[UT]: Traditional Wheel or Alloy Wheel

[bull_lover]

Hi Xbpians,

Please tender you opinion about Traditional Wheel or latest Alloy Wheel....

Subhas

[Aryan]

Topic Moved and Approved.

[Samarth 619]

Depends on the nature of the vehicle. For example, on R1/ R6/ Pulsar, the Alloys look great!
and on like, KTM Adventure 990/ Royal Enfield, the traditionals look good enough.

But, I feel alloys are the way to go anyday ... They look good on more variety of bikes, than Spokes wheels ..

[anthonydcruz]

What do u ride? if it's a bullet then it's better if you stick to the traditional wheels, better known as spoke wheels, because they are much more stronger and reliable then alloy wheels.

[sam92]

chopper - spoke !!!!!
sports - alloy all the way

[Sarvajit]

Alloys are lightweight&more rigid than spokes, thereby providing better balance&marginally more mileage too, but in a country like India where potholes are abundant, the cost of maintaining an alloy wheel vs.a spoked one would be much more, as getting a spoked wheel throughed/aligned is much easier&cheaper. In most cases, alloys are replaced.
However the looks of an alloy are far better than that of spokes, especially on the sporty bikes! Cruisers are better off with the classic spoked look.

[nirvan]

Alloy wheels are:

1. Typically lighter than steel wheels.
2. Stronger than steel wheels.
3. They improve maneuverability and braking feel/response because of their lower unsprung weight.
4. They dissipate heat faster than steel wheels.
5. More attractive.
6. Allow the use of tubeless tyres on motorcycles without altering rim design (holes for spokes need not be offset).


Steel wheels are:
1. Cheaper
2. More resilient to damage

[suvo]

Depends on personal Likings...I like the alloy wheels for almost every bike except choppers...Spoke wheels gives a kinda old school look...

[viv.nomad]

choppers .. alloy or spokes they must be chromed but spokes looks good any day!!
i once saw i busa pic on net with spoke wheel and it was lookin damn neat..

i like spokes on naked bikes and alloys on semi or fully faired!!

[Bibhu]

Alloy or "MAG" wheels are made of magnesium aluminum alloy; hence theoretically they are lighter and stronger than steel spoke wheels. Alloys are prone to galvanic corrosion if appropriate preventive measures are not taken. Contrary to popular belief, alloys are repairable. But the repair work is difficult and expensive. Mags made out of pure magnesium alloy have even lighter weight but are prone to catch fire so they are banned.

Alloys improve drivability and the basic feel of vehicles and OH yeah, they look really hot.

Depending on the type of material ratio used in construction the weight of alloys differs from an equivalent size steel rim, cheaper construction means heavier alloy. Thus Rado wheels are heavier than spokes. Too much aluminum in them I guess.

Alloys are of two types: cast and forged. Cast wheels are all we get here on our bikes and cars, mass produced, not that much bling but does the job.

Forged wheels are the things u see on Fast and furious and need for speed hyper tuned cars. very costly, stronger, much lighter and much cooler.

[blisteringintelligence]

choppers .. alloy or spokes they must be chromed but spokes looks good any day!!
i once saw i busa pic on net with spoke wheel and it was lookin damn neat..

i like spokes on naked bikes and alloys on semi or fully faired!!

correct... but i prefer spokes to alloys in choppers... they give the classic look..

and yeah sbk's with spokes do look good, i found this on the net which looked pretty good to me. Wotsay

[viv.nomad]

[dream horse]

correct... but i prefer spokes to alloys in choppers... they give the classic look..

and yeah sbk's with spokes do look good, i found this on the net which looked pretty good to me. Wotsay

it is not spoke wheel it is a alloy.....

but a spoke like alloy design..

[ken cool]

Depends on the nature of the vehicle. For example, on R1/ R6/ Pulsar, the Alloys look great!
and on like, KTM Adventure 990/ Royal Enfield, the traditionals look good enough.

But, I feel alloys are the way to go anyday ... They look good on more variety of bikes, than Spokes wheels ..

What do u ride? if it's a bullet then it's better if you stick to the traditional wheels, better known as spoke wheels, because they are much more stronger and reliable then alloy wheels.

Depends on personal Likings...I like the alloy wheels for almost every bike except choppers...Spoke wheels gives a kinda old school look...

Looks like you guys are going by looks only.

It mostly depends on your usage. There is huge technical aspect to it as aptly elaborated by Bibhu and Nirvan on page 1. But if you go by looks alone and want to put up your bike in a trailer van for a show, then I guess spokes are fine.

As I was saying, it depends mostly on usage. If you do offroading, you do not have a choice but to use spokes! And if you are more prone to city and highway riding and riding fast, then alloys are far more convenient for various reasons... much lighter, better feedback, much better handling obviously, tubeless tyres which is also a Huge advantage. I would NEVER have spokes on my regular street bikes and it is not for the looks. And I would NEVER have alloys on my Raid bike! But if I were to prepare a chopper for a bike show, I would probably go for steel spoke wheels.

[suvo]

^^^ Agreed Ken da...Usability comes first...
Like already mentioned. Alloys are lighter. And improves the handling characteristics of bikes. And are more stronger than spoke wheels.
But spoke wheels are low maintenance ...