Hi from the other side of the pond

[hawkeyefxr]

I have a twin port vw engine trike with what i assume is the normal amount of rake, the trike is about ten feet long.
I want to fit a steering damper but with the rake the is a lot of travel from lock to lock going through a wide range of angles.I have an ohlin steering damper that was fitted to a bike and would like to use this if possible.

I am sure there is a way to mount it on top of the top yoke (tree) but cannot get my head around how to do it. Does anyone have pictures of something that would suit to give me some ideas. I will be using stainless for construction asi can weld this with my dc tig welder (dont hav A/C type)

[DeathBySnuSnu]

Hello and welcome in to the forum!
Nothing normal about me or mine.
There are some normal folks around though and someone will be along with an idea.

[Loner]

Here are the two basic methods for mounting steering dampers. Ohlins seems to prefer the second type (which could be mounted to the bottom of the trees as well to get it out of sight a bit). To get the best use of the damper you have, you need to know some specs on it and make sure your mounting conforms to those specs. For example, the mounting points on the first photo can be moved; on the fork end inward on the lower fork to make the damper's stroke work with the throw at the fork mount point. Then the can be moved to get the load within the damper's specs.

However, if you are not having a problem with wobble in your steering why install it at all. If you do have a wobble problem, go through the checks to cure the wobble before you install a damper. Such as, tighten the stem nut to a point where there is just a slight bind as you turn the forks (with tehm off the ground), check the front tire condition and air pressure as well as tightness in the wheel bearings, and check the rear tires in the same manner (rear tires have a tremendous influence on the front forks).

The absolute best answer is to sell me the Ohlin once you cured your problem through the methods mentioned above (at a fellow triker and TOI member bargain price, of course).

Good luck in prepping your trike.

[stinger608]

Huge welcome to the forums Hawkeyefxr!!!! Glad you found us man.

I think Loner has a great post with some awesome ideas for ya.

[vwtriker1948]

Thanks for the replies. Originally I had a really dangerous steering wobble, I could not let go with one hand no way. I checked everything I could think of. As I wheeled the trike back into the garage I felt a slight pull on one side. I jacked the eheel up and spun it, sure enough it spun then stopped dead. The brake drum was oval, I swapped out the drums for discs, wow the braking difference was great.
Steering wobble was then non existent, with a feint nervousness if I catch a bump in the road but I can ride with one hand ( so I can give the finger to some idiot car driver)

Any how I decided on a damper, the setup that clamps to the fork tube below the tree will not work as I have a fair amount of rake and the distance from lock to lock is to much for any damper I have seen on the market, also becsuse of the rake angle the damper would pass through a big angle in the process of lock to lock.
I will study the second setup in more detail though I will check the head bearing first. Not sure if the head bearings are balls or taper rollers, if they are balls I cant tighten to cause a slight drag as this will pit the race cups.

Any chance of a bigger picture of the top mounted damper as I cant see much when I zoom in....cheers

Phew feel like I have written War and Peace

[vwtriker1948]

Back again.
found that picture on the net and can see how it is mounted. Need the measure my distance of travel lock to lock at connection point and work out dimensions.
Would like to make it out of stainless as I can weld this though working with it is harder. Still when polished it will stay that way

[consitter]

Heh...this reminds me of back about 1971...my uncle converted a VW into a trike. The thing was HUGE. It had a front end like a chopper, and had a regular motorcycle seat for the driver. But, it had a back seat that two people could sit in.

The kicker...no handlebars! He had a welded chain link steering wheel instead. Man, I wish I had pics. I'm sure he does somewhere.

By the way...welcome to the forum. Please excuse me for getting off on a tangent!

[hawkeyefxr]

No probs mate like to hear about the old VW trikes. Your right my one is raked out at the front with 12in wide rear wheels.

[Loner]

Since you appreciate the older VW trikes, I invite you to check out my photo album in my profile and see the one which has the VW trikes in a custom show. I started my build on that one in 1969 - it was my first VW build (I'd already gone through a couple of HD chopper builds starting at 14 years (see the red chopper in that album). I drew plans over several weeks, but the hardest part was that first cut into my 1967 Beetle to get the parts I'd need.

By the way, my uncle gave me that '67 when he bought a new one and made me promise to love it as much as he did (and I did). When he was 84 years, shortly before he passed on, I rode that trike over to visit him and when he admired it I explained that it was his '67 Beetle slightly modified. He was absolutely beside himself and was mounting it to take it for a drive (unfortunately his dementia precluded it).

I had slightly over $800 invested in the build, including lots of chrome plating costs (aftermarket chrome goodies were somewhat limited and hard to get then), metalflake paint (34 coats), new custom made springer front end, and other materials.

[FuzzyWuzHe]

Welcome to the gang ...