Whooshka
Fairly faST old guy
How did you machine these mods and what changes in handeling did you encounter?
Fork Brace: worth it?
- Thread starter AV8R
- Start date
How did you machine these mods and what changes in handeling did you encounter?
The brace is just aluminum, which is not much more difficult to work than hardwood. It can be ground with a rotary grinder on a drill press, a sanding drum (drill or drill press) or even a small belt sander. I spent about an hour playing with it, several trips from my basement shop to the garage where the bike is. The drum sanders worked best for the ID of the clamp. I used the bench grinder on the spanner, and polished it with the drum sander. Have not ridden it yet, so I don't have a comparison. I was pleased that the dimensions were as close for the suzuki to the honda that this was pretty easy.
Whooshka
Fairly faST old guy
That's about what I had figured. One of your better posts.
My 'Wing buddy was a motor cop for over 38yrs of 42+ yrs of police service. During that time he rode both Kawa and H-D police bikes and is a POST certified enforcement motor instructor.
He spearheaded the creation of the SO's motor unit at the urging of the Sheriff. For ten years until his retirement he headed the motor unit as a riding Sgt.
Off duty he's had every model of 'Wing up to 2005 which he still rides. He rides the 'Wing faster than a lot of people could ride the ST. He's quite an accomplished rider. A couple of years ago he had a fork brace added and was very pleased with its performance and improvement in handling. And that was after having the steering head bearing replaced with tapered roller bearings – something else that made him happy. The brace has remained on the bike because it works.
I can see were a badly made product could be a detriment to good handling. To suppose every third-party brace (unlike the factory brace on my V-65 Sabre or VF1000 Interceptor) is incapable of improving performance is unreasonable and biased at best. As always it's a choice. One I've been considering for awhile.
He spearheaded the creation of the SO's motor unit at the urging of the Sheriff. For ten years until his retirement he headed the motor unit as a riding Sgt.
Off duty he's had every model of 'Wing up to 2005 which he still rides. He rides the 'Wing faster than a lot of people could ride the ST. He's quite an accomplished rider. A couple of years ago he had a fork brace added and was very pleased with its performance and improvement in handling. And that was after having the steering head bearing replaced with tapered roller bearings – something else that made him happy. The brace has remained on the bike because it works.
I can see were a badly made product could be a detriment to good handling. To suppose every third-party brace (unlike the factory brace on my V-65 Sabre or VF1000 Interceptor) is incapable of improving performance is unreasonable and biased at best. As always it's a choice. One I've been considering for awhile.
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I guess if you have money burning a hole in your pocket it would be worth it but for the street it is over kill. It really is meant for the track such as road or drag racing when you are pushing your front suspension to the maximum and want zero flex. I have pushed ST1300's very hard on the street and never felt the front forks deflect enough to affect the motorcycles handling. Working lidar requires extremely hard acceleration from a dead stop to overcome a vehicle driving in excess of 80 mph. Chasing violators in a pursuit situation tests every component on the ST1300 from brakes, clutch, engine and suspension. The bike is excellent straight from the factory. The only thing it could use is LED headlights, a headlight modulator, and wigwam for the brake lights. If you want to ride something scary, ride a KZ1000 at high speed through a sweeping corner and feel the bike start oscillating as the frame flexes. Now that is an E ticket ride.At $179, this is a pricey add on. But is it worth it?
Will it really make a significant difference in steering stability as advertised, does anyone have first hand experience with these?
http://www.accessoryinternational.com/product/superbrace-2263-fork-stabilizer.html
I know these are old posts but I recently purchased a 2012 ST 1300 with less than 8.000 miles. Got a deal and had it shipped from FL to TX.
I realized that it had been sitting somewhere longer than I expected. I've put many hours in this bike now and about $1,200 more in cash. It now runs fine. I'm impressed with its light handling and how it holds corner lines, (that may be the new Michelin GT4 tires) compared to my 08 FJR.
I have first hand experience with the high speed wobble. In 08 I had a ST 1300 and chased a VFR through the mountains above Santa Fe N.M. At 128 mph I cut the throttle and the wobble began. In a just few seconds the front forks/wheel slapped to the left and I high sided the bike. I bounced about 50 yards down a straight road and came tp a stop. I was amazed that I seemed to be OK. I crawled to the berm and laid down. My friends came along soon and assisted with the mess I'd created. My Olympia Jacket was torn and ripped but never did the armour get out of place. I had no cuts or scrapes. My face shield was ripped off when I landed face first. No head injuries either. My armored gloves were shredded with knuckles ground off almost alt the way through. In short, the gear saved my ass,... or maybe the riding pants did. I was checked out a local hospital and used a rental car to get to the airport.
I'm reading up on the Super Brace because I can't have another wobble related accident, ever! I've analyzed this crash many times and concluded that I contributed to the crash.
I believe that I had far too much weight on the rear of the bike for that speed and that it contributed to to the lift that speed causes with fairings on the bikes i.e heavy rear end allows more lift in front. This occured on the first generation Ventures, e.g. I'd get to about 105 mph and the front end didn't want to hold the road. Many old Harleys exhibited frame wobble. You can watch them on U-tube.
I've now been riding 57 years, Sometimes you learn the hard way. I later found out the owner's manual tells us not to ride over 80 mph while using the top box.
These wobble problems are complex (tire balance, swing arm alignment, steering head bearings, bad tire ) but one thing we can do cheap is to avoid overloading the back of the bike and keep speeds within OEM limits. Speed is fun but speed kills. Ride safe
I realized that it had been sitting somewhere longer than I expected. I've put many hours in this bike now and about $1,200 more in cash. It now runs fine. I'm impressed with its light handling and how it holds corner lines, (that may be the new Michelin GT4 tires) compared to my 08 FJR.
I have first hand experience with the high speed wobble. In 08 I had a ST 1300 and chased a VFR through the mountains above Santa Fe N.M. At 128 mph I cut the throttle and the wobble began. In a just few seconds the front forks/wheel slapped to the left and I high sided the bike. I bounced about 50 yards down a straight road and came tp a stop. I was amazed that I seemed to be OK. I crawled to the berm and laid down. My friends came along soon and assisted with the mess I'd created. My Olympia Jacket was torn and ripped but never did the armour get out of place. I had no cuts or scrapes. My face shield was ripped off when I landed face first. No head injuries either. My armored gloves were shredded with knuckles ground off almost alt the way through. In short, the gear saved my ass,... or maybe the riding pants did. I was checked out a local hospital and used a rental car to get to the airport.
I'm reading up on the Super Brace because I can't have another wobble related accident, ever! I've analyzed this crash many times and concluded that I contributed to the crash.
I believe that I had far too much weight on the rear of the bike for that speed and that it contributed to to the lift that speed causes with fairings on the bikes i.e heavy rear end allows more lift in front. This occured on the first generation Ventures, e.g. I'd get to about 105 mph and the front end didn't want to hold the road. Many old Harleys exhibited frame wobble. You can watch them on U-tube.
I've now been riding 57 years, Sometimes you learn the hard way. I later found out the owner's manual tells us not to ride over 80 mph while using the top box.
These wobble problems are complex (tire balance, swing arm alignment, steering head bearings, bad tire ) but one thing we can do cheap is to avoid overloading the back of the bike and keep speeds within OEM limits. Speed is fun but speed kills. Ride safe
That was exactly my experience when I got the new to me Pan - the front wheel develops a mind of it's own on rutted or rough pavement or crossing painted lines - adding a Superbrace gave a very noticeable improvement in precision of steering and reducing the wander....
Pacificcoaster
former PC800 Pilot
My new-to-me-since-new 07 ST-A does get a bit uncomfortable above 90 with my “sourced in Belgium” Honda OEM Top Box. More so on the interstate with semi wash. Even with my new RaceTech suspension. Setting the shock pre-load adjuster an additional 4 clicks (2 full turns) does offer some stability. But, you need to start with a properly set (sag) suspension in order to know your starting point regardless if you are stock or RaceTech or any other suspension component upgrades. Then, seek your fame and fortune with a SuperBrace as the cherry on top.
Pacificcoaster
former PC800 Pilot
And, do not over look the possibility of the front wheel being installed incorrectly. Follow the Factory Shop Manual instructions.
I'm a gonna weigh in on this old post. I've had the death wobble performed on me! The pucker factor was off the scale to the 10th power! It was on a Kawasaki Voyager a few years back at a speed a speed a bit north on 100 mph. The handle bars went into "tank slap mode"! Sounded like a dahym jack hammer on steroids'. All you can do is ride it out... if you can and live to tell about it!
My fork brace is on order!
My fork brace is on order!