Hey Ed,
I do agree with your point (& mentioned it in my original post). I think
one thing about the Indian design is that, although it cover about half the
wheel, it is rotated backwards, with the front open fairly high and the back
dropping very low. I suspect it acts as a scoop, and particularly in side
winds could contribute to instability. (Sure are pretty though.)
I too have heard those disc wheels badmouthed re crosswinds. They're pretty
heavy too. In my original post I also mentioned "open" wheels on bikes.
Mine will have the bottom half of the front wheel open, with no front brake,
that's about as much as I can do and still get good penetration.
Any bike that is aero slick is going to be sensitive to crosswinds. If you
look in plan form and think of the bike as a wing, a crosswind component
would be the same as increasing the angle of attack of the airfoil, which
would increase "lift" on the downwind side. Wind from the west, bike goes
east.
I guess everything's a tradeoff ... there will be times when I'll have to
wait for the wind to calm down and hope I don't encounter an unforeseen
gust.
Dale
Subject: RE: Tires
Dale;
The "new" Indians have the old-style fender, that covers
about
1/2 0f the sides as well. The "new" Indians are nortoriously
poor handlers at high speed & owners I have talked to blame
it
on the fender design. Indian , of course, denies the fender
design contributes to speed wobble or drift. If this sounds
familiar, owners of Harley Fat Boys have blamed the solid
mag
front wheel for their poor handling at high speed. Would
like
to hear comments/opinions from you bike guys on this.
ed
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