17" or 18" Rear wheel, what is the final consensus?

[ADTguy]

New to the Vmax world I just picked up a 17,000 mile 2007 Vmax and am wondering what the final consensus is on a 17" or 18" for a rear wheel with a radial tire.

I am planning to use the stock front wheel with a rear 17" or 18" rear but see many conflicting posts on which is better. I am setting my forks up with Racetech springs and Emulator plus adding Progressive 412 shocks in the rear to freshen things up and want to combine it with the best possible handling rear wheel size. I also would like to keep engine RPM as close to OEM as possible I put on the miles and don't want to run it higher than stock.

Advice appreciated thanks so much!

By the way the previous owner flatted and had a car spare tire mounted, unbelievable. I also have the original Vmax tall passenger backrest but it is not in the pics. I really don't care for it, shorter options are appreciated.

 

[Fire-medic]

Your top end will suffer with a 17", with an 18" it will not be as detrimentally-affected. Then again, how often do you find yourself 'limited' to only 140 mph?

The 17" is like getting a higher-numerically final drive ratio, for more acceleration.

More rubber available for 17" than 18" (choices).

Talk to Sean Morley for swapping final drives and gearsets to get what you value, relaxed cruising vs acceleration.

Don't forget to get a front radial, to match the rear. I do not recommend mixing different brands of tires or even different rubber compounds in the same manufacturer's product. Mixing different methods of tire construction can result in an evil-handling bike you will hate.

 

[MaxMidnight]

Unless you are a riding God then I suspect you wouldn't notice a significant difference in handling between either.
I have 17" Dymags on mine and if fuel consumption has suffered I can't say I've noticed it.

Agree with Mr Medics warning re mixing cross ply and radial tyre. Whilst some manufacturers do mix both this would be after extensive testing and the bike will have been engineered to take advantage of the different characteristics each design brings.
In the UK it is legal to mix as follows:
but as the Max was not designed for a 'hybrid' combination the end result can't be predicted.

 

[jpeterguerra]

New to the Vmax world I just picked up a 17,000 mile 2007 Vmax and am wondering what the final consensus is on a 17" or 18" for a rear wheel with a radial tire.

I am planning to use the stock front wheel with a rear 17" or 18" rear but see many conflicting posts on which is better. I am setting my forks up with Racetech springs and Emulator plus adding Progressive 412 shocks in the rear to freshen things up and want to combine it with the best possible handling rear wheel size. I also would like to keep engine RPM as close to OEM as possible I put on the miles and don't want to run it higher than stock.

Advice appreciated thanks so much!

By the way the previous owner flatted and had a car spare tire mounted, unbelievable. I also have the original Vmax tall passenger backrest but it is not in the pics. I really don't care for it, shorter options are appreciated.

View attachment 91648

View attachment 91649

Welcome to the group. I too have a 2007 V max. It is with stock size 15 tire at the back.. If you would like to get rid of the tall back rest I would take it off your hand. ... Happy Riding... Peter Guerra, Alton Ontario Canada.

 

[MadMark]

I'm not going to tell you what wheel an tires you need. My V-Max is just a play toy, A to B from dig. So going to radials,I wanted the fattest tire without spending more than the bike is worth. But that fk'n Mod got me again for over $3k. But I have to thank Sean an Kyle for the help.

 

[427FE]

I'm not going to tell you what wheel an tires you need. My V-Max is just a play toy, A to B from dig. So going to radials,I wanted the fattest tire without spending more than the bike is worth. But that fk'n Mod got me again for over $3k. But I have to thank Sean an Kyle for the help.

Tell more about the set up you did for over $3k. I am starting this process now myself. Thanks.

 

[Patineto]

This is a guide for Bicycles but is not that dissimilar from a motorcycle..

Personally I like taller sidewalls (less prone to damage the rim if you hit something
but the main thing is that they are hundreds of 17inch models and compounds when the 18" are somehow limited

 

[CaptainKyle]

It's all about preference! I hate 18's because of the tire selection sucks in my opinion. 18s will keep your RPM'S closer to normal but you can run a venture final drive with the 17 and come out about the same. It really all comes down to your riding style. I very seldom see people trying to top these bikes out most people are running them from a dig kind of what they were built for in my opinion. If you want fuel mileage you probably bought the wrong bike.lol I run 17s with the stock final drive but I live in the Smokey mountains so where you ride makes tons of difference to.