Just called in to a wheel builder today to see how much it will cost to get the Tenere respond with stainless and something done with the rims. He suggested going to a 3inch wide rear rim and possibly going down to a 19 inch from the 21 up front..? More tyre choice...what do you guys think? And what's the vibe on gold rims on a dark blue Tenere. ? Steve

I like the sound of Gold Rims, but not sure about reducing the front down to 19 inch though.
A smaller wheel up front will turn quicker on the road but bigger wheels roll better over the rough stuff & obstacles off road.
All depends what your main use is?

Thanks for input Desert Racer, the 19 inch front is something I always planned to do on my XR650R, that is in super moto. form on 17s and Avon distanzia. I have Green Lane.d and firetrap led that. The front does waggle off road so I had this theory a 19 in would be a good compromise....I would rather take a tumble off road than on!! Steve sorry for spelling...at war with predictive text!

I think I can see some logic in this? I guess it depends on how you use your bike. You'll get a few more on-road choices of tyre and a lot less choices of off-road tyre.

Some things to consider...

If you fit a 19" front, you will need to lower the rear by a minimum of 25mm maybe more to retain the same rake and trail. Just fitting a 19" rim without any other adjustments will result in VERY flighty steering.

Going to a 3" wide rim at the back isn't really going to expand tyre choices, as you can only fit a 140 in the physical space available and a 140/80 will fit on the stock 2.75" rim anyway. All you'll achieve is a slightly flatter cross-section on a 140 due to the beads sitting further apart.

__________________

Hi Pleiades, good point re the rake and trail...I certainly don't want to lower the bike, I like the height and stance. It just seemed something to consider, possibly offering the best of both worlds! Be terrible if I mucked up the handling. The more I ride the Tenere the more I like it....despite the dodgy ribs I got out for an 80 mile ride today in glorious sunshine, fab. Tried the stock windscreen a third lower, much better. Then stock screen with a borrowed Touratech extension ...tiny bit better. For my individual needs 3inch off the stock screen will do the job! . Thanks again for the advice. ..Steve

I'm planning gold rims when the wheels need rebuilding, which is likely to be this year I reckon.
I'll stick to the 21' purely because the tyres are cheap and I know what works for me and the bike.
Back in the very early 00's I had a DR600 Djebel that I SuMo'd by lacing the old 17" rear rim to the front and a wider 17" on the rear.



The footpegs ended up half length due to scraping on bends and roundabouts but handling wise it was fine up to around 90, when the front would feel a bit flighty. Just had to keep a firm hand in.

I don't think 19" from 21" would render the bike hard to ride at all. Mine currently has +35mm jack up at the back and is fine.

Looks like you didn't use the front wheel much anyway tripletom !

Greatescape..it's nice to see another ten owner close to myself..hadn't seen any about our neck of the woods When I have been out and about..I have been considering getting my wheels respoked due to the corrosion problem..what wheel builders did you ask?.. If you.don't mind saying..