Granted, Betty has a front spoked wheel. Yeah, it looks nice. No, I'm not keen on that idea anymore, but she's showy, and that's why I had her built.

However, when it somes to Spinner, the idea of 'function' must take precedence over 'style.' And hitting a poorly maintained section of patches on a Class A highway made that very, very clear!

As I stated before, it looks like the little Sportster is going to need a back tire soon. If not towards the end of this riding season, then certainly over the winter. If so, I want the wrench to carefully inspect the spokes and the rim on the stock back wheel assembly, and my guess is the bearings can just be thrown away.

So let's suppose--for the sake of a debate--the wrench finds excessive or premature wear. Once apart, it's a great time to also check for belt wear, etc. Suppose I get the bad news that several spokes are bent or have loosened, and it's a good time to upgrade. (By the way, my mechanic Ryan is a careful and trained guy. He has shown me stuff I never thought about, like worn out cams at less than 5K miles. He had a hunch, he checked it out. I rely on him and trust him.)

At this stge in my life I like to buy stock or custom catalog Harley parts. Yes, I have a few parts on Betty that are 'factory out-sourced,' and they service those components. However, recently they have added a kiosk at my dealership showing new wheel options. Most are fancy with numerous nooks and crannies where getting cleaning tools would be a nightmare. However, one design has a smooth rim, sturdy construction, and more to the point, takes an in-stock Harley tire. Even my current tubed tire if I desired. Big problem--it's chromed.

Yes, it's a seemingly minor issue, and it's a good wheel. Granted just fixing a stock spoked wheel might even work. Your thoughts?

hi, I am new here but i have been riding motorcycles for 40 years. I can tell you that the solid wheel may not be as pretty as spoke, but when you have that flat in the country because of a nail or some other trash on the road a can of fix a flat works a lot better than leaving the bike in a ditch and walking to the next station.... the chrome is not bad. just use windex and keep it clean....

Howdy and welcome to the forum, always nice to hear from a motorcyclist.

Tourist, you know i love those spoke wheels, but if the stock ones aren't up to your riding style, then I wholeheartedly think an upgrade is what the doc ordered. As for the Mag Vs. Spokes debate - my vote is for a strong set of spoke wheels to replace the weak ones.
My reasoning is this, the bike being a sporty is by nature light and agile I believe that the spokes (a well built set) will keep it that way. Not to say that the mag wheels wouldn't be as good or better, just as a rule of thumb the spokes seem to do the job well.
My $.02

I personally like the spoke wheels too. I don't see any reason to replace the wheels that come with the bike! If you do list them here someone just might want to buy them.

Lenny

Thanks, guys. I understand your points.

Spinner ain't really for lookin' at, despite my OCD polishing regimen. Yes, I'm sure we can find some 'hard use' spokes that will work.

However, if you've been to Madison lately, you'll notice that our road infrastructure repair is almost nonexistent. We have irregularly formed and leveled cold patch areas, sections where concrete is missing, buckles on the slab, and even main thoroughfares that are 'washboards." There are two areas I slow for, both patches will bounce you out of your seat.

I want the wheels checked. You might be right, maybe the spokes need a tune and a tighten, maybe they need to be relaced. I don't know. But if the tire has to be replaced, I'm going to go one way or the other, and I'm not going to rip the back end apart again.

I have a square swingarm, a solid wheel and progressives on Betty. That might be the 'fix' for Spinner, as well.

I've got spokes on my bike front and back. I've taken that bike everywhere a billy goat would go and few places they might not, bad roads and off roads, SO FAR (i don't want to jinx myself) - heavy bike - loaded down with camping gear and tools, never had any problems with the wheels. So my thinking - spokes are pretty tough. I ride the wheels off that bike - love to see if I can get that front wheel off the ground... so far not so much... LOL.
So I have to ask, is the wheel(s) out of true? Making any noises? Can you feel any loose/broken spokes?
Solid/Mag wheels are definitely going to be heartier but how much is overkill? What is the difference in weight? If the mag/solid does have a notable weight increase/difference spinner being a light bike the un-sprung weight difference will be more noticeable than on a bigger bike like your betty, so says my common sense...
Bottom line you might not like it.

Oh, I'm listening for the same sounds and squeaks. Fact is, it's hard to find a straight, smooth stretch of Wisconsin real estate to listen to the bike at speed. When I wipe her down for the night I take a rag and rub my hand along the rim. I've been tapping on spokes--it's that bad here. And that includes our local stretch of Interstate.

I don't *think* I'm in major trouble. The bike tracks.

Within +/-1K I'll be due for fluids. Because of the mileage I might even do the 10K check since so much of the season is in front of us. If I know my options now, I'll be able to make an informed decision.

Here's a small example. My foot was slipping on the left peg. I had worn a flat spot on the peg. Tonight I went to the shop for a spare, and the parts guy says that a peg for a 48 is 37 dollars. He did say that a regular Sportster peg was about ten bucks, and he gave me that one.

Guess what? MoCo strikes again! The peg for a 48 has a dog-leg, a regular Sportie peg doesn't fit!

These are things I want to know now before the wrenches and the money start flying around!

Getting prices for what you propose shouldn't be a biggie, even a few different options,
Tires and wheels are a pretty easy thing to research.

On that, we agree. However, Sportsters and dismal suspensions have been around for decades. It's the one thing that just irks me about that model. I mean, the whole concept of the 'K' and the early Sporties was racing, either on the track or on the street. By nature of that pedigree (and the history of 'The Wrecking Crew') the Sportster should always be cutting edge for MoCo. You would assume...

Many people like spokes, no question. But just as EFI is more precise but some people like carburetors, you would also assume that if something dynamic in the 'go fast' aspect of new Harleys was to surface it would be on a Sportster. Not always true. For example, due to an air box made for looks, the XR1200X Sportster actually makes less horsepower than my 48.

The shocks and ride quality of Spinner is quite poor. Granted, I can fix her, and I should fix her, I love to ride her. Coupled with our lousy roads and my mileage, I'm experiencing wear. But for all I know there's a clandestine supply house that makes ultra-titanium steroid extra grunt double-secret racing spokes. You guys use them all of the time and I have yet to see them.

If I find bad stuff when the tire comes off, I'd like to hear your side. You said your roads were bad. Did you have the same concerns?

Ive gone through maybe 4 or 5 back tires so far, in need of a new one now...
I take the wheels off myself, and then bring them to my local bike tire shop, he lets me come in the back and check the wheels over before he mounts the new rubber. I check the spokes and inside surfaces for any problems. Usually, I'll have a little rust on the mounting surface that we wire brush clean and I'll sand it if its too rough then I'll hand him back the wheel and he'll mount the new rubber. So far all is well, spokes are tight, wheel is straight, and I clean/scrub it all to make sure no grunge is hiding anything.
He doesn't let just anyone back there and I bring a bucket full of cleaning stuff with me. I'll have a new spoke protector band put in and new tubes every time even if the old ones are good. Usually there is a little rust on some of the spoke nipples but I clean all that stuff up. Any rust I find is just surface and hasn't been a problem. I did a few off road / water crossing submerge the tires up to the floorboards and I figure that's where any water would have gotten in.
If you have the same opportunity with your guy bring a wire brush, I used #400 the first time but now i use #150 to smooth down any pitting. A couple clean rags and if there is a problem you'll see it. I check the spokes by pulling and pushing to see if there is any play, there shouldn't be. Hand him back the wheel and make sure you get ALL new rubber every time.