Did you see these other Classic features?
with Japanese four-cylinder motors. I think
it is fair to conclude that Europeans had
been building suspension units since early
in the 20th century and had become very
accomplished at it. The revitalised Japanese
industry, shattered by the Second World
War, had the opportunity to start a new and
revitalised motorcycle industry, and they
began with innovative and extremely effective
engines, but in many cases their suspension,
and hence handling, was suspect. They did, of
course, catch up with the Europeans eventually.
Front suspension was used by most
manufacturers before the First World War;
notably the Belgian made FN4 of 1906, one
of the first with telescopic forks, albeit with
a rigid rear end. The American-made Pope
v-twin had leaf spring suspension at the front
and plunger at the rear in 1914. As machines
became more powerful and faster after the
war, handling and better suspension became
a priority. The Brough Superior SS100 of 1925,
which was capable of a genuine 160km/h,
had girder forks at the front and twin springs
at the rear. The ground breaking Triumph
Speed twin of 1938, however, still had a rigid
rear end, with girder forks at the front. This
was the model that would pave the way for
the Golden Age of British vertical twins that
followed the Second World War. The plunger
type suspension was the most common
rear end after World War Two; this meant
the vertical movement of the rear axle
was controlled by plungers suspended by
springs. This meant springing and damping
in both compression and rebound.
The 1950s and 60s saw an almost total shift
EUROPEAN TWINS
BRITISH TWINS
Belgian FN 4 1912
Rensport Earls-type front fork
to telescopic front forks and twin shocks
at the rear. When in 1977 Bimota produced
the SB2, the first mono-shock for the rear
end on a production road motorcycle, the
scene was set for almost universal use of
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