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Tech. Advice: Series 'B' / 'C' 500cc/1000cc Bikes
Modified Steering Stem
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<blockquote data-quote="Gary Gittleson" data-source="post: 106097" data-attributes="member: 3625"><p>Finally, I have been able to give this setup a reasonable trial. It's as good as what others are saying. Besides the primary purpose of dramatically reducing the ever-looming threat that the original design presents, this mod improves the overall road-worthiness of the Girdraulic fork. Anyone who does now or plans to ride a Girdraulic-fitted Vincent rather than store it behind glass, should give this mod serious consideration.</p><p></p><p>The roads around here are pretty rough after a hard winter. There was plenty of opportunity to see how she'd handle the bumps. As others with this mod have observed, the freedom of movement of the forks is amazing. If I didn't have an LED headlight bulb, I'd be thinking about suspending the headlight for fear of breaking a filament. It was in constant motion, with hardly any of that transferred to the handlebars. I also noticed a considerable improvement in cornering. It tracks smoothly and predictably and drops into the turns much more freely. That latter point I assume is due to a reduction in trail. I believe that the stock setup has a lot of trail over much of the path of axle movement. It also has the unfortunate feature of varying the trail considerably depending on the degree of compression or extension. In an case, I always thought that the stock setup gives a battleship-like response to the initiation of a turn. No longer.</p><p></p><p>I will have to take the words of the experts in regards to the increase in safety. I have no desire to put this to the test. The other benefits alone make this job worth the work and expense, both of which are well within reason.</p><p></p><p>There are a few options that Norman offers with this kit. I chose to retain my Thornton shock, to include the ball-bearings for the lower link and the hydraulic steering damper. The latter item by the way, works very nicely and I have set it toward the stiff end without experiencing any low-speed wondering.</p><p></p><p>Norman mentioned earlier in this thread that I had cut the springs down by 1/2". To check the result of this, I placed a cable tie high up on the damper rod (a Thornton) before the ride. After the ride, rests about 1/4" from the rubber bump stop at the bottom. I am thinking of adding a 1/4" spacer atop each spring. I have some nylon washers of that exact size. So I do have two questions for Norman. Should I do this, and would that material be appropriate? If I do, maybe I should put a steel washer between the spring and the nylon to prevent the spring from mauling it.</p><p></p><p>P.S. Three cheers for John Emmanuel, Norman Walker and the several others who added much time and expertise to this project.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Gary Gittleson, post: 106097, member: 3625"] Finally, I have been able to give this setup a reasonable trial. It's as good as what others are saying. Besides the primary purpose of dramatically reducing the ever-looming threat that the original design presents, this mod improves the overall road-worthiness of the Girdraulic fork. Anyone who does now or plans to ride a Girdraulic-fitted Vincent rather than store it behind glass, should give this mod serious consideration. The roads around here are pretty rough after a hard winter. There was plenty of opportunity to see how she'd handle the bumps. As others with this mod have observed, the freedom of movement of the forks is amazing. If I didn't have an LED headlight bulb, I'd be thinking about suspending the headlight for fear of breaking a filament. It was in constant motion, with hardly any of that transferred to the handlebars. I also noticed a considerable improvement in cornering. It tracks smoothly and predictably and drops into the turns much more freely. That latter point I assume is due to a reduction in trail. I believe that the stock setup has a lot of trail over much of the path of axle movement. It also has the unfortunate feature of varying the trail considerably depending on the degree of compression or extension. In an case, I always thought that the stock setup gives a battleship-like response to the initiation of a turn. No longer. I will have to take the words of the experts in regards to the increase in safety. I have no desire to put this to the test. The other benefits alone make this job worth the work and expense, both of which are well within reason. There are a few options that Norman offers with this kit. I chose to retain my Thornton shock, to include the ball-bearings for the lower link and the hydraulic steering damper. The latter item by the way, works very nicely and I have set it toward the stiff end without experiencing any low-speed wondering. Norman mentioned earlier in this thread that I had cut the springs down by 1/2". To check the result of this, I placed a cable tie high up on the damper rod (a Thornton) before the ride. After the ride, rests about 1/4" from the rubber bump stop at the bottom. I am thinking of adding a 1/4" spacer atop each spring. I have some nylon washers of that exact size. So I do have two questions for Norman. Should I do this, and would that material be appropriate? If I do, maybe I should put a steel washer between the spring and the nylon to prevent the spring from mauling it. P.S. Three cheers for John Emmanuel, Norman Walker and the several others who added much time and expertise to this project. [/QUOTE]
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Tech. Advice: Series 'B' / 'C' 500cc/1000cc Bikes
Modified Steering Stem
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