19" Motorcycle Wheels vs 26" Bicycle Wheels (rim and tires)

[Chalo]

I got the bike in a trade and didn't do my research for how difficult it was to switch to moto rims. I've been seeing a lot of people in here do it and multiple youtube videos of people doing it so it didn't seem like a big deal.

It's not that big a deal-- if you're already familiar with building either bicycle or motorcycle wheels. It's a fairly high skill operation that even many pro bike mechanics hand off to specialists.

Consider for a moment that the angles, ground clearance, and steering geometry of a bike aren't accidental, and all those things change if you switch wheel diameters because you don't like the look of what you have. Maybe the effects are benign or even desirable, but likely they are not.

Can you fit a suitably fat tire in the rear swingarm of your bike? How similar is the outer diameter of the wheel you want to use to what the bike was set up with originally? How much ground clearance would you have with the new wheel when the suspension is fully compressed?

If your misgivings are only aesthetic, maybe you can switch your 26"x2.n wheel to 24"x3.n, while keeping bicycle rims, tires, spokes. Moto wheel parts usually weigh 5 times or more what the corresponding bicycle parts weigh. That will not only make your bike a heavy pig and shift its balance, but screw up your suspension tuning by multiplying unsprung weight.

If you want your bike to look more like a motorcycle, are you mentally prepared to register and insure it as a motorcycle if it attracts the wrong kind of attention?

 

[Ellou]

I've been on this forum for about 7 to 10 years and I think every interaction we have had things get way deeper then they need to be.

That's not an insult, I'm just saying your are extremely detailed and technical with your responses. My main question was is it worth it to build it or just buy a whole new wheel. Price vs time.

But I do think your thinking about this more as a production bike that was converted to an ebike. These bikes usually ship with 17 to 21 inch moto wheels or 26 inch bicycle wheels. Typically with moto wheels because of the weight of the bike and large battery. The geometry doesn't mean much in this situation.



I have read on here and have seen people say lacing a hub motor in a moto wheel for the first time was intimidating but once they got started it was pretty easy. That's what I was thinking until I started seeing the prices of the rims and spokes. I mind as well just buy a new wheel already setup if I'm going to have to spend a couple hundred on parts and hope I get it right.


Thanks again.

 

[999zip999]

I was trying to find the height of a 17-in rim with a cross tire ? I don't know how to use the end of spear wiki yet

 

[SlowCo]

I was trying to find the height of a 17-in rim with a cross tire ? I don't know how to use the end of spear wiki yet

That will be 17 inch plus twice the tire height...

 

[Ianhill]

I done an a2b metro years ago and with newb knowledge i choose to use a 12 gauge spoke very robust for the rim size and took alot of tensioning, the wheels were super rigid and stupid the only savour i had was i could sit a 3.00 fat tyre and get sime give in the tyre wall.

Not ideal but turned out ok but chalos spoke to me way back then and said dont be so silly and what did o do lol learn the hard way 2 lessons learned. Plus chalos nw his stuff when it comes to rims so i listened and learnt as much as i could about differing hubs etc so i could build a durable second wheel on a different project and thats gone now and all batterys in uk are expensive without any welding equipment i can not justify £1000 to make a pack its crazy.

 

[Rix]

I was trying to find the height of a 17-in rim with a cross tire ? I don't know how to use the end of spear wiki yet

If you run a 2.75-17 tire like the Shinko SR241, your total height will be 23" to 23.4" inches depending on the width of the rim.

 

[neptronix]

22 inch BMX wheels are truly the sweet spot. Fits a 18" moto tire and the outside diameter can be 23" pretty easily. No heavy motorcycle rim required.

 

[Ellou]

22 inch BMX wheels are truly the sweet spot. Fits a 18" moto tire and the outside diameter can be 23" pretty easily. No heavy motorcycle rim required.

That sounds like a pretty good idea. I thought I remembered in the first few pages of this thread that it said only 20 inch bicycle rim were a direct match for moto tires. I'm not sure if 22 inch BMX rims were around when this thread started though.

I ended up buying a new kit so I may try a 22 inch bmx since now the 26 inch wheel/motor is collecting dust. I found a local wheel builder but the cost of rebuilding with the moto rim was ridiculous.

Do you have any pics of a 22 I ch BMX rim with 18 inch moto tire? I was going to try a 24 inch rim but seems like they are really hard to find good tires that fit.