FF: Forks Modified Steering Stem

davidd

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VOC Member
Oh dear here we go again..........Ok the big difference between the Brampton's and Girdraulics is actually nothing........yes nothing..........

I don't believe that George Brown would have agreed with this. The Bramptons can suffer from wobbles, but so can any Vincent using a new steering stem. You cannot rid a two-wheeled vehicle of the problem. However, you can rid the Girdraulic of the "seizing while braking problem", which does not occur with the Bramptons. All your other points are well-taken.

David
 

Martyn Goodwin

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Non-VOC Member
Martyn, I completely under stand why you would want to run your Hydraulic as stiff as that,
But I think you are making it act like a friction damper ?
Just my thoughts !.
It depends on the gearing of yours, But on mine I run 2 clicks from soft on my Twin and my Comet.
I find it does not have to "feel" like it's doing anything, It just calm's things down.
As does Taper rollers at the bottom.
Good Luck, Bill.
I also have tapered rollers top and bottom. At normal handle bar movement speeds - just riding about - I cannot detect any difference in freedom of movement for full soft to full hard on the hydraulic damper BUT if you try a quick side to side movement of the bars only then can I feel a difference soft to hard
 

greg brillus

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VOC Member
So some things that can cause a wobble on the Girdraulic forks, or contribute more than Brampton's. They can be oversprung if the inner springs are in place, the friction......now this is a big one.......as Vic said, some friction might be desirable to settle the forks from being too active. Well i have never found this the case, look at the extra surface area from larger diameter spindles and bushes, especially the lower link rear ones that are huge. The other really big one is the actual spring cases themselves, these end up with age old grease and grit from the road, and if they suffer any mechanical damage the cases bind quite badly. Lastly the links are longer than those on the Brampton's so this is like a set of telescopics that have more offset on the yolks. This also explains why when you jack up the rear of the bike with much longer springs, the front end "Turns in" far more readily than if short springs on the rear are used. A Vincent set up like this will out turn a Featherbed framed bike no problem........There is more than meets the eye on this one.
 

timetraveller

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VOC Member
PRICE INCREASE
I recently collected the latest batch of JE steering heads. Ever since I started getting these made the price as stayed at £290 + p&p. I was warned after the previous batch that the price would have to go up but the increase of £50 per kit was a lot more than I had expected. I have to pass this on to the customer as I work on a profit of £20 per kit and out of that has to come my fuel, phone calls etc, There was some recent discussion to the effect that there is nothing wrong with making a profit but my attitude to this item is that I did not invent it and JE, the originator of this design, chose to let me copy it free of charge. It improves comfort and safety and therefore I felt it was more important to make it available rather then to try to make money out of the project. So, sorry though I am, the price will go up to £340 +p&p for each unit:(
 

timetraveller

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VOC Member
NO MORE JE STEERING STEMS!
I have now sold about 200 of these and orders have more or less dried up. My guess is that all those who are interested and have known about this mod for years have bought and fitted it. However, over the last two months I have had enquiries from people who are new to Vincents and want their bikes to be the safest and most comfortable they can be. I have now sold the last three and had not considered ordering any more. However, I have now received an order for another one and I know that Greg in Oz could use another one. As an aside Greg has bought about 50 of these so a significant fraction of all the bikes out there must now have the modified front end. It costs me £3,000 to get ten machined and I do not want too many of them lying on the shelf at my age (82). I am happy to have a few left over to help out those who are new to Vincents but not too many. So if there are six or seven people out there who would like to place an order then I will go ahead and organise the purchase of the new steering heads and all the ancillary parts.
OVER TO YOU
 

greg brillus

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VOC Member
Norman, I could definitely sell a few more.........It is like trying to eat a giant bowl of spaghetti.........You think you are done and then the interest is still lingering on...........I can not help but feel that there must be a lot of people out there who have simply put the kit on the shelf for a rainy day.........i seriously don't feel the average Vincent owner really knows what the benefits are, its not shiny enough, or gives you more acceleration.........its that grey area we talked about regarding suspension years ago. It must be said, and I have seen it happening over recent times........A lot of what has been available is coming to an end........A lot of very good products that many Vincent owners have had are either now or soon will not be available any more........ The first sensible mod i ever did to my Rapide was to install a descent modern type side stand to the left side pillion plate..........The second was to upgrade the steering geometry, after my first one on the racer back in 2013......... You still hear of the odd owner who suffers a tank slapper on these bikes........And yet the number of bikes upgraded with such a good mod is very low......... I guess they'll never know.
 

Mark Fisher

Well Known and Active Forum User
Non-VOC Member
NO MORE JE STEERING STEMS!
I have now sold about 200 of these and orders have more or less dried up. My guess is that all those who are interested and have known about this mod for years have bought and fitted it. However, over the last two months I have had enquiries from people who are new to Vincents and want their bikes to be the safest and most comfortable they can be. I have now sold the last three and had not considered ordering any more. However, I have now received an order for another one and I know that Greg in Oz could use another one. As an aside Greg has bought about 50 of these so a significant fraction of all the bikes out there must now have the modified front end. It costs me £3,000 to get ten machined and I do not want too many of them lying on the shelf at my age (82). I am happy to have a few left over to help out those who are new to Vincents but not too many. So if there are six or seven people out there who would like to place an order then I will go ahead and organise the purchase of the new steering heads and all the ancillary parts.
OVER TO YOU
Norman, I think I might be interested in a full kit...springs et al. Not in any rush but it's been 10 years and 30,000 miles since I worked on the front end so it's probably getting to that time for a strip down and inspection. If I'm going to do all that I might as well consider this upgrade. I'm in the USA if that has any bearing. Please let me know what the kit currently consist of and what the approximate cost will be.
thanks
mark
 

timetraveller

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VOC Member
OK Chaps, that is all good to know and I will get all the parts made. Expect that to take at least a month or two. It will depend mostly on when the CNC guys can fit it in. I will list the cost of the various bits below.
1) The new steering head, assembled, plus stainless steel shim washers to allow fitting the bottom link to the new steering head £340.
2) Supplying four sealed ball races to fit into a machined lower link £16
3) Getting a lower link machined so that the rear eyes take the ball races, fitting the ball races and adjusting and fitting the lower link to the new steering head £100. That includes the four ball races.
4)Two new springs either 30, 33, 36 or 45 lbs/inch depending upon rider weight £30
5) AVO damper to fit the new system £168 (unless their prices change)
6) Hydraulic steering damper kit, designed to fit the new steering heads £125
7) If anyone wants I will supply a new coil over AVO rear damper with the kit. They are just over £200.

You can buy as much or as little of the kit as you wish. If you have the skills to machine the lower link yourselves I can just supply the bearings. I charge the same as AVO for their dampers so you can either buy direct from them or let me get them and supply them with the kit.

Things to note; if you do not want to send your existing lower link then you can arrange for the Spares Company to send me one and I will get that modified. If you do, that note that they are supplied with an ‘as cast’ finish and cost about £360. They need to be painted. I can do that if ‘rattle can’ paint will suffice. Alternatively, I have to pay someone to spray two-pot polyurethane paint. If you do supply a new lower link then note that you also need two FF6 bushes to fit to the front holes as they are used in the jig which is used to ensure that the two rear holes are in line.

If you are going to fit taper roller head races then I need to know as the steering stem has to be made to fit those.

I supply either WORD file or PDF instructions for fitting both the steering head kit and the hydraulic steering damper kit. If you send me your email addresses then I can send those quickly.
 
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atomiclama

Forum User
Non-VOC Member
I think I have a bit of reading up to do on this subject, but as I have the front end off and semi dismantled this is probably a good time to consider it. give me a bit, but I'm interested.
 

greg brillus

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VOC Member
There are a couple of very seasoned riders here in Australia, who until quite recently had only just got the chance to ride their bikes with this modification done.........Even so, it wasn't until they had covered a few good miles that they realized the benefits of this mod.........Their feedback was that the steering felt much lighter and responsive, but that somehow they were readily grinding their foot pegs on the ground whilst cornering, and also the braking felt much more effective and compliant over rough roads. To me this was good feedback, as these blokes have owned Vincent's for a long time and covered many miles.........One of them actually suffered a bad crash years ago, and realized after discussions, that it was almost certainly a tank slapper that threw him off. When I was running the racer in my pic to the left, it felt amazing to ride, especially with a simple coilover shock on the front and rear........the reduction in friction was massive and the changes altered the behavior a lot....... I don't ever remember the front end acting badly even over some rough stuff and I could easily out corner many of my opponents on the track..........The chap who owns it now is a far better rider than me..........I have seen him on this same bike racing against Beau Beaton on the Horner brothers "Goodwood" bike in Victoria.......He made the exact same observations as me.
 
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