Spokes

[gofast]

And the spoke issue…These bikes are ridin 95% on road and when they are takin off road its some fire road or gravel easy ride …95 % of the time…Lets face it these bikes are great machines but are just to heavy for the big rough stuff…Just watch some youtube vids and i think most would agree. So whats with the spoke only wheels anything this bike is capable off could be handled by some nice cast wheels and do away with the loose spoke issue. ::009::

 

[EricV]

And the spoke issue…These bikes are ridin 95% on road and when they are takin off road its some fire road or gravel easy ride …95 % of the time…Lets face it these bikes are great machines but are just to heavy for the big rough stuff…Just watch some youtube vids and i think most would agree. So whats with the spoke only wheels anything this bike is capable off could be handled by some nice cast wheels and do away with the loose spoke issue. ::009::

Bling and comparable features to the BMW GS. Marketing wanted spokes, so they got spokes. People will argue that spoked wheels are so much better for off road and don't damage as easily, but I agree with you and thing for this big bike that's mostly BS. I have dented a wheel, (did something stupid and hit a babyhead at 45 mph in Death Valley, about 13 miles off the pavement). Road out after some field repairs and airing back up, got the wheel repaired the next day while I had lunch, when back to DV and rode some more. Still fine after 50k more miles and I don't ride that hard with the big bike any more.

I'd love to score some cast/forged allow wheels at a reasonable price, but until Yamaha comes out with something using our generation of ABS and running cast wheels/shaft drive, I don't see an easy solution. Maybe Woody's Wheel Works? http://www.woodyswheelworks.com/home.htm

 

[Mark R.]

I will disagree at one level. I use my ST off road as much as possible, and I am glad I have spoked wheels, as well as all the other features that make this bike what it is.

However, I totally agree with you that many people keep their ST's on pavement all the time. That's OK. People can do what they want with their own money and the machines they buy with it. However, there are lots of other instances where people buy products they will never take full advantage of. I don't use 90% of the features on my cell phone, most 4X4 vehicles never see a dirt road, most high performance cars never see a track or even get cornered very hard, and most sport bikes are ridden by people who cannot take full advantage of most of their performance.

But we all want those features, so the market responds and gives them to us.

It's all good.

 

[barkingllizard]

yes, to giving us the option of spokes or cast alloy.....

 

[rbernie]

So whats with the spoke only wheels anything this bike is capable off could be handled by some nice cast wheels and do away with the loose spoke issue

Spoked wheels are much better for offroad than cast - they handle sharp impacts better by allowing the spokes to effectively act as torsion springs, for lack of a better way to explain it.