Plug and Play 4.5 rear Rim?

[InvisiBill]

By the time I called the dealer back today, they had found the 8mm valve stems. I should be all set shortly.

[InvisiBill]

Originally Posted by InvisiBill

By the time I called the dealer back today, they had found the 8mm valve stems. I should be all set shortly.

Wow, what a fustercluck... I took them to the cheaper (only 3/4 the price) place, which is actually a Kawasaki dealer. They put the new tires on my Vulcan wheels a few years ago, and recently moved into a nice new building so I wanted to check it out. As I already mentioned, at first they only had the larger pull-through stems, but found some 8mm ones eventually.

Well, the inside of the wheel has a slight V to it (more noticeable on the wider rear wheel). They said they got the stem in, but couldn't get it to sit flat on the angled surface of the inside of the wheel, meaning it would never hold air.

I took the wheels and tires to the more expensive shop I called first, and explained the issues that the first shop had run into. They took the rear wheel in the back and said they'd have no problem doing it. They actually seemed a bit confused at how the first shop had so much trouble with it. Their balancing machine also uses spacers, so the only thing they need is for the wheel to have the bearings installed (not the rotor, like at the first shop). I guess it's worth an extra $11 per wheel if they can actually do it right.

To sum all that up, these are slightly different from stock, but a decent shop shouldn't really have any problem setting them up. If it seems like a huge ordeal, that's probably a sign that you're at the wrong shop.

[triptronix]

I called a few dealerships in my area and none of them have the 8.3mm valve stems. They are all telling me that I will need to provide the valve stem since the size is uncommon.

I have a question. Can I just dremel the value hole to 11.3mm instead? Will that compromise the structure of the rim by chance?

[jkv45]

Originally Posted by triptronix

I called a few dealerships in my area and none of them have the 8.3mm valve stems. They are all telling me that I will need to provide the valve stem since the size is uncommon.

I have a question. Can I just dremel the value hole to 11.3mm instead? Will that compromise the structure of the rim by chance?

I don't think it would cause any problems as long as there's plenty of material all around the hole when you are done.

That's most likely what I would do.

[InvisiBill]

I'm no expert (as everyone should've guessed from my previous posts), but I'm pretty sure you'll still need bolt-through stems as opposed to the pull-through ones like I posted above. The wheel is fairly thick there, so the little seating ring on the pull-through stem probably wouldn't work with it.

Enlarging the hole would probably make it a little easier to find suitable valve stems, but that still might not guarantee that the shop will have the right ones on hand. Like I said above, the first shop I went to only seemed to have the large pull-through stems, so even a larger hole wouldn't have been enough in that case. They (though not the second shop) mentioned having trouble with the valve stem seating on the V-shape of the inside of the wheel too, and enlarging the hole might make that more of an issue.

I believe the second shop would've had no issues whatsoever putting the right stems in if I had just handed them the tires and wheels and said to mount them, as I originally did at the first shop. FYI, they're a Yamaha/Aprilia/Arctic Cat/Moto Guzzi/Ducati/Piaggio/Vespa/Triumph dealer. If the 8mm stems are really more of a European thing, then they might have a little wider variety of stock than your typical Japanese bike dealership. It really did seem like a 100% standard job for the second shop, and they seemed confused that the first shop could have so much trouble with it. I dropped the parts off just before they closed Thursday night, and they had it done before noon on Friday.

I like the idea of making the wheels a little more standard to accept the larger stems, but I'd personally be worried that I'd screw up the wheel somehow and still not make them truly standard. After that work and risk, the shop might still need to order the bolt-through stems (though in the more common larger size). Since the second shop had no trouble at all with them, it just seems a whole lot less "non-standard" than the first shop seemed to imply.

[alopez78]

Hi Andy
It's me again. So today is April 9, that means that's it's been 26 days since I wrote to you here asking about my rims. You replied back on the March 26th stating that you where going to look into it again but, 2 weeks later and nothing. Andy...... I'm begging you, please please pretty please. Can you re-ship my rims already. I'll pay for shipping again. I just want my rims. Or If you don't want to deal with me, then just give me my money back and I'll never bother you again. We've been going back and forth for 8 months now. And I've been very patient. It's simple, re-ship the rims (I will pay for the costs) or give me my money back. Once again please let me know as soon as possible what's going on.

[BlownWideOpen]

That sucks. Came in wanting to purchase these asap instead I read the post above mine and I am now unsure. :/

[alopez78]

Hey blownwideopen
Please don't let my situation make you feel unsure about Andy and his Rims. My situation is kinda of a weird shipping glitch. As you will tell from all the other customers, he's honest, very prompt and helpful. Buy with confidence.

[BlownWideOpen]

By the looks of it you're having a tough time with the seller, with the begging and what not... I still want to get in on these but only after wandyhee chimes in...

[NinjaZX6R123]

I looked all over the place for these rims as well. I contacted a few sellers to see if they have them in stock. Hopefully I get a reply. Boy are they hard to come by.

[InvisiBill]

I had another issue with my stupid valve stems. I did a test fitting of all my parts (the first pic below), and when I went to roll the wheel back to where it was sitting, the tire had no pressure in it (the front was still fine). Because of all the trouble I had with valve stems when getting them mounted, I just took it back to the shop. It turned out to just be a loose valve core, and now it's holding air nicely. So much trouble from something so simple though...

While I was there, a kid working on a bike next to the tire machine asked what the wheels were off of. The rim tape was reflecting and looked like a polished lip or something, so he thought they were special edition Hayabusa wheels or something. "Nope, just foreign aftermarket 250 wheels with $15 rim tape."


I got my 250 swingarm (the 500 swingarm needs a bit of modding for the wider wheel to fit, and the 250 swingarm fits into the 500's frame with only a tiny bit of work) and rear VRossi wheel installed this weekend.





I'm waiting on a new EBC brake rotor to get the front wheel installed.

[BlownWideOpen]

So I inquired about these. Been out of stock since Nov. Anyone looking to sell theirs? Thanks

[NinjaZX6R123]

Originally Posted by BlownWideOpen

So I inquired about these. Been out of stock since Nov. Anyone looking to sell theirs? Thanks

I inquired these from Indonesian distributers and all of them have told me this is a discontinued product. They don't make them anymore.

They have the new model out which I ended up purchasing, however the front fits but I had to add a washer so it isn't loose and the back doesn't fit at all (maybe if you mod it). I ended up ordering the back from Sportisi. Ended up spending twice the price. Wish I picked these up when they were available.

[BlownWideOpen]

That sucks, you bought the 300 style wheels, right? I think I saw it somewhere in a thread... I might just get the sportisi rear if it's the same design as stock

[BlownWideOpen]

I just checked sportisi usa. Wheel alone is 379 and shipping to Canada is definitely going to suck.

[NinjaZX6R123]

Originally Posted by BlownWideOpen

That sucks, you bought the 300 style wheels, right? I think I saw it somewhere in a thread... I might just get the sportisi rear if it's the same design as stock

Yeah, I bought the 300 style wheels made for the 250 (they have different models). It fits the Indonesian 250 plug n play however the USA model seems a bit different so the front I had to mod a bit to fit and back didn't fit at all due to caliper alignment. Shoot Sportisi USA an email and see if they have any in stock left. From what I was told, I ordered the last one.

[NinjaZX6R123]

Originally Posted by BlownWideOpen

I just checked sportisi usa. Wheel alone is 379 and shipping to Canada is definitely going to suck.

No, they have U.S. distributors so shipping cost me $14 from Ohio to California. Yes, the wheels alone is $379 but made by Chemco. A much higher quality than the ones Andy was selling.

[BlownWideOpen]

Originally Posted by NinjaZX6R123

No, they have U.S. distributors so shipping cost me $14 from Ohio to California. Yes, the wheels alone is $379 but made by Chemco. A much higher quality than the ones Andy was selling.

Yeah but here I gotta pay customs + tax and it ships by weight. Will probably end up being around 500. But I will definitely ask, although their site shows out of stock. Plus I probably don't have to wait 2-3 months for these lol

[NinjaZX6R123]

Originally Posted by BlownWideOpen

Yeah but here I gotta pay customs + tax and it ships by weight. Will probably end up being around 500. But I will definitely ask, although their site shows out of stock. Plus I probably don't have to wait 2-3 months for these lol

Ah true, totally forgot about customs. I don't think it'd be $500 though. For the both front/back wheels to be shipped from Indonesia to United States costed me $250 and it took less than a week to arrive.

Yeah, the Sportisi site said Out of Stock when I ordered mine's as well. They ended up finding one available from their distributers.

[BlownWideOpen]

Originally Posted by NinjaZX6R123

Ah true, totally forgot about customs. I don't think it'd be $500 though. For the both front/back wheels to be shipped from Indonesia to United States costed me $250 and it took less than a week to arrive.

Yeah, the Sportisi site said Out of Stock when I ordered mine's as well. They ended up finding one available from their distributers.

I'd take the risk of taking your old ones off your hands but I don't want to end up with lemons either. Thanks for the feedback though! Much appreciated

[InvisiBill]

These seem to be unavailable now, so I'm not sure how much interest there will be in them going forward, but I thought I'd post my info just as an FYI for anyone looking (buying a used set, buying a bike that comes with these wheels, etc.).

I weighed the bare wheels on my free Stamps.com USB scale* before having the tires mounted. The front was 8lb 7.4oz and the rear was 12lb 1.5oz. I didn't weigh them again after the tires were installed. I don't have the weight of the stock wheels, as I still have the tires mounted, and they're EX500 wheels anyway.

It could definitely be all in my head, but the bike seemed to accelerate a bit more quickly with the new wheels and tires. The combo could definitely be lighter, especially since I switched from bias-ply to radial tires, or it could just be the new parts effect. It just seemed a bit less sluggish when getting up to speed.

*The current free scale is only listed as handling up to 5lb. Mine is an older model, so it may or may not have the same limit. It definitely measures more than 5lb, but it may not be completely accurate for heavier weights.

[sharky nrk]

^^ somebody has to have weight of the stock wheels handy

[InvisiBill]

Originally Posted by diwhiteii

Numbers are with tires mounted

Stock wheels
Front 22lbs
Rear 31lbs

Galespeed
Front 17lbs
Rear 26lbs

These numbers include the tires. If I have to pull the wheels for any reason, I'll try to get a weight with tires, and maybe even my 500 wheels' weight with the tires. That's not as helpful to you guys, but it would be more data for me and possibly somewhat useful for you.

[Ninja Chris]

Originally Posted by sharky nrk

^^ somebody has to have weight of the stock wheels handy

I'm not positive, but maybe this is what you're looking for?

Stock vs. Aftermarket Wheels

[InvisiBill]

Originally Posted by Ninja Chris

I'm not positive, but maybe this is what you're looking for?

Stock vs. Aftermarket Wheels

Based on that, 4.60kg = 10.1413lb and 5.30kg = 11.6845lb. My VRossi wheels weighed 8.4625lb and 12.09375lb for comparison (see up a few posts). So you save 1.68lb on the front wheel, but the wider rear wheel is 0.41lb heavier. Overall, you're saving 1.27lb.

[Somchai]

Originally Posted by InvisiBill

Based on that, 4.60kg = 10.1413lb and 5.30kg = 11.6845lb. My VRossi wheels weighed 8.4625lb and 12.09375lb for comparison (see up a few posts). So you save 1.68lb on the front wheel, but the wider rear wheel is 0.41lb heavier. Overall, you're saving 1.27lb.

Thanks for your information and it's very interesting since the VRossi-Rims are so much lighter than the stock rims and one would have to ask why to buy rims for 2400 usd when you'll get the same advantage for only 120 usd (that's the price in Indonesia).