Beware: F800gs Rims Are Junk!

[Adv Grifter]

Originally Posted by Dirsuper

So, the night after I received/installed the new rims I took it out and.....let's just say, hit it a bit hard. Really tried to bend them new rims.....ZERO issues. However, I did hit some mud (kinda rare in SoCal) in a turn and drop the bike. No big deal, jacked up my shoulder a bit, a little cracked plastic (nothing fatal) and some nice Battle Scars on the crash bars (thank god I had those!), windshield, and handguards. Totally my fault, the kind of thing I expect to happen with this type of bike. Oh, I also bent one of the tree bolts, so one side of the bars sits about 1/4" off from the other side.....whatever.

Crash bars are good! I'd love to see how your bike does on a nice Baja ride! I've bent a few rims there ... even on dirt bikes!

I witnessed an F800GS go off a mild dirt road at about 35 mph, hit a soft dirt berm, bike flipped and got caught up in a barbed wire fence, which promptly tore the bike apart. Totaled it. Unbelievable damage!

Bike was brand new (under 1000 miles) ... no guards on of any kind. New-ish rider who was not hurt.

Here is damage I could see: (I pulled the bike out of the fence and helped get it back onto the road)

One caliper torn clean off (lower fork destroyed too)
punctured oil cooler, line torn off, oil everywhere
punctured radiator
foot peg torn off
windshield torn off, dash destroyed
bars bent
brake master cylinder torn off
headlight smashed
front subframe appeared bent
bent forks

But hey! The wheels looked fine!

Insurance totaled the bike. Rider bought a new one!

The rider was riding a smooth dirt road in dust behind other riders. He came up a rise and as he approached the top, the road took a left and dropped down. He didn't make the turn. He did scrub off some speed but
with stock tires the bike just drifted wide and he was off.

I was right behind him, but left more room due to dust and slowed on the rise, so had no problem.

[gregf]

Originally Posted by Dirsuper

Got the rims back last night. Can't thank Woody's enough, definitely a class act! Did not charge me for removing, remounting, and balancing tires. Also, I asked them to ship back the old (well, 'new'...original) rims and told them I would pay whatever I had to....they shipped them back and did not charge me an extra penny. Of course, most important, the rims look like they are bullet proof. I am certainly no rim expert, but comparing them with others I've seen, they look quite capable.

As soon as I get home from work I am taking that bike out and running the shit out of it - OFF THE ROAD!

Lets see a some pics of those wheels.

[craftycoder]

Originally Posted by gregf

Lets see a some pics of those wheels.

And the crash damage.

[Dirsuper]

Originally Posted by Adv Grifter

Crash bars are good! I'd love to see how your bike does on a nice Baja ride! I've bent a few rims there ... even on dirt bikes!

I witnessed an F800GS go off a mild dirt road at about 35 mph, hit a soft dirt berm, bike flipped and got caught up in a barbed wire fence, which promptly tore the bike apart. Totaled it. Unbelievable damage!

Bike was brand new (under 1000 miles) ... no guards on of any kind. New-ish rider who was not hurt.

Here is damage I could see: (I pulled the bike out of the fence and helped get it back onto the road)

One caliper torn clean off (lower fork destroyed too)
punctured oil cooler, line torn off, oil everywhere
punctured radiator
foot peg torn off
windshield torn off, dash destroyed
bars bent
brake master cylinder torn off
headlight smashed
front subframe appeared bent
bent forks

But hey! The wheels looked fine!

Insurance totaled the bike. Rider bought a new one!

The rider was riding a smooth dirt road in dust behind other riders. He came up a rise and as he approached the top, the road took a left and dropped down. He didn't make the turn. He did scrub off some speed but
with stock tires the bike just drifted wide and he was off.

I was right behind him, but left more room due to dust and slowed on the rise, so had no problem.

Thanks man, now I feel much less....uuhhhh, I don't feel so bad. That would suck!

[Dirsuper]

These are the bars (taken from a website):



I will get pics of all as soon as I figure out the whole digital camera thing.....If not for the bars, I probably would have crushed the radiator and all of that plastic (I was going pretty fast when I went down.....trust me, my shoulder is hurting pretty bad). Because I had the bars, the only crack is where the front top piece of plastic bolts to the frame (just under the windshield, on the side). Given that the windshield took a decent blow, the force was transferred to the plastic. Also, I had to take that piece off to install the bars (dropped a damn bolt into the 'center'), so the possibility exists that I tightened that bolt too tight. No big deal, I had our little local body shop do a cheap patch job (basically that mesh/cast type material and some type of strong glue) on the inside to keep the crack from spreading. You can still see a crack, but whatever, I did not buy the bike to look pretty.

I am hoping the bent tree bolt is the problem....if not, the damn bars might be bent. If they are bent, I will be living with it. It's not a big deal, I've certainly rode bikes with much bigger degradations. I have removed/reinstalled the bars a few times and it is always a little off. When I rolled the bolt on the workbench it did look to be bent. Also, when I switch bolts (right/left side), the problem follows.....but not exactly. $7 for a new bolt, worth a shot.

One huge benefit of the new seat....windshield works much better (seat is lower).

I've been interrupted by 'work stuff' about 20 times while writing this, so excuse the piecemeal format. Work....what a pain in the ass!

[PackMule]

Why'd you go with another wide (4.25) rear?

[sullydirt]

Originally Posted by Dirsuper

I had our little local body shop do a cheap patch job (basically that mesh/cast type material and some type of strong glue) on the inside to keep the crack from spreading. You can still see a crack, but whatever, I did not buy the bike to look pretty.

If you're not really worried about aesthetics, stop drilling the crack will keep it from spreading. It's done on aircraft all the time.

Very simple to do, just take a small diameter drill bit, locate the furthest part of the crack and drill a small hole. Problem with metal, is that sometimes the crack continues internally further than it looks, but with plastics, you can normally see the stopping point clearly.

It will look something like this:



The round diameter of the hole relieves stress, kinda the way an archway carries the stress of the weight over it. There are calculations to determine the correct size bit, but if it's not structural you can just wing it.

Edit; By the way, using a center punch to mark your spot will keep your drill bit from walking. If you don't have one a nail or wood screw works fine in a pinch.

[Adv Grifter]

Originally Posted by Dirsuper

Thanks man, now I feel much less....uuhhhh, I don't feel so bad. That would suck!

It did suck. All of us (group of about 10 riders) were gutted. No one could believe the rotten luck. Surprisingly, the owner was not that upset. He's a machinist (a really good one) and had good insurance, seemed to take it all in stride. Amazing attitude!

[Dirsuper]

Originally Posted by PackMule

Why'd you go with another wide (4.25) rear?

That was based on my projected ratio of on/off road use. This is my ~100 mile-a-day commuter, so I was primarily interested in good on-road handling, yet a bit more protection when I do go off-road. I honestly don't know enough to speak intelligently about it.

[Dirsuper]

Originally Posted by sullydirt

If you're not really worried about aesthetics, stop drilling the crack will keep it from spreading. It's done on aircraft all the time.

Very simple to do, just take a small diameter drill bit, locate the furthest part of the crack and drill a small hole. Problem with metal, is that sometimes the crack continues internally further than it looks, but with plastics, you can normally see the stopping point clearly.

It will look something like this:



The round diameter of the hole relieves stress, kinda the way an archway carries the stress of the weight over it. There are calculations to determine the correct size bit, but if it's not structural you can just wing it.

Edit; By the way, using a center punch to mark your spot will keep your drill bit from walking. If you don't have one a nail or wood screw works fine in a pinch.

Thanks bro. Someone else recommended same, but I think my 'back patch' will do the trick. I do appreciate the suggestion/guidance as to how to do it properly.

[Dirsuper]

Originally Posted by Adv Grifter

It did suck. All of us (group of about 10 riders) were gutted. No one could believe the rotten luck. Surprisingly, the owner was not that upset. He's a machinist (a really good one) and had good insurance, seemed to take it all in stride. Amazing attitude!

Glad to hear he was not as upset as most of us would be, AND that he was not afraid to use his insurance. I am terrified of making an insurance claim......never made one in my life, I am worried they will drop me and then I will be 'damaged goods' and no other company will take me.......I don't actually know any insurance types, but in my gut, I just don't trust them......kinda the same way I feel about anyone who gets elected for a living, and doctors.....just don't tell my wife, her dad and 2 of her brothers are doctors....and she is a nurse.

[Dirsuper]

Oh, and that $50 camera.....yeah, you get what you pay for. I took some pics, but they look like shit. When the wife gets back with the decent camera I will get some post-quality pics. Did get some great pics of the bike with the sun setting behind the mountains in my neighborhood......damn I love living in SoCal!

[johngil]

Wife pictures too?

[YetiGS]

Originally Posted by johngil

Wife pictures too?

Oh man, now you dun it.

[PackMule]

Originally Posted by Dirsuper

That was based on my projected ratio of on/off road use. This is my ~100 mile-a-day commuter, so I was primarily interested in good on-road handling, yet a bit more protection when I do go off-road.