16" Spokes to 18" Spokes

[Rambo814]

Hey guys, I've been poking around for a little while with a bunch of searches and can't seem to find too much. I am going to, slowly, build a flat/ street tracker out of my bike. I really like the gold wheels they used to put on dirt bikes in the 80's and 90's, so I was thinking of getting a set for my build. I found some on fleabay but would really like to get some Excels. Along with this I want to wrap them in dual sport tires.
So:

1) Will it be hard to change my 16" spoke and drum rear to an 18" spoke and drum?
2) What length spokes will I need or is there any sort of formula to figure this out? On one of my searches I saw someone suggested Buchannan's, but they seem expensive.
3) What are the widest tires that you can put on an '80 Special II without a lot of modification?
4) Does anyone know if the Excels are street legal, or does it not matter?

Thanks in advance for any help and suggestions!

 

[Lupe]

It is not difficult to change to 18".

Hope you understand some German:

http://xs400.net/wb/pages/technik-faq/fahrwerk-reifen/drahtspeichenraeder-auf-der-xs400.php

hinten = rear
Trommel = drum
innen = inner
außen = outer

First and second row in the table fits for 18" original rims with drum hub. I am not sure if other rims need slightly other spokes.

 

[Rambo814]

Thanks, Lupe! Now I just gotta find the money to do this.

 

[Lupe]

well, i m very sorry. But I cannot help you with that problem

 

[BossAuss]

If you look on mikeXS.com you will find he sells both the rim and spokes to convert the from a 16" to 18" rim. You would of course need to paint the rim gold if your set on the look. Also if you are looking to go a little bigger with the front wheel, I have a 21" yz250 rim (Gold) on my xs400 that looks great and axle size is the same.

 

[Robsteeler66]

BossAuss, any pics?

 

[Rambo814]

Wow, Boss, I just looked at your tracker pics and they are sick! That's pretty much what I'm looking to build. Very nice bike, man. It looks like you have the Bridgestone Trailwings on that bike, can I ask what size? Also, do you have moto bars on it? Again nice bike and thanks for the info. Now that I think about it, I might just go with black rims and stainless spokes.

 

[BossAuss]

Thank You Sir! The front and rear tires are different actually. Front=Shinko 19" and Rear=Kenda 18". The handle bars are dirt bike bars.

 

[Rambo814]

Wow, Boss, I can't get over how nice that bike is. What tire sizes and models are you running on it? I don't think I've seen Kenda's or Shinko's with tread like that. They do seem to match pretty well for being different brands, though.

 

[Rambo814]

Ok, so lately I've been thinking about going with a 21" front so I can use a particular tire that I like, and to give me a wider choice of dual sport tires. I have been pondering the idea of buying a front wheel off of a WR250 from ebay. This will also give me a disc front brake and also make it easier to find brake pads. The WR is supposed to have like a 21MM axle and I've read that the XS's have like a 15MM. My solution, (without seeing or measuring anything) is to make a bushing for the middle of the XS axle to match the WR bearing size. Does anyone else think this would work?

 

[16VGTIDave]

You would be better off getting bearings that fit the hub and bolt, rather than trying to make a spacer. Less parts to cause problems, and probably cheaper as well!

 

[Rambo814]

You would be better off getting bearings that fit the hub and bolt, rather than trying to make a spacer. Less parts to cause problems, and probably cheaper as well!

Ah ha! That would work also. I work in a tool and die shop, so the machine work would not be a problem. I was just thinking of doing the machine work so I could just get stock WR bearings, but if I could find the bearings that fit the WR hub and my XS axle, I suppose that would be easier. I did not think of that option. Thanks, Dave.