Now for something entirely different

[JPS]

Zagger, that is one NASTY looking machine, and I mean nasty in the GOOD way! you've got yourself one head twisting and unique ride, for sure! (and the young lady is not hard on the eyes either!). Thanks for sharing the pics.

[Harddrv1]

Did you extend the rake on this too apart from the leading link?

[zagger]

Did you extend the rake on this too apart from the leading link?

 

Yes. I started by cutting most of the steering head off the frame and angling it forward before welding it all back together. I put on extended straight front forks but I hated the slow handling. Then I built the leading link forks which actually moved the front wheel even farther forward. Surprisingly, the handling became super responsive. Measuring the trail dimension, it is in the range of most sport bikes. And the front wheel is extended even farther forward than the long straight forks put it. And when I park the bike, there is zero tendency for the front wheel to crank over to the side, it just sits there, pretty weird.

zag

[Harddrv1]

Yes. I started by cutting most of the steering head off the frame and angling it forward before welding it all back together. I put on extended straight front forks but I hated the slow handling. Then I built the leading link forks which actually moved the front wheel even farther forward. Surprisingly, the handling became super responsive. Measuring the trail dimension, it is in the range of most sport bikes. And the front wheel is extended even farther forward than the long straight forks put it. And when I park the bike, there is zero tendency for the front wheel to crank over to the side, it just sits there, pretty weird.

zag

 

Love the whole thing thanks for the response I started a build of my own doing it in stages but it if comes out half as nice as yours I’ll be happy 😃

[zagger]

Love the whole thing thanks for the response I started a build of my own doing it in stages but it if comes out half as nice as yours I’ll be happy 😃

 

I'd say to just go for it. You will learn a lot in the process and end up with a one-off bike that you created. I enjoyed the whole process, with all of the struggles. Years later, it is hard to remember the details. Still runs great and is fast.

zag

[Harddrv1]

Yes. I started by cutting most of the steering head off the frame and angling it forward before welding it all back together. I put on extended straight front forks but I hated the slow handling. Then I built the leading link forks which actually moved the front wheel even farther forward. Surprisingly, the handling became super responsive. Measuring the trail dimension, it is in the range of most sport bikes. And the front wheel is extended even farther forward than the long straight forks put it. And when I park the bike, there is zero tendency for the front wheel to crank over to the side, it just sits there, pretty weird.

zag

 

 

Do do you remember what you used to extend the forks?? What size sch pipe? Or did you use forks from another bike?

[zagger]

Do do you remember what you used to extend the forks?? What size sch pipe? Or did you use forks from another bike?

 

I had fork tubes made by a shop (I forget the name) and used stock lower sections. The total length from the bottom of the axle clamp to the upper end of the fork tube is 42.5 inches. I still have them and they are in excellent condition (both the chrome tubes and the lower sections). If you are interested in buying them, I could make you a good deal! By the way, I wouldn't consider using something like pipe for the fork tube since the OD is critical and they need to have a fairly thick wall to handle the load. Making them is a pretty tricky machining job which is made even more complicated by the long length.

zag

Edited April 30, 2019 by zagger

[cowpuc]

I tried numerous extended fork options thru the years from just extenting the tubes to Springers and even a couple Grasshoppers (pic of sporty below is a Grasshopper = very easy to build a DIMS = love the look, hate the ride). Bar none, the very best tourer chop I produced was the black Honda on a Santee Softride frame with the 16" over Springer = WOWZY WOW WOW WOW did it ride = best hiway riding scoot I ever had = Springers not only ride off the rockers but the "flex" in the "tubes" make for an amazing soft, pillow like ride = just beautiful!! IMHO, the key to getting a good handling long bike is to set the "trail" as close to zero as you can get it (especially if going more than 10 over) without going into negative trail (causes MAJOR tank slapper problems = not safe!). Over trail is not quite so unbearable/unridable, it just makes the front end "heavy" and want to flop when slow speed riding and/or parking = just hang on to the bars and you can totally control the flop = totally stable once the gyro effect kicks in from spinning wheels. When cutting the frame to rake one so the bike sits parellel and dont look goofy (or end up top heavy) because the frame is not raked (see pic of Craigslist scoot in link to get an idea of what I am speaking of) properly, just be careful and take your time measuring trail as you rake it, get the trail 1/2 to 1/4" inch off zero before you weld er up and you'll be fine, IMHO of course.

https://holland.craigslist.org/mcy/d/holland-1997-harley-davidson-softail/6877873764.html

 

[made2care]

One word, "WOW!!"

[zagger]

Do do you remember what you used to extend the forks?? What size sch pipe? Or did you use forks from another bike?

 

 

Hello? You still out there?

zag

[Harddrv1]

Hello? You still out there?

zag

Yup I’m still around been busy at work I try to update here https://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?140688-Harddrv1-bobber-build&highlight=Harddrv1 when I can as you can see it’s a work in progress taking it 1 step as a time as I can

[zagger]

Yup I’m still around been busy at work I try to update here https://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?140688-Harddrv1-bobber-build&highlight=Harddrv1 when I can as you can see it’s a work in progress taking it 1 step as a time as I can

 

I noticed that you had a question about wiring. On my bike, I traced each wire, figured out what it was for, and cut it out. Nearly everything can be eliminated, if you want. When I got done chopping wires, I rewired the bike with only the stuff it actually needs to operate. If you don't cut out wires, you are left with bundles of wire that are impossible to conceal without the stock plastic fairings and covers. There are plenty of online sources for quality wires in all sizes, colors, and types of insulation - I wouldn't try to use the junk stocked by your local hardware store. The wire should be tin coated so that it is easy to solder (not just bare copper) and you will need a decent soldering iron. Before soldering, you slide one or two pieces of heat shrink tubing over the nearby wire and after soldering you can slide the heat shrink over the area of the solder joint and seal it up. I used heat shrink that has an internal coating of meltable sealant so that the final solder connection becomes completely sealed. Although it seems pretty permanent, the sealant will crack open if you ever need to remove the heat shrink tubing for some reason.

zag

 

[Harddrv1]

Yes I’m still fighting wireing issues redoing it would have been the way to go perhaps this winter I’ll do it again for now I just tried shorting them which turned out horribly but will get me going this summer with any luck, I am learning allot with this project I’m defiantly no master builder lol I’ve just been trying to get a bike for years and the price was right on this 1 and restoring it just wasn’t an option so doing the best I can to learn I seen in your pic where your leading link was only tacked did you build this out of pipe? Or is that solid stock? Is the leading link attached to the original fork tubes or did you have those made as well.

[zagger]

I seen in your pic where your leading link was only tacked did you build this out of pipe? Or is that solid stock? Is the leading link attached to the original fork tubes or did you have those made as well.

 

If you mean plumbing pipe - then the answer is no. And I didn't use the original fork tubes since they were much too short. The leading link front end was made out of fairly thick wall steel tubing (1/4" wall as I remember). The tubes which go through the steering head had to be turned down on a lathe a little bit so that they fit correctly. I had to bring the rough tubing lengths to a shop with a hydraulic bending machine so the bends could be made without distorting the tubes. Then I cut them to the proper lengths and ground a taper to the ends of the tubing so that the welding could start at the inside diameter of the tubing and fill the tapered area all the way out to the OD of the tubing. My welder was to small to handle material of this thickness and my welding skills were too limited so I had to have a shop do the welds. I simply tack welded the pieces together in the proper position so that the welding shop just had to finish the joints. As I recall, they would start each weld using their equipment and then grind off my little tack welds as they progressed around the tube. I bought a small milling machine so that I could machine the pieces where the leading link joins to the fork tube and the pieces on the leading link which hold the axle. Each of these machined pieces goes inside of the tube a little way (about 1") and has a taper where the weld had to be made to join them to the tubing.

 

The front end took an entire winter for me to build. That is why I suggested that you might want to buy the extended straight forks which I used initially (I just remembered they were machined by http://franksforks.com/). These longer fork tubes had to be made in a shop that specializes in fork tubes since they replicate all of the details on the stock fork tubes. They are still in excellent condition and are sitting in my basement shop. If you want an extended front end, these tubes would get you going and you could decide if you were up to taking on the project of a completely custom front end. Of course, even these fork tubes will require angling the steering head so the long forks don't cause the bike frame to sit up at an angle. Cutting the down tubes and bending the steering head upward and reattaching everything is enough of a project.

 

zag

[camos]

If you want an extended front end, these tubes would get you going and you could decide if you were up to taking on the project of a completely custom front end. Of course, even these fork tubes will require angling the steering head so the long forks don't cause the bike frame to sit up at an angle. Cutting the down tubes and bending the steering head upward and reattaching everything is enough of a project.

 

zag

A long time ago I was planning on putting some extended forks on my XV 1100 but became Venturized before it happened. I had decided the simplest way to go was to use a 3 to 5 degree raked triple tree to reconfigure the steering dynamics. My research indicated that system should work well. I'm pretty sure the Yamaha Stryker came from the factory with a 3 degree rake but that was quite a while after I gave up on the idea. Often regret not doing it.

[zagger]

A long time ago I was planning on putting some extended forks on my XV 1100 but became Venturized before it happened.

 

Everyone should have a chopper before they die! My first bike, back in my teens, was a chopped 650 Triumph. I rebuilt the engine but didn't notice one tooth missing on the kick start gear. If you happened to land on that dead spot, the free-wheeling kick start lever would totally bust your knee in reverse. Very nasty. I usually pushed it over to an nearby hill and started it with the clutch after rolling down the hill.

 

My current venture forks are extended quite a bit. Not happy with the slow handling, I rebuilt the forks with a leading link (my design) which actually moved the front wheel forward even more - but reduced the trail dimension down to 3 inches. Very quick handling now.

zag

[camos]

My current venture forks are extended quite a bit. Not happy with the slow handling, I rebuilt the forks with a leading link (my design) which actually moved the front wheel forward even more - but reduced the trail dimension down to 3 inches. Very quick handling now.

zag

Right, your leading link forks do the same as a raked triple tree does but are the better choice to fit your Mad Max style Venture. Yah never know, I might do something with my XV1100 when the time comes that my Venture is too big and heavy for me. Trouble is the Virago just can't handle my grocery trips to Costco. I'll be in a bit of a pickle when that time comes.