Rare Wheel Set for Sale

[Deleted User 62]

Wow, here's a rare one! There's set of Morris wheels for sale on the IBMWR.org : Morris Wheels (aluminum) - twin shock / disk brake

Morris Industries aluminum wheel set for twin shock, rear disk brake models...19" front, 18" rear. Bare wheels only...they will need a drive cup (wheel splines) and bearings/spacers (common off-the-shelf bearings and easy to machine spacers...any somewhat competent machine shop would be able to make the missing parts). Very nice condition...original paint is faded. $450

[KenHawk]

Yeah, I saw those!

Very, Very rare wheels these days at a very good price if you can suss out the caliper mounting and thats not such a big deal.

I'm cash poor right now or I'd snag em, sell off my Lester's and keep going!

[Duane Ausherman]

Morris made a lot of rare wheels in the sense that he made only a few for testing some new idea. A very good friend of mine was involved in his testing, which meant having someone use them and giving feedback.

[vanzen]

Lighter than Lester, Morris was certainly the proverbial cat's ass cast-wheel option for an airhead
... back in the day.
Lester wheels, certainly the more plebeian of the two,
were less expensive than a set of Morris (in alloy) –
The Morris magnesium version was even lighter and more expensive yet !

I have no idea how many Morris wheels were were produced –
Morris made after-market wheels for many marques, makes, and models,
and also provided wheels to factory / manufacturers like Triumph for the Limited edition T140D
and Harley Davidson for the XLCR ...
At that time, in the 1970s and 80s, anyone could put down the $$ and order a set.

"Produced in very prestigious magnesium alloy, as in the past,
with same original production process and with exactly same design and dimensions"

~ Marvic (in Italy) is remanufacturing some of the Morris Magnesium line:

[DanielMc]

If I had the money, I'd probably buy these:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-R90S-seri ... 231948f4d1

[Major Softie]

The Morris magnesium version was even lighter and more expensive yet !

Yeah, I had no idea the aluminum ones were that much less common than the Lesters. Now the magnesium wheels, I KNEW those were rare. I would absolutely love to have a set of those on a bike, but I understand that, like many magnesium wheels of the period, they are prone to cracks and much be regularly inspected.

[vanzen]

Yeah, I had no idea the aluminum ones were that much less common than the Lesters. Now the magnesium wheels, I KNEW those were rare. I would absolutely love to have a set of those on a bike, but I understand that, like many magnesium wheels of the period, they are prone to cracks and much be regularly inspected.

Morris aluminum and magnesium wheels were readily available back "in the day".
I will say that they are "less common" on the market today
because they were significantly more expensive at that time,
and for BMWs at least, fewer sets were sold ...

Magnesium wheels have always been considered as better suited to the track than the road.
On the track, weight is a major player, on the street, longevity became an issue –
as per the reasons you have mentioned ...

Having said that, do not be quick to judge:
"Magnesium" remains a generic term that will not not define any specific metallurgical composition –
Knowledge of that specific composition
will be necessary in order to realistically evaluate any alloy's performance.

[Chuey]

If I had the money, I'd probably buy these:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-R90S-seri ... 231948f4d1

Well, I decided to bid on them. The bid I made set the price. I think they went for a pretty low price as it was. Thanks for the heads up on the auction DanielMc. I would have bid more but as I started to think about wheels and the bike I'm starting to work on I decided that I probably want to use spoked wheels on it and maybe it will end up with an 18" front wheel. I have to admit that I went to bed thinking about light wheels. They must make a real difference in the feel of the bike.

Chuey.........I have a pair of Morris mags but they're not all that light.

[Duane Ausherman]

Chuey, good luck on your new toys. Make sure that you get the stack spaced correctly.

[vanzen]

...Make sure that you get the stack spaced correctly.

An appropriate strategy for assembling any wheel of that era, eh ?