I have installed many 21" wheels on all the touring modles and have never had to raise the fender with any conversion kit.It should fit rite on without any parts. Yo do need to loosen up the mounting bolts and rock the nose of the fender down a little to get more clearanse at the bottom.

 

Thanks for the help, not sure what would look the best a nice solid alloy rim or wire spoke. What did you put on yours?

-ken

 

Have you ridden a bagger with a 21" front tire?

 

Ride mine every day. Love it! You have to run a 18 on the rear to ofcourse and not a skinny 21 needs to be a 21x3.50 rim with a 120/70/21 tire. Im a pretty agressive rider to.Have you rode one with a 21?

 

Syco, any comments or experiance with a 19 on the front of a bagger.Thinking of doing that to mine as i am not a 21 inch wheel fan. (roads suck!)

 

Havent done that combo yet,sounds like it would look cool though! Im sure that it would be fine as long as you can get the rite tire for that size wheel.

 

http://www.hogpro.com/imagebox.php?name=pic/gallery2-pic250.jpg

Thats the almost exact combo i am looking at. I wonder why its not more popular.

 

You there Syco?

 

Why stick to 21's ?? Get the new 24"s Then U will need to raise the fender & etc, etc..

I like the look of 21-18, but I like the handling of my old fat 16"s...

 

It's always a trade off. I love the way my bike handles with the 18's but it's not as compliant as the 16's, because the sidewall is lower on the 18 tire. I like the look as well of a bigger rim, you get to see more of it. You're spending that much money on a set of rims, you want to SEE them!!

Personally I'd be wary of a 21 on a bagger. At least the way I ride. I've locked up the front 18 a couple of times, and let me tell you........... IT AIN'T FUN!!! A lot of people go to one front caliper with a 21.

Bottom line, your bike your money, your choice!!

 

I ran a 21" for 4-years on my bagger. Just switched back to 18" and what a difference. If you ride twisties and ride hard the 21" sucks! It will ALWAYS want to upright it's self due to the mass of the wheel. I'm a happy rider now! Good luck with the decision!

 

The baggers I have personally ridden.
18" X 21" I loved the looks but the handling was not my cup of tea and yes it was sit up right by lowering the front 1 1/2"
18" X 18" still looked good and the handling was pretty good It had some sticky tires so I would say it would out turn a stock bike with out any problem. But the tires sure went fast 4,000 to 5,000 miles.
16 X 16 not the best looking not as aggressive as the 18X18 combo was but.
Nice manners all around and I hate to say it handles like I think a bagger should, it not a sport bike anyway.

 

I thought real hard about doing something interesting with the stock 16's and just putting them back on, but after the custom look of the Czar wheels and tires, I didn't think I'd be able to go back to stock looks and be happy. That's why I'm hoping the 18's give me what I'm looking for. I did notice that the new SG wheel design is the same, but with the 17" front tire/wheel and that it is painted vs textured black, it doesn't look bad at all. With the black floating rotors it's actually a nice look. If the 18" front doesn't perform like a bagger should, (and I agree with the above statement), then I won't hesitate putting the set up for sale for a decent price.

 

I am going to look into getting the stock wheels chromed, I have no idea what that costs these days or how long my bike would sit with no wheels- not sure I can wait. But I did see the bike with chrome stock mags and looked really clean.

-ken

 

Take a perfectly good touring bike and screw it up . . .

 

JagmanR, that is one sweet ride. I've been wanting to switch out my 16" PM Hooligan for a 21". Here in NW FL we don't have many twisties, 99% of my riding straight-aways.

Are thos D&D pipes your running?

 

JagmanR, that is one sweet ride. I've been wanting to switch out my 16" PM Hooligan for a 21". Here in NW FL we don't have many twisties, 99% of my riding straight-aways.

Are thos D&D pipes your running?

Thanks FLST. I wouldn't try to talk anyone out of a 21". It is a perfectly acceptable alternative for any touring bike with the 3.5 wide patch, and I have enjoyed mine. That's why I won't be selling it when I get my 18" to swap it out. As I said, I am looking forward to raising the front end back up an inch and getting even more tire surface though. I have always said however that a set of 16's on a touring bike is a sweet ride. A shame they don't look great. Funny how just the new 17" front wheel and tire even looks better.
Yes..that is a D&D Fatcat w/ Quiet Baffle.

 

I like the way the 21" looks on my FLHX, but can tell you the 18"/18" set up is better for handling, because once you lower the front end, it doesn't ride anywhere near as good, tends to be a stiffer ride, not to mention, everyone I know that has the 21, has bottomed the fender on the engine guard or bottom of the forks at least once. I've ridden mine on long trips, and it works good.

 

Is a 21” rim a mistake?

I have a 2008 Ultra Classic and I also want to go to a 21" front wheel with stock fender and stock duel calipers. I currently have on order a 21” X 3.5 / 60 Spoke Classic Laced rim from American Wire (americanwire.com)

However after reading this forum I am wondering if I should call them Monday and change my order to an 18” rim.

Is a 21” rim a mistake?

PS: I have a 1973 Super glide with a 21” rim, 2” over fork tubes and it feels fine…?

 

I have a 2008 Ultra Classic and I also want to go to a 21" front wheel with stock fender and stock duel calipers. I currently have on order a 21” X 3.5 / 60 Spoke Classic Laced rim from American Wire (americanwire.com)

However after reading this forum I am wondering if I should call them Monday and change my order to an 18” rim.

Is a 21” rim a mistake?

PS: I have a 1973 Super glide with a 21” rim, 2” over fork tubes and it feels fine…?

Honestly, your post and ones like it are the reason I typically don't offer my opinion on this matter. You have several opinions in this thread, and frankly more 18 over 21 pro's from folks who've actually ridden with both than is typical. You don't often hear from folks with 21" front ends voicing displeasure or preference for something else, so thats a good sign. You also don't often read or hear of folks moving from a 21 to an 18 but you do hear the opposite often. Here's the deal, the 21 looks awesome. It rides and handles very good. I sincerely doubt the small amount of overall ride comfort you get will out weigh what you get in killer custom looks. Now...if you're someone who is really is picky about how your bagger rides, handles and demands nothing less than ideal, the 21" might not satisfy. There is really only one way to determine that and thats to either own one or ride one at length. When i first put mine on I was thrilled and honestly couldn't determine much difference other than it did feel "different." After a couple thousand miles, the extra firmness, the somewhat less pliant ride, (mostly due to the need to lower the front end), and small degradation of two up handling and slow speed handling is enough for me to move to the 18's and see if that works for me. Still a great look, with hopefully ideal, for me, riding characteristics.
That said there are a whole lot of folks who would vehemently disagree with me.

 

Thanks for the feedback! I guess I will let it ride and if I don’t like it I will take it off!

As for the tyres I was going to order the Venom AM42 for the rear and AM21 for the front. Am I on track?

http://www.avon-tyres.co.uk/motorcycle/?page=tyres&method=listtyres&cat=2

 

Can't tell by the general description of the Venom and model number, and I ride Metzelers, but your tire size is probably something like:

120/70-21 with a 21x3.5 rim Front
150/70-18 with a 4.25 rim Rear

That is the size Metzeler and rim on my SG today. My new front tire will be a 140/70-18 with a 3.5 Rim.

 

Can't tell by the general description of the Venom and model number, and I ride Metzelers, but your tire size is probably something like:

120/70-21 with a 21x3.5 rim Front
150/70-18 with a 4.25 rim Rear

That is the size Metzeler and rim on my SG today. My new front tire will be a 140/70-18 with a 3.5 Rim.

I have the ME-880 Metzlers on 18 X 3.5 front and 18 X 5.5 rear

140/70-18 front
150/70-18 rear

Love the ride and habdling... :clap::clap::clap::clap::clap:

 

Looking forward to the swap out for comparison!

 

I am confused now or I have been given bad information. I called custom chrome to inquire about Metzlers motorcycle tires for my Ultra Classic and they said it is not recommended because of the load rating was too low. They told me everyone is doing it but it’s not recommended. I assumed that all the bikes I have seen in the bagger mag’a with Metzlers maybe were only for show. I guess I will need to look into this more…

Who’s idea was this anyway

Venom AM42 (rear) 908 lbs

 

I've heard that before, but no one I know has ever had a problem and they all run the same tires, Metzler's.

 

Sorry for the paranoia, however my dad doesn’t like me doing **** to my bike. We go on a 2000 mile trip once a year and all I need is to have some dumb **** happen because of my desire to be different…. Don’t need any more ass woopings.

Thanks again for your input. I will keep you posted!

I can't see the pics I posted? If you can't click the links.
http://i260.photobucket.com/albums/ii35/mac8869/bk01.jpg
http://i260.photobucket.com/albums/ii35/mac8869/bk02.jpg

 

I was just informed that the Avon tires I wanted are not available until late fall. I am now looking at the ME-880 Metzlers. My question is what is the widest rear tire that will fit on a stock 2008 Ultra Classic? ( I intend on using the stock rear rim).

Thank you for your time!

 

Ive seen it mentioned by a few here that its required you lower your front suspention by 1 inch, however in all the mags I read on convertions like the 21 front and 18 rear never have they said anyting about lowering. Why is it required or is it just a looks thing? Seems to me that the bike sits alot highter off the ground once the wheels are installed. Id love to do this to my old Cop flht but Im concerned about the ride quality and exspence. The look speaks for itself.
Thanks
-S

 

You need to lower the front end for handling, go ahead a put the 21 on without lowering, ride some twistys and you'll find out why lowering it is needed.

 

You do need to lower the front end an inch at least. In fact almost all custom mags I read with the setup mention lowering. I suppose if you don't ride hard and you aren't into optimum handling, riding this setup without lowering would be fine. I wouldn't want to wrestle with it.

 

Ok thats what I wanted to know, all the ones I have read mention nothing about lowering, suppose thell find out. Thanks guys! Great thread.
-S

 

21" F 18" wheels

I have had 2 SG and put a 21 f 18 r on both and I love them the looks the ride handling etc. Most people that ride touring bikes do not street race so unless you are going to lugna seca I dont think it really matters. Everytime I hear "man I heard that a 21 on a bagger rides and handles like sh1t" Its usally coming from someone that has a stock bike that can only afford the payment and not a new set of wheels. Here is my current set up 08 UC made into a SG (I wanted the color combo only offered in the UC) This photo sucks it was taken with my camera phone. Thanks I hope this helps

 

Sure glad I came across this thread. I was just about to upgrade my 18" front wheel to 21" for looks. Also, after I put the 18"/18" wheels on my SG I noticed that it seemed to me that I had to coax the bike a little more to lean when going into a curve as it seems to want to stay upright more. I thought it was the Metzlers but glad to hear it is the 18"s. Easier to deal with now that I know why. Now I can put the $1000 I saved from not getting a 21" toward a Baddad rear fender with the flush tail lights!