Motorcyclewheels are made to cope with radial and axial forces. They also provide a way of mounting other critical components such as the brakes, final drive and suspension. Wheels, and anything directly connected to them, are considered to be unsprung mass. Traditionally motorcycles used wire-spoked wheels with inner tubes and pneumatic tyres. Although cast wheels were first used on a motorcycle in 1927, it would not be until the 1970s that mainstream manufacturers would start to introduce cast wheels on their roadgoing motorcycles. Spoked wheels are usually made using steel spokes with steel or aluminium rims. Cast wheels are predominantly made from an aluminium-alloy, but can also be made from more-exotic materials, such as magnesium content alloy or carbon fibre.
The first commercial motorcycles were built like bicycles, with wire wheels as bicycles had traditionally been fitted with. The Steffey motorcycle in 1902, essentially a bicycle with a two-stroke engine attached, used wooden, rims with wire spokes. [1] This style of wheel evolved into a stouter motorcycle-specific wheel, still with spokes, up to the 1960s and beyond. [2] : 134
In April, 1922, Borrani started production of motorcycle wheels with an aluminium rim. [3]
Although cast wheels had already been used on automobiles previously, it was not until the 1927 that the Böhmerland, a motorcycle built in Czechoslovakia was fitted with cast wheels. [4] : 72
BMW patented a spoked wheel that cross ran the spokes onto the outside of the rim, allowing the use of tubeless tires. [5] : 31
By the late 2000s, a number of materials and designs in addition to traditional spoked wheels were available, including cast, spun or forged aluminum; cast or forged magnesium; and single-layup or composite carbon fiber. [6] [7]
High-performance motorcycles began to use cast alloy wheels (usually aluminum but sometimes magnesium) as early as the Münch Mammoth, with its single cast-elektron [9] rear wheel which was shown at the Intermot motorcycle show at Cologne in late 1966. [10] Elliott Morris began producing seven-spoke cast magnesium racing wheels in 1973. [11]
In November 1974 the Van Veen was exhibited at the Cologne motorcycle show with front and rear cast wheels and triple Brembo disc brakes for their 1975 Model Year rotary-engined OCR1000 machines. [12] Aftermarket cast wheels for Japanese makes having drum rear and front disc brakes were available in UK from late 1974. [13]
A patent for a cast alloy motorcycle wheel was filed in 1974 and assigned to Carroll Shelby's Shelby-Dowd Industries; and in early 1975 Thomas J. Lester of then-named Lester Tire Company had applied for a patent on composite cast motorcycle wheel construction (with a press-fit hub). [14] [15] By mid 1975, Shelby-Dowd aftermarket cast alloy wheels were advertised for sale. [16] In November 1975, Harley-Davidson, Moto Guzzi and Ducati all showed factory models fitted with alloy wheels at the EICMA show in Milan. [17] By 1976, two more manufacturers were offering aftermarket cast aluminum wheels: Henry Abe of Osaka, Japan (now Daytona Global); [18] and Lester Industries of Ohio (now a division of ITT). [19]
In 1975, the Moto Guzzi 850 Le Mans and the MV Agusta 750 America were available with alloy wheels as an option. [20] [21] Italian manufacturer Fantic produce a step-through moped named 'Roma' with 10 in (250 mm) cast wheels as standard specification in 1975. [22]
The Yamaha RD400C sold in 1976 was the first motorcycle by a major manufacturer to be fitted with cast wheels. The cast wheels weighed 100 grams (3.5 oz) more than the spoked wheels fitted to its RD350 predecessor. [23]
Honda began offering their Comstar composite wheels in 1977, marking the first time a manufacturer had included tubeless tires on a production motorcycle. At the same time as Honda's Comstar, Dawson Harmsworth firm in Sheffield, England produced a similar composite wheel from 1977 with generally comparable appearance, materials and construction. Initially intended for road racing applications, the wheel was specified for some models in the early 1980s Hesketh low-volume production road motorcycle range. Twenty years after the original business closed, the wheel is again being manufactured by a new business established by a former employee of Dawson Harmsworth. [24] [25] [26] [27]
The advantages of the cast wheels versus spoked are several, and include the use of tubeless tires for higher speed and better retention of inflation; better runout tolerance and the elimination of spoke maintenance; better rigidity and thus better handling; weight reduction due to smaller hub size; and better handling of side loads for motorcycles with sidecar rigs. [2] [28] [29] [30] [31]
Early motorcycles used brake mechanisms such as spoon brake independent of the wheels, but modern machines use drum or disc brakes integrated with the wheels.
In a bid to improve wet weather braking performance, Spanish manufacturer Sanglas in 1976 fitted inboard front brakes to their top model, the 500S, [32] followed in the 1980s by Honda models such as the VF400F and CBX500F. These used the front brake assembly enclosed in a vented aluminium hub to keep the mechanism dry.
Buell Motorcycle Company introduced a rim-mounted "zero torsional load" disc brake that was claimed to reduce unsprung weight in the wheel-brake system, including lighter wheel spokes that carried no braking load. [33] This style is generically termed a "perimeter brake" for its point of attachment to the wheel, and had been used in smaller numbers by other manufacturers before Buell. They can rarely be found on custom motorcycle spoked wheels. [34] [35]
Exotic wheel technologies like hub-center steering and the centreless wheel have not gained wide adoption. Hub-center steering is used in special applications, such as on land speed racing streamliners at Bonneville Speed Week, as it allows for a very compact, low-profile steering assembly when frontal area of the vehicle needs to be kept as small as possible to reduce air drag.
A bicycle wheel is a wheel, most commonly a wire wheel, designed for a bicycle. A pair is often called a wheelset, especially in the context of ready built "off the shelf" performance-oriented wheels.
A racing bicycle, also known as a road bike is a bicycle designed for competitive road cycling, a sport governed by and according to the rules of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI).
The Honda CX series motorcycles, including the GL500 and GL650 Silver Wing variants, were developed and released by Honda in the late 1970s, with production ending in most markets by the mid 1980s. The design included innovative features and technologies that were uncommon or unused at the time such as liquid cooling, electric-only starting, low-maintenance shaft drive, modular wheels, and dual CV-type carburetors that were tuned for reduced emissions. The electronic ignition system was separate from the rest of the electrical system, but the motorcycle could only be started via the start button.
Maserati Ghibli is the name of three different cars produced by Italian automobile manufacturer Maserati: the AM115, a V8 grand tourer from 1967 to 1973; the AM336, a V6 twin-turbocharged coupé from 1992 to 1998; and the M157, an executive saloon from 2013 onwards.
Zipp is an American company that is best known for designing, manufacturing, and marketing carbon-composite bicycle wheels for road cycling, triathlons, track racing, and mountain biking. The company's product range also includes handlebars, stems, seat posts, tires, inner tubes, handlebar tape, and bags.
The rim is the "outer edge of a wheel, holding the tire". It makes up the outer circular design of the wheel on which the inside edge of the tire is mounted on vehicles such as automobiles. For example, on a bicycle wheel the rim is a large hoop attached to the outer ends of the spokes of the wheel that holds the tire and tube. In cross-section, the rim is deep in the center and shallow at the outer edges, thus forming a "U" shape that supports the bead of the tire casing.
Magnesium wheels are wheels manufactured from alloys which contain mostly magnesium. Magnesium wheels are produced either by casting (metalworking), or by forging. Magnesium has several key properties that make it an attractive base metal for wheels: lightness; a high damping capacity; and a high specific strength. Magnesium is the lightest metallic structural material available. It is 1.5 times less dense than aluminium, so magnesium wheels can be designed to be significantly lighter than aluminium alloy wheels, while exhibiting comparable strength. Many competitive racing wheels are made of magnesium alloy.
The Kawasaki KZ400/Z400 is a street motorcycle that was produced by Kawasaki between 1974 and 1984. The 398cc displacement of the twin cylinder engine was increased to 443cc for the KZ440/Z440. The later KZ400-J used a 399cc four cylinder engine.
In the automotive industry, alloy wheels are wheels that are made from an alloy of aluminium or magnesium. Alloys are mixtures of a metal and other elements. They generally provide greater strength over pure metals, which are usually much softer and more ductile. Alloys of aluminium or magnesium are typically lighter for the same strength, provide better heat conduction, and often produce improved cosmetic appearance over steel wheels. Although steel, the most common material used in wheel production, is an alloy of iron and carbon, the term "alloy wheel" is usually reserved for wheels made from nonferrous alloys.
Motorcycle components and systems for a motorcycle are engineered, manufactured, and assembled in order to produce motorcycle models with the desired performance, aesthetics, and cost. The key components of modern motorcycles are presented below.
The VT250 or Spada MC20 is a Honda motorcycle built between late 1988 and the end of 1989.
The Moto Guzzi Le Mans is a sports motorcycle first manufactured in 1976 by Italian company Moto Guzzi. It was named after the 24-hour motorcycle endurance race at Le Mans in France. The Le Mans designation was first used for an 850 prototype, based on the V7, displayed at Premio Varrone in late 1972.
The Honda RC116 was a race motorcycle built by Honda Japan for the 50 cc class of Grand Prix motorcycle racing in the 1966 season. The motorcycle was a development of the previous RC115 version.
The wobbly-web wheel is a form of metal disc wheel where the disc is 'wobbled' into spokes. This provides a stiffer, lightweight wheel.
The Comstar wheel, sometimes referred to as Com-stars or stylised as ComStar, was a composite motorcycle wheel that Honda fitted to many of its motorcycles from 1977 to the mid 1980s. Its design allowed it the option of being fitted with tubeless tyres and its use on the Honda CX500 was the first time tubeless tyres had been designed for a production motorcycle.
Motorcycle braking systems have varied throughout time, as motorcycles evolved from bicycles with an engine attached, to the 220 mph (350 km/h) prototype motorcycles seen racing in MotoGP. Most systems work by converting kinetic energy into thermal energy (heat) by friction. On motorcycles, approximately 70% of the braking effort is performed by the front brake. This however can vary for individual motorcycles; longer-wheelbase types having more weight biased rearward, such as cruisers and tourers, can have a`greater effort applied by the rear brake. In contrast, sports bikes with a shorter wheelbase and more vertical fork geometry can tolerate higher front braking loads. For these reasons, motorcycles tend to have a vastly more powerful front brake compared to the rear.
The Fuchs wheel, or 'Fuchs felge', is a specialty wheel made for the first Porsche 911 model in the early 1960s. Designed in conjunction with Otto Fuchs KG, Porsche modeler Heinrich Klie and Ferdinand Porsche Jr for the 1967 model year Porsche 911S, the Fuchs wheel was the first light-weight forged wheels to be fitted to a production automotive vehicle. They provided the rear-engined sports car with a reduction in unsprung mass, through a strong and lightweight alloy wheel.
Magni is an Italian company that builds specialist motorcycles. The company is based in the city of Samarate in the province of Varese. Magni, in addition to building the bikes that bear its name, is also active in the construction of specials to order and a supplier of special parts for the restoration of MV Agusta classic motorcycles.
The Benelli 254, originally known as the Benelli 250 Quatro, is a 250 cc (15 cu in) inline four motorcycle produced by the Italian manufacturer Benelli from 1977 to 1984. It was at the time the smallest production four. The model was also badge engineered as the Moto Guzzi 254.
The Laverda 1000 is a series of 981 cc (59.9 cu in) air cooled DOHC triple motorcycles produced by the Italian manufacturer Laverda between 1973 and 1988. The high-performance variant, the Jota, was the fastest production motorcycle from 1976 to 1981. Approximately 7,100 triples of the various models were produced.