happy with F4i as first bike
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This is a crude drawing of what I mean. As you can see by the drawing and all other things being equal - the less trail you have means the steeper of a rake angle you have. This means that the forks are more up-and-down
This makes the front end less settled and more responsive to steering inputs (sounds like a great thing for a race bike, right?). But other forces on the wheel also affect the the bike more (like bumps).
However, the more rake and trail you have, the more the front wheel tries to stay aligned with the direction of travel.
So, more trail, and more rake is overall a better thing for a newer rider. But like anything, you can't have an insanely raked chopper and expect it to be as good for a new rider either. (The pic above says "stock 33 degree rake" - that's for a cruiser. Your F4i has a rake around 25 degrees)
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Conrice: many thanks for that EXCELLENT explanation! I can think of some very similar analogies with the way small airplanes are designed, something at this point that I have lots more experience than I do motorcycles. In airplanes, a less stable airplane means much more responsiveness for the skilled pilot, but likely a dangerous thing for the newbie.
This is a crude drawing of what I mean. As you can see by the drawing and all other things being equal - the less trail you have means the steeper of a rake angle you have. This means that the forks are more up-and-down
This makes the front end less settled and more responsive to steering inputs (sounds like a great thing for a race bike, right?). But other forces on the wheel also affect the the bike more (like bumps).
However, the more rake and trail you have, the more the front wheel tries to stay aligned with the direction of travel.
So, more trail, and more rake is overall a better thing for a newer rider. But like anything, you can't have an insanely raked chopper and expect it to be as good for a new rider either. (The pic above says "stock 33 degree rake" - that's for a cruiser. Your F4i has a rake around 25 degrees)
This is a crude drawing of what I mean. As you can see by the drawing and all other things being equal - the less trail you have means the steeper of a rake angle you have. This means that the forks are more up-and-down
This makes the front end less settled and more responsive to steering inputs (sounds like a great thing for a race bike, right?). But other forces on the wheel also affect the the bike more (like bumps).
However, the more rake and trail you have, the more the front wheel tries to stay aligned with the direction of travel.
So, more trail, and more rake is overall a better thing for a newer rider. But like anything, you can't have an insanely raked chopper and expect it to be as good for a new rider either. (The pic above says "stock 33 degree rake" - that's for a cruiser. Your F4i has a rake around 25 degrees)
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thirdgenlxi
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Feb 1, 2011 09:54 PM