There are a few different fork braces available for the GL1500, none of which I have had the pleasure of affording or for that matter seeing up close enough to put micrometer and vernier calipers to work measuring. But everything I’ve read from people who have bought and installed them convinced me the Goldwing will handle better with such a brace. Considering finances, machining experience and machining equipment and tooling in my “men’s crisis center” (in other words garage) I decided to give machining my own fork brace a try.
Granted, those companies offering their CNC milled braces with choice of finishes have the corner on pretty compared to what I would make but pretty had little influence over what I was hoping to accomplish which was improved handling through reduced fork flex. The plan was to buy enough 5/8” X 2 1/2” 6061 T6 extruded Aluminum bar to make two braces because if there was a major screw up machining the first I’d have enough to [hopefully] do the second right.
Measurements were carefully made and recorded. The milling process started and about two hours later the body said it was enough for the day. Although I may often grumble about how frustrating it is to hit that wall where the body says “enough”, there are often rewards for heeding what the body says. Although the physical work stopped, the mind remained on task whether attending to on line tasks, eating a meal, conversing with the missus or even sleeping. Overlooked details, better ways of accomplishing tasks and even decisions about which method to use happened during these times. But those things ruminated over during sleep (you know, when you feel as though all night was devoted to project and none to sleep) seemed the most frustrating. In the end result the nuances got worked out and I ended up with a straight forward, no frills fork brace which is proving more satisfactory as I put on more miles.
The reason I say more satisfactory is because after riding several summers with only a stock setup I adapted to that and rode with added caution, so now I feel as though I’m unlearning and relearning. Low speed “fork stop” to “fork stop” turns didn’t happen because the bike didn’t feel stable enough. With my home made brace I’m OK doing those turns now. Putting the bike hard into turns likewise feels stable and more connected to the road. Quick back and forth maneuvers happen with a heightened sense of control and connection to the road. No, I can’t go down the road at 55MPH and dodge between the centerline dashes but then again I can’t claim I’ve ever owned a bike I could do that on. Let’s face it a Goldwing would be in the least likely category as I see it.
A few questions float around when I’ve attempted something such as this and find myself pleased with the results. They go pretty much as follows:
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Are there exotic design parameters and complex physical, mathematical and metallurgical considerations to be taken into account in order to limit flexing and improve handling?
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Assuming the answer to #1 is yes, what will be the difference in performance between a brace designed taking all that into consideration versus carefully machining a suitable aluminum alloy billet to provide stability and limit flexing?
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Is it possible the matter of providing a meaty piece of aluminum bolted between the fork tubes is the major factor and most everything else said by those manufacturing them is only sales pitch?
No, I honestly don’t know the answers but I have this gut feeling making something stronger that provides greater stability and reduced flexing requires minimal math, physics and metallurgical savvy. That’s my opinion, and we all know about opinions.
As explained earlier I bought enough 6061 T6 aluminum billet to make two braces in case I wrecked the first one. Since I didn’t wreck the first one I’m reasonably confident I won’t wreck a second one. Now what I want is a blatantly honest person to try this brace and give their findings. Preference would be someone that has one of the other braces on their bike so an objective comparison could be done. That is however, only my preference and will not be how I decide who gets to give it a try. Those details will be published within the next day or two.
OK, OK, I know it would be nice to have a couple of pictures. Two things: I lent my camera to a person with (as I’m learning) an amazing ability to be very slow returning things. Second, when the camera comes home I still need to spend the time taking the brace off my bike to take the pictures. This is riding season in North Dakota and I hate the idea of missing a riding opportunity because the bike is in some state of disassembly. But I will do it.
In the meantime, stay tuned.
