Noob spoke and hoop questions...

[gofast_goggles]

As the title suggest i've got some fairly newbie questions about spoke rims in general. I ride a Suzuki gr650, the wheels that are on the bike now are the stock mags, that come on the gr650dx model. I've found spoked wheels and am really tempted to buy them to lighten my bike up a little.
So first question, how universal are rims and spokes? Ie if i do buy these wheels, for the hubs mostly, is it just a matter of deciding how large i want to run the front and back wheels, which determines the spoke length and rim size?
Secondly, in all seriousness how difficult is it to lace wheels? I've laced some bicycle wheels before and have access to folks who've laced motor cycle wheels, but i'd love to try to do it myself, because why not.
Also any tips/advice people have regarding this subject would be fantastic!

Thanks ya'll!!

Gofast

 

[nrcb125]

Speaking from my personal experience, I put a DR200SE hub on a 16" moped wheel for a design team project. Yeah... Not the best idea but it sort of worked.

You'll want to make sure the rims and the hubs accept the same number of spokes. For example, 36 spoke hub = 36 spoke rim. The width of the rim might be an issue as well but only if you're trying to match something like a hub designed for a 2" rim to a 5" wide rim. Roughly the same (within an inch or so) should be okay. Make sure the hub uses the same size axle, spacers, etc.

The guys over at Buchanan Spokes (http://www.buchananspokes.net/) can help you out with finding a set that will fit your hubs and rim. I've bought spokes from them in the past and haven't had any complaints. They can be a little pricey though.

Lacing a spoke isn't hard, but it is very tedious. You've got to make sure you do it in the right pattern over and over and over. It's easy to get yourself mixed up.

The hard part is truing the wheel. I'd recommend having a shop do it unless you want to buy a truing stand. At a shop it'll cost ~$100. Buying a decent stand will cost about the same maybe a little less. If you buy a stand and after you've trued the wheel yourself, take it to shop anyway and ask someone there to double check your work. Wouldn't want a wheel to fall apart going down the highway

 

[gofast_goggles]

Awesome! Thanks for the info, I'll definitely check out Buchanan, seems like its the place for spokes. I'll definitely look into lacing and truing, I've done both before but not on anything as substantial as a motorcycle wheel. And i'll definitely have them checked by a shop when im done! Thanks again!

 

[Bert Jan]

spoke angle is also important. The radius of the hub determines the angle of the spoke in the rim. You can not just slap any rim on any hub if the numbers match (32/36/40).

The hub you are going to put in needs to be 'about' the same diameter of the hub that came out. It's very hard to see the angle of the rim if there is no hub in it anymore. If you ignore this advice, you'll likely end up with spokes not fitting because the angle of the nipple is not the same as the angle the spoke wants to travel.

Crooked or even broken spokes will be the end result. Do not want.

Then you've also got innies and outies. ~bicycle spokes are all the same, but motorcylce spokes have different heads. The ones that go thru the rim from center to outside have a bigger angle in the head, because the spoke needs to come over the hub flange. in general, the innies are less than 90*, the outies are more then 90*.

 

[mydlyfkryzis]

...
The hard part is truing the wheel. I'd recommend having a shop do it unless you want to buy a truing stand. At a shop it'll cost ~$100. Buying a decent stand will cost about the same maybe a little less. If you buy a stand and after you've trued the wheel yourself, take it to shop anyway and ask someone there to double check your work. Wouldn't want a wheel to fall apart going down the highway

My truing stand from Harbor Freight F was $32 ....had a coupon 20% off. Was on sale for 39.99....

Truing a wheel isn't that hard, but it is critical and needs to be done right. there are lot's of videos that can be used to see the correct way to do it.

If the spokes are properly tightened, the wheel won't fall apart....but of course, skill levels vary...

 

[Bert Jan]

My truing stand from Harbor Freight F was $32 ....had a coupon 20% off. Was on sale for 39.99....

Truing a wheel isn't that hard, but it is critical and needs to be done right. there are lot's of videos that can be used to see the correct way to do it.

If the spokes are properly tightened, the wheel won't fall apart....but of course, skill levels vary...

i use an old cb500 swinger, with custom fabbed spacers and such.

 

[gofast_goggles]

yeah i'll definitely be using a makeshift truing stand and it'll be checked by some one whos done it before.

The hub you are going to put in needs to be 'about' the same diameter of the hub that came out. It's very hard to see the angle of the rim if there is no hub in it anymore. If you ignore this advice, you'll likely end up with spokes not fitting because the angle of the nipple is not the same as the angle the spoke wants to travel.

I've bought the OEM spoked hubs off another gr650. They're shouldn't be any problems there?