BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

Hi again gang

Here's another question: spoked wheels on a 850/1100R or alloy... which is the best? any particular advantages/disadvantages to spokes over alloys? I ask because a couple of the bikes I've been looking at come with spoked wheels rather than alloys.

Thanks
Tracy

Well, spokes have the advantage of distributing the impact stress better, that's why you always find them on offroad bikes. Theoretically they also give the possibility of adjusting the wheel geometry should it be needed, by loosening/tensing up some of the spokes (after you've hit something while offroading, the wheel might not break, due to the spikes, but can be out-of-plane etc). On the other hand, alloys are stiffer, and that is better for street riding, where you do not expect your wheeles to hit obstacles at that scale. Stiffer wheels mean less energy lost while transfering engine power through the weels to the tarmac. Also, they do not allow for any change of the wheel geometry i.e., wheel is always in one plane, which is very desired , especially for higher speeds (no wheel wobbling). Hence, you do not have to worry about the spoke adjustment with alloys. It doesn't mean spoked wheels are bad for street bikes, the differences are small unless you are a racing pilot and really push the machine to the limit, but then you probably are not riding the r1100r in the first place . The BMW boxers, apart from the GS, are in general not very handy when it comes to offroading, unless you tweak the handlebars setting etc, so unless you are thinking of doing something uncommon, like use your boxer mainly for dirt roads, just go with alloys good luck, cheers!

one other point a spoke wheel can not be plugged it has to be broken down and the tube patched as a mag style wheel can be plugged with out removing the wheel from the bike. I had a flat at deals gap South Carolina on my ultra classic plugged it spent a week riding the dragon and the skyway and made it home to Massachusetts. If your off roading go with spokes they are more forgiving but if you on the road touring go with mags and carry a plug kit with about six co2 cartridges and filler kit

BMW spoked wheels are normally run with tubeless tires and can be plugged like any other.
BMW spoked wheels are laced to the rim flanges, not to the rim center, so cannot leak like normal spoked wheels.

Thanks I did not know that learn somthing new every day. After doing some reading here is some good info
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tech/wheels

roadglide wrote:Thanks I did not know that learn somthing new every day. After doing some reading here is some good info
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tech/wheels

That is crazy!!...I am glad I have alloy. I just put some tires on mind...I am glad I took it to the dealer

Hi, I have a R1200c with beautiful chrome spoke weels. Wouldn't want anything else on the Cruiser. Only drawback is that they are a b&#^@ to clean. Lots of little places for grime. Also, I had my rear tire plugged. The plug works fine. Since it is a Cruiser, I am not riding on like a jet pilot. Now on my R1150RT, I have the painted alloy. Very easy to clean and great for that bike. Just make sure you talk to the shop before you get new tires put on, they have scratched the paint on mine.
P.S. Always take the tires off the bike, they will charge a lot for that.
My 2 cents.

An Addendum to my prior comment:
It appears that the new G650GS has regular spoked wheels, not the BMW style.

Alloy off course as spoke wheels are a pain to clean ...

Kind regards
Oliver

Interesting discussion!
I currently own a 96 r850r, which I adore... It has the standard alloy 3-spoke wheel, but I prefer the spokes as they look more vintage to me.

I have the opportunity to buy a set of r1150GS adventure spoke wheels, but I don't know whether I can use them for my R850R.
Is there anybody who can help me on this matter?

Thanks a lot,
Ruben