Convert front wheel to rear

you'd just need to add a sprocket to it in a way that it doesn't come off. Anything is possible, but I would not expect it to be easy. And then there's the danger of not doing it properly and things starting to fly off the bike at 70 mph.

That said, it should be possible if you have the right tools and skills for it. If you plan on doing it please post some pics and a how-to ;)
 
Yeah..how do you propose fitting a drive sprocket to it? Drum brake is def different too. If you have a disc brake, I doubt it lines up with the rear caliper.
 
Guess it all comes down to what you have to work with. Cast wheels with disc brakes might not be too hard if they are designed for dual discs. Just replace one disc with the sprocket. Probably need to make an adapter/spacer to get disc to line up with calipers and same for the sprocket. If you have access to a machine shop or better yet a friend who is a machinist would be an interesting project. Be sure to take lots of pictures.

Now if you are talking about a wire spokes and drum brakes and just using a front rim on the rear hub and they both have the same number of spokes I think a email to:
http://www.buchananspokes.net/ would be a good first step.
 
Don't forget that there are rubber dampers in the rear wheels. It will not be easy to find a place for them in a front wheel.
 
I should have given more detail. Mag wheel, rear disc. I have two 18" XS400 front mag wheels with disc brakes and I wish to run 18" front and rear. So I would like to convert one front wheel to a rear wheel.

All XS400 front mag wheels are made for dual discs. Just pop the cover off of the opposite side and the holes are already there. I was just thinking keep the disc on one side (shim it out if need be) and mouth the sprocket on the opposite side (again, shimmed). Machining a shim is not an issue.

It would be bolted to the wheel just like a factory rear wheel, so I don't see why "things flying off at 70mph" would be an issue.

Lupe, I'm not sure what rubber dampers you are talking about. I'm looking at my stock spoke wheels and it appears the rear wheel rides on an axle in the same way the front wheel does.

I'm going to have to customize the rear sing arm anyway to accept a disc brake caliper. So I can work it as far as where the disc/rotor will line up.

As far as mods go, this appears to be simple, unless I'm missing something. That's why I asked... Was hoping somebody had done it before.
 
Why don't you buy a stock 18" rear disc mag and use the stock rear disc parts???

But yeah, if you have access to a machine shop that could make you a 4 hole (drive sprocket has 4 holes) to 6 hole spacer, sure.
 
Isn't the rear rim and tire wider than the front? Trying to squeeze a wide rear tire onto a narrow front rim doesn't sound like a good idea to me.
 
Why don't you buy a stock 18" rear disc mag and use the stock rear disc parts???

But yeah, if you have access to a machine shop that could make you a 4 hole (drive sprocket has 4 holes) to 6 hole spacer, sure.

The stock European-only, very rear, expensive, and hard to fine stock 18" rear disc mag? If I could find one I probably would do just that.

I have a metal lathe and and mill and machine several of my own pieces. I can't imagine an adapter being all that different from other parts and pieces I've made. If it is something beyond the capabilities of what I have, there are two really great machine shops in town. One of which is the founding company of Xtreme Wheels (the wheel part of the company has relocated out west, but the original machine shop is still here in town and they could easily knock out something like this). If this is just a matter of getting a sprocket to bolt to the front wheel, with the correct spacing, I don't see it being a problem.

Still not sure what Lupe meant about the rubber dampeners, though.
 
In the U.S., the rear alloys before 1980 were 18" and had the disk. I have one on my '79.

Others on this forum that know far more than I do about the XS400 informed me that only the European models received the 18" rear mag wheels. Regardless, I've been unable to find one for sale, here or abroad. Thus the point of this thread.
 
Thought you had it sorted out from your classifieds posts. If you'd like I can take some pics of my rear hub assemblies to better inform your choices.

The rubber dampeners referred to above is called a 'cush drive'. I saw from your EvilMonkeyKustoms you mainly work with Harleys? Harleys don't use cush drives or else I haven't seen any that did as they utilize heavy duty transmissions with separate heavy duty transmisson oil that can tolerate direct driveline lash. I haven't seen any Japanese street motorcycles that don't have cush drives. The reason seems to be that Japanese stuff is designed to be lighter and more precise as well as sharing oil throughout the engine and transmission. Fabricating a sprocket mount without rubber isolating it would possibly lead to fast wear and tear on the XS transmission.
 
MotoTrooper, thanks for the explanation. And yeah, I thought I had it sorted out too, but a part I got ended up being incorrect.

XSChriss, I'll check those out. It is wider (2.15 vs 1.85), but otherwise looks like it'd work. Where the 18" rear XS wheels 2.15 as well?
 
Way off. Use a front wheel on the back, not a back wheel on the front. Also, talking wheels here, not tires.

Re-read what I wrote... :wtf:

The front wheel (and tire) is typically narrow. Using a front wheel on the rear would limit your tire selection. Finding a narrow tire for the rear, that will fit the narrow wheel properly AND have the correct load rating will be difficult.
 
OK I see RD400 18" rear wheels in both 1.85x18 and 2.15x18.

I'm going for that cafe' look with the same size front and rear wheels (18" front and back). So now I'm posed with the question of going same width front and back, or go a bit wider in the rear. Hmm.

Thanks all!
 
Re-read what I wrote... :wtf:

Um, ok...

Isn't the rear rim and tire wider than the front? Trying to squeeze a wide rear tire onto a narrow front rim doesn't sound like a good idea to me.

WTF indeed. You are talking about tires, not wheels. I never said anything about running a wide rear tire on a front wheel. Finding a correct tire is not hard at all. Planning on running IRC Trials GP-1s or Shinko 244s front and rear. Will run the widest tire I can safely fit on the 1.85 wheel.
 
Maybe I'm thinking too far ahead, or about function before form. But wheels need tires, so they are NOT mutually exclusive.

Of the tires you mentioned, the IRC doesn't have a high enough load rating. The Shinko 244 in 3.00-18 will not be safe with a max load of only 441 lbs. If you can fit a 3.50-18 (with it's max load rating of 584 lbs.) onto a 1.85" wide wheel and into the swingarm, you might be okay. Just keep in mind that a rim narrower than recommended will reduce the effective load rating of the tire.

If you can source an RD-400 rear wheel in 2.15x18 you should be able to achieve your desired look and install a rear tire that has a high enough load rating to be safe.
 
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