To all cafe racer builders what is the recommended amount to lower the front forks and still remain functional. Is leaving  1.5-1.75" of travel not enough?
http://www.chopcult.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7129

Thanks Spamy. I like the way Braveteacher went and think I might do the same using 40mm PVC.

Braveteacher I hope you dont mind me posting your pics? Please let me know and I will remove it.

Spamy wrote on 08/07/14 at 14:54:47:


Cut off several slivers and drop it into a jar of old fork oil.
take one out every so often and compare.

You can use steel if you want, they are soaked in oil inside. Also the rods are made of steel, so they wont be grinding on Them if you choose to use steel. I would make them out of aloy or steel, preferebly aloy, it's quite a long dis/assembly process..

And yes, no more than 2 inches.

I was not satisfied that installing 2" spacers would leave enough fork travel, and some reports from folks who have done that complain of a rough ride.

I used a different set of fork yokes with clamps on the top and bottom, so that I could just drop the fork tubes in the yokes.  I did install a 1/2" spacer, and that allows a bit more pre-load to account for the weight shift forward.  Adapting the fork yokes from another bike (1980 RM400) was a lot of work - as the spacing between the fork tubes was narrower and I had to shorten the axle spacers, narrow the brake disc mounting surface, make a new fender mount, etc.

I think you could adapt a bottom yoke for use on the top of the bike, and that would give you the ability to have clamps on top.  You would need to cut off the existing stem, then drill it to fit onto the top of the existing stem.  If you are using clip-on handlebars, you don't need to worry about how to mount the handlebars.  I converted one of these bottom yokes for someone on this site to use on top......but he has never reported that he has used it.

I made my spacer from steel.  I would think the PVC would not have any problems dealing with the oil - but was concerned that with repeated pounding it would eventually deform.

Dave

Spamy wrote on 08/08/14 at 08:24:29:


The way that works, is that by the top caps being 10 mm more down, it only gives 10 mm more preload, not lowering. You could actually chose to only add 2 inches of preload, and keep the forks the same length, or matter of fact, make the forks LONGER, by ~1 inch.

Have anyone noticed when their fork was not modified, that when you leaned the bike to the left on the sidestand, that the fork would stretch aproximately 1 inch, and when you sat on the bike again it would fall back down that 1 inch.. The first set of spacers I used was 1 - 1/5 inch, and it didn't seem that the fork was lowered 1 - 1/5, but that was because the fork would naturally drop down the same length as my spacers. But then when I sat the bike on the sidestand again, it didn't stretch anymore. So if you wan't to lower the fork by lets say 2 inches, you actually need to make spacers that are a bit longer than 2 inches, to acomodate for the ~1 inch, that the natural weight of the front, will press down the forks.. IF you measure from the standpoint from when the bike is ridden, and not when it's on it's stand that is..