Zongshen RX3: 21-inch Front Wheel

[rtking]

Lookin' good, Spud! And I agree - brave man! I would not ride through that mud unless I absolutely had to. I won't take a mud bath even at a spa! (not that I've been to such a spa...but I digress.)

BTW, does the center stand work with the 21" wheel? Or are both wheels now touching the ground?

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by BlackBike

Brave man, I think would been bypassing in the weeds. Looks like fun.

Originally Posted by rtking

Lookin' good, Spud! And I agree - brave man! I would not ride through that mud unless I absolutely had to. I won't take a mud bath even at a spa! (not that I've been to such a spa...but I digress.)

BTW, does the center stand work with the 21" wheel? Or are both wheels now touching the ground?

I did bypass the mud, where possible. However, the elevated, rough terrain by the side of the road sometimes makes it mandatory to traverse the mud. I frequently ride over muddy roads in the spring and fall, so I have a pretty good idea when I can trust the tires, and when I cannot.

The center stand works with the 21-inch front wheel, but you must place a board beneath the two legs of the center stand. If you do this, the center stand still lofts the rear wheel, and performs the same as it did with the 18-inch front wheel. I am going to weld two steel pads to the legs of the center stand.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by Merlin

Nice thanks for the pics. Makes me want to take a ride.

Originally Posted by FastDoc

Nice to see you in action, Spud!!! :-)

I hate that pasty type glue-mud. Every tire is a slick in one revolution.

Originally Posted by 2LZ

Great to see your pics again Spud!...and wow.....those tires do seem to shed mud very quickly.

Thank you, gentlemen.

Indeed, the "greasy" mud is the worst. If you drop the bike, you can't even stand, so you must kneel in the mud to wrestle the bike back up on two wheels.

Here are a few photographs from today's ride. I am very much continuing to enjoy the 21-inch front wheel.

[SpudRider]

It's unfortunate the C858 tires are no longer sold in the United States. Fortunately, I stocked up on them for about $27/tire as the inventory was disappearing. The C858 tire tread is aggressive enough to handle very muddy terrain, yet the tread doesn't reduce your cruising speed on the highways. Here are some more photographs from my last several days of riding.

[SpudRider]

After my stock of C858 tires is depleted, I would like to try the IRC, TR8 front tire, in size 3.00-21.



http://www.irc-tire.com/en/mc/products/dual/tr8/

I have mounted the following front tires on several of my motorcycles, and they also perform very well.

Shinko 524: size 80/100-21



http://www.shinkotireusa.com/tire/524-525-series

Shinko 520: size 80/100-21



http://www.shinkotireusa.com/tire/520

CST Surge I (C7209): size 80/100-21



http://www.csttires.com/int/moto/off...c7209-surge-i/

[2strokecycle]

Spud,

What did you use for spokes? After my ride a few weeks ago I want to get a little more ground clearance and the 21" swap sounds like the ticket.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by 2strokecycle

Spud,

What did you use for spokes? After my ride a few weeks ago I want to get a little more ground clearance and the 21" swap sounds like the ticket.

I ordered custom spokes from Buchanan's Spoke & Rim.

http://www.buchananspokes.com/catego...spoke_sets.asp

After the 21-inch, custom spokes arrived, I disassembled the front wheel. Then I laced a size 1.60-21, Warp9 rim to the front hub with the custom spokes. I trued the wheel with my Park Tool, TS-7M truing stand.

[SpudRider]

I continue to enjoy riding with the 21-inch front wheel. Here are a few photographs from my last two rides.

[2LZ]

I'm glad that 21" is working out for you as hoped, Spud!...and truth be told, visually it looks really neat on the RX3. If I did much more dirt, I'd like this upgrade. 90% of my riding is paved twisties and I've found the stock rim along with the stock tire is a very capable combo in our situation.....but not near as cool looking! ;-)

[owaisjat]

great work. i also want to raise my bikes height. can you please tell me how did u raise ur rear shock ? and how much did it rise?

Thanks

[pete]

Originally Posted by SpudRider

After my stock of C858 tires is depleted, I would like to try the IRC, TR8 front tire, in size 3.00-21.



http://www.irc-tire.com/en/mc/products/dual/tr8/

I have mounted the following front tires on several of my motorcycles, and they also perform very well.

Shinko 524: size 80/100-21



http://www.shinkotireusa.com/tire/524-525-series

Shinko 520: size 80/100-21



http://www.shinkotireusa.com/tire/520

CST Surge I (C7209): size 80/100-21



http://www.csttires.com/int/moto/off...c7209-surge-i/

that 524 front looks like it may work.... pitty it dosn't come in 100/100/21
or 90/100/21..... 80/100/21 is just a bit tiny...

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by owaisjat

great work. i also want to raise my bikes height. can you please tell me how did u raise ur rear shock ? and how much did it rise?

Thanks

I did not raise the rear shock. I only increased the front wheel from 18-inches to 21-inches.

Here are some photos from my recent rides.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by pete

that 524 front looks like it may work.... pitty it dosn't come in 100/100/21
or 90/100/21..... 80/100/21 is just a bit tiny...

The Shinko 524 tire is superb; it will keep you upright in the sloppiest conditions.

The Shinko 520 also does an excellent job in mud, and wears very well after much punishment in the rocks.

[BlackBike]

I bet that thing will crawl in and out of those washout no problemo now with that big front. I'm curious to know how it has picked up your wot top speed with the larger wheels.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by BlackBike

I bet that thing will crawl in and out of those washout no problemo now with that big front. I'm curious to know how it has picked up your wot top speed with the larger wheels.

Without a doubt, the 21-inch front wheel performs much better in rough riding conditions than the stock, 18-inch front wheel. Also, I now have an expansive choice of aggressive tire treads available with the 21-inch front wheel.

Undoubtedly the rolling friction of the narrower, 2.75-inch tire is less than the rolling friction of the stock, 4-inch (100 mm) tire. However, I can't say I have noticed any appreciable difference in WOT top speed.