Lowering front end - tips and tricks appreciated

[Capo79]

I've been playing with the idea of lowering the front end of the bike by raising the forks up the triple clamp by the recommended 5-10 mm.

My question is this: Is it only a matter of loosening the bolt on each side of the top clamp and pushing down the bike? What about the lower triple? I guess those bolts need to come loose also, right? Searched around for this, but I guess it's such a simple mod to do so nobody has bothered doing a write-up on it...

I don't have a center stand on my bike, I only have a paddock stand for the rear. Any simple tricks I should consider when doing this?

All answers are appreciated:thumbup:

 

[Bikebiz]

Yep you need to loosen the lower clamps too. Without a front stand or hoist, what you can do it get two mates to hold the front with the bars. The top clamp will hold the forks so loosen the bottom clamps, they hold the bars, the loosen the top clamps. Get them to lower it slowly whilst you hold a metal rule against them to measure your desired height. Once you reach it, tighten the top clamp. Run to the other side and do the same. Torque your lower clamp and you're done!

Enjoy, such a quick and easy mod, and you'll notice it right away.

 

[stink989]

you can put a jack under the rhs header close to the front of it and it will lift the the front end up with it on the side stand, can also do it on the rear aswell by putting the jack under the cat, great for lubing the chain

 

[Capo79]

Thanks!

I'll try it this afternoon with a jack:thumbup:

 

[stryken]

It does improve the quickness of turn in and I think you will like it. I wouldn't be tempted to go past 10mm though, the bike begins to feel unpredictable if you go much past that. I am currently at 8mm now and I like it there, I also am using hyperpro lowing springs.

 

[Dennis in NH]

I used the jack method. I put the rear paddock stand on and then a front paddock stand on and then the jack (separated by the headers with a towel to avoid scratches).

If you don't have front stand, please have someone there to hold the bike up (two -- one on each side is better) because when that bike drops through the triple, it's very heavy to pick it up without a jack and even if you have a jack, I'd be afraid it might tip to the side while jacking.

Please be very careful either way.

Dennis

 

[farish]

Hi all, i am still new to motorcycles..was wondering ..what is the purpose of lowering the front end??

 

[RJ2112]

Farish,

By changing the height the chassis rides on the fork, you are effectively changing the angle of the fork tubes with respect to the road. The further 'down' you push the chassis, the more 'steep' the angle of the fork becomes. It is tilted slightly more to the vertical.... truly small changes in this area result in big changes in how the front end responds.

Along with the change in angle comes a change in the 'trail'..... it gets shorter, the steeper the 'rake' of the fork.

The process reduces the 'natural' self-centering tendency of the steering, and with that lowered stability comes 'quicker' changes to steering input.--- the shorter the trail, the less leverage is required to make the wheel change angles. Since you can change the angle of the front wheel with less effort, it feels 'quicker'.

This also results in less force keeping the wheel tracking the way you want it to. If you have ever seen someone get trapped in a tank slapper, it's due in part to the steep fork angle involved.... the fork and frame do not dampen out the oscillation as they tend to do with the OEM rake and trail numbers.

 

[Geoff]

I want to request some pics of this during and after. If thats ok

 

[farish]

Farish,

By changing the height the chassis rides on the fork, you are effectively changing the angle of the fork tubes with respect to the road. The further 'down' you push the chassis, the more 'steep' the angle of the fork becomes. It is tilted slightly more to the vertical.... truly small changes in this area result in big changes in how the front end responds.

Along with the change in angle comes a change in the 'trail'..... it gets shorter, the steeper the 'rake' of the fork.

The process reduces the 'natural' self-centering tendency of the steering, and with that lowered stability comes 'quicker' changes to steering input.--- the shorter the trail, the less leverage is required to make the wheel change angles. Since you can change the angle of the front wheel with less effort, it feels 'quicker'.

This also results in less force keeping the wheel tracking the way you want it to. If you have ever seen someone get trapped in a tank slapper, it's due in part to the steep fork angle involved.... the fork and frame do not dampen out the oscillation as they tend to do with the OEM rake and trail numbers.

Thank you for your time in hilighting the details.

Will get the mechanic to do some adjustmenst when i am replacing my springs

 

[alanrim]

Do one fork leg at a time, no need for a jack or anything then

 

[RJ2112]

Thank you for your time in hilighting the details.

Will get the mechanic to do some adjustmenst when i am replacing my springs

Farish,

I am a fan of making one change at a time, so I can evaluate what the change did specifically. If you put in new, stiffer fork springs the chassis will probably not settle as much in the front as it did..... this depends to a great degree on how much weight you put on the bike.

I personally weigh more than 200lbs in riding gear, probably on the order of 220 or so with jacket, helmet, boots, gloves, riding pants on over my street clothes.

With that much weight, the OEM fork springs were compressed more than the ideal, so the steering was already 'quick' compared to what the designers intended. Due to how much movement on the suspension my weight and riding style induced, the steering geometry was not terribly consistent. On the gas, the fork would lengthen, making it 'slow'; on the brakes, the 'dive' would compress the fork, which makes the steering 'quick' much like lowering the chassis on the legs.

It is fair to say the rake and trail numbers I was experiencing in motion were constantly changing. The numbers the engineers decided on were more of a guideline, than a rule.

Once the stiffer fork springs were installed, and the front end consistently held the rake and trail (by not letting the chassis move around like a boat on the sea) I could better understand what was going on.

From there, I improved the rear suspension, so it did it's part to prevent the chassis from heaving around.

Once both ends were harmonized, I could easily discern how the rake and trail were affecting the bike.

Turns out I like the OEM rake and trail. It's quick enough to let you muscle the front end around, but it's still stable enough to deal with road imperfections without constantly needing attention to do so.

 

[von_trippenhopf]

Farish,

I am a fan of making one change at a time, so I can evaluate what the change did specifically.......

Wise words, I changed the fork oil & dropped the forks 5mm and the handling is much improved, only I don't know which has had the most effect and I can't remember exactly what it was like before. D'oh!

 

[Doorag]

I dropped mine 10mm without a jack, stand, or anything other than the side stand. All you need to do is loosen the lower bolts a bit and then very gradually loosen one side on the top until the fork starts to rise in the clamp. have a metric ruler handy and just re-tighten when you get where you want it.

Rinse and repeat on the other side.

Re-tighten the bottom bolts and go for a ride.

As with most of my mods, I didn't notice a huge difference on the initial ride. It was only after spending some time on the bike did I start to really understand the effects of what I had done. Love it now, though.

 

[tomari]

i think that the golden spot is around 7 to 12 mm but this is just me on my bike

 

[REDHAWK22]

Wise words, I changed the fork oil & dropped the forks 5mm and the handling is much improved, only I don't know which has had the most effect and I can't remember exactly what it was like before. D'oh!

I will also try 5mm for now, that should be ok for me, I hope.

 

[FinalImpact]

Farish,

By changing the height the chassis rides on the fork, you are effectively changing the angle of the fork tubes with respect to the road. The further 'down' you push the chassis, the more 'steep' the angle of the fork becomes. It is tilted slightly more to the vertical.... truly small changes in this area result in big changes in how the front end responds.

Along with the change in angle comes a change in the 'trail'..... it gets shorter, the steeper the 'rake' of the fork.

The process reduces the 'natural' self-centering tendency of the steering, and with that lowered stability comes 'quicker' changes to steering input.--- the shorter the trail, the less leverage is required to make the wheel change angles. Since you can change the angle of the front wheel with less effort, it feels 'quicker'.

This also results in less force keeping the wheel tracking the way you want it to. If you have ever seen someone get trapped in a tank slapper, it's due in part to the steep fork angle involved.... the fork and frame do not dampen out the oscillation as they tend to do with the OEM rake and trail numbers.

Another term more of you can relate to may be caster. Zero caster would place the fork angle (rake) at 90 degrees. Steering would be super light and high speeds would scare you. Now think of old school choppers with long forks and lots of rake = lots of caster, more steering input required, and stability increases. But turning is better accomplised by leaning than steering. Obviously is a combination of the two is what makes you turn but you get the idea. RJ - Well said!