How much deflection do you estimate you're getting during extreme hard braking?
To make such a calculation we would need a tremendous amount of proprietary information regarding the physical and mechanical properties of all of the components between the contact patch of the front tire and the lower triple clamp. Such as the modulas of elasticity of the inner and outer fork tubes, the exact spec mean inner and outer diameters of said components, the stiction of the spec tire (couldn't even begin to comprehend all the variables of all of the tires available).
When we have all of this information we can play it into a formula that accounts for the full, laden weight of the bike, the distance between the axle and the lower triple clamp, amount for said modules of elasticity, and swag the total deflection of the fully compressed forks, of a fully laiden bike, at maximum grip, with the upper fork tubes 1" closer to the axle than designed.
Or,
We can remember the cautionary tale Kevin Cammeron wrote about decades ago about his observations while building for, and supporting race teams, when he observed the evidence of Racers pushing their fork tubes further and further up the triple clamps in an effort to lower the front, tighten the steering, and improve upon what the factory had already designed. The evidence Kevin observed was scorched tires, and polished exhaust headers with a noted decrease in rider performance as the lap times plummeted when, as he surmised, the front tires were pinched between the axle and the folding bike behind giving way to the modulas of elasticity in the components of the front end.
This observation scared the he'll oit of (then) young Kevin, and he later wrote about it as a cautionary tale about fracking about in stuff you don't know.
I remember this story decades after I read it and I, of course recant it in a brief, paraphrased version here. But it is a real observation about things many, pedestrian, riders don't consider when mucking about trying to make a motorcycle they want with a motorcycle that the factory built.
With all of this said, have I ever slid the fork tubes up into the triple clamps in an effort to quicken the steering geometry of my bikes? Yes, yes I have. Did I do this with full knowledge of the potential consequences in mind? Yep! Now all of you can consider the implications of mucking about with your OEM geometry.
Skippy
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