TOPIC:

Just bear in mind while you a raking your frame that the whole of the street-tyre drag world is doing the opposite.

Short forks, reduced offset yokes (triples) and small front wheels (16") are IN...raking is OUT!

lorcan,

why not buck the trend and do something no one else is doing?

just kidding man. i understand what you are saying. people do things for a reason, and *everyone* wouldn't be doing it if there weren't some merit.

i think there is a tradeoff whichever way you go. if the bike is track only, then those tradeoffs tend to cancel each other out.

if i were going to ride my track bike on the street, then i would build things differently.

--r

i think part of the reason those guys are putting 12-24"swingarms on those sportbikes is because it would be so complicated to rake a newer style aluminum frame compared to older equiptment!has anybody seen a newer raked frame?

That's not the reason, they use a long swingarm to keep the weight as far forward as possible. Raking effectively moves the weight back, which is bad news in a restricted wheelbase class.

Raking and extended forks also greatly reduces your steering control. It will be harder to turn when you want and harder to stop it from turning when you don't. A little rake won't hurt as long as you are not planning to take to Deal's Gap or similar.

i think we are talking more of a drag only bike in this situation,no killer turns involved to cause problems with the raked front end.i had a gs1100 suzuki once when i was young and dumb anyway it was a half mile long and sat up like a 4x4 truck.i tried the usual stuff that helps on kaws lowered the front and rear but suzukis are so long and have a lot of rake right out of the box so it was really stable in a straight line,but a 305 honda could tear it up in a curve on the interstate!i finally jacked the rear up about 2" andleft the front lowered which helped the cornering out greatly!it just depends on what the bike is used for.

my bike is going to be track only. not building for a class of any sort. i want it to launch straight, be stable at speed, and stay together.

i only want to go and run numbers for myself. just to see if i can do it. a personal goal, if you would. i have the power plant, and it really belongs in a track bike.

i was talking with a local guy who races today, wire, you might know him. jim t. down at c&c cycles. anyways, his info is 6-7 degrees over stock rake, lower the forks or no, just get the bike level front to rear. i'm gonna run a fairly small tire, and i have the facilities to back-half it, so i will build for more in the future.

so, yeah, that's the plan.

wire, when you raised the rear end of that zook, you shortened the wheelbase some, and the rake/trail. that would explain the benefit to your steering.

lorcan, sounds like you do a bit of racing. what type of bike/class do you run in?

i'll be building another bike once i have this drag project done. i'll have a second frame that i plan on updating with newer suspension, running a 1200 n/a motor, and generally having fun with.

--r

wheres that phonecall?933-1503

Post edited by: wireguy, at: 2005/12/10 23:16

busy this weekend. probably ring you middle of this week.

--r