Lowering a bike further with 16' rims???

[snowlife]

So far I have looked at/research lowering the 250r for my girlfriend.
So far
-lowering links 1.25/1.5' (side stand inc.)
-seat cut
-platform shoes/boots

Now if that extra little bit is needed I was thinking the 16' rims would be the last step.
Any cheaper ideas before this?
Or if it is the last step any ideas on cost, brands of 16' rims, maybe low-pro tyres on 17' rims?

[kkim]

what is your gf's inseam measurement?

[wyckedflesh]

Ask one of the riders of the Pre-08 bikes that ash 16" wheels what the overall diameter of their wheels and tires are front and rear. Then measure the overal diameter of your wheel and tire to see what the difference is. Take that difference and cut it in half, and that will tell you how much lower the bike will sit.

[Duvivr6]

My wife if 5ft nothing and with lowering links she can ride the 09 just fine!

[zail]

My inseam is 28" and I have no probs shock on lowest setting and with seat cut down slightly.. my pregen 250 was lower though (with seat cutdown also) so maybe that would be a better option?

[HKr1]

Isnt the belly pretty much on the ground after lowering links & them bar adapters to lower the front forks to match???

[snowlife]

Originally Posted by kkim

what is your gf's inseam measurement?

if i remember correctly 25.5' instep. 4ft9.

Any ideas about the cost of new rims?

[kkim]

buy them used... they are about $500 each for each wheel alone, new.

I'd see how the bike fits her first before deciding to go the wheel route.... even then, I don't know how much that will really buy you.

[Small Ninja]

I am 4'10'' and i lowered mine and cut the seat. i used the RT lowering links and they lowered me like 2-3 inches.

[kkim]

didn't you have a problem with the tire eating through the subfender when it was lowered that much?

[Small Ninja]

i had 2 problems with lowering it all the way down... 1 you can not ride with a passenger because mine ate through the back subfender. and 2 it bottomed out when i went over speed bumps so i raised it up one notch. it was a little higher and i didnt like it at first but i got used to it and now speed bumps are fine and me and my boyfriend ride together all the time. saves money on gas.

[zartan]

I think the lowering links will work fine. on the 08-09's.
My inseam is 25.5-26" and lowering worked great. My pregen I did not have to lower, but it was close.... I also lowered the front to keep the geometry closer to stock.

[Racer x]

Did you lower the front?

[Banzai]

I undersand your problem. There were two women in my MSF class that were well under 5foot tall who both found the stock seat height on the supplied Rebel 250s to be too tall for them to reliably place both feet on the ground!

Please be aware that lowering the rear alone will alter the steering performance of the bike. The more radical the departure from stock, the more performance will suffer. The best approach is to balance front and rear lowering to maintain predictable and safe performance, and alter seat foam from there.

[headshrink]

Your speedo will read even faster.....

[snowlife]

any idea on 2nd hand wheel price?

[kkim]

have you actually figured out how much the 16" wheels will lower the bike? if you are thinking 1", you're mistaken.

[Banzai]

OK, let's run the theoretical numbers (keeping this one in has been killing me for days, and I'm surprised that no one has done it this way to compare yet):


First off, tire size is read like this=tread width in mm/aspect ratio in % of tread width-rim size. Thus, a 110/90-16 tire is 110mm wide at the tread, and the sidewall is 90% the height of the tread (in this case 90% of 110mm is 99mm) on a 16 inch rim. Remember, to get overall theoretical tire height, we have to DOUBLE the sidewall, because you measure the top and bottom of the wheel.

Sources vary on the 07 and lower bikes. Some references show 100/90-16, some show 100/80-16 for stock front tires. Let's run both, as well as a performance tire known to be taller (have to raise the front fender):

Front 16 inch 07 and lower 250s performance 110/90-16 tires. This is a very popular performance tire size chosen for the 07 and lower 250s, but is a little taller than dealer stock.
Let's convert the rim size to metric. 16 inches x 25.4mm per inch = 406.4mm.
The tire has a 99mm tall sidewall x 2 = 198mm.
Rim height 406.4mm + tire sidewalls 198mm = 604.4mm tall tire/rim combo.
Divide 604.4mm by a constant of 25.4mm per inch = 23.795 inches.
* Roughly put, the 07 and lower rims with performance rubber has a tire height of 23 3/4 inches without load.

For the 100/80-16, let's reuse some of those numbers.
Near as I can tell, this tire size is dealer stock.
Tire sidewall = 100mm x 80% = 80mm x 2 sidewalls = 160mm.
Rim height 406.4mm + tire sidewalls 160mm = 566.4mm.
Divide 566.4mm by a constant of 25.4mm per inch = 22.299 inches.
* Roughly put, the 07 and lower rims with stock rubber has a tire height of 22 1/4 inches without load.

For the 100/90-16, let's reuse some of those numbers again.
Near as I can tell, this is an alternate front tire size that's also popular.
Tire sidewall = 100mm x 90% = 90mm x 2 sidewalls = 180mm.
Rim height 406.4mm + tire sidewalls 180mm = 586.4mm.
Divide 586.4mm by a constant of 25.4mm per inch = 23.086 inches.
* Roughly put, the 07 and lower rims with alternate stock rubber has a tire height of 23 inches without load.

Stock front tires on the 08+ is 110/70-17.
Let's convert rim size to metric. 17 inches x 25.4mm per inch = 431.8mm.
Tire sidewall is 110mm tall x 70% = 77mm x 2 sidewalls = 154mm.
Rim height 431.8mm + tire sidewalls 154mm = 585.8mm tall tire/rim combo.
Divide 585.8mm by a constant of 25.4mm per inch = 23.062 inches.
* Roughly put, the 08+ rims with stock rubber has a tire height of 23 inches without load.

Thus, through the wonder of math we can see that using performance rubber, a 16 inch 07 and lower ninja 250 FRONT wheel/tire is about 3/4 inch TALLER than an 08+ wheel/tire combo with performance rubber.

At best, with the smallest stock rubber, it's a 3/4 inch overall difference, which translates to an overall drop of 3/8 inch at the axle, and you lose the handling and ride comfort benefit of the lower profile tires to which the other parts of the suspension are spec'd!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wanna know what the numbers are for the rears? Yeah, after comparing the fronts, I'm not interested, either. Someone else do the math, I'm spent.....

[headshrink]

My head is spinning.... I wasn't expecting that result!
As soon as my eyes recover from being in front of my computer all day, I'm going to read that more closely. Wow - TALLER! (and to think I was guessing 1/2" shorter)

[Banzai]

Originally Posted by headshrink

My head is spinning.... I wasn't expecting that result!
As soon as my eyes recover from being in front of my computer all day, I'm going to read that more closely. Wow - TALLER! (and to think I was guessing 1/2" shorter)

Yes, with the performance rubber. After some more searches, I augmented my post above. You can achieve a 3/8 inch drop overall with the 3/4 inch overall difference, but it'll take sacrafices. Your initial guess of 1/2 was pretty close.

Sorry for the confusion, but after re reading my original post and found some alternate sources, I had to go back and fix things! Mea Maxima Culpa, I missed some things the first time!

Now THAT'S a post for the lowering section of the Wiki!!!

[Banzai]

Originally Posted by snowlife

any idea on 2nd hand wheel price?

$50-250+ depending on condition + shipping on ebay right now.

[snowlife]

Originally Posted by Banzai

Yes, with the performance rubber. After some more searches, I augmented my post above. You can achieve a 3/8 inch drop overall with the 3/4 inch overall difference, but it'll take sacrafices. Your initial guess of 1/2 was pretty close.

Sorry for the confusion, but after re reading my original post and found some alternate sources, I had to go back and fix things! Mea Maxima Culpa, I missed some things the first time!

Now THAT'S a post for the lowering section of the Wiki!!!

I have been on forums for a while and I consider you response quality.
I intended to explore more, wheel cost rather than the rubber cost before I bought. So does enyone know what wheels/ hub specs suit the 250r???

[KJohnson21]

Originally Posted by snowlife

I have been on forums for a while and I consider you response quality.
I intended to explore more, wheel cost rather than the rubber cost before I bought. So does enyone know what wheels/ hub specs suit the 250r???

Snow,

Check out the information for lowering the front. It's much more effective than lowering the rear by itself.

[snowlife]

Originally Posted by KJohnson21

Snow,

Check out the information for lowering the front. It's much more effective than lowering the rear by itself.

I know this.

Banzai has been great at doing the actual measurments on rims and rubber combined. Huge thanks. (was planning on doing this myself, but you did it before me, and MUCH BETTER)

But any help on the wheels price/specs would be great.