TOPIC:

I live in austin, texas. i would like to get my frame raked. who does this, what kind of shop? how much? i really like the look. what is the way to go about having this done?

please help...

look around for a shop that builds racebikes,they usually do this kind of work or know someone who does make sure you check out their work before you have this done!if you can take a ride on a raked bike before you have your frame done,once you do this its kind of hard to go back.look in the archives theres a couple differant posts on this in there!goodluck,happy wrenching!

that is a nice bike u have there. it will look awesome raked out. good luck.

If you rake it watch your ground clearance especially with header running under motor. That speed bump you never gave much thought might now reach out a rip you a new one. Raking will have negative effect on front suspension. Will have to deal with more stiction from increased angle. If you like look of raking, add 3" to swingarm and really bring out the raked long low look of a drag racer. Heck you will have a drag racer.

Whatever you do, please post pics afterward. That's a beautiful bike!

looks to me like he has about 3" over already in the arm. just looks shorter with that 16" wheel.

raking the frame will generate a couple of issues. one will be increased steering effort. another will be the tendancy of the forks to *flop* into a corner. you will need some pipes to counter-steer it. however, it should add a little high-speed stability.

for a street bike, i wouldn't bother. i would lower the front end with the internal collars, and then drop the tubes in the trees an inch or so.

the point on the speed bump is a good one, also watch out for rail road crossings and road debris. they can also take out the oil plug and the filter.

there is no reason to ride an ill-handling bike on the road. raking it can take it too far. i've hated each of the raked street bikes i have ridden.

--r

hey solomrus,thought you fell off the earth ! im trying to get to jacksonville florida to get a 1320(?) kawasaki with some goodies on it,ya know that 1320 sounds a lot like a 1/4 mile,must be a good omen!bwaha i dont suppose i could pay you to go retrieve it for me could i?

so, you DID pick up that monster from down south. wondered about that.

i have a buddy down there, might could help you out.

i am still here. getting my butt kicked by some home improvement for now. looks like i have my drag bike project all lined up. my tiger is sold, so the money will be in soon, then i pick up a running drag bike from a friend, then i swap motors.

easy peasy. solved the need to have a frame raked that way. 8^)

shoot me your email, and we can chat off the forums. don't wanna totally hijack this gentleman's thread.

solomrus(at)netscape(dot)net

--r

I built a custom Harley with an adjustable Tree that gave the forks another 5 or so degrees of rake. This was an old option for a bike with a sidecar. There was no difference in driveability raking 5 degrees. If you go any further you will encounter many problems: ground clearance, fork tube length, control cable lengths, and dont forget the position of the handlebars. There are companies that will put rake into the trees and not the frame (change the angle of the steering stem) or if you want to DIY it, clamp the lower frame tubes to a level surface, use a pipe that fits snug into the steering head on the frame and locate where it meets the surface the frame is fastened to (keep in mind that the steering head must be plumb to the horizontal surface !!!) mark a perpendicular line from the frame up through where the pipe meets the surface, this will be your guide. Grind/cut your steering stem enough so just the top can be flexable enough without removing from the rest of the frame (like a hinge) bend the head forward to your desired rake (just 5 degrees will be sufficient) make sure everything is still plumb and weld it back together. Box in with 1/8" plate on the sides , this will add more support. Blend those into the frame, and your done. The main thing is to keep the frame and steering stem, perpendicular, plumb and horizontal !!!!!

Raked trees will give you the look, but not the same handling as a raked frame. Raking the frame will increase your trail, raked trees will decrease it, possibly making the bike handle squirrelly at hwy speed. On a sidecar outfit or trike that was used around the city, the raked trees lightened the handling.
Today raked trees are used in conjunction with massive rake on "Swedish" style choppers to decrease the trail the huge amount of trail they end up with.
Don't use raked triple clamps to get the drag bike look. Rake it as described above, I've done it in the past on a couple of Brit frames and it's actually easier than it sounds. Or, pay a competent shop to have it done, probably cheaper than custom triple clamps. One thing I would add is to heat up the area that is being bent to avoid cracking. A 5 degree rake should be equal to just under a 1/2" gap doing it this way.

kswilliams333 wrote:

I live in austin, texas. i would like to get my frame raked. who does this, what kind of shop? how much? i really like the look. what is the way to go about having this done?

please help...

Here's mine raked out to 42.5deg, bottom of the frame is 7" off the ground. If you have any questions I'd be glad to help as I've done about 20 frames so far.

Doug



Post edited by: BLOWNTRC5, at: 2006/01/18 23:53

And another.