Motorcycle fork

The fork and its attachment points on the frame establish the critical geometric parameters of rake and trail, which play a major role in defining how a motorcycle handles and dives during braking.

The main advantages of the telescopic fork are that (i) it is simple in design and relatively cheap to manufacture and assemble; (ii) it is lighter than older designs using external components and linkage systems; and (iii) it has a clean and simple appearance that bikers find attractive.

This is done (i) to reduce unsprung weight by having the heavier components suspended, and (ii) to improve the strength and rigidity of the assembly by having the strong large-diameter "sliders" clamped in the yokes.

This style of fork may be found on antique motorcycles or choppers, and is available today on Harley-Davidson's Softail Springer.

A short leading link holds the wheel and the forward leg which actuates the springs (usually mounted on the triple clamp).

[3] Patented by Englishman Ernest Earles in 1953, the design is constructed of light tubing, with conventional 'shock absorbers' mounted near the front axle.

This action can be disconcerting to riders used to telescopic forks, which have the opposite reaction to braking forces ('brake dive').

Girdraulic forks featured hydraulic damping with forged alloy blades providing extra strength.

The Saxon-Motodd fork (marketed as Telelever by BMW) has a wishbone that mounts to the frame and supports the monoshock unit.

Defined as a motorcycle or bicycle front end having coaxial steering and suspension components, and having telescopic forks.

Swing weight of the forks is dramatically reduced by removing their suspension components to the central location, coaxially within the steering tube.

Examples include hub-center steering, used as early as 1920 on the Ner-a-Car,[9] and implemented in the 1990s on the Bimota Tesi[10] and the Yamaha GTS1000[11] A single-sided girder "fork" was used by the German firm Imme[12][13] between 1949 and 1951.