I'd like to hear more on this rake kit. I can't find it on your website. Pics???

Paul

Pics on the way...

Alright, I don't have any on my computer cuz we discontinued them 2 years ago and just now decided to bring them back...

What I'm going to do is take a picture of the show display we have and post the picture tomorrow...

Cool, this is interesting.. Do you have raked trees to go with the kit, or is it just a raked neck? I'm not wanting to screw up my handleing by trying to get the raked look.

Paul

fireman922 wrote:
Cool, this is interesting.. Do you have raked trees to go with the kit, or is it just a raked neck? I'm not wanting to screw up my handleing by trying to get the raked look.

Then leave it alone.

You should be aware that when you rake the front the bike drops .... unless you get longer forks. You can't get longer tins (you can make them like I did) so you have to dump the tins.

Doc

DocShadow wrote:
fireman922 wrote:
You should be aware that when you rake the front the bike drops .... unless you get longer forks. You can't get longer tins (you can make them like I did) so you have to dump the tins.

Doc

Doc is correct. The front of the bike will drop an inch or two(which I like). Handling and turning radius certainly take a little getting used to, but it's not a bad ride. Great look, imho.

And, yes, you will have to give up the tins. But, you can keep the headlight and brake tee. It's what's on my bike today.

Baron's makes a 6-degree rake kit. No cutting of the neck required.

I think Doc has one from another manufacturer. Can't remember the name, but the guy's name is Rick. He makes tins and tube extensions that work with his kit. They even have Doc's bike on their website... Good looking bike, btw.


Rich

I'll make longer tins, I want to keep the look. I'd rather rake the neck and keep the trail (or increase it because of the rake), than to have to crank my neck bearings tight to compensate for losing a large percentage of the trail. I'm not even sure I'll rake it out. 10 degrees sounds like alot, but with longer forks and a 21 Raider wheel up front, it would look interesting.

Paul

I'm not even sure what that means...

But, I do know that you can get 6-degrees with nothing but a bolt on tree with the Baron's setup.

Also, I found the site I was looking for that has them also, but allows the use of the stock tins. Dude's name is Rick.

http://rakedcycles.com/trees.htm





Rich

If you draw an imaginary line through the center of the neck to the ground, it will contact the ground in front of the tire contact patch. The measurement from where that line touches the ground and the tire contact patch is the "trail". It, along with the rake of the neck, effects how the bike steers. Ignoring other factors, increasing the trail will slow the steering and make the bike more self centering. That is why when you lower the rear while leaving the front stock, the bike will ride very straight and stable while going down the highway. Changing the rake of the forks without changing the rake of the neck will decrease the trail and make the bike more twitchy feeling. The increase in trail caused by raking the neck can be compensated somewhat by installing raked trees. Since they push the wheel out more, they shorten the trail measurement and bring it back to a more normal amount. There is an optimal amount of rake & trail for every chassis, but the engineering needed to determine that is WAY beyond my feeble mind.

Paul

Paul:

I was pulling your leg, but that's a great way to explain it...

By adding rakes trees, after lowering the rear a couple of inches, I effectively gave back the additional trail and some ride quality. Basically, back to stock. And, it actually does ride better when it's 1/2 way down in the rear at 50+MPH. So, you are correct.

Plus, it looks really cool...

Thanks, man.


Rich