![girder front end for sportster girder front end for sportster](https://durfeegirder.com/uploads/6/5/7/2/65727545/edited/cg1-8781.jpeg)
Being a Certified Aircraft Welder, he was familiar with and believed in the value of testing. Now that Earl had updated the classic and proven girder designs it was time to see how his new model worked. The new design also added components for disk brakes so the end result was lighter, stronger, visually cleaner looking, and a more safe Girder that helped make the Durfee Girder the one to have and to ride. His redesign also included four hidden, internal adjusters, that could be firmed up for fast riding or adjusted back for a smoother ride. Since 1970’s motorcycles were larger, faster, heavier, and more powerful than the old models that had come before, Earl brought the materials and processes he had learned from his years in R&D and redesigned the girder to handle the bigger loads and higher speeds by using things like aircraft alloys and T.I.G. Some of the old girders had flaws from the limits of materials and processes available in the 1920’s, 30’s, and 40’s, but by 1968 things had changed and we where in the middle of the “space race”, with all the knowledge and new materials that brought.īut even with the flaws, the good, far outweighed the bad because there are so many great things about girders, some ahead of their time, which convinced him that this was the way to go if you were after a good looking, incredibly strong, light weight and smooth riding motorcycle suspension. The Metallurgy and welding processes fields in which he had studied, worked-in and knew, had supplied him with the knowledge and tools to bring the girder design up-to-date. (2.) Earl had spent the last 15 years working in the R&D labs for two well known aircraft and defense contractors, building by hand, the prototypes for the Polaris and Minute-Man missiles. Earl saw that “Road” and “Stress” tests on these old girders pointed out the strengths and weaknesses of the designs. (1.) By 1968 the popular girder design which was used by Indian Motorcycle Company and was the preferred front suspension design used by the majority of the European motorcycle makers had seen a lot of bad roads (or in some cases, no roads and even bomb craters, motorcycles were used extensively in both WW-1 & 2) and many, many years of hard use. You see the better part was easy for Earl because of two big factors. It all started back in 1968 when Earl Durfee picked up an old Indian Scout Girder and knew he could do better. Its a Triumph, and it handles fine.For more information contact Paul Durfee at or call 50. The springer I have on my long bike is extremely (like. Girders were always for guys who had balls that clank. but everything Ive ever read says Bad Things Mikey. the longer the legs, the easier it would be to do. Shortening your trail at minumum, potentially moving far enough forward to put you in negative trail. so hard compression of the suspension will move the axle vertically but also forward as the fixed legs come up and change angle. The trail doesnt change much under hard compression. keeping the axle moving basically vertically. My Bro and I had this discussion when he was looking at his girder. My CB chop with the long Paughco springer did too though. I got to ride a bike with a long girder 1 time.