Bike Build IV

I lied.


We hadn't finished the bike. This is why.






When you do a liter bike front end swap you need 6 things.

1) 929 triple clamp - check
2) 929 forks - check
3) 929 brake calipers - check
4) 929 brake discs - check
5) 929 front wheel - not check
6) 929 front wheel axle - not check



The F4i front axle is smaller than that of the 929. So is the axle hole in the wheel. So are the axle holes in the forks.

This means that the axle holes in the 929 forks are too large. And we leave in 45 minutes for Key West, which is 12 hours away.

So, the axle fits the wheel, but not the forks. Well, one end of it. With a bit of grinding. The F4i axle is tapered at one end, and hence 2 different diameters. The 929 forks also have 2 separate diameters.

It turns out, that when swapped end for end, the large end of the axle is snug in the small hole of the forks. This leaves the small end of the axle very loose in the large hole of the forks. I envisioned that this would prove unsatisfactory at 155 mph, which, as we all know, is the posted US speed limit.

Anyway, the axle had approx. 1/8" all the way around it, where it went through the forks. The exact thickness of PVC tubing. And that's what went in. A section of pvc pipe, cut into a "C" so that it could be clamped, and shortened to the width of the fork opening.

So off we went.........