I changed the front wheel from a 19" to a 21" with 80 spokes. It looked really cool, but it lost it's ability to corner as well. .
I sure wish someone could explain to me how taking a tire and wheel off and replacing it with another one of the same height messed up handling or took away from cornering..... ?????
I replaced my 19" front Dyna wheel with a 21" and they're both 26.5 inches tall and handling isn't/wasn't effected ONE BIT.
The contact patch remained the same and I throw the thing in corners all day long and don't feel a difference, other then the coupe of bucks I spent to do the mod.
If you hypothetically replaced a tire and wheel with a tire and wheel that was taller, raising the front, changing rake a trail, I could see handling effected negatively. The fact remains you changed NOTHING but the sidewall aspect, so maybe a few bumps were a little more noticable due to less sidewall for cushion. It's Tire-101, Marvin.
Outside that..............you've changed nadda, other then
REDUCING some rotating mass, which will actually
IMPROVE handling and braking because the 21" tire and rim weighs LESS then a 19" tire does. This is the reason why racers like myself changed out to lighter tires and wheels for the track to gian easier turning abilities and better braking and not tote around a lot of un-needed weight spinning around our wheels.
I know I may piss some people off, but as cool as that big 21" wheel looks, it really takes away from the performance. Remember, the Sportster is a "SPORTS" bike. .
Didn't your Sporty Custom come from the FACTORY with a 21" front wheel, Martin?
Your comment doesn't "Piss me of" Marvin, but do you have anything to back it up other then constantly telling people information that basicially
isn't true or bad-mouthing 21" front tires because you had ONE bad experience and don't like how they look?
Let's do the math.....
A 21" tire is no taller then your rear 16" tire, rather it just appears to be because there's more open space inside the wheel.....
If you look at the standard tire heights for Harley, they're basically all the same as a 130/90-16 (5 x 16) tire height, only the 19" and the 21" have different aspects to maintain the same front height which is in the 25-26" range. It's done for a specific reason. Hence why a Sporty basic, or an 883 comes with the 19" front wheel and the Sporty Custom comes with a 21".
By swapping them, you change the "look", not the bike's geometry, which is what's
necessary to effect handling........
21"....note fender gap:
same bike, 19" note fender gap...: