I think I recently saw a reference to some Yamaha air cooled RD era cast mag wheels made for tubeless tire applications? Anyone know which wheels those might be? If true, how to identify? Is it stamped on the wheel or?
if its not stamped on the wheel its not. from what I remember, none are but doesn't mean somebody didn't do it
I've never seen one. AFAIK, all are tube type
I checked the wheelset I was thinking of- and it was not stamped or cast/labeled for tubeless use, so case closed. The front wheel is set up for dual disk though and it has a plastic cover over the bolt holes to bolt the 2nd disk. These wheels are the shaved down RD400 version Black base color and natural aluminum finish "spoke" edges like Daytonas. They came on a RD350 someone had converted to RD400 mags including 400 swingarm so I converted the bike back to stock and held on the wheels.
Quote from: RDnuTZ on November 19, 2025, 03:07:40 PMI checked the wheelset I was thinking of- and it was not stamped or cast/labeled for tubeless use, so case closed. The front wheel is set up for dual disk though and it has a plastic cover over the bolt holes to bolt the 2nd disk. These wheels are the shaved down RD400 version Black base color and natural aluminum finish "spoke" edges like Daytonas. They came on a RD350 someone had converted to RD400 mags including 400 swingarm so I converted the bike back to stock and held on the wheels.
That front wheel is 2A2 model from a XS400F. It is identical in appearance to the 2V0 front wheel, but with a provision for a left side rotor. A long time ago I did a write up about converting to dual disc front end and the parts required. It may be in the Tech Library.
yup. I had those on mine for a while. dual fzr discs are overkill, I speak from experience on this :gentleman:
... been down this road before. Too bad i don't remember where the road went.
The RD was built through the introduction of tubeless motorcycle tires. The 1A1 bikes are not, the Daytonas might be.
The first tubeless rims were denoted as tubeless, they had either "tubeless type" or "TT" cast into the rim. You can also tell if they are tubeless type by the hole for the air valve: tubeless have bigger holes.
... and in case you didn't know: RD rims are a knock off of Andrews rims... 'cept Andrews rim don't weigh as much. RD rims are boat anchors
good info exchange :thumbs: When I was knee deep in my RD phase (SOTW and Alek's RD page were my go-to forums) I was coming across all kinds of modded bikes along with junkers and some that could be saved. I had thoughts of road racing so was keeping some prime parts to build a decent racer. Was thinking the dual disc wheel might come in handy for that. Time marches on and now I can barely lift those damn wheels :shocked: :whatever:
Some of the XS1100 bikes came with tubeless rims that look very similar to Daytona. I'm pretty sure the rim flanges are slightly different shape between tubeless and tubed.
Some people swear you'll die if you run tube rims without tubes, others have done it for decades with no issue.
the xs400s for sure have the daytona-esque mags, that are 18/18. pretty sure the 1100s ran a 19 " front. Interestingly, my hybrid had the 400 mags w a 100 front bt45 and a 110 rear. when I got thr euro rear hub and the rims were laced w sun rims and wider tires, 130 rear and 110 front.. the weight was within a lb of the xs mags, brakes identical on both sets of wheels. just fyi
Quote from: Andrew S on November 19, 2025, 08:46:23 PMSome of the XS1100 bikes came with tubeless rims that look very similar to Daytona. I'm pretty sure the rim flanges are slightly different shape between tubeless and tubed.
Some people swear you'll die if you run tube rims without tubes, others have done it for decades with no issue.
how do you account for valve stem hole when running tubeless on tube style rims?
Quote from: RDnuTZ on November 20, 2025, 10:18:49 AMhow do you account for valve stem hole when running tubeless on tube style rims?
I have not done this personally. But I would either use one of the o-ring seal style valve stems that use a nut (same as a tube), or drill out the rim hole to the right size for a rubber stem.
just run a tube. :twocents:
Unless a rim has a safety bead designed for tubeless tires it is dangerous to run without tubes even if it holds air. The tire can come off the rim if the tire goes flat and the bead collapses inward. Bad things will happen then. The tube fills up the air space and that holds the tire on the bead.
1960's sports cars have that problem. The wheels were designed for tubes. People want to seal their wire wheels and run tubeless tires. Won't pass tech without a tube at the track. On steel wheels you have to cut out the centers and weld them to a tubeless ring to run tubeless. Otherwise you could end up with your tubeless radial wrapped around the axle. On a motorcycle front tire that would probably hurt. At one time there were valve stems designed for this with larger barrels. We had some at the shop when I was a tire installer 40 years ago. People did it.
IR8D8R
exactly. not worth the risk. I've seen guys lament on running w out tubes on offroad bikes and saying its better because of flat. however, while that part may be true, using the outex kits to seal a spike rim to run w out a tube is just a disaster waiting to happen imgo. 0.02
agreed. There was never any plan to run tubeless on these rims. Just saw something that piqued my interest and brought the topic here for discussion. Here's my wheels I'll be running WITH tubes lol.
yup. thats exaclty what i ran. watch the front axle/bearing/speedo drive diameter.
Here's the difference between a tube type and tubeless rim.
I run tubes to keep the tires warmer for better grip.
If you ain't racing, you need heat in the tires.