Nah...let's say you weren't including the laced spoke wheels...


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Spokes you have to add the weight of the tube, then you're placing the weight in the worst spot, as far from the center as possible.

 

Tubes..."We don't need any stinking tubes"...well, maybe we do

See Updated Link HERE



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These are what I am and already have put on two of my bikes and doing the same to my Bagger. Since my last tire change (forgot those?) Metzler has come out with radial tires that weigh around high 9# each side. They are faster because they have less rolling resistance as well. They are going to be faster compressing & rebounding as well as acceleration. Les rotating mass. I will through my C/F wheels on the scale as well.

 

UPDATED:
WEIGHTS of Wheels / Tires (and Assys) for 2000-Later Touring Front Wheels

ADDED: 17x3 28-spoke, 18x3.5 Airstrike, and 19x3.5 Enforcer and Tire Weights

 

Hello All,

I wanted to add on to this good post with my own experience installing Howard's 49mm forks and triple trees. In short, and most importantly, I am extremely satisfied with the ride, with the process, and with Howard's excellent advice and help along the way. Here is some background for those of you who are interested.

The new front end is installed on my 2012 Road King. This is my long-distance bike and it has extensive engine upgrades (over 100HP and 100 torque at last tune/Dyno) as well as other upgrades and personal touches. This means a newer Rushmore bike with 49mm stock HD forks was not of interest or an option for me, and I had read enough to to know that I would still have HD's bad internals and cast triple trees, so stock offered somewhat bigger diameter than my 41mm 2012 forks, but not Howard's product with Ohlins/Howard's cartridges inside. Any doubt about this decision when I was considering what to do was resolved when I put Howard's #2 adjustable shocks on the back last fall and the bike felt much better and the back end handled as I had hoped it would.

Let me begin with what most matters--how the bike rides. My background is riding Triumph Bonnevilles and Sportsters when I was younger, on many cross country journeys, without a windshield (youth). When I had kids I stopped riding for quite awhile and now that I am back into it, I decided a dresser would be a more comfortable ride. It is, but I missed how the smaller bikes (some of which I still own) handle. I bought a Softail Slim in 2014 for around town trips, which is very nice, but on long trips on the Road King I was still seeking a little more control and less of the "dives and bumps" I kept feeling.

Having now ridden for more than 300 miles on the new front end I can say to the group without reservation that Howard's 49mm triple trees and forks are excellent. The triple trees are build to withstand a holocaust--look at the pictures that have been posted; Howard trees look like part of a tank compared to the stock stuff that looks like they might go on a bicycle or my 1968 Bonnie.

Once installed, I followed Howard's guidance and tuned the front end by riding and testing it. I would ride 10 miles in a canyon near my house, then pull over and turn the adjustement nuts, ride again, etc., until I had the bike feeling how I liked it. It is now perfect for me. Just a little stiff and fast rebounding, with no diving into the turns or pushing back as it exits. I feel the bumps and the road in a way that is good for control, but is not at all jostling to my hands or body. All of this is far better than the stock set up, and I have ridden Rushmore bikes and they are not close to this good feeling and control, in my opinion.

So the group knows, you can set the adjustments so the bike will feel softer, like a Cadillac, Mercedes, Lexus type "comfort ride" or more tight like a Corvette, BMW type feeling. I favored a few clicks toward the responsive and road feeling type ride, but I tried many different settings and it is remarkable how much control the rider has over the feeling of the bike. I am not some super rider and I do not push a 900+ pound bike around, but the takeaway for me was that each rider can make the bike how they want it, which is really a nice feature.

In terms of installation, it was not hard. I would "clock in and clock out" on a pad I kept in my garage so I could tell Howard how much actual assembly time it takes. I am not a mechanic or some expert on these things like Howard and others on this site. I consider myself handy, am a woodworker, over the years have worked on dozens of my own bikes and cars, etc. so I would say I am about a 5 out of 10 on the mechanically-inclined scale. Working just on the installation of the front end, I had a little over 8 hours of time into the project. (I changed my brake pads, put on new rotors, and some other things that I did not include in this estimate of front end time.) It took a few more hours to assemble and disassemble the nacelle a few times for tuning, which was my choice as I worked on tuning and wanted to make sure I got everything just right for me. (I would ride with no headlight, fully assemble the nacelle, ride, reassemble after a few weeks and ride again, etc.)

Let me mention that one thing that concerned me when I started was grinding on my frame, but I can now say it is not big deal to make the small changes to the steering head with a grinder. The pictures above of the other person who did this are as good as the ones I took, and I sent a template of my install to Howard so he has it if it would be helpful in the future. (He has done this before but it was easy for me to make a template while I was doing the work.)

One other thing worth mentioning for those who want to set their ride height is that Howard custom makes these front ends. I like a 21" wheel and wanted to level the bike out, which Howard handled when he made my setup. I wanted the front to be 1.25" lower, and it is exactly that. This helps the handling when I am going below 5 MPH in parking lots, etc. It is really nice that the guys who have custom set ups and want higher or lower seat height, front end height, etc. can get exactly what they want.

Lastly, let me mention Howard's involvement and approach to my project. Before starting all this I read many dozens of threads on multiple sites. Mixed in with Howard's constant help of others is occasional commentary by others on Howard's strong personality, but almost without exception the substance of these various email strings showed me that Howard is a very knowledgeable expert on suspension--which is what I cared about. As I was doing this work I would call Howard often, and he encouraged me to call him, call him again, and not worry about it. He took my calls when when I made them--I can't think of a time he did not answer his phone--he was patient with my novice questions and concerns, and made sure I got the attention a family member or friend normally gives me, not at all what I get from typical vendors, salesmen and mechanics. Is he a smiling vacuous Home Depot type kid--he is not. He is a guy that as I listened to him and he guided me to a great end point on this project, I became more confident on trusting my life going down the highway on this front end. I am very pleased to have his good engineering on the bike I ride every week.

I have already ordered Howard's forks for my softail and even thought I can't get his triple tree for that bike, now that I have felt the product on the Road King it was a no brainer for me to get whatever Howard makes for that second Harley.

My parting thought is if a friend asked me what to do with his bike, I would say this before anything else: At a small fraction of the cost of the bike, the ride and experience is vastly improved. People will spend this same amount on things that have nothing to do with safety or feeling on the road. I am very glad I spent the money on this front end.

I hope this is helpful to some of you. I welcome any questions and will do my best to answer them.

 

All,

I wrote a very long review of Howard's 49mm forks and triple trees, and it disappeared into the blogosphere. Perhaps it will show up, but I wanted to give the members feedback while I try to solve that issue. Here is a shortened version.

RIDE

The most important part, and it is better than I had hoped for. My bike is a 2012 Road King with major engine upgrades--over 100HP and 100 rear torque--and the new front end makes the bike handle perfectly. There is a large range of adjustment. I would ride, then tune, ride and then tune again until I got it just how I like it--firm and responsive as opposed to too much "springy comfort feeling." I have ridden the bike with the new front end with a range of different settings, and it is clear the rider can have whatever they want just by adjusting the settings on the cartridges. I have 300 miles on the new front end, and it is excellent. Solid, responsive, no diving into corners or pushing back coming out. The spongy feeling, and vibration coming up to my hands is gone. It is a huge improvement over stock, and I have ridden the new Harley bikes and Howard's front end on my bike feels more solid and responsive than the Rushmore setup. (The new Rushmore bikes still have the old 1950s internals, not Ohlins, and when you compare the triple trees you will see why Howard's massive and strong triple trees will feel more solid. The way Howard's triple trees hold the tubes is impressive.)

INSTALL

Not hard. I clocked in and clocked out to keep track of how much time it took. For me, about 8 hours. I was proceeding slowly and asking Howard many questions to make sure I got everything right. It is not big deal to grind the small lip off the steering stem. The OP's pictures are a good visual and I made a template I sent Howard if anyone needs it.

HOWARD

Before purchasing the front end, I did a lot of research. I saw many posts from Howard and responses on various sites about suspension issues. He is obvioulsly a very knowledgeable guy, and I could also see that sometimes he does have patience for critics without support for their opinions. Given that I am not a suspension expert, I did not know how Howard would handle helping me. Put simply, on my project Howard was amazing in terms of help. He always took my calls, spent time to get me to understand why things were done certain ways, and then worked with me to make sure I got a bike that felt perfect for me. He was patient, I suspect because he could tell I care and take riding seriously.

Is he a smiling vacuous Home Depot kid who knows nothing about what he is selling, but is awful friendly--no. He is an expert and knows his stuff. And he really cares about his customers. I wish all the vendors I worked with knew as much and were as helpful as he was on this project.

CONCLUSION

I recommend anyone interested in a very solid, adjustable front end that will make your Harley the best it can be in terms of ride--buy Howard's front end. It is well worth the cost and now having done the install and ridden the bike, I can offer my review that it is a good decision.

 

Now with that said, get back to work and ride the thing!

 

My 2011 with my number #6 shocks , Howard's front end kit and built 120 motor is amazing , I tried to show Howard at bike week how well the suspension worked but his throttle must have been sticking as he couldn't keep up to observe the suspension in action

 

TJ316--
I read your posts as part of my process of deciding to put Howard's front end on my Road King. Thanks for that. Your bike looks awesome. Glad it rides as good as it looks!

Howard is right, I am going to keep riding as much as I can. Snow has melted here and I will head out in the morning to put some more miles on the "new" bike.