Originally Posted by
Pro Stock
The only thought I can come up with is that they put springs and shocks on vehicles, and motorcycles. They dont cushion or add suspension to the steering wheels or handlebars. They keep them as rigid as possible for positive feel. They do this for Reasons!
Imagine your car as a no suspension vehicle. But the steering wheel would absorb the road noise and bumps and you installed a seat that has a suspension on it like some truckers have. Imagine having to adjust your air pressures of the tires really low because your passenger is constantly asking WTF is wrong with your vehicle.
I mean I could go on and on with the analogies....trust me on that.
The fact is that no one else on the planet that I am aware of would opt to forgo a true wheel suspension on a moving vehicle already fraught with risk, in lieu of a suspension on the handlebar or steering mechanism of your choice. Except bicyclists.
Doing so simply has to affect something negatively....or bike manufacturers and owners wouldnt be the only people doing it.
You have to remember when youre talking suspensions on a vehicle....it's not generally at all about comfort although it's a bonus. It's mostly about keeping the wheel planted on the ground. Tread contact. Suspension rebound dot dot dot.
Suspension bikes are the way of the future. For two reasons. 1) Theres not much else that can be changed on modern bikes, and 2) Its just smart.
Think of this post the next time you see a full suspension gravel bike.
Simply not a good or reasonable analogy...
There are huge differences between motor driven vehicles (even large ebikes) as compared to most all of the human powered bicycles, road,gravel or mtb.
Not gonna get into the details thereof, but most all infernal combustion or large electric powered vehicles, the vehicle is, by far, the highest mass of the vehicle rider combo.
The general idea of suspension (when it comes to affects of mass on 'control' - dierctional control being another element which would also be considered) is to 'control' the major points of mass of the 'vehicles'. Humans, for most motor vehicles are a significantly small part of that total mass. Motorcycles are a bit different, especially when it comes to lighter offroad moto vehicles.
On most any bicycle, the rider is the greatest mass.... and that ultimately determines how you might address, controlling 'mass'...
Steering a car, the hands/arms mass on a steering mechanism hasa almost negligible 'effect' on the controlling of the major mass of the entire vehicle. Would some suspension on a steering wheel help a 'driver' maintain control? DOn't know ... ask the engineers who work on the 'Dakar' vehicles...
so
Bicycles are way different, the rider mass is by far the most signficant, if you want to 'control' the major part of the mass.
Basic principles of 'suspension' is to 'suspend' the greatest amount of the mass... and reduce the 'unpsrung' mass to the minimum.
so yes, you suspend as much of the rider/bicycle as possible.
which is done with sus forks and sus shocks for the major part of the bike frame/parts and rider - as on Full sus MTBs.
Suspending the front end with a sus stem is intended ONLY to provide better control of the front (as compared to 'rigid' front), which percentage-wise is not the major portion of mass in the bicycle/rider vehicle.
Suspension forks are, by far, the more efficient method, BUT some version of suspension stem also has some degree of compliance.
Sus stems are much simpler and not as able to address some situations, but they are 'simpler', generally require very little maintenance, and very consistent and durable for a long time. So a good 'interrnediate' addressing for some riders.
Would some rider tackling an MTB competitive DH run choose sus stem over a sus fork? I doubt it.
But for simpler applications, like in 'gravel' oriented riding, a sus stem is a good step forward from a 'rigid' front end. But a good sus fork would be a step further forward for very 'techincal' riding....
Having that choice is a good thing.
Comparing motor vehicles to bicycles, in many cases, is not valid.
Ride On
Yuri