Supermoto wheels on Hawk 250?
 

I just ordered a Hawk 250, and was thinking about buying 17 inch rims with spokes and lacing it up with the oem hubs, i was wondering will 17 x 4.25 rims with 140/70/17 tires clear the rear? i appreciate the help in advance, i also apologize in advance if this information is already on here i searched but could not find the answer.

EDIT: What kind of tools will i need to assemble everything?

My first thought is if you want 17 inch wheels, you should have bought a different motor-cycle. Maybe a Magician which come stock with 17 inch wheels (I think), and several others. I do not believe a 140/70/17 will clear the rear chain. The rear chain barely clears a 4.10 X 18....ARH

I would look at 17x3.5 rear with a 130/70 and 17x3.0 front with a 110/70. These sizes work on a DR650 with 17-inch wheels. The DR650 runs the same size OE tires as the Hawk, so they should work without interference.

you guys dont know how much i appreciate the reponses, i have seen numerous members on here with 130 wide street tires in the rear on 17s so i definitely know 130s are possible, i was just wondering is the 10mm difference really the deciding factor of whether not the tires will clear the chain and swingarm? Can i still go 4.25 rim in the rear with 130 tires? Im asking because someone is selling a set 3.5 rim in the front 4.25 in the rear. of course i would have to buy spokes separately and then lacing them on the stock hubs.

The 4.25 is a little wide for a 130. I'm not sure if a 140 will fit the bike but it will work with the 4.25 rim.

whats the downside of putting a 130 on a 4.25?

Yes. A 130 is 5.2 inches wide. Imagine trying to get a 5.2 inch wide tire to work where a 4.10 tire has only 1/4 inch clearance. Still, if you intend to do this, the guy at Britannia motorcycle has a whole series on making a B-25 BSA into a trials bike. One of the chapters shows the easiest way to spoke a wheel/hub combination of any I've ever seen. He's a little difficult to understand, as he's originally from Yorkshire (I think), England. If you liston to him as he builds a wheel a couple of times, it will become very clear....ARH

Thank you, now with all this being said, has anyone put a 140 rear tire on their hawk successfully? and if you did was any modifications needed?

If you have an idea on what tire you would like to run, check the manufacturer website for that tire. It will list all of the actual dimensions and the rim widths that are safe to use. With that, you can measure the area between the swing arm and subtract the chain width.

Has anyone figured out a supermoto setup for the hawk yet I was thinking of getting a 18" front wheel and street style tires anyone have recommendations?

A possibility is a trade with someone who has a Magician - 19 inch front, 17 inch rear...ARH

Severalpeople have followed my lead on my roketa and done a ninja 250 rim swap....i also did a dr650 tank swap... 3x the fuel capacity than the original 1gal tank that my roketa came with...

http://i662.photobucket.com/albums/u...pszejuiddn.jpg

Magician is 16" rear wheel. 120/90-16 tire.

Rim width really depends on the aspect ratio of the tire. A 4.25 wheel works very well on a 130/90-17, but it also has a lot more sidewall to work with. You could go as narrow as a 2.5 really. a 3.5 is just about right for most 130 rear widths.

Also, keep in mind that not every manufacturer measures in the same places. I just put fresh new tires on my Goldwing. Both are 130/90-17 tires. The old Tire was a Dunlop 404, new tire is a Shinko 230 Tour Master. The Shinko tire is actually wider than the Dunlop, even though they are the same "Size." As suggested, it is best to look at the actual tire specs of whatever tire you choose to run and measure.

OP, if you end up doing this, I'll buy your old rims and spokes!

I have never found a 130 tire rated for a rim wider than 4.0 inch and most manufacturers stop at a 3.5-inch rim. Can you please direct me to where you found that info?

I would stick to a manufacturers recommendation, which you are right, almost all of them stop at 3.5. I stated that I have seen a 130 used on a 4.25 rim, not that a manufacturer stated to do so. My mention of manufacturer specs had to do with the actual width of the tire itself when measuring for clearance, not the recommended rim width.

:tup:

Since the majority of my riding is on the pavement I'm planning on buying an extra set of wheels and running Bridgestone Battlax B-45's on them and then swapping to more aggressive tires when I go off-road. In Super Moto they have a Sportsman Class where they run the stock 21 inch front wheel with street tires so that's where my primary motivation comes from.

http://www.americanmototire.com/cata...roducts_id=690

http://www.americanmototire.com/cata...roducts_id=698

The BT45 is a great touring tire. Decently grippy and great in the rain. They also last a long time, snd that is on much heavier bikes. It will probably outlast the bike lol.

Wonder if the Hawk will have enough power & weight
to get them to work.... could always be like riding on cold / just warm tyres...



..

I've had the BT45. They should perform fine on the Hawk for road use as they aren't an overly stiff "heavy duty" cruiser tire. They are actually quite grippy for cornering. If I were, for whatever reason, going to make my bike a pure street only machine, this is definitely a tire I would consider for commuting duty.