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help with rim job

1913 Views 13 Replies 8 Participants Last post by  jbranson
I've got a '75 Honda 400F. 18" 36 hole, WM2 front and WM3 rear. I want alloy rims...specifically these alloy rims. They come in the right sizes for my bike but are not made specifically for my hubs.



Never having laced a wheel before, how much of a factor is the angle of the nipples in the rim? These are 18" 36 hole rims, but they're made for the rear wheel of small Honda and KTM dirtbikes. Can the spoke patterns be so far off that they won't work?

I know I could write a check to Buchanans and have some rims custom drilled, but thought I'd check these out first.
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My guess is that if your bike has a disk brake hub they would probably be fine....if it has drum brakes forget it, the hole angles will be way off.

And yes the spoke hole angle is pretty important...probably more than ten degrees different and it will tend to bend the spoke as you tighten it. I have....in emergencies, dremeled out the spoke holes a tad to compensate for a wrong angle...but it's a touchy process.
JohnnyB
I've ground a relief on spoke holes before, for the same reason, but not to that degree. I only needed a slight correction. You never want to flex the spokes to fit in the holes. I've seen a lot of wheels at the race track with bendy spokes.
Something funny is going on there...no small Honda or KTM has a rear hub that wide. Looks like the holes were drilled wrong, very radical angle on them.
I've end up having Buc's drill most of my rims...pre-drilled and dimpled Excel rims rarely have the right angle for a vintage hub. I use Excels on all my bikes and I like them, but they don't come off the shelf with the right angles for drum brakes ( in my case).
JohnnyB
I've ground a relief on spoke holes before, for the same reason, but not to that degree. I only needed a slight correction. You never want to flex the spokes to fit in the holes. I've seen a lot of wheels at the race track with bendy spokes.
Something funny is going on there...no small Honda or KTM has a rear hub that wide. Looks like the holes were drilled wrong, very radical angle on them.
I've end up having Buc's drill most of my rims...pre-drilled and dimpled Excel rims rarely have the right angle for a vintage hub. I use Excels on all my bikes and I like them, but they don't come off the shelf with the right angles for drum brakes ( in my case).
JohnnyB
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