Leaf spring springer "forq"

[Hooch]

ok here is how I made this forq
I started with a triple tree chopper type forq I bought off ebay it has a 1" threadless stem

one crusty old murray middleweight springer 26" like on early 60s sears spaceliners ect

one small trailer leafspring 18" long

I cut the spring in half via a chopsaw at work
then pounded the bushing out and cut the bushing in half with a hacksaw
slipped the truss rod from the murray springer thru the spring eye then tapped the bushing halves back int the spring eye

took the murray springer pivots and switched them from left to right ... they are marked with a r and l
bolted them to the forq with a small washer on the pivotside so it fits nicely into the copper forq where the wheel normally fits(there is a bit of a buldge in the forq to hold it) and installed it with a lock nut tightening it just to where it all moves freely but isn't sloppy

I then put the wheel on and positioned the leaf and got the distance I wanted and marked and cut off to my desired length
then I measured between the forqs and cut off a chunk of leaf to be my clamp to hold the leaf onto the forq
I slid the tubes out of the triple tree and clamped the lower triple tree and bracket together to drill four holes,, making sure I had plenty of room for the bolt heads and lower bearing set drilled the holes and bolted it together

slid the tubes back into the triple trees and since this was a threadless forq and I didn't want to use a threadless stem I took a pipe cutter and cut it just below the top triple tree for length and and put tiny cuts into the top of the steer tube to give it better gripping power

then I used the threadless nut thingy to bring my bearings to the proper clearance

once I got it to the desired bearing clearance I tightened all the triple tree bolts (loctite on bolts and on steer tube at the top triple tree)
I then tapped the nut for the treadless tube thingy down into the stem so I could install a normal stem

bolted the wheel back on and its ready to go

hopefully that explains how i did it

 

[karfer67]

wow just fell out of my chair when i saw that. was thinking about trying something like that and ya beat me to it. reminds me of a hank young fork. is that your build off bike? wow. i really gotta get off my ... and build some new bikes lol. just got done with one for the shop to sell i will try to remember and take my camera tomorrow.

 

[Hooch]

this spring is a bit too strong but it will work till I find a lighter one
I want one lighter and a bit less of an arch so the geometry of the pivot is flatter and better

 

[yustin]

thanks hooch, good work.

 

[Clothespin n]

Thanks for the whole tutorial Hooch.
I can appreciate the work..a lot.
They turned out awesome..

peace,
Kev.

 

[Markm]

wouldnt happen to have that other half of the leaf layin around would ya???

 

['72 Eliminator]

That's pretty cool. Had a similar idea myself in mixing an old rattrap springer to a chopperfork. Just need a welder and such....

I will say this though, the rabid Murray-nut part of me almost cried to see thatfork disassembled.

 

[Hooch]

as a side note: {No harm to old murray parts was made} lol
if for some reason I wanted to put the old fork back together I can

 

[user 135]

Thanks for the tutorial. The 'fork can be resurected. The pivot will be the piece to replicate. I like challenges.

 

[Easy Skywalker]

That fork kicks so much ...!!

No nono, I said a s s, for flipssake

 

[Hooch]

bumped to answer a question

 

[Anonymous]

right on hooch that kicks donkey!!!!

glad to see you use your powers for good :mrgreen:

 

[KOTA]

Thank you, very, very much!

 

[Double Naught Spy]

8) cunning and cool.

on another forum someone said to make the spring less stiff drill holes in it, like litening holes in hotrods.

also I like the use of "forq", without razzing you, why?

is it correct spelling for bike parts?

or just different?

like it either way

thanks

 

[october]

earlier on, the forum would like to censor four letter words that began with "f" and ended in "k"...
as a side effect of that, the word "fork" would get censored also... hence "forq" or "forque"

oct.

 

[spinman]

Hooch,

Great job and innovative approach on the springer. Really "outside the box" as they say.

You say it's a bit too stiff. Are you using all 3 leaves of the spring? Can't tell from the pics. If so, perhaps you could just use the one leaf that has the bushing tube? If you're only using one leaf, have you found a less stiff one?

BTW, what's the ID of the bushing or OD of the truss rod? I'm thinking of getting some twisted iron bar and bending it to form the truss rod.

Thx

Spin

 

[lobsterboyx]

hey, instead of trashing all those nice rat trap springers, someone maybe sell me one?!

but not to detract from the original post! great idea! that leafspring works PERFECTLY

 

[ifitsfreeitsforme]

that bike is forquing awesome. great job

 

[Hooch]

bump!

 

[sensor]

thanks hooch(never noticed the bolts went all the way through.....i think i might try just tapping them or some nutserts) :idea: