I went all last season without my front fender and I don't mind any of the "negatives" of doing so. My question is, should I be running a fork brace for alignment/safety reasons? I didn't notice any problems or extra vibrations last year, but my dealer just mentioned I should rig up something so that the wheel doesn't go out of alignment. Is this just there way of covering their a*@ for liability purposes, or is it recommended to throw on some extra support for the wheel?

 

The front fender does very little to add support and keep things straight....Think about it. You can easily bend it with your hand....However, a fork brace will greatly improve handling and braking.

 

I made one for my bike. I think they look cool.

 

Is this the "fork brace" you are talking about? To me that looks more like a fender brace, than a fork brace?

 

no i was talking more of a fork brace that mounts between the fork tubes and not to the fender mounts. I was riding all last year with no problems, but the dealer said that the wheel would get out of alignment if you run it for long enough without a fender. I didn't think that was possible but I figured I would ask to be on the safe side. I'd prefer not to put a brace in there since I'm comfortable with the way it rides as is, but if it's a safety issue I'd like to address it in some way (fork brace).

 

Did he say how long it would take?

A fork brace wouldn't hurt, but depending on your riding habits, may not help enough that you'd notice. Like others have said, The fender mount isn't that strong and doesn't need to be.

 

With all the drainage channels carved in our freeways I opted to run a SuperBrace on my bike; it cured the "wigglies".

 

Your dealer is smokin crack, you don't need a brace unless you are some kind of canyon racer.
I mean look at that flimsy *** bracket Harley uses to hold the stock fender, that sure ain't a brace and there are 1000's of Harley's using that as a brace.
Don't sweat it, and just remember anything a Harley dealer tells you has and ulterior motive (you know trying to pry your wallet out of your pocket)!!

 

yea that's what i figured! It didn't make sense to me but I thought I'd get some other opinions anyways

thanks for the input!

 

As others here stated, fender provides NO bracing effect.

A fork brace is always a good idea, especially if you run single disc brake and tend to ride harder than 80 year old.

BUT.....you gotta be careful when you install it to not force the forks out of alignment or lock them into an already out of align position....

If the forks are already slightly out of alignment with each other, they will tend to bind when compressed instead of flexing like they do without the brace. This binding will cause your front shocks to not compress and rebound as quickly and fully as they should.

yes, install a brace, but take care to do it properly.