Tri Glide---Rake?

[tndragonrider]

A close friend of mine purchased a new Tri Glide last year. Since getting into the trike conversion of my Goldwing, I asked him tonight if his trike was raked from the factory. He said, "No." But he then said that H-D has a solution that raises the back end of the trike, supplying more weight to the front, therefore making it easier to steer. Well as I thought more about this, it didn't logically make sense to me. The only thing that I am thinking is that since H-D is building these from the ground up now, then they already provide the proper trike rake during construction of the frame.

So is there such a thing that raises the back end? And does this make it easier to steer? Without the addition of rake kit.

 

[DK Custom Products]

A close friend of mine purchased a new Tri Glide last year. Since getting into the trike conversion of my Goldwing, I asked him tonight if his trike was raked from the factory. He said, "No." But he then said that H-D has a solution that raises the back end of the trike, supplying more weight to the front, therefore making it easier to steer. Well as I thought more about this, it didn't logically make sense to me. The only thing that I am thinking is that since H-D is building these from the ground up now, then they already provide the proper trike rake during construction of the frame.

So is there such a thing that raises the back end? And does this make it easier to steer? Without the addition of rake kit.

Tri-Glides have a rake of about 3 degrees over their 2 wheeled cousins...from the factory.

All that said, there are aftermarket rake kits for Tri-Glides and Freewheelers. They can be had from Randy (Bazooka), the owner/admin of this forum. They make the steering even easier.

I am getting one from him next month to install on my own Tri-Glide.

Kevin

 

[520fd]

Harley? Trike? Are you kidding.

I mistakenly bought a 2011 Tri-Glide. First thing, Harley doesn't know how to build a trike. No Independent Suspension. No EZ Steer. Steering was tough. Granted, I'm a good size guy, with above average strength. When I get finished with a ride. I was literally worn out. If one wheel hits a pot hole or a good size bump. The whole bike shakes. Not very comfortable. Granted also I usually ride anywhere from 250 to 350 miles on a day ride. Maybe that's what's wearing me out?? I no longer have the Harley trike. If I ever to buy a Harley again. I will trike it properly with an after market kit. I've had 14 or 15 Harley's over the years, so I love my Harley's. Just saying.

 

[tfdeputydawg]

Tri-Glides have a rake of about 3 degrees over their 2 wheeled cousins...from the factory.
Kevin

So what does that make the rake degree?
Interested only because my feeble brain thought it read the rake on the TriGlide frame is 5degrees:Shrug:
Thought I read that when the Tris were first introduced.

 

[Papa Zook]

The stock rake on the TriGlide is 3 degrees. The optimum rake for a Tri-Glide is 9 degrees.

 

[pcombe]

The stock rake on the TriGlide is 3 degrees. The optimum rake is 5 degrees.

I like the +5 / 9degree rake kit I got from you Zook, My steering is light and VERY quick, much more so than the Tri-glide. My old tour glide had a natural 4 degree rake and so end up with an overall 9 degree of rake. I have no need for a steering stabilizer.

My tri-glide friends find it so much more responsive, and they have to really get used to it.
I on the other hand find the Tri-glide a bit sluggish in steering.

My friend with a Goldwing conversion found it disconcerting and was a bit scared by it at first. I found his trike to be a hard effort to steer. More so than the Tri-glide. Perhaps the longer wheelbase had something to do with it, but I can't say for sure on that point? It was a smooth ride.

 

[clint44]

I like the +5/9 degree rake kit Zook installed on our trike. Its steering is light and quick but is not twitchy at higher speeds. No steering damper needed,either.

 

[BOXX3R]

While at the local Harley dealership I got to talking with another Trike owner who enthusiastically suggested I might want to consider a Rake Kit for my 2015 Tri Glide. Which I believe is basically a new set of triple trees with more rake than stock to make the steering easier.

Now, I already have the DK Comfort lift which lifts the rear end up about 1 1/2" and makes the ride more comfortable. But I got to thinking after reading this thread, and I could be wrong so please school me if I am.....but if the DK kit lifts the rear end which pivots off the front wheel, wouldn't it technically decrease the rake slightly?

If this is the case, I suppose that Trikes would benefit from both a DK lift kit AND an increase in rake.

 

[pcombe]

I am mechanically capable, but if I did choose to change the trees I would prefer it being done, and done right, by professionals. I assume he suggested Champion because that is where he has his done, and they are a local shop.

You would assume wrong my friend, Randy a/k/a Papa Zook sells a major quality raked triple tree for half the cost of others.

I should know.



These are high quality +5 degree raked triple trees that I installed myself. They had easy to understand instructions and if you can read and are some handy with tools you can do the job yourself. The instructions include all the torque values on screws and fasteners and I suggest you pay attention to them. Otherwise its Pretty hard to screw the installation of these trees up!

The forks screw into the upper tree hand tight ( throw away your pipe wrench) and eliminates the need to assure evenness in an upper triple tree pinch clamp that are standard on Harleys. They come with a 2" fork extension that screws into the top of the forks and upper tree. They also include high quality neoprene bushings for the the handle bar mounts.

The bottom trees are a pinch type set up, easy to use. The very bottom of the shaft has a 3/8" ratchet hole to set the bearing pre- load and also accommodates the brake line mounting screw.

The top nut is easily torqued and locked with a bendable tab, There is nothing cheap about these polished finish trees, They would look good even exposed to the eye.
They are pre drilled to accept the lower air deflector and come with mounting hardware to accept all fairing mounts, in other words it is a complete set up. If you have air assist on your front end be sure to order the air kit fittings they are sold separate.

Mine is old enough to still have the anti dive system and I was able to adapt and utilize the system. Most trike builders eliminate the anti dive as a matter of ( I don't know? Laziness?) There is an advantage to doing something yourself.



for pics of my build google pcombe library/photobucket

Click on the pictures and I will give some real good info on how to do things like remove the bottom bearing race etc.
As always I recommend you have the motor manual on hand for reference.



I would recommend these trees to anyone at any time and feel real confident I did you a favor.

 

[clint44]

Yep, lots of the top custom shops use Papa Zook's trees on their builds. For sure, it is hard to beat Papa Zook's prices.

 

[14TG]

The Harley TriGlide trikes (2009 & newer) have 3 degrees more rake than a 2 wheeled touring bike.
(I believe a touring bike has 26 degrees of rake), so yes, overall the Tri Glide has approx 29-30 degrees of “overall” rake.

The triple tree kit mentioned in the posts above (it is an older thread from 2016 that you replied to) has GREAT information and I highly recommend you to reach out to @Papa Zook if you’re interested in getting a new rake kit ….or just click here on his website to get yours: Papa Zook's RAKE KITS

There are many other “rake kit” threads on here and you may want to check those out as well.

In actuality it is called a 9 degree triple tree rake kit, but in actuality it’s +5 degrees more than the “common denominator” of the 2 wheeled bikes, hence advertised a 9 degree kit.

I will say that I really liked my 2014 Tri Glide in stock form as well & researched more about this rake kit. (And improved/upgraded many areas the HDMoCo also fell short on).

I am 59 years old and had many Harley’s before buying my trike. Honestly, I didn’t need one as I’m a pretty big, and physically fit guy. The wife and I wanted to tour more & just decided to look into them as they are great benefits of owning a trike. (I also told her, I’m going to add another “horse to the stable” as I know I’m going to miss 2 wheels & the “lean”). So I bought my trike.

While I was customizing and upgrading, is when I finally decided to add this rake kit.

The ONLY mistake I made was Not doing it sooner!!! Yes, it is that good!

It is amazing how much better this steers, rides and so much MORE a pleasure to ride, that I told the wife there is no need to even add another bike in my line up!

Adding this rake kit to my Tri Glide took it to a whole new level of awesomeness!!

It is such a pleasure to ride & it feels like it has power steering.

Benefits:

• Easier steering: Rake kits make it much easier to turn the handlebars, especially at low speeds.
• Reduced rider fatigue: Less effort is needed to steer, leading to more comfortable and longer rides.
• Improved handling: While making steering easier, rake kits can also improve the overall handling of the trike.

I did install a ProAction front fork kit while I had it apart because it was the perfect time to upgrade those over stock.

Adding a rear lift kit & shocks is also beneficial, so most on here (including myself) would recommend to definitely add those - as you have mentioned on doing first.

Raising the back up a little with a lift, I’m sure has a mathematical change, but honestly, a before and after adding a rake kit can only be measured on how big the smile is on the face when you ride it after installing this rake kit!

I just had to do a video (basically it’s a review) last year just because how happy I am with adding this rake kit.
again… it IS really that good!!! - and I now consider it to be in my top 3 things I’ve done to my Tri Glide. (You will never see or read anywhere that someone was not happy with the results of adding this to their trike!)

(I now even get “more smiles per miles” with it!!)

Video link:

View: https://youtu.be/QzvyDuXawW4?si=LdDSPVLJe80-sr0i