Video: Riding 'The Mother Forker' - a Homemade Bike With a Fork for a Rear Shock

Oct 7, 2019
by Logan Nelson  
Views: 61,026    Faves: 150    Comments: 20


Bike & Riding by Nick Ryser
Video by Logan Nelson
Music by Vulfpeck


Regions in Article
Bellingham

Posted In:
Videos


Author Info:
loganpnelson avatar

Member since Jul 8, 2017
1 articles

145 Comments
  • 384 6
 Sorry to dampen your spirits, but this design doesn't have a leg to stanchion.
  • 43 21
 This comment deserves to be stored in the Pinkbike Hall of Fame!
  • 11 26
flag lehott (Oct 7, 2019 at 22:27) (Below Threshold)
 Oh put a fork in it! The leg to stanchion is solid because It's single crowned, no need to rebound off conclusions
  • 7 6
 These puns are shocking.
  • 55 0
 Oh man i wish there was more of this type of thing on Pinkbike.
  • 12 0
 Plus 1 I've always wanted to see two ccdb's used as stanchions to make a fork.
  • 1 0
 Glad you enjoyed! We will try to make more haha
  • 55 4
 Definitely not his crowning achievement...
  • 3 11
flag sspiff (Oct 7, 2019 at 19:52) (Below Threshold)
 You're the MVP!!
  • 10 1
 He clearly found his arch rival...
  • 3 1
 Happy congratulations!
  • 28 0
 Reminds me of the old Manitou bike. That thing was sick AF. -> www.vintagemtbworkshop.com/uploads/1/6/1/3/16132778/1598191_orig.jpg
  • 5 2
 funny that current enduro seat tube angles are approaching ancient head tube angles
  • 20 0
 Had that fork. The aluminum crown split on both sides of the head tube while I had a case of beer in my hands. 2 beers survived...
  • 4 0
 Owned a 1995 Manitou FS-DH Frame... a massive 3.25 inches of rear travel. Finally retired because of three cracks growing down the head tube.

yoda.densan.ca/kmr/bikes/fsdh1.jpg
  • 4 0
 @deeeight: Holy long stem Batman! I'm just remembering how much I wanted one of those when they first appeared.
  • 3 0
 @dans160: me too. We had one in the shop I worked at with all the milled out yokes on the back. Eventually someone bought it when it had been sitting there for about three years and I remember the back suspension barely moved. It was terrible. And then Marin licenced the design, and the Marins were even worse than the Manitou. It may have had 3"+ travel on paper, but in realz it was more like 1.25".
  • 1 0
 I wanted one of those so bad! Very satisfying to my OCD to have the same damper on both ends of the bike...
  • 4 0
 @jaame: I had the Marin. Took out the elastomers, jammed some Speed Springs in there, shaved down the top and bottom out elastomers, got those three inches! Tire would buzz on the big hits, and topped out with a clunk! It was a pogo stick but I loved it. When you don't know any better...
  • 1 0
 @Olimac: that's true. I had a Rockshox Quadra 21R and to make it a bit more active I used to use my dad's motor oil in the tops of the legs. That was when elastomer rockshox had the boots and no dust seals. You could pull the boots up and look into the sliders, and literally pour oil on the tops of the bushings. It would top out like a Barrett .50 but I loved that fork! And like you say, when you're a young lad it's all good!
  • 1 0
 @telephunke: Approaching? They zipped past those numbers years ago.
  • 1 0
 @jaame: Not The Sensible Bike Company in Liss was it ?
  • 1 0
 Aire Valley Cycles (now closed)
  • 27 0
 After that awesome video, we need a Frankenbike competition on this site.
  • 33 0
 I’m way more interested in an official frankenbike rainbow jersey than an ebike rainbow jersey.
  • 1 0
 I'm into this idea
  • 17 0
 This guy has my vote for first place Saturday night. Not enough air, I guess. Air sells videos.
  • 1 0
 I voted for it as well! Great quality and content.
  • 2 0
 This video should have won for sure. It’s too bad the voting was kind of a popularity contest because this was definitely the winner.
  • 1 0
 @bobbybottleservice: Thank you dude, really appreciate it! Yep I've been pretty frustrated with the event the past few years because of this exact reason.
  • 1 0
 @gerrycreighton: Thanks, really appreciate it! Too bad the event works the way it does. This years winner was super sick though, I will say.
  • 1 0
 Aw dude, thanks! Really appreciate it.
  • 17 0
 That Honda Pilot looks pretty sick with the lift and tires
  • 17 0
 He retrofit Manitou Dorado legs on all 4 corners.
  • 1 0
 Anyone know what wheels and tires are on it? It's hard to tell from the clip
  • 1 0
 @gregpickhardt: Thanks! The Pilot has 16x9 Pro-comp steel rock crawler wheels, with Pathfinder AT 245/75-16 tires. It has a 2” lift kit as well. ????
  • 15 0
 This video is hella Vulfpeck, even down to the font!
  • 3 0
 hellll yes
  • 9 0
 I'm so bummed the address of the Kona shop wasn't 1612. It was sooooo close!
  • 2 0
 Joe Dart. All day long. Weird but awesome when bass and bike worlds collide.
  • 11 0
 Impressive -- both the design, itself, and the fact that you survived. With that said, I want to point out that the arch would have never snapped if you had used a Lefty. Note that while this design tip IS patented, I'm very reasonable with my licensing fees.
  • 2 0
 a shiver SC also would not have failed in such a way
  • 11 0
 we're all laughing now, while bike companies are secretly developing the next trend......
  • 13 0
 It's not flex, it's tune-able drift threshold.
  • 11 0
 Is this a meta ad for Kona?
  • 4 1
 He definitely got a 6K bike for free this way, so it did work out Wink
  • 3 0
 Depends how subdued your excitement is.
  • 8 0
 The next model is longer and slacker. 15 percent smoother performance. Suspension has been optimised to climb like a three legged goat and decend like the carts of darkness.
  • 7 0
 That might be the most entertaining bike video I’ve seen this year! Made me feel like I was 15 again...
  • 1 0
 Heck yes, glas you enjoyed. I felt like I was 15 while shooting and editing it! So fun and ridiculous
  • 6 0
 This video embodies why I got in to riding. Not for the latest carbon whatever. but to get out on the trails & have a laugh with your mates.
  • 1 0
 100% yesss
  • 8 0
 Only in Bellingham
  • 1 0
 U kno it
  • 4 1
 Bravo! Ahead of the game! I’m suspended in disbelief! May I digressive rebound to say, your compactionate commitment to the progressionitive advancement of the sport has dampened my skepticism. Truly, there’s substanchionative evidence that alternative medicinal engineericalogical measures proved to be successful in your study.
  • 8 0
 Overforked bike
  • 4 0
 "You made that yourself?" Nup. Found it on Pinkbike BuySell. Only six previous owners. That's a load-bearing sticker right there, so don't touch it because I don't want to ruin the warranty.
  • 7 1
 the welcome mat drag is pure gold
  • 1 0
 yessss
  • 4 1
 Don't like the name, but sorta sad they broke it, that was a fun idea. Big Grin
P.S. Would've bet money he couldn't manual it, but I was proven wrong. Still looks like a single seat tandem bike. lol
  • 5 0
 I was at Galbraith that day. Didn't think that bike would last long.
  • 2 0
 We got two shots before it broke, then did the rest with the crown broken haha
  • 4 0
 Yes the bike was cool, but the most impressive part of this was the Honda Pilot that looked dare I say... kinda rad
  • 4 1
 Should have used a dual crown fork like an old jr or super t would have been boss make a dh version I will personally test it for you...
  • 1 0
 That was brilliant! I think this idea has huge potential because at first it looked like it was working flawlessly! A little more design tuning for more lateral support and boom!!! But I know it was meant to be a joke! RideOn!!
  • 2 0
 I think he made the back end light on purpose so it would let go and add to the story.
  • 1 0
 Nice work, shame did broke But, For anyone out there that never rode manitou fs that used a similar idea, problem with twin fork frame designs that on compression suspension kicks back end too the side You can actually see it happening before it broke
  • 1 0
 awesome video. one thing i noticed is that one of the forks arches was cut off. Magura forks like the durin ran 2 arches so with one removed it was much more likely to fail. I guess it was removed for clearance reasons?. Fun vid though and looked a good laugh.
  • 1 0
 Yep it was removed for clearance issues
  • 4 0
 Wow. Humans are awesome.. thanks that made me laugh!!!
  • 1 0
 Glad you enjoyed!
  • 2 0
 The video would have ended perfectly if at the end he took it to the bike shop service manager to fix. Get the real reactions from the employees. Have to do a redo.
  • 3 0
 Now this is some quality bike entertainment!
  • 1 0
 missed the trend here with offset this and offset that ... if you used a lefty instead the arch would never have broken ... Razz

cool vid BTW
  • 3 0
 This was my favorite video from "Shoot the trails", this year.
  • 1 0
 Glad you enjoyed! Too bad we didn't have the wheels off the ground enough to win
  • 1 0
 That's some sketch af frame building. That said, this was done waaaaay back in the day on the Answer Manitou 4 full suspension MTB.
  • 2 0
 That WAS a "cutting edge" FS bike by Answer/Manitou back in the day. More or less.....
  • 3 0
 â€śDo you guys take trade-ins?”
  • 3 0
 Looks like it still rides better then my trek with re aktiv
  • 1 0
 Also... Real talk.... That first scene... That's how I feel when I look at the price tag of most bikes.
  • 1 0
 This guy! So good. Also not surprised he broke it since I've seen him keep pushing after a flat destroying his rim at a race. Not too nice to bikes!
  • 1 0
 Yes Nick is nuts!
  • 1 0
 The idea kinda reminds me of the old Balance FS Pro 750 from the mid 90's. Smile
  • 2 0
 Should've put a rear shock on the front while he was at it.
  • 1 1
 Harley Davidson used to make dirt bikes back in the day. They had one with forks as rear shocks. Funky looking as hell, handled like shit.
  • 1 0
 Hahaha, over that sketchy wet wooden bridge. Tight! Great video, love this.
  • 2 0
 Glad you enjoyed! Yes it was so sketch in the wet
  • 2 0
 Dude the shady and the vulfpeck are awesome together
  • 2 0
 Loved every minute of this! Thank you for posting.
  • 1 0
 Glad you enjoyed!
  • 2 0
 Next time put a linkage fork up front
  • 3 5
 Balks at the price of the bike yet shows a short clip of solidworks! A seat for a year costs way more than that bike unless you are a student and hopefully you got your mileage in by redesigning that fork arch. Buying the Kona was a good call as modern bikes are really well designed. Cool video and idea to use a fork in the rear.
  • 1 0
 I was really hoping that he was going back into the store to ask for a warranty...
  • 2 0
 He wants to build a frame, but he can't true a wheel.
  • 2 0
 I'm all about the Process!!!
  • 1 0
 Dropping in on that wet woodwork , madman!
  • 1 1
 This must be where Canondale got the idea to make a bike with two rear coils.
  • 1 0
 Have you never seen Cannondale's mid-90s downhill bikes ?
  • 1 0
 Do you even flex, bro? :50 seconds
  • 1 0
 I see the problem. He's driving a lifted Honda Pilot.
  • 1 0
 Save the headache!

www.pinkbike.com/buysell/2655147

hahaha!
  • 1 0
 A semi-open-damper fork to be put horizontally? ????
  • 1 0
 His face when he looks at the price tag hahaha love it.
  • 1 0
 You should see the Kona customer faces when they call and try to get a frame warranty if you think the sticker shock was bad.
  • 1 0
 when you hit a few to many dabs.....
  • 3 1
 Forking awesome
  • 2 1
 A fork only a mother could love...
  • 1 0
 0:50, that's some flex..... or you need to check you ruler calibration!
  • 1 0
 Manitou did this back in the '90's. I wanted that frame so bad back then.
  • 1 0
 As did Miyata, Crestone Peak, Balance, Marin, Merlin and a few others. The way this one was done, snapping the sliders or stanchions was inevitable.
  • 1 0
 I was lucky enough to test ride one of these bikes. I brought it back and it was leaking oil from both sides of the fork seals. Manitou was so impressed they hooked me up with a Shawn Palmer titanium Edition fork for my Super V. I was 135 lb and destroyed their ride.
  • 3 1
 This was so not #oncoil.
  • 1 0
 I liked it. It was sad at the end when he gave up.
  • 1 0
 Glad you enjoyed!
  • 1 0
 awesome video - hope you have a chance to do more - talent !
  • 1 0
 Thanks! We hope to make more!
  • 1 0
 That's a serious amount of rear wheel steering!
  • 1 0
 New meaning to the phrase "stick a fork in it and shut up"
  • 1 0
 F*** you bike industry this guy right here for president
  • 4 3
 This is forking rad!
  • 4 2
 what the fork was he thinking
  • 2 1
 Fork me
  • 2 1
 Fork you!
  • 2 1
 go fork yourself
  • 1 0
 That was awesome
  • 1 0
 time for a dual crown?
  • 2 1
 Needs more manitou
  • 3 2
 I'm on the toilet now...I can save it for you and not flush...
  • 1 0
 Hilarious on all levels
  • 1 0
 Try it with a Shiver SC.
  • 1 0
 Anti-squat for what?!
  • 1 1
 While This is Motherforker, So You Must Be Son of A Bitch Bruh.
  • 1 1
 HELLA SKETCHHH
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