4.5 Degree Rake Kit

[skuuter]

Well, after installin' the 4.5 degree Raked Trees from Motor Trike on my 2010 Gold Wing Motor Trike, all I can say is "WOW"......if You live in a very twisty, mountainous area of the USA, I can't believe You can survive without these. You might "putt" through the mountains, but to "ride" through them, or especially "briskly ride" through them, I can't imagine it bein' very possible, or at best fun. I've been ridin' two-wheel motorcycles for over 40 years, ridin' as much as 42,000 miles per year, and pretty much always 22,000+.

So You can imagine how heavy/slow steerin' the Trike was to me with the stock Gold Wing Rake. I had to think about up-coming corners, check up quite a bit, etc. .....now I just run up to em', and "flick" it in. Right/Left quick transitions that used to be a chore, are now actually Super Fun. This Kit was well worth the Money and Work...I have also cruised it at 80 to 100mph (test purposes only...) on the Interstate with no twitchyness, etc. I highly recommend this to Anyone, especially very experienced high-milers per year on Bikes....

 

[Nana]

Great review, skuuter! I don't think I've heard anyone wish they hadn't bothered to get the rake. In fact, I've wondered why any kit would be offered without it! I couldn't do without it, myself.

 

[TRIKERBOB69]

:goodjob: right on the money, I talked to a guy who was a pure minimalist and didnt rake his champion, after a few weeks he came back to the installer, test drove his champion kit with the rake again,,,then had it raked, I never drove and unraked trike but I have heard its less fun!:yes:

 

[Alan Oakley]

Just as a side note.........I can't say enough about experimenting with the air pressure settings (front and rear tires) as well as air bags. My Motor Trike IRS is extremely sensitive to small changes in the above. Also, I changed out the front tire to a Michelin Pilot and the change in the ride characteristics (for the better) were dramatic. I only had 5,000 on the original front tire and I am really careful about checking air pressure but I had numerous flat spots. I also put the balancers on as well. I know there are some that argue that balancers are a waste of money but the combination of the about adjustments have made an amazing difference in the ride quality and therefore the fun factor is much higher. Everyone has a different story regarding the rake. I can't imagine not having a rake on my 09 Wing with the Motor Trike IRS.

 

[skuuter]

THANKS Folks....added RIVCO Front Hwy Pegs Today, and our Fender Bras came in (Motor Trike accidentally sent Red ones instead of Yellow ones) today. Got the ZUMO wired in and mounted...ready to go....:yes:....headin' to East Tennessee this afternoon and ridin' that area tomorrow. Next week, I'll be leadin' Rides with the Trike at the SEMF 2010 SPRING FLING for 4 days (20th thru the 23rd) out of the Townsend Area. Cherohala Skyway, The Dragon, Hwy 28, etc. .....should have Pics up by the followin' week....

 

[Comanche]

I'm a 71 year old guy who has more disclocated shoulders than in a Mel Gibson re run. In October 2009 I hit a deeron two wheels going 70 (my age at the time) mph. Needless to say I went down and broke my already rotten shoulder.<br />
<br />
It never healed properly so I have continual shoulder pain. When I bought my 2006 GL 1800 Champion solid axle trike it <b><font size="4">was not raked. It was painful to steer. Then I had a 5.5 degree kit installed plus MBL risers and it is a dream to ride. It makes a difference a big difference</font></b><br />
<br />
My trike is in the shop and the dealership gave me this as a loaner. Wish I could have the ease of steering two wheels, but the comfort and joy of my trike.

 

[rmrc51]

I just had to chime in here regarding the difference a rake makes.

I just got my Valkyrie (Motor Trike) back from servicing. One of the major new additions was a 6 degree rake. The difference is unbelievable! Someone had once described the difference from a stock front end to a raked front was like going from a truck with no power steering to a sports car with power steering. I completely agree! Between having the rake installed and a complete end-to-end servicing, she feels like a completely new trike,, for the better I might add!!!

 

[meredog]

Just as a side note.........I can't say enough about experimenting with the air pressure settings (front and rear tires) as well as air bags. My Motor Trike IRS is extremely sensitive to small changes in the above. Also, I changed out the front tire to a Michelin Pilot and the change in the ride characteristics (for the better) were dramatic. I only had 5,000 on the original front tire and I am really careful about checking air pressure but I had numerous flat spots. I also put the balancers on as well. I know there are some that argue that balancers are a waste of money but the combination of the about adjustments have made an amazing difference in the ride quality and therefore the fun factor is much higher. :yes: Everyone has a different story regarding the rake. I can't imagine not having a rake on my 09 Wing with the Motor Trike IRS. :no:

Wish I could remember why but i can't ?old age????

I had the Michlon pilot put on the front of my Suzuki/Leman and was told ,for what sounded reasonable at the time, that the tire should be mounted backwords.

We did and it was great

 

[skuuter]

After ridin' mine, my Dealer (Pioneer Honda in Winchester, Tn) is puttin' the Rake Kits on all of the Gold Wing 1800s They spec now.....unbelievable difference in this Mountain Road, Twisty Country Road Area.....even looks nicer with the "kicked-out" Front Wheel.....!!!!!

 

[Boscoporp]

Which rake kit did you get?

 

[skuuter]

Which rake kit did you get?

I got the Motor Trike Brand 4.5 Degree.....Great fit and finish on the Product.....:yes:

 

[cjmitch]

I don't have a rake and have NO intentions of getting one for the following reasons

1) rake too twitchy (I tried my Dads; couldn't get off it fast enuff

2) Increased turning radius. I like my tight handling

3) Once you execute the outside-inside-outside turning technique I never found the need to rake.

 

[triwinggirl]

Power steering :yay::yay::yay:

 

[skuuter]

Power steering :yay::yay::yay:

...at the very least........I like the ability to transition much quicker on extremely twisty, narrow mountain roads.....:wtg:

 

[Boscoporp]

I have my 4.5 kit ordered now from Zook! I anxious to get it installed.

 

[trike lady]

You can get different degrees of raked trees from different manufacturers, it is also a personal choice as to how much or how little. All the trike kit manufacturers offer them. You may buy a Champion kit and then go with Roadsmith trees. I've done the mix and match components for a client trike and it worked to their advantage. Their trike didn't wander and it handled very well.

 

[CCrider]

I installed Zooks 4.5 rake kit on my GL1500SE last week and have never regretted one minute since. I am 70 yrs old and been riding over 50 yrs. This is my second trike and without the rake kit, it was asking a lot of my old shoulders to keep up with the two wheelers. Now i just sit back and enjoy the ride. I LOVE MY RAKE KIT !!!

 

[Saltywheels]

You can get different degrees of raked trees from different manufacturers, it is also a personal choice as to how much or how little. All the trike kit manufacturers offer them. You may buy a Champion kit and then go with Roadsmith trees. I've done the mix and match components for a client trike and it worked to their advantage. Their trike didn't wander and it handled very well.

I've got a 03 GL1800 CSC with a 4.5 deg rake. Would love to get another tree with more rake. Any ideas which other manafacturer's tree would fit? Thks

 

[Papa Zook]

I've got a 03 GL1800 CSC with a 4.5 deg rake. Would love to get another tree with more rake. Any ideas which other manafacturer's tree would fit? Thks

Any manufacturers GL1800 rake kit will fit any GL1800 but Id stick with the 4.5 if I were you. Dont think the slight difference would justify the expense. JMHO

 

[skuuter]

Any manufacturers GL1800 rake kit will fit any GL1800 but Id stick

with the 4.5 if I were you. JMHO

"DITTO" here.....I've ridden several Friend's Gold Wing Trikes now with 4.5 to 6 degree rakes, and my own that was stock, then 4.5 degrees. 4.5 degrees seems to give me what I need for twisties, and stable Interstate cruising. The other kits with more rake seem to lose the high speed cruising stability. Doing some quick plumb bob checking, the culprit seems to be the Trail. My Bike measures 2.25 inches of Trail.....I really like it...:wtg: