17" rear is WAY different that my Strada configuration of 19" vs. 17" rear) To adjust height I used my stock Terra as baseline with the fork tubes (black part on not the cap) at the top of the triple clamps. I spent some time measuring the actual diameter of my wheels and determined that the stock Strada Tourance EXP rear 140/80-17 (with about 50% tread) is 25.5". The TKC 80 140/80-17 (with about 50% tread) I mounted to my Dakar rim is 25.25". The stock Strada Tourance EXP front (with 75% tread) is 25.75" and the Dunlop D606 90/90-21 (with 100%) tread and Woody's rim is 27.75". That last bit changed things A LOT! By my calculations (dividing diameter by 2 to get radius) I find the front is higher by 1 1/8" relative to the rear. While I know there's some rake to the to forks I chose to drop them this distance. After riding I think this issue is resolved....or fairly close. Twitchy at highway speeds This one I wondered about tire pressure and found my rear was WAY low at 15 psi. Ooops. Pumped to 36 and bumped front from 26 to 28 (according to stock Terra pressures) and this was much improved. It's still a bit wandery at 80 mph, but I'm not surprised knobbies vs. street tires. Much better. ABS errors out after a few miles (I worried about this since my Strada is ABS, but may not be the same as European Terras) When I first rode the rim I got an error after 2-3 miles where the ABS light would stay on, speedometer and odometer would stop working, and generally be uncool. After the tire pressure and all other changes I went back out on the freeway and did a 5 mile loop...no error. Hopefully resolved. Front feels vague and behind where I'm turning at low and medium speeds After all the changes this feels signficantly better. Going around turns at 10 or 20 feels much better. At very low parking lots speeds the the front still feels like it's behind where I'm turning, but I wonder if this is by design as the axle is an inch or so ahead of the forks and the 21" rim is going to magnify that by a bit compared to 19". Maybe this is still related to ride height. Still working. I'm cautiously optimistic and love the look of the new wheel. And the spokes are seriously beefy! Good job Woody's!
