Although BMW was the first to introduce a hydraulically damped telescopic fork, in 1935, postwar they jumped quickly on Ernie Earles new fork. They kept the Earles fork till the end of the sixties, when they once again introduced this telescopic fork. Within a year or two, the Earles fork was gone for good.
Well, the Earles (w/adjustable trail) did have a following in the sidecar community. Did that option suddenly become un-economic?
ReplyDeleterdguy
They weren't so good for solo riding.
ReplyDeleteThe tube front end transformed the bike's whole vibe. I was only c. 17 when I saw an R69US, and to my eye it seemed a competent, even kind of dashing bike. Whereas the Earles-forked bikes resembled arthropods or something, some humble, bumbling scavenger of the forest floor. (Yes, I was a weird kid. So what?)