I have a 48 and have slammed some huge rim hitting pothole's here in New York. it's inevitable, sometimes they just pop up no matter how careful you ride. i've been shocked I haven't blown out a tire yet. the roads are brutal from this past winter. I was wondering how the tires & rims hold up on the 72's with that skinny front tire. I was thinking about buying one, but not if i'm going to go through tires or bend the rims.

 

I'm from Long Island myself! I don't have a 72, but the local shop I go to, often just to hang out and chat with the owner, has had a good amount of the spoked rims in there already from all the damn potholes around here. In my opinion, the mag wheels, especially with our roads right now, are a much better and safer choice. I personally like the 48 over the 72 anyways......just saying!

 

The 21" wheel actually smooths out the whole usually by crossing the gap with a larger diameter. Sidewall and rim strength are fairly equal otherwise. The 72 front will sink into a rut more easily due to its narrowness. That said, yeah I avoid potholes and ruts as much as possible.

 

I'm on the other side of the country but I've slammed a couple pot holes on my 72 and it's flat out scary lol I've been very concerned about blowing a tire or bending something. But so far it's all good! I feel like the 48 could take a little more beating with that big front wheel though.

 

Laced wheels with steel rims are much much stronger than any cast wheel. There is a reason they are de facto standard for offroad bikes. You can still damage them, obviously, but it is going to take one hell of a hit.

 

No issues in New Jersey (where a lot of the roads are still terrible). I've hit some pot holes hard enough to knock my mirrors our of line but have had no issues breaking or bending anything yet.

 

I have a custom with the same 21" wheel and last weekend, I hit a big hole coming off a bridge at decent speed (~45mph). My back got more damage than my wheel, I was actually suprise there was nothing. Good to know that fact Scuba

 

My 72 handles potholes much like my Ultra did. Once you get over the "oh crap" moment you realize how strong the bike is.

 

that's true, I usually yell the "F" word very loud, then realize my tire held up and my shocks didn't explode. lol then i'm like...damn...this bike is pretty tough

 

I think the "F" bomb adds at least a 10% performance boost to any emergency situation. It's kept me on the right side of the Darwin scale many times. Unfortunately it seems to be the biggest thing my kids have learned from me in all these years. I'm sure it will serve them well.