changing from 45 to 43 fork rake?

gsk said:

I have just been offered a Reynolds Ouzo Pro fork at a very good
price to replace my heavier Bontager Carbon Race. I also like the
thought of the better dampening with the carbon steerer on the
Reynolds. The problem is that the Reynolds has a 43 rake and the
Bontrager has 45.

If I swapped the forks how would this effect handling? Is this even a
wise idea.

If anything it would make the bike more stable, but that's such a small
difference I doubt you'd notice it. A different brand of tire would probably
make a bigger difference in handling.

The main reason my Klein is so stable is its 35mm offset -- definately out of
the mainstream. Still, it's not that big a difference.

If you'll excuse my butting in, I think you're wasting your money. You might
shave a few ounces off your bike, but that's about it. The dampening idea is
BS. If that's what you want, buy a bigger/better tire. Also, is this a brand
new fork? Used carbon forks could have been crashed, with serious damage that
doesn't show. Don't touch them unless you're confident of their history.

The only reason to buy a new fork is to correct a handling problem, or possibly
to shave a little weight. If you like the way it looks that's fine too.

Matt O.

Matt O'Toole said:

If anything it would make the bike more stable, but that's such a small
difference I doubt you'd notice it. A different brand of tire would probably
make a bigger difference in handling.

As long as he doesn't get too wet from all that dampening.

Art Harris

gsk said:

I have just been offered a Reynolds Ouzo Pro fork at a very good

price to

Quoted message said:

replace my heavier Bontager Carbon Race. I also like the thought of

the

Quoted message said:

better dampening with the carbon steerer on the Reynolds. The problem

is

Quoted message said:

that the Reynolds has a 43 rake and the Bontrager has 45.

If I swapped the forks how would this effect handling? Is this even a

wise

Quoted message said:

idea.

Less offset (rake) equals more stability. You probably won't notice the
difference unless you're sensitive to the pressure it takes to turn the
bike and are doing many turns (think criteriums).

Jeff

On Mon, 21 Feb 2005 16:46:00 GMT, Harris <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Matt O'Toole said:

If anything it would make the bike more stable, but that's such a small
difference I doubt you'd notice it. A different brand of tire would probably
make a bigger difference in handling.

As long as he doesn't get too wet from all that dampening.

That's why they make saddles with slots and holes in them.

Drainage.

Ron
I can't believe I just.....

RonSonic said:

On Mon, 21 Feb 2005 16:46:00 GMT, Harris <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Matt O'Toole said:

If anything it would make the bike more stable, but that's such a small
difference I doubt you'd notice it. A different brand of tire would probably
make a bigger difference in handling.

I'd be downright impressed if anyone could identify which was which on
two otherwise identical bikes. I'll wager if I told 50 people the fork
with less rake was twitchier, 40 of them would feel it (even though
less rake would make the bike more stable). I certainly wouldn't
worry about the difference... based on some blind testing that was
done a long time ago, I'd expect a few psi more or less in the front
tire to make a more radical difference.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

As long as he doesn't get too wet from all that dampening.

Heh... (though contrary to what I thought a year ago, "dampening" is
also proper usage when you're talking about what we normally prefer to
call "damping"... not that we should stop making wet jokes, of
course).

Mark Hickey
Habanero Cycles
http://www.habcycles.com
Home of the $695 ti frame