I?ll be honest, rebuilding the wheels on our 1975 Honda CB550F was a job I was hoping to put off a lot longer. The process of lacing and truing wheels is tedious, and there are plenty of opportunities to scratch a fresh rim when you pull the tire irons out. Considering a shoestring budget is the cornerstone of our everyman CB550 tracker build, and our stock wheels are completely roached, I?ll be DIYing this whole process for your education and commentary. Buckle up, because we have some serious ground to cover.

In Part 3 of our Honda CB550 tracker build, we started getting some of our major visual modifications mocked up, but there was no seeing past our trashed wheels. Additionally, we really needed our gnarly Bridgestone BATTLAX AX41 tires mounted to visualize the rest of the project.
We?re only salvaging the stock hubs, so we ordered a basic wheel rebuild kit with aluminum rims and zinc-plated spokes and nipples for right around $170. That means the only disassembly involved is taking an angle grinder to the original spokes to liberate the hubs. I used a brass wire wheel on an air tool to remove the corrosion and the old Honda clear coat, and buffed the hubs to a mediocre finish with a polishing wheel.

Lacing Motorcycle Wheels I haven?t built enough wheels to consider myself pro, or even advanced for that matter, but it?s not all that...