know your limitations

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rodburner

Rocker
Well its been a few days and its almost time for a change. Met a young guy this weekend that's starting up his own fabrication biz and the work I've seen at his one man shop is amazing.Everything is built by hand,using giant,old shop tools [mostly very early 20th century] that he has modified to make bike parts. Huge mills,bores,lathes and polishers,planishing hammers and a sheet metal brake that will take an EIGHT FOOT sheet..Everything is TIG welded. I have decided to return to a twin shock rear suspension for the time being and to also test this guys abilities. He is going to make me a new,round tube swingarm,with a 2" stretch,instead of my current 3",braced and crossbraced,with new custom machined axle blocks and adjusters,and SAE shock mounts to allow shimless mounting of my Sportster/Progressive shocks. If all this passes muster,I'm designing a variable ride height upper shock mount,kinda like those notched trailer hitches you see on tall 4x4 trucks.High for the highway with less rake for the more stable ride,pull the pin to the low position for steeper rake for the backroad peg scraper sessions. I'll let you know how it goes....
Steve
 
Sal Paradise

Sal Paradise

Hooligan
sounds really interesting. For what its worth, I thought the monoshock idea was pretty good. Here is my question; I thought more rake = more stability. So thats lower in the back, correct? Wouldn't low setting be for highways and high setting be for backroads?
 
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rodburner

Rocker
Sal,if I do try this variable height setup,it should work the way I described. You're right about effects on the geometry,but with the adjustment on the upper shock mount,a higher mount position would lower the back of the bike and lower position would raise the bike. If you put a longer or shorter shock on,then the opposite would be true and would also be true if the adjustment were on the bottom shock mount. Remember the trailer hitch analogy.Sliding the hitch/ball up,raises the tongue of the trailer,lowering the back of the trailer.In our case,the "ball" would be the upper shock mount.Raise the "ball" position,the frame goes down in back and up in front,"raking "the forks out a bit..It's only an idea anyway....
 
O

oldroadie

Scooter
Sal Paradise said:
sounds really interesting. For what its worth, I thought the monoshock idea was pretty good. Here is my question; I thought more rake = more stability. So thats lower in the back, correct? Wouldn't low setting be for highways and high setting be for backroads?
Click to expand...

Here's a fun discussion that implies that trail is the more important stability component: http://www.tonyfoale.com/Articles/RakeEx/RakeEx.htm

I suspect the longer swingarm will have a bigger effect than a shock height adjustment but it will be fun to see where this leads you.
 
Sal Paradise

Sal Paradise

Hooligan
ok, I reread your original post and now its clear. I'm dense sometimes... Thanks and let us kow how it works. When I upgrade my rear shocks I intend to go with Thrux length hoping to get a little bit quicker steering ad maybe a hair more peg clearance.
 
N

northcountry

Two Stroke
Sal Paradise said:
ok, I reread your original post and now its clear. I'm dense sometimes... Thanks and let us kow how it works. When I upgrade my rear shocks I intend to go with Thrux length hoping to get a little bit quicker steering ad maybe a hair more peg clearance.
Click to expand...

This is why I swapped my hagons for wofies kybs. 1" higher in back makes a tad easier steering with a sidecar. Also could bring up the forks a tad if necessary to lower the front.
 
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rodburner

Rocker
I suspect the longer swingarm will have a bigger effect than a shock height adjustment but it will be fun to see where this leads you.[/QUOTE]

I already have a 3" extended swingarm and experienced minimal low speed handling changes [the longer wheelbase made it a bit harder to turn around] while high speed cornering and freeway ride seemed more stable.The loss of ground clearance was the biggest issue.Since I will be making a new upper frame section anyway,I will be able to move the upper shock mounts to a "better" location than the stock/severe angle provided.
jeris428.jpg
 
R

rodburner

Rocker
Looks like it's gonna be a month+ before the new arm arrives,so here's a teaser of HIS mono shocked,full steel bodywork Sportster...
jeris479.jpg

And one for Sweatmachine, a beefed up DNA springer...
jeris488.jpg

Oh,and for D9,in case you get a hankerin to make a set of fenders for a 50 Chevy pickup,the biggest English wheel I've ever seen....
jeris486.jpg
 
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sweatmachine

sweatmachine

moped
cool Steve. What's he doin' with that xs650 I see peeking though behind the Sporty? I'm no fan of the DNA (Do Not Attach) springers as you know, but that one looks nice.
 
C

Craigore

TT Racer
Wow dude, AMAZING work. Sportys are best bobbed IMHO. That xs650 looks pretty tits too! Sweat, you don't like DNA springers? Bad experience? They're cheap!
 
sweatmachine

sweatmachine

moped
Craigore said:
Wow dude, AMAZING work. Sportys are best bobbed IMHO. That xs650 looks pretty tits too! Sweat, you don't like DNA springers? Bad experience? They're cheap!
Click to expand...

they're super cheap, super ugly, and don't work very well. Everything I've ever read about them is bad. Plus they're made in china, I think.
 
sweatmachine

sweatmachine

moped
That XS looks cool. I dunno about those bowed in seat tubes, but I really dig the fork covers. I hope he has something else going on with the pipes, I hate short headers like that. I imagine he does. Really nice craftsmanship though. God I want to learn to weld like that.

what's with the fake oil tank on the XS?!?
 
D9

D9

Vendor
Great pics... what a shop... amazing work... Steve, this guy sounds
like a real find, another Jesse James! I imagine you might be hanging around
his shop now and then... :D
 
R

rodburner

Rocker
Oops,change of plans. My newly appointed customization consultant [daughter] asked me why I was paying somebody to make a part,that I could make for myself and nobody would notice it anyway. Darn female logic.So nix the swingarm,because now he is going to make me what I went there for in the first place. A new tank,every bit one off and custom,based loosely on my original "lakes" tank. Same time frame though...
bikemovies241.jpg
 
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