Hiya Woody.... weight and marque wise I'm in the right thread... otherwise maybe not. I'm contemplating building a bmw special from an G/S ala moorespeed/hpn. I was just wondering what you'r recommend for a front (21 X what) and back 18 X what) rims. Also, as I'll be using a set of wp 2860 forks (from a KTM) would you recommend going with a talon hub on the front or doing some axle mods to use the bmw one. Thanks for the help as I can't decide, particularly, what size front (1.6 or 1.85) to go with... oh.. and would you superlace them? I Typical use will be touring, overlanding and fire/forest roads... no hard core off road like the erzberg guys! Many thanks, Dana ps the bikes are in the uk now but shall be heading stateside once the frames are done.
Hi,,tried n true 1.85x21" front and 2.5x18 on rear,,ii'm lace em to either an oem ktm/ RAD/Talon hub,,,if I knew what size axle ya have,,it would be easier Holler,,woody I think the moderators would be happier if you asked this or I answered in my "Ask woody about your wheels" thread: http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=145899 W
OH MY GOD !!!!! Did my first ride with the "new to me" Woody's 21" wheel on my GSA yesterday. Riding sand washes like they were fire roads, astonishing difference from the 19" stock wheel.
here's Heather Lewis"s feedback on jimmy Lewis's Riding school Facebook page: Let her tell ya what her 1200GSA feels like after going 21/18,,,and FYI,,,,,Psssst,,,THAT woman can RIDE!!!!!:
Did another ride yesterday, this time with some slab through the canyons. Noticed a little difference going hard into the corners with the 21" but nothing that had me concerned. I am not really into how fast I can carve the canyon roads anyway. Usually there is a lot to look at that gets missed when trying to go too fast.
if you are not counter-steering the beast,,well sign up for one of these great teachers classes: 1,, laine macteague or http://earthrider-amgi.blogspot.com/ 2,, Neduro ,,,, http://vimeo.com/18717832 ,,,or,,,, 3.. Jimmy Lewis's classes,,,http://jimmylewisoffroad.com/ was the best skill i picked up in recent time,,you CAN teach old dawgs new tricks... 'tis remarkable how easy and natural it feels to just stay vertical in the saddle and to: 1,,turn right,,push down on right foot-peg 2,,press left knee into tank for stability 3,,push on right handlebar and adjust pressure for how rapidly ya want to turn opposite sequence for turning left it's as easy as 1,2,3shared by an old knee dragging canyon carver MRA #11 woody like i've mentioned before,,i offer/demonstrate that technique for free as part of a 21'' wheel purchase...it truly is uncanny how well you can get the beast to turn with the 21'' shod with D606 street legal knobbies...TKC-80 is another well sticking pavement knobby tire.
Count me in with the believers - I did 200 + miles of dirt this weekend on my 12 with a 21" front wheel. It was better than I could have hoped for.Thanks Woody. CK
OK,,,it all came together,,had my epiphany ,,followed my instincts,,,so Zach n i cut/whittled/ drilled and fabricated a simple solution to the oem unit from a crashed donor bike ,,,here's what it looks like: caveat: What you see is the quick n dirty proto-type,,,the finished version will sport nice rounded corners n smooth cuts,,,we can even: 1,,install a mud flap on the rear half for much greater protection 2,,install a amid-flap in the front 3,,if we made a totally new fender,,the shape could be altered as well 4,,I started with the premise yo all had a an oem front fender already,,,hence the cheapest way to Renovate it into something usefull. this solution consisted of slicing the rear half of fender in half,drilling/grinding some holes for the lower A-arm pivot,,the front brake line,,and some relief for the L/R lower brake lines... we fabricated some special brackets to stiffen the front and rear halves of the fender and added a strip of aluminum to tie the split back together.... we may try another version that we cut in half L-R and then provide a joining bracket,,,there is NO MODIFICATION required on any other part of bike,,,that was one of my goals,,,,Sooo,the basic premise worked on the first git go.... Please chime in if you'd like a different shape....this will handle all the complaints of dirt/mist flying up through the fairing,,,'methinks that dirt flying off and toward the front of the bike may still head back???,,,and it will NOT handle the colorado gumbo,,my trick de-gumbo set up will be next,,,in the meantime this set-up works.... here's Part # <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td style="width: 17px; border-bottom: solid 1px #666;" align="center"> </td><td style="width: 85px; border-left: solid 1px #ddd; border-bottom: solid 1px #666; font-weight: bold;" align="left"> 46 61 7 667 681</td><td style="width: 265px; border-left: solid 1px #ddd; border-bottom: solid 1px #666; font-family: Arial Narrow;" align="left"> FRONT WHEEL MUDGUARD, LOWER PART - BLACK</td><td style="width: 30px; border-left: solid 1px #ddd; border-bottom: solid 1px #666;" align="right"> </td><td style="width: 35px; border-left: solid 1px #ddd; border-bottom: solid 1px #666;" align="right"> </td><td style="border-left: solid 1px #ddd; border-bottom: solid 1px #666; width: 70px;" align="right">$58.81</td></tr><tr><td valign="top"> </td><td valign="top"> </td><td valign="top"> </td><td valign="top"> </td><td valign="top"> </td><td valign="top"> </td></tr></tbody></table> woody
Last weekend I rode my second LAB2V on the big GSA, will tell you right now, I couldn't have rode 1/3 of the route this year without that 21" wheel. This year's course was set up as a 500 mile desert hare scramble and had every kind of sand imaginalble. The Woody's 21" wheel kept me going straight and solid through it all. Now I need to order one of those fancy new lower fender mods
Bigtodd, I was on the Triple Black 1200GS that you went flying past on the second day. I was so exhausted fighting the 19" x17" setup. Is it really that much easier to ride with the 21"? What size rear are you running? Did you go with the Woody's Superlite or just the Excels? Thanks for responding, Ross F8Pilot
Hey Ross, you were one of only 2 other 1200GS's I saw anywhere on the route both days. YES, YES, HELL YES the 21" wheel makes such a difference it's hard to believe it is the same bike. I am still running the stock 17" rear wheel but did go to Wilbers suspension sprung and valved for my larger size, that helps too. Did you ride both days? How much of the route(s) were you able to do? I rode the GSA last year and the course was mainly fire roads and only a couple of sand washes. I don't know if I could have done both days this year with the set up I had last year.
Hey Todd, I only rode the second day and basically started the offroad section at Baker. My riding buddies were on an F800 and an older 1150GS. Thank god I didn't try the whole second day, I would probably still be out there somewhere. It felt like I was riding a snow plow. The first thing I did Monday morning was call Woody's to discuss a 21" front. Are you running the Tubed or Tubless version? Since you didn't op for the 18" rear did your new Wilbers raise the back end to compensate? What width size 21" did you get...1.60" or 1.85"? Hope to see you at Altrider Taste of Dakar.
Ha-ha Ross, riding a snow plow is a great description of the GS's sand handling with the stock 19" wheel. Although I have seen some great riders like Jimmy Lewis ride it like it was the easiest thing in the world but, like I said, GREAT riders. If you thought the sand was bad from Baker to where I passed you, you wouldn't have believed what we rode through in the canyons outside of Barstow ... I picked up the wheel from another inmate here, it is a HP-2 wheel (tubeless) laced to a GS hub. On day 2 about 2 hours out of Barstow I cut the sidewall of the front tire and got an instant flat. Pulled an emergency tube from a buddy, popped it in and kept right on going.. As for suspension, I am using the Wilbers WESA set up that integrates into the ESA system. The ride height for sure changes with the ESA set on the offroad settings. Planning to go to Alt Rider Taste of Dakar again, last year was a lot of fun ... those guys know how to build a campfire.
Thanks for the info Todd it helps a lot. This was my first big ride in sand...and my last without a 21" wheel. The event committee told us to start in Baker as the first section was only for small Dual Sports...you must be a great rider as well. Actually where you passed me was some of the easiest riding on the whole trail...it was all the sand before that that wiped me out. I just attended the Jimmy Lewis school in early November and it was awesome. He actually let me try his GSA with the 21/18 combo. I'm no expert but if I was to compare it to mine...it felt like a Cadillac vs a Kia. Looks like another 21" customer heading your way Woody. See you in Pahrump Todd...
Hard to tell from the pic, but it looks like he moved the lower fork brace up along the legs. Then used the spacers to make up the gap. What the what indeed...
I just ordered new (to me) wheels from Woody's . I called and talked to Zach about the handling characteristics of 19 vs 21 in fronts. Turns out they had a slightly used set of oem hubs laced to Behr 21/17" tubeless Rims. Not quite as strong or blingy as Superlights, but I think I'll be ok. I haven't manage to break my cast wheels no matter how hard I tried. I'm going to run K60s with the stock front fender for now. Zach told me he is going to fit a supermoto fender to the shop mule and see how it works out. I'm (not so) patiently awaiting the arrival. I'll post pics when I get them fitted.
You're going to love it. Here is a shot of mine right before we rolled out for the start of this year's LAB2V. The after pic when we got to Vegas the next afternoon is pretty spectacular.
