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Old 05-17-2015, 12:02 PM   #6 (permalink)
Angib
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Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: England
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I have had a couple of motorcycles with actual tail fins and their performance can be a bit of a shock.

First was a (stock) 1970s Quasar, a low production feet forward (British motorcycle phrase for recumbent) and the second was a modification of a Yamaha T-max 500cc superscooter that turned it into a feet forward, the ComforTmax. The third photo compares the two.

Tail fins like this make the bikes 'auto-stable' - when a cross wind blows, they run straight. But this is because the side force generated by the tail fin is counter-acted by the bike rolling towards the wind and they can roll pretty quickly, which can itself the disconcerting. The Quasar had the additional problem that while the bike rolled sharply into the wind and ran straight, the rider feels like they would be blown out the side of the bike, so it wasn't that comfortable in cross winds. But here I am talking about severe cross winds, where no other bikes will be seen being ridden.
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