mcgroom - that was a pretty interesting set of mods. Why did you decide to change the trees and the rake angle? I'm guessing there aren't too many BD riders who've done that.
Hey Eric ... just wanna' pass on to you some quick feedback. I'm workin' on customizing a chopper in my garage right now. I seriously, seriously thought about putting a Springer suspension on the bike. I gotta' say that I really like the look of those old-time Springers, plus there are some really nice Springer set-ups for sale these days. In fact, you've probably already seen this Web page:
Springer Front Ends - Tips and Advice about springer front ends from the pros.
However, I got talking to an experienced MC guy over in Britain and he gave me another point of view about Springers that made me reconsider. His basic point was that the Springer suspension forms a kind of a rigid connection between the front of your bike and the front wheel. I'm not saying that the Springer system doesn't have some bounce to it (it definitely does), but only that the braking response can be different. It means that if you jam on the front brakes really hard, you don't get exactly the same kind of brake dive response that you would with telescoping forks. There's more of a tendency for the Springer system to push the wheel into a skid, if the front brakes really lock down.
There isn't a BD shop close to my house, but if I remember right they put inverted telescopic forks on some of their bikes. That's a pretty nice arrangement. Just some thoughts. I haven't ridden a Springer system myself. I do agree that they look great.
dT
