Could someone explain USD forks to me?

[andtheacademics]

Great thread guys! I've been considering saving up for some USD forks on my bike - whole front ends can be had on ebay as low as $500 (forks, trees, calipers, brake lines, clip ons, grips, levers, cables & switches)... not entirely sure what the compatibility issues are with installation on an older bike though.. Might have to find a cafe forum for that.

As for the frame feedback discussion this topic reminds me a lot of cycling, I used to (co-)run the on campus bike shop at my college and ended up nerding my way into a lot of classic exotic parts - and though it's not competitive today MANY bicycle riders prefer steel frames. They just seem to offer the correct balance of rigidity for confidence and handling, with flex for comfort and response.

In the 1980's when many "exotic" road bicycles were comprised of aluminum frames, seat posts stems and handle bars - lots of riders were complaining about how unforgivingly stiff their super lightweight expensive rides were. Carbon fiber has now become the go-to medium. Interesting that those same material tendencies could translate to motorcycles!

[80GS1000]

I'll throw in my $.02 if I may.

Having ridden my GS1000 in both stock trim and modified with GSXR running gear, I'd have to say it's a completely different experience. In stock trim, it felt every bit of a performance '70s big bore motorcycle - torquey, fast in a straight line, crap brakes (single piston!), and wallowy but very neutral with great line holding in the corners.

I'd agree that the frame unlike today's ultra stiff frames the GS frame in stock form gave a lot of feedback when pushed. Another huge difference is tire tech - bias ply tires used to feel like they "skipped" over road imperfections when the bike was hauled over while radials suck up the bumps much better.

In its current form, my bike feels more like a modern sportbike than the 70s big bore bike than it started as. The frame has been extensively braced so it's much more "modern" feeling than it was originally. Also USD forks and a GSXR swingarm further reduce the flex so the bike is much more stable under hard cornering at speed. Is this better? I guess it comes down to which experience you prefer - the original handling experience of the bike or the more planted feeling of a modern bike.