Straight forks

I posted something in the classifieds section, but thought here might be better.

Basically I'm wondering where I can get a set of straight forks from. I recently learnt to barspin at trixie dix by popping a 650c wheel on my front, however it would be nice to see if it's possible to do this with my regular wheel by sticking some straight forks on my bike. The only problem is that they need to be 1" threaded rather than a-head ones.

however all of the straight forks I've seen still have an angle between the stem bit and the fork itself. I've seen a few of the charge bikes with what seem to be pretty straight ones.

can anyone point me in the right direction as to where to find some? I spoke with 14 Bike co the other day and they said they could make some for about £80 which is a great deal for some bespoke ones, but I't might be simpler to just buy some ready made ones.

I guess you mean a fork with no rake rather than a fork with straight blades? Cos if it's the latter I can sell you some but I'm guessing it's the former.

exactly, I want the wheel to be identical either way around, at the moment I get massive toe overlap if the bars are flipped around.

So looking for something with no rake between the steerer and the blade.

Bob Jackson do a fixie-skidder spec 'Alley Cat' fork. Pricey mind.

Linky on forum. Linky on BJ site.

you can get one from 14 for bout £100

if you have a really short headtube you can get some from archie wilkinson for £30

black - http://archie-wilkinson.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=66&products_id=202

chrome - http://archie-wilkinson.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=66&products_id=203

any idea of how long are the archies steer tubes?no info

what would the problems be of using a totally straight fork? toe overlap for sure but how about the steering? wouldnt it be wierd?

info@wilkinsonwheel.co.uk

what would the problems be of using a totally straight fork? toe overlap for sure but how about the steering? wouldnt it be wierd?

Would be increasing the trail so the front of the bike would drop more when turning acutely and steering would weight up. All theoretical though, don't no how much difference could be actually felt (especially as most people are only turning the bars a few degrees to go round corners)

http://www.anvilbikes.com/images/1064634020.xls

so it seems that 26" mountain bike forks should fit a 700c wheel, and are much more likely to come straight and strong. Might give that a whirl

so it seems that 26" mountain bike forks should fit a 700c wheel, and are much more likely to come straight and strong. Might give that a whirl

They will be straight legged but will not be zero rake so not really any different than road/track forks. Typical rake for MTB fork seems to be just under 40 whereas a track fork would be around 35 and a road fork around 43.

fair enough, oh well.

I guess it's perhaps time to start thinking about buying a tricks frame like the Volume Cutter or waiting for the Charge Scissor to come out.

any other suggestions?

Could just go with your initial suggestion of getting some made for £80. That is not a bad price for steel forks (especially as there are not many options for the ones you want)

You could do worse than the Volume Fu Manchu forks, they're dead straight, designed as trick forks for fixed gear bikes. Rake is 32mm. I think they're the ones that come on a built volume cutter. I'm riding these on my charge plug. I tried the charge nozzle, but the steerer tube was too short, but the Fu Manchu's is much longer. They're also a lot lighter than the nozzles, weighing in at around 900g. I bought them from here for £129: http://www.customriders.co.uk/prodshow.asp?prodid=11958&cat=0&parent=0&sid=3

bear in mind they're not drilled and have no mounts for brakes, so you'd need to be rudng brakeless.

Bob jackson ally cat fork?

You could do worse than the Volume Fu Manchu forks, they're dead straight, designed as trick forks for fixed gear bikes. Rake is 32mm. I think they're the ones that come on a built volume cutter. I'm riding these on my charge plug. I tried the charge nozzle, but the steerer tube was too short, but the Fu Manchu's is much longer. They're also a lot lighter than the nozzles, weighing in at around 900g. I bought them from here for £129: http://www.customriders.co.uk/prodshow.asp?prodid=11958&cat=0&parent=0&sid=3

bear in mind they're not drilled and have no mounts for brakes, so you'd need to be rudng brakeless.

They look threadless and also have a rake as you have stated. Would need to know the maximum rake the OPs frame could handle while still allowing a bar spin I would think.

They look threadless and also have a rake as you have stated. Would need to know the maximum rake the OPs frame could handle while still allowing a bar spin I would think.

Sorry, my mistake, didn't read the OP properly, yes, they're threadless, and they're 1 1/8" not 1"

OP please read advice from your other post, straight or curved, if its the same rake, its same toe overlap. zero rake isnt what you want, it probably wont even fit your frame. what is much more important is the angle of the frames headtube.

OP please read advice from your other post, straight or curved, if its the same rake, its same toe overlap. zero rake isnt what you want, it probably wont even fit your frame. what is much more important is the angle of the frames headtube.

Now you've confused me. Zero or very low rake is what he wants if bar spinning is the goal. Toe overlap is not part of the question and guess he knows that will get worse as a result of less rake.
Also not sure why head angle is much more important, the head angle is what it is and the forks he has do not allow a bar spin and easier to change fork than headangle?

as OP said he posts in classified first, he said he had problem whith toe overlap when bar spinning so he wanted straight forks. What i was trying to say is it doesnt need to be a straight fork, as that all hes talked about.

what you need to be looking at is your head tube angle and working out what rake you need. what has a good rake for someone elses bike might not be great for yours because of the headtube angle. instead of trying to find any old straight fork you need to know what you need first.

as OP said he posts in classified first, he said he had problem with toe overlap when bar spinning so he wanted straight forks. What i was trying to say is it doesnt need to be a straight fork, as that all hes talked about.

what you need to be looking at is your head tube angle and working out what rake you need. what has a good rake for someone elses bike might not be great for yours because of the headtube angle. instead of trying to find any old straight fork you need to know what you need first.

Got it, I have now looked at the classifieds. If getting toe overlap when wheel at 30 degrees and at 210 degrees then see what you mean about head angle.

So stick with the 650c then :-)

So I've been getting advice from all over.

Basically as said above the frame probably won't work with a straight (zero rake) fork as it would be too weak. Hit a pot hole and the fork would bend back.

I can spin it with a 650c but would like to try with a 700c.

The best theory I had for this was something with less of a rake so that on the reverse, the wheel was less likely to hit the down tube.

likewise with a 650c something with less rake would give more clearance when the handlebars are reversed.

however obviously this means that cycling the normal way around there would be more toe-overlap as the wheel is pulled in more towards the frame.

So for now I'm going to continue using my 650c wheel, then save up for something with more trick geometry, and probably a straight strong mountain bike fork stuck on it.

I'll post up as things go.

Why would a zero rake fork be any weaker than a fork with rake?