Modifying a bike for low trail.
08-08-10, 06:11 AM
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Modifying a bike for low trail.
Hello all. 
There's a discussion at the Surly's Google group about putting on an LHT frame a fork with more rake than the standard one has (43 mm) to make of it a French randonneur style bike. I am wondering if this really could be so simple or rather if there isn't much more to do to turn a LHT into a low trail bike and have it handle well. After all, wasn't the whole frame designed with high trail in mind?
Thank you for your opinions on that matter.
There's a discussion at the Surly's Google group about putting on an LHT frame a fork with more rake than the standard one has (43 mm) to make of it a French randonneur style bike. I am wondering if this really could be so simple or rather if there isn't much more to do to turn a LHT into a low trail bike and have it handle well. After all, wasn't the whole frame designed with high trail in mind?
Thank you for your opinions on that matter.
08-08-10, 11:39 AM
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As far as the steering is concerned it is the front end that is doing the heavy lifting. If your target bike also had a 72 degree steering angle, putting a different fork on it would get you there, but the fork has to be designed to have the same height, the extreme would be putting a 29er shock replacement rigid fork on there!
Kogswell did a lot of messing around with fork angles and even stocked some Porteur forks with different angles in various wheel sizes.
Kogswell did a lot of messing around with fork angles and even stocked some Porteur forks with different angles in various wheel sizes.
08-08-10, 01:59 PM
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all you need is a fork with the right length and rake. There is no magic to getting low trail
08-08-10, 07:26 PM
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I know, I was just simplifying what you said
