Non tear drop forks

TC · September 18th, 2015, 3:21 AM

I have a set of forks that don't have the tear drop reinforcements on the back has anyone heard of these?

mainlyfats · September 18th, 2015, 8:13 AM

AFAIK, those are the older ones. The extra bit was added because of a few failures.

I-ROBOT · September 18th, 2015, 1:23 PM

That is correct. We added the tear-drop sections of tube after doing fatigue testing. I think there were a couple of early failures revealed by some of the heavier guys who liked to get some air while riding.

The added benefit of torch brazing the tear drops was that the heat from brazing helped to stress-relieve the welds that joined the short tubes of the crown to the fork leg tubes which were subjected to the highest level of stress on the fork.

We never did any metallurgical study to confirm this, but failures were drastically reduced. This also gave Chris the confidence to produce the Big One Inch fork which is now prized by collectors.

Wish I was smart enough to have built one for myself - oh well

I'm really not sure how many Yo forks were made that don't have the tear drops. We didn't keep good numbers on forks and none of them were serialized as far as I know. I pushed for it, but it never happened (at least in Somerville).

Good luck and keep a close eye on the back side of your fork where the short crown tube is welded to the fork tube. The most likely spot for a crack to develop will be right next to the weld in the fork tube.

Regards
Scott

TC · September 18th, 2015, 1:50 PM

Cheers Scott at my age & fitness level I won't be getting too much air

If I show you the welds on my yo & my wicked are you able to tell if you welded them? And I haven't looked for ages but would you have signed my sales card?

September 18th, 2015, 3:21 AM	#1
TC Member Join Date: July 8th, 2011 Location: StoneHenge Posts: 62	Non tear drop forks I have a set of forks that don't have the tear drop reinforcements on the back has anyone heard of these?

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September 18th, 2015, 8:13 AM	#2
mainlyfats Senior Member Join Date: August 13th, 2004 Location: Winnipeg Posts: 703	AFAIK, those are the older ones. The extra bit was added because of a few failures.

September 18th, 2015, 1:23 PM	#3
I-ROBOT Senior Member Join Date: January 7th, 2007 Location: Hudson, MA Posts: 369	That is correct. We added the tear-drop sections of tube after doing fatigue testing. I think there were a couple of early failures revealed by some of the heavier guys who liked to get some air while riding. The added benefit of torch brazing the tear drops was that the heat from brazing helped to stress-relieve the welds that joined the short tubes of the crown to the fork leg tubes which were subjected to the highest level of stress on the fork. We never did any metallurgical study to confirm this, but failures were drastically reduced. This also gave Chris the confidence to produce the Big One Inch fork which is now prized by collectors. Wish I was smart enough to have built one for myself - oh well I'm really not sure how many Yo forks were made that don't have the tear drops. We didn't keep good numbers on forks and none of them were serialized as far as I know. I pushed for it, but it never happened (at least in Somerville). Good luck and keep a close eye on the back side of your fork where the short crown tube is welded to the fork tube. The most likely spot for a crack to develop will be right next to the weld in the fork tube. Regards Scott

September 18th, 2015, 1:50 PM	#4
TC Member Join Date: July 8th, 2011 Location: StoneHenge Posts: 62	Cheers Scott at my age & fitness level I won't be getting too much air If I show you the welds on my yo & my wicked are you able to tell if you welded them? And I haven't looked for ages but would you have signed my sales card?

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