Last summer SIP Scootershop asked us at ScooterNova magazine to try out some new tubeless wheel rims for them, slightly wider Lambretta rims they were developing. We’re pleased to announce that these are now available to buy.
Until now the SIP Tubeless wheel rims for Lambretta scooters were the standard 2.10 inches width, but the new versions (‘2nd Generation’) they have just launched are 2.50 inches wide. Suitable for most models of large frame Lambretta scooters from Series 1 onwards, these 2.50” x 10” rims are one-piece aluminium and will be available in aluminium colour, matt black with polished edge or red, with chrome apparently coming soon too.
The new SIP rims will also come in either a 4 or 8 stud mounting option, to suit the likes of the Casa Octopus hub. The wheels have a valve pre-mounted and each rim also comes with longer wheel studs that you’ll need to fit to your standard Lambretta rim.
We had SIP Performance tyres for ours (see review in edition 24 of ScooterNova magazine) which we took to Rob at Simply Retro to fit last year. In his opinion the wider rims made the task far easier than with the regular 2.10” tubeless rims, which will hopefully mean these are suitable for a greater range of tyres. It will also put a little more rubber on the road.
We were however unable to fit these 2.50”x10 rims to the front hub of a couple of Lambrettas which had aftermarket hydraulic disc brakes fitted due to the space between the calliper and the rim. The brakes in question were one from Vietnam, and another that originated from there but had been re-engineered in Germany. We tried a couple of different callipers on them but there was still not enough clearance. SIP tell us that some disc brakes will fit with these wider rims, and we are awaiting confirmation of which ones in particular.
On the road, the slightly wider rims feel as normal to be honest, and I do like the new Performance tyres too. The extra rubber on Tarmac can only be a good thing, but short of trying to corner so harshly it’s dangerous, telling the difference between old and new is tough. The fact that all feels well however, is a good thing, as is the potential for easier fitting of tyres.
We’ll continue to use these new rims of course, and hopefully get more miles on them in 2021 than we did in (restricted) 2020.
Prices for the new 2.50×10 SIP tubeless wheels are currently at around £60 from the SIP website, but see your local dealer for a local price and more details.
Andy
ScooterNova magazine – The rider’s choice
**ScooterNova is an independent scooter magazine published and printed in the UK every two months, by scooterists for scooterists. Edition 24 (March/April 2021) will be published on 25 February. Edition 23 (Jan/Feb 2021) is available now from all good scooter shops, you can also subscribe or buy online via our web shop.
