Framebuilders - Whats the purpose of doing this?

Hi, I was looking through some pictures of an old bike my grandma used to race with and it had forks on it that look very similar to this... Whats the point to doing this to the fork blades

http://www.classiclightweights.co.uk/batesdiad2.jpg

Oh she also raced during the 50's

Thanks

i wouldn't know, but could ya post the pics of yer granny's ol' bike???

Ya, i'll have to back over there and scan them in

I saw something about the British racing federation not allowing brand decals on racing bikes. So the builders made their bikes recognizable by frame design alone. I could be passing on bad information here. Hetchins was famous for bendy stays, don't know about forks. Pretty sure it was for looks or for marketing.

Those are Bates Cantiflex tubing.
Supposdely to make the ride more comfotable.
http://hometown.aol.co.uk/reclassicbikes/Bates_Cantiflex_Home.html
Can you post pictures of the complete bike?

Wikipedia has an excellent article on rake and trail (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rake_and_trail) that might give you some insights...

Toeclip overlap clearance?

Toeclip overlap clearance?i don't think so, the the rake of the fork will be (or should be) the same no matter what path the fork blade takes down to the dropout

i don't think so, the the rake of the fork will be (or should be) the same no matter what path the fork blade takes down to the dropout

Right, zzz! I think it was mainly for brand identification. Many older makers achieved the rake they wanted by bending the fork tubes late and with small radius, to create a straight zone and a spring zone. Supposed to let the fork absorb road shock a bit better. With so many curves, I don't know how much flex this z-bend will have.

Road Fan

The fork equivalent of a Kirk Terraplane.

Perhaps it has to do with maintaining a head angle while increasing your wheelbase. Not sure why this would be desirable for this application in particular. I agree with the bump absorption theory as well.

some pictures of an old bike my grandma used to race with

Never heard that statement in my life, VERY KEWLIO!!