This was also a good time to purchase a new set of tires as well. After researching available options in the correct size I ended up with a set of Metzeler Roadtec 01. Availability was very good, price was agreeable and my local shop (non-Triumph) are fine folks to work with. They did a bang up job with the mounting and they have held air perfectly since they did the job.

Overall the installation went perfectly. Everything fit and torqued as it should with no surprises. In fact the fit of everything was exceptional. Machined surfaced were perfect, spacers were sized perfectly, brakes, calipers and sprocket all aligned perfectly. In fact the brakes were fine with both the original T120 front rotor discs and the T100 floating discs that I ultimately installed. You can see the T100 discs in all the finished pics. I won't go into great detail on that decision or reasoning for that in this thread but there is a great and lengthy thread here that has all the info:

Installing Floating Brake Discs on a T120

I recently bought and installed floating brake discs on my T 120. They are stock Triumph discs off of a 2017 T100, part number T2021404. Here are some pics. A somewhat reduced swirl pattern is an added benefit, plus they are slightly thinner. Otherwise a bolt on replacement. $175 each retail.

www.triumphrat.net

I used new bolts on the new front discs as well so I have a nearly complete front stock wheel (missing the pulser disc) that can be easily mounted if need be, and a rear just short the brake disc. Both are easy swaps should they be called into service. I can tell you that the complete KKE/Metzeler/T100 front assembly weighs in a full 6 pounds less that the oem wheel, tire and discs. Not an insignificant amount, of which I think the T100 discs make up about four of those pounds lost.

For weights here is what I measured

KKE Front wheel only - 13.42#
KKE Rear wheel only - 15.43#

This is without any discs, sprocket, drive assy, etc. Just the raw wheel assys. I had no way to weight the OEM wheels in the same state but I can tell you the KKE wheels do not feel that much lighter than stock, they are solid.

And there was was plenty of clearance front and rear for the Fobo pressure monitors. They fit and work perfectly.

These are the installation inmages that I was provided:

One of the concerns I had with this wheel set was if they would be too modern for a bike of this aesthetic. One of the first things that drew me to this model was it's simple, 'classic' appearance, not all big and bloated, and I really liked the appearance of the OEM chrome wheels. Cleaned up and sitting in the sun, from the pearl paint to the chrome covers, this model simply sparkles. It's a beautiful machine. So what would dull silver cross spoke wheels do to that aesthetic? It didn't matter because I was committed. And, by adding the black Fox reservoir rear shocks and the British Customs Predator Pro Shorty cans I was already treading into non-classic waters so the wheels would just follow that path. But once mounted up from any distance beyond an intimate inspection, and to the untrained eye, these spoked wheels were actually pretty convincing and not the equivalent of adding day-glo aero bits. I might argue they maintain a vintage attitude far better than cast wheels do. And, while not gleaming chrome the less shiny silver finish does blend well with teh other aluminum trim items. So they are not out of place in any meaningful way.

Here's the current completed look:

If I forgot anything I'll certainly add it to this thread. If anyone has questions I'll gladly answer to the best of my knowledge. And, if anyone else is using these I'd love to see them and hear your story. We can knock some of the mystery off of these and make it easier for the next person to make an informed decision.

As I write this it's literally -3* F outside my door, with wind chills approaching -35* F, so there will be no road testing for another 8 weeks or so. But as soon as I can put some time on them I'll be back to add that info to the overall experience.

 

It all looks great! I'm anxious to hear how you like the Metzeler Roadtec 01, cuz I hate the Avon Spirit on mine

 

Looks good. Curious though why they don't offer a chrome or polished alloy rim.

 

Good question. Perhaps they don't sell that many T120 version to warrant an additional style, and I'd bet they sell considerably more of the black version overall. I have asked them this question.

 

Looks like a nice set of wheels for the money

 

Great write up(s)! And your bike looks stellar!! Happy Trails... can't wait for Spring.

 

Great write up and pics/diagrams
The wheels look very nice and your bike looks great

 

Very nice look! Classic, but uncomplicated.

 

And I thought the last pics were black and white until I saw the reflectors . Looks great . Peter

 

You will find the 01 tires great, I have used them for a long time.

Plasma1

 

I'm thinking of replacing my 2018 T120 stock wheels with these, as they seem to be the most reasonably priced. Are they significantly lighter than the stock wheels?

 

I don't know about significantly.

In my case I used new T100 front discs as well which are lighte than the OEM T120 discs. I can tell you that the complete KKE/Metzeler/T100 front assembly weighed in a full 6 pounds less that the oem wheel, tire and discs. Not an insignificant amount, of which I think the T100 discs make up about four of those pounds lost.

For just KKE wheel weights here is what I measured. This is without any discs, sprocket, drive assy, etc. Just the raw wheel assys.

KKE Front wheel only - 13.42#
KKE Rear wheel only - 15.43#

Because I never had the OEM tires off of the original wheels I had no way to weigh the OEM wheels in the same state but I can tell you the KKE wheels do not feel that much lighter than stock, they are solid.

 

Hi, great review and write up!
Thinking about purchasing these wheels on my 2018 T120.
What year is your T120?
Cheers!

Thomas

 

2019 T120 Diamond. I jave now added that to the original post as well.

 

These are the wheels the T120 SHOULD come with from Triumph.

The original steel wheels were truly lame...the alloy wheels a bit better but still a fail.

Whatever pricepoint adjutment that Triumph would incur to use this style of wheel on the T120 as oem is warranted...it shouldnt be much when done at manufacturing.

Great writeup....really nice bike

 

For the OP or anyone else that is using the KKE wheels, have your tried mounting a 110 tire. I know the KKE front wheel is .25” thinner than stock. I also emailed KKE about using a wider 110 tire and their response none committal based on how I interpreted there use of English. So looking to current customers for guidance to see if a 110 tire works with the KKE front.

 

I am wondering the same thing - I have a set of these rims that arrived today; the bike only has 900 miles so not putting new rubber on yet but wanting Michelin Anakee Adventure hoops for next time.

I did find this, so maybe it’s possible?

Tire/Wheel Fitment

Use this table to determine the tire size that can fit your rim. Front Wheel 16" Tire Size Rim (inch) 110/90-16 2.15 - 3.00 120/80-16 2.50 - 3.00 130/70-16 3.50 - 4.00 130/90-16 2.50 - 3.50 150/80-16 3.00 - 4.00 17" Tire Size Rim (inch) 110/70-17 3.00 - 3.50 110/80-17 2.15 - 3.00 120/60-17 3.50...

ridewrightwheels.com

 

How have the wheels held up after a years usage ? Thank you

 

Kicking this old thread to see how these have held up and if there have been any issues.

 

I can report in the time I have had them, dated by this thread, they have been flawless for me. I have zero issues with fit, finish, function, air retention is as extremely good, same or better than the previous tubes. There is nothing negative I can say with my experience to this point.

 

One issue is these are currently out of stock. I emailed them a couple of days ago asking about availability and they said the hubs were backordered. They also said if I purchased them now they would be built and shipped in 1-2 months. I'm very leery of spending $1500 and hoping they get built/shipped.
I contacted Woody's Wheels and they can build out my old wheels with new hoops/spokes and seal them to run tubeless for about the same price as the KKE wheels. I'm thinking that's the route I'll go if I decide to go tubeless.

 

I discussed this with Woody's Wheels. As I recall they said the KKE wheels were made by a subsidiary of a parent company whose other subsidiary makes tubeless wheels for BMW (although I haven't been able to independenetly verify that); if true, then likely not quite the same quality as the BMW wheels but at least a good pedigree. Also, they suggested that the original T100 wheels were likely heavier but also stronger than the KKE wheels would be. I decided to have Woody's seal my existing T100 wheels with the Outex kit but did not get new hoops or spokes (they did adjust the spokes to ensure the wheels were true). This seemed like a less expensive way to move to tubeless wheels and if for some reason I have issues in the future I will consider the KKE wheels or having Woody's build true tubeless wheels for me. After a 2-week, 3,000-mile road trip and quite a few trips here in the mountains of Colorado the Outex sealed wheels are doing great with no loss of air.

 

One issue is these are currently out of stock. I emailed them a couple of days ago asking about availability and they said the hubs were backordered. They also said if I purchased them now they would be built and shipped in 1-2 months. I'm very leery of spending $1500 and hoping they get built/shipped.
I contacted Woody's Wheels and they can build out my old wheels with new hoops/spokes and seal them to run tubeless for about the same price as the KKE wheels. I'm thinking that's the route I'll go if I decide to go tubeless.

Good insight. Thank you. I've seen them available on ebay so I'm not sure what that means. Are they in stock or will it be months of waiting if bought through eBay.

I discussed this with Woody's Wheels. As I recall they said the KKE wheels were made by a subsidiary of a parent company whose other subsidiary makes tubeless wheels for BMW (although I haven't been able to independenetly verify that); if true, then likely not quite the same quality as the BMW wheels but at least a good pedigree. Also, they suggested that the original T100 wheels were likely heavier but also stronger than the KKE wheels would be. I decided to have Woody's seal my existing T100 wheels with the Outex kit but did not get new hoops or spokes (they did adjust the spokes to ensure the wheels were true). This seemed like a less expensive way to move to tubeless wheels and if for some reason I have issues in the future I will consider the KKE wheels or having Woody's build true tubeless wheels for me. After a 2-week, 3,000-mile road trip and quite a few trips here in the mountains of Colorado the Outex sealed wheels are doing great with no loss of air.

Good to hear you're happy. I need to call them and see what the tubeless options entail. Is it just outtex or do they offer other options?

It's not a huge deal but traveling with a pump and plug kit is much easier and less of a space hog than spare tubes, spoons, talc, lube and a pump. In town its a call to my wife to throw the hitch carrier in the truck and come get me vs just plugging it on the side of the road.

What was there turnaround time of Woody's? Odd have to ship the rims to them as they're not local.

 

Good insight. Thank you. I've seen them available on ebay so I'm not sure what that means. Are they in stock or will it be months of waiting if bought through eBay.

I think it's often a timing thing around whatever might be coming to them. And teh T100/T120 is probably not a huge seller fro them to be honest. When I was initially shopping I wanted a certain color hub, and that would have had a fairly lengthy lead time but I was expecting that based on what I had read and our early discussions. However they had another color hub set already in transit and offered me a fair discount to make the switch, which I did and that sped things up considerably, to a surprising degree actually. I don't think there is any magic through eBay that they wouldn't communicate to you directly. You either get what's available or wait for what isn't. And I had heard the BMW connection before as well. I would think there might be a difference in spoke gauge but looking at the rim design you can certainly see where that might be possible.

The AI response to a quick Google search on the topic shows this:

BMW is the manufacturer of their own tubeless spoked wheels. Alpina also makes tubeless spoked wheels for BMW motorcycles.

Explanation:

BMW
BMW builds their tubeless spoked wheels using a CNC machine. They have a cross-spoke pattern with the nipple at the hub.

Alpina
Alpina has a long history of making spokes and nipples for motorcycles and bicycles. They make tubeless spoked wheels for BMW motorcycles, including the BMW R Nine T Racer and BMW F900 XR.

Spoke wheels are made of thin metal wires that connect the outer rim to the central hub. They are more durable than cast wheels, which are made from a single piece.

 

I'm blowing the dust off of this thread...

@nnervous have you had any issue with squealing brakes with the KKE rims? I have a 2018 T120 that didn't have the rubber dampers, and the stock rotors would squeal. I replaced the stock rotors with T100 rotors which quieted things down.
KKE notes that their rims won't accept the stock dampers which made me wonder how they deal with possible squeal.

 

I had zero issues with brake squeal with the KKE/T100 rotor combo. But I did not have squeal with the stock wheels and rotors either.

 

@nnervous,
These rims are advertized as "Triumph Bonneville T120/T100 2021-2024",
was that the case when you bought them? Your bike seems to be from 2019.
I'm interested in these and I own a 2016 T120. Would there be any fitting problems?

 

I can't speak to that because I just don't know. That is something I would take up directly with them for clarification. That said I seem to recall some other posts questioning the same thing and I don't know if they were ever resolved. When I ordered my set in late 2022 they were listed specific to my generation/model years and I don't think they were offering the latest generation version yet. Perhaps they are now offering an updated version as well, or perhaps they are all that same. Not sure of the interchangeability. I'd be curious to see what you learn.

 

FWIW, I connected with them regarding my 2020 T120 and they said no problem with fitment.

 

Two Year Update:
Since these continue to generate interest and there has been a lot of great follow up info added I thought I would just add this for now having had and used them the last couple years. Bottom line is that they have been as good as I woudl expect any wheel to be. I can offer nothing negative at this stage. They have worked very well, canuse zero grief, look as good as when they went on and their air retention has been incredible. I don't know if that was just a product of a very good install, compatibility with the Metzlers or what but the bike sat all winter, which was a long cold one here in the northeast, from November to May and when I check the pressures before the first ride they were both within one pound of where they were left and right in the 32/36 psi range I use. I was surprised. I have had other tubless that would lose that every coupel weeks or monthly. I still remain fully satisfied with this decision.

 

Two Year Update:
Since these continue to generate interest and there has been a lot of great follow up info added I thought I would just add this for now having had and used them the last couple years. Bottom line is that they have been as good as I woudl expect any wheel to be. I can offer nothing negative at this stage. They have worked very well, canuse zero grief, look as good as when they went on and their air retention has been incredible. I don't know if that was just a product of a very good install, compatibility with the Metzlers or what but the bike sat all winter, which was a long cold one here in the northeast, from November to May and when I check the pressures before the first ride they were both within one pound of where they were left and right in the 32/36 psi range I use. I was surprised. I have had other tubless that would lose that every coupel weeks or monthly. I still remain fully satisfied with this decision.

Thanks for the update. It's good to know they're holding up well. I bought a set in black a couple of months ago. So far I'm very pleased with them. It was a bit of a hassle actually getting them, parts shortages, trade wars, etc. but they showed up quicker than I expected. They're holding air well and my T120 seems to like them.

 

Hi can you provide the full installation instructions in attachment here?

 

I will have to see if I can find them. The pics I posted earlier in the thread does detail some of the assembly of parts and noting that one seal was incorrect on delivery. Otherwise it's all pretty straightforward. I am no wiz, have no affiliation with the company and with limited to moderate mechanical skills figured it out pretty easily.

 

I reckon those wheels look great on your bike. I'm seriously considering getting a set.
One question.. are the spokes stainless?

 

Significantly motivated by this thread and nnervous (Thanks much!) I'm currently having my black VMX tubeless wheels installed right now on my 2023 T120 Black...

These wheels come with 304 Stainless Steel Spoke with Brass Nipple, according to the ebay listing from my order (can't post links yet... but description is VMX 2.5*18/4.25*17 Tubeless Wheels Fit for TRIUMPH T120/T100, seller is KKE Racing Home). And, it's also fairly prevalent on the KKE website for various wheel options.

I'll post a pic when I get her back.

 

Here’s a laugh for you..
I emailed them asking about the spokes and availability of the silver rims. Their response:


If it is convenient for you, could you tell us whether the wheel size you are interested in is 2.5*18/4.25*17 or 2.5*19/4.25*17?

Also, I'm sorry, we don't have wheels that can fit your model.

 

🥴 Shoot...

Well, my new black wheels urned out great, no issues with the install at all. I'm very happy with them so far. It was getting dark when I picked it up, so didn't take pictures yet, but I will soon.

Though I know you're looking for silver Alec. Reading your note through a couple times, I suspect "we don't have wheels that can fit your model" means we don't have silver. Or, what model bike are you considering these for?