Carnage

I'm trying to find the lightest rims for my hawk without switching out everything. I've found two companies that produce carbon fiber rims, but they're not specifically made for the hawk and the one that shows a price on the website is over $2500 for just the rear. I'd like to get a direct swap that's as light as possible and at a good price.

superhawk22

If you can find the weight of the rims I know that 900rr's rears are a direct fit and F3 front. They are the 6 spoke kind and I have an F3 wheel I need to sell. Also look into 600rr wheels, they take the same size tire but I'm not sure about the axles...oops scratch that different rotors on those.

Carnage

I got this from http://www.hardracing.com/Rims/Marchesini.htm

"REDUCING THE WEIGHT OF YOUR WHEELS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PERFORMANCE CHANGE THAT YOU CAN MAKE TO YOU MOTORCYCLE!

Lighter wheels will make a major difference in the handling of your bike. They will also greatly improve the acceleration and deceleration “braking” of your bike for the following reasons.

Static Weight: Each ounce of reduction of the wheels weight is equivalent to 4 ounces on the sprung part of the bike. Magnesium wheels will normally weigh at least 10 pounds less than your stock aluminum wheels. This is equal to 40 pounds of weight reduction on the bike.

Dynamic Weight: This is the weight reduction on the rim of the wheel and this is where the action is. EACH OUNCE OF WEIGHT REDUCTION ON THE RIM IS EQUAL TO ABOUT 24 POUNDS OF WEIGHT AT 100 MPH!"

mikstr

I always get a chuckle when someone comes up with a supposedly universal rule for rotational weight vs static weight. I recall hearing 1 lb of rotating weight being equal to 7 lbs static, 10 lbs static and now another figure once again. The truth of the matter is that yes, cutting rotating weight does yield greater benefit than cutting static weight BUT, hte most important factor in determining the relationship beween the actual effect lies in how far away from the center of rotation the weight reduction takes places. The further away from center the weight loss takes place, the greater its effect will be on inertia, hence on acceleration and deceleration. That is why, in effect, it is possible for a lighter object to act heavier (in terms of inertia) depending on the weight placement (if it is positioned farther away from the center of rotation). A good example is the use of hollow driveshafts on snowmobiles. This practice has very little effect because the weight savings occur virtually AT the center of rotation (and the shafts temselves are less than 1" in diameter). Now, having said that, I realize that sport bikes virtually all sport 17" wheels, but if the weight loss, for example, is mostly in the hub area, the effect will be negligeable. The best bang for the buck, then, would be in finding a light tire since its mass is located the furthest away from the center.

While lighter rims will surely help acceleration and handling, it is a fairly expensive way of getting there. In other words, don't let yourself get fooled by marketing hype.

Mikstr

P.S. The money spent on a set of Marchesini rims will buy an awful lot of cheeseburgers, lol 8)

Carnage

This is a good website with more information on the topic.

www.blackstonetek.com