Various parts of a bike are connected with each other by many joints from top to bottom. A close walk around shows us that without these joints, it would be impossible to bring and assemble all the different parts together. The purpose of these joints is not only to assemble the different parts but also to make them stay intact in their positions when the bike is moving. Triple clamp or triple tree or steering head, call it any of the three is also one the joints that is related to handling.

Triple clamp is basically a joint or a yoke that connects the frame of the bike to the front fork which is done in order to connect front wheel to the full body. The fixed fork of the telescopic suspension should rigidly remain in its fixed position in order to get a good sliding of the active fork.  Triple clamp keeps the fixed fork in place for a better function of the active fork. It is basically triangular in shape and has three holes. The location of the hole is such that two of them are situated at the extreme end of the clamp while the last remaining one is offset from the other two and nearly on a line that passes through the center of the extreme end holes. Also, it is smaller in diameter. Have a look at the pic and you will understand how one looks like.

It is angled forward to improve handling. There are so many terms that determines the handling like rake, trail and many more that I have already discussed in my earlier blog. If you are willing to access that particular article and just visit this link(paste link here). The two end holes are provided to fit the two arms of the front suspension. The offset middle hole with the smaller in diameter is given to fit handlebar stem from the top and frame from the bottom. There is a set yokes which comprises of upper yoke connected to lower yoke. The bottom yoke is often thicker in size for a better holding capability of the fork tube to make the whole unit very rigid. The thickness is often finalized on the basis of rider’s feedback and rider height in racing. This creates the steering axis where the steering stem runs down through the frame down to the wheel hub. A typical kind of attachment is shown in the pic below.

Without a proper steering head, a motorcycle would not respond as expected by the rider. This is because a bike simply does not move in a straight line but needs to be maneuvered left or right depending on the construction of the road or circuit. A bike not only should move left or right but also this mentioned movement should be smooth and effortless. A successful turn is also a result of the degree of leaning i.e. how much a rider is leaning his bike in order to take a turn. Even if the bike is fitted with the best forks but with a worst steering head bearing then the bike would still feel like a junk. Bearing plays a very crucial role in the smooth turning. The order is simple where you place your hands on either side of the handle bar and apply pressure on it to initiate turning action. This pressure is transferred to the yoke or triple clamp. Triple clamp pivots the forks around this clamp. The bearing location is also shown in the above photo. This is why the offset is provided in the triple clamp. The degree of offset depends on the purpose of the bike made for. For a rough idea, if the offset is more then it results in reduced trail and vice-versa. The offset is adjusted by few millimeters for a better feel, stability and cornering. Sportsbike has lesser trail than a cruiser bike and so both have their own benefits depending on the purpose of the two types of bikes. The offset of the three holes makes the overall shape of the clamp look like a “V”. The whole structure is made up of metal and generally white in colour. The top of the handlebar is mounted to the handlebar. The steering head or clamp holds the chassis in place via a lock nut. This is how clamp acts as a joint in between the wheel and body of the bike. Sometimes the thud sound that you hear when your bike is going over an unpaved surface or simply on a bump is the sign that the bike is facing a loose triple clamp problem which needs to be attained asap in order to avoid landing into a situation kind of dangerous.

Split type triple clamp

Split triple is similar to a conventional clamp with just one part that differs in design which is the bottom yoke that has a split design instead of a full single design. When the suspension is active during a ride on a rough road, it moves up and down linearly. This movement induces stress in the yoke especially the lower yoke which is closer to this moving junction region. Lower yoke goes though a lot of torturing that is given by the fork arms. Full solid bottom yoke due to its design may get damage as the fork always is under some twisting that we cannot see through our naked eyes but it surely exists. This is where split triple clamp was introduced in the automobile world. The stress that the lower yoke goes through gets distributed in to the split clamping area making it stronger than before. I have provided a photo of split type triple clamp for a better idea to understand. This reduces the risk of lower yoke from getting damaged due to the same reason mentioned earlier. Due to less amount of material used to construct the part, split triple clamp is lighter than the conventional one. Split provided on the lower yoke also provides a better hold or fixation of the fork arms and allows for a better function of the forks. Many tests performed by the factory racing teams revealed that a split triple clamp resists the forks from getting twisted under severe situations like a crash or an accident. The split gives a smooth sliding action of the forks which we cannot get in other case. It has proved to be a better option for better handling and feel. In order to make the clamping more efficient, experts have relocated the bolt position from same side to either side of the split clamp region. Anything that you think needs to be added, just mention it in down below. Thank you!!

by AutoVogue