buonarroti
Member
I transferred my 43 rake Enve fork onto a 48cm Vamoots. Moots recommends a 50 rake fork. Without getting into technical details, would a 50 rake fork feel less or more twitchy than a 43?
Also, I would like to do some light touring, using a front bag and a saddle bag, combined weight around 18 lbs. I weigh 138 lbs. Is this safe on this frame?
buonarroti,
Yes, the 50mm vs. the 43mm would feel less twitchy....7mm is a pretty big difference in fork rakes.
Are you mounting a bag to the fork via a rack of some sort? The weight won't be an issue, how you attach it to the fork would be....
Let me know what you are using.
Thanks,
Jon@Moots
buonarroti
Member
I'm mounting a 15 liter Carradice saddlebag directly onto a flat bar. I've lengthened all my brake/derailleur housing to get around it. It looks goofy but works. About 8 lbs of gear up front.
BTW, will going from 43 to 50 rake on such a small frame help with the toe overlap problem? Or will the issue of fork trail come up, confusing me even more?
29ner
Member
It'll help by 7mm. Small frames with 700c wheels - there is just no way around it. It only is a problem when you are going slow.....you lean a bike, you don't turn a bike.
If you don't might me saying: You're doing something 'not right' - elongating cables to compensate for a saddlebag sounds like something you should not do.
Extra long cables cannot possibly be 'right' with shifting/braking. It may be ok going around the block, but.......
Sounds to me like you don't have the correct bag. 'Saddlebag' sounds like it's for (duh) the saddle or a rear pannier? Eight pounds up front or eighteen pounds total won't affect the frame what-so-ever. If you're concerned about trail/rake, etc., 'google' it - there are some pretty simple explanations. A simple to remember mantra: "the bigger the bike, the less the rake". A 43 rake on a 48cm frame - whew - that's more a rake for a 56/57/58ish size (head angles being 'normal').
You must log in to post.
