Switching wheels/tires on F800gs

[tomasv]

Guys, what is the best option for switching between street and knobby tires?

I was thinking about getting two set of wheels and switch before going off the payment. I commute daily for about 90 miles so knobbies all the time is not at option for me.

Is that crazy and not doable? How much time such change would take? Any special tools/requirements?

Thx.

T.

[Firefight911]

Originally Posted by tomasv

I commute daily for about 90 miles so knobbies all the time is not at option for me.

T.

Why not? You/re gonna get about 10,000 miles out of a set of K60s.

[Indy Unlimited]

It is always best to have the luxury of 2 sets of wheels.
I do on most of my bikes.
The K60 seems to be the best "one" set of wheel tires with a rough mileage range of 10,000. miles.
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=443958

I recommend doing a JohnGil set up for the second set of wheels with a narrower 21" x 1.85" front and a larger diameter narrower width rear 18" x 3.5" to give you the best knobbie tire fit.
Buchanan spokes & Sun rims are a great choice.
Woodys Wheelworks is a great place to get them done.

http://www.buchananspokes.net/categories/rims_sun.asp

http://www.woodyswheelworks.com/

[BouncingRadical]

Originally Posted by Indy Unlimited

I recommend doing a JohnGil set up for the second set of wheels with a narrower 21" x 1.85" front and a larger diameter narrower width rear 18" x 3.5" to give you the best knobbie tire fit.
Buchanan spokes & Sun rims are a great choice.
Woodys Wheelworks is a great place to get them done.

Hi, first post but a long time reader.

This sounds good to me, but I am curious if other changes would be required to fit the thinner tires? Would it also make it feel a little unbalanced with thinner tires or did BMW just put thicker tires on it to make it more road friendly?

[Dert Gerl]

I'd say 1/2 hour at a casual pace.

I noticed F800Depot had complete wheel sets available ... might be an option.

I have an extra rear wheel for my 450 that I keep a paddle tire on. It saves alot of hassle.

[Dieselboy]

Originally Posted by JoelWisman

The F800GS is very easy to change wheels on if your set up and organized.
Once I have the 7 tools required sitting beside the bike, 8 minutes to swap both wheels.

The one time expense is pretty huge though.

8 minutes? You're hired.

I can't even confirm alignment of the rear within 8 min when I fiddle faddle around with the chain tensioners.

I agree that 30 minutes is completely doable if all you are doing is pulling axles.

[tomasv]

Cost and comfort - isn't it the case that the knobs cost more?

I get off the road 1x - 2x a month..

[WoodWorks]

Originally Posted by tomasv

Cost and comfort - isn't it the case that the knobs cost more?

I get off the road 1x - 2x a month..

Well, if cost is a concern, you're going to spent one hell of a lot more for a new set of rims than for several sets of good 50/50 tires like Heidenau K60s. Now, if you're after something more extreme, like Mitas e09s or some such tire, then it might make some sense for you. And if I had money to burn, I might do that too. But I don't.

David

[tomasv]

Thanks guys - I am less concerned with the one time setup cost (extra set of wheels) compared with the ongoing cost - new tires if I have one set only every 10k miles + the comfort...

So back to the Q - how time consuming/difficult is it to switch both wheels?

30 mins, 60 mins - more?

[Bayner]

If you had them set up to bolt straight on (meaning no swapping of rotors, ABS rings and whatnot) I'd say 15 minutes would be easy with practice.