RallyRaid Africa Twin Wheel set

Warlord

Warlord

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I was thinking about upgrading my wheelset a while back which would be more suited to off-road use.... as I don't think the standard wheels will last long before getting damaged.

The RallyRaid UK company offer a couple of wheelset options for the Africa Twin, so I chose the 'Rally' tubed version... which gives me more flexibility on Rally sized tyres (enduro tyres and rimlocks etc).

The main reason is strength and reliability as RallyRaid provide stronger rims, stronger spokes and bigger bearings better suited to off-road punishment.

I spotted a Clearance Deal and they were £996, which isn't too bad.

Hopefully it'll be a finishing touch for this years off-roading fun :)
 

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Oh and I've got them in the Gold Rims version :thumb2 as I didn't fancy gloss black.....
 
Reviewed here

https://www.bennetts.co.uk/bikesoci...how-to-make-a-rally-winning-honda-africa-twin



On to the dirt and along a very sludgy, rutted trail. The bike just grips, the narrower tyre slicing through the mud where a wider tyre, especially on something like a BMW R 1200 GS, tends to plough through, which, as a result can slew around and slip away with the camber due to a lack of side bite. It doesn’t happen here. You feel confident. You push harder. The suspension is firm but at the same time direct, seeming to somehow remove the doughy mass you sometimes feel around the headstock on the standard bike. To an observer it seems to keep the bike in a more constant plane, rather than compressing and rising on impact with bumps, which in turns causes loss of traction.

It’s brutally efficient. That’s the best way to describe it. It's a still a shame the bike reverts to its original settings of Traction Control and ABS every time you kill the ignition, but there's not a lot Rally Raid can do about that.

All up, is it worth the cost of upgrade? I would say it definitely is. For the fact the new rims bring tubeless tyres and stainless spokes, and suspension that just adds a whole new level of capability and confidence in the bike. It makes the bike exciting, which is something you could say the standard Africa Twin sometimes lacks. The thing you take away from this is just how much difference good suspension makes to a bike. It's easy to overlook it, but the difference is night and day.

As an Africa Twin sceptic, Rally Raid has, for the first time, made me quite want one. If you already own one and are looking at ways to improve it, this is a great route. Otherwise I'd buy a year-old bike and spend the difference compared to a new one on the upgrades.
 
Not black? Surprising choice for you, but gold rims are always good in my book.

What's the logic of tubed when everyone else seems to want tubeless?
 
Owen Snell said:
Not black? Surprising choice for you, but gold rims are always good in my book.

What's the logic of tubed when everyone else seems to want tubeless?
Click to expand...

Gold was the only option for the discounted price. But I liked the gold anyways.

Tubed is better for me offroad, and tyres I want tend to be tubed tyres rather than tubeless.
 
I think a lot of people want tubeless tyres for road use, as they are easier to repair and have a more suitable 'road tyre' choice. Which is fine on-road.

But I've seen tubeless tyres come unstuck off-road when the rim gets badly dented on rocks and then lets all the air out. Then you're stuffed, unless you fit a tube. I've also seen tubeless wheel rims running on flat tyres and they get absolutely wrecked, with the road surface scratching the rim to bits.
 
Owen Snell said:
Not black? Surprising choice for you.....
Click to expand...

Actually.... I've changed my mind. Not having Gold Wheels now, they're going to send Black ones instead :beerjug:

I think black for off-roading would look better. :aidan
 
Warlord said:
Actually.... I've changed my mind. Not having Gold Wheels now, they're going to send Black ones instead :beerjug:

I think black for off-roading would look better. :aidan
Click to expand...

im not sure about "black for off-roading" - but haven't you spent a fortune getting your AT blacked-out?
 
Geekay said:
im not sure about "black for off-roading" - but haven't you spent a fortune getting your AT blacked-out?
Click to expand...

I suppose so but most products I've bought are black anyways. The bike is black, but aftermarket high value products tend to like a 'gold' finish for some reason.

Ohlins, Touratech, Scotts, RallyRaid....

The wheels were discounted as they only had gold sets left which appear not to be selling, so they've agreed to have mine stripped, repainted black and rebuilt... so I can still have black, and still save money.

Sounds fair enough to me. :beerjug:

God knows how long all that will take :blast
 
RallyRaid confirmed they'll powdercoat the wheels to my specified Satin Black colour request.

So that'll be a custom paint finish, as they've only done Gloss Black before :D

Very nice of them to be flexible.
 
Warlord said:
RallyRaid confirmed they'll powdercoat the wheels to my specified Satin Black colour request.

So that'll be a custom paint finish, as they've only done Gloss Black before :D

Very nice of them to be flexible.
Click to expand...

But gold wheels are faster.
 
Warlord said:
But I've seen tubeless tyres come unstuck off-road when the rim gets badly dented on rocks and then lets all the air out. Then you're stuffed, unless you fit a tube. I've also seen tubeless wheel rims running on flat tyres and they get absolutely wrecked, with the road surface scratching the rim to bits.
Click to expand...

So why not go tubeless and carry a tube in case of a dent?

Would rather be taking the wheel and tyre off just for this rare situation as opposed to for every puncture.

Just saying... ;)
 
dubster said:
So why not go tubeless and carry a tube in case of a dent?

Would rather be taking the wheel and tyre off just for this rare situation as opposed to for every puncture.

Just saying... ;)
Click to expand...

That's a good question.

I chose the Rally wheel set for a couple of reasons.

1) The Rally rear wheel is narrower than OEM (2.5 vs 4.0). So it opens up a whole range of Enduro and Rally tyres you can use. This also means I can fit a rim lock device to stop the wheel spinning on low pressures if I want to. On the OEM rear wheel I can't fit a rim lock because it's 4.0 and too wide. Whether I fit a rim lock is undecided but at least I now have the option.

2) The tyres that I want to use are 80:20 Mitas E12 and E13 Rally tyres. Which are brilliant, but they only do them in tubed versions. No tubeless versions, so what's the point fitting them to a heavier tubeless rim when I have to use tubes anyway? The tubeless rims are £300 more expensive also.

3) The tubeless rims are 'sealed' by a company in Italy and have a warranty of 4 years. So this could be a maintenance and inconvenience issue if I keep the bike long term.

4) If you dent a sealed rim you HAVE to fit a tube and then pay for repairs of that rim. If you dent a tubed rim, it doesn't matter so much.


So I'd rather have the tyre choice that I want and use Michelin Heavy Duty inner tubes plus carry a puncture weld compound instead.

This bike is only used for long days out off-roading and back roads. So I don't need the road performance like on the BMW GSA :thumb2
 
Just as a note:

Last year when off-roading, there were two incidents where tyres caused problems.

Both were on BMW's (R1250GS and F800) who had tubeless tyres.

R1250 hit a rock and dented the rim, which let the air out. That pretty much finished his day.

F800 slashed the rear tyre sidewall on slate rock and was irreparable (but may have been superglued if it had a tube inside). This definitely finished his day.

Nobody had a puncture as such.... and none of them carried tubes or any usable repair kits.

Just saying.... :p
 
Warlord said:
.....1) The Rally rear wheel is narrower than OEM (2.5 vs 4.0). So it opens up a whole range of Enduro and Rally tyres you can use. This also means I can fit a rim lock device to stop the wheel spinning on low pressures if I want to. On the OEM rear wheel I can't fit a rim lock because it's 4.0 and too wide. Whether I fit a rim lock is undecided but at least I now have the option.....
Click to expand...

And, of course, rim locks make you look cooler.
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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