I picked up a set of SE LANDINGING GEAR forks for a cruiser that I am bulding. Why does everyone like LANDING GEEARS so much?

If you dont know you will never understand...

Just got a pair with a PK I bought.
They seem pretty diesel.

They're strong and they look cool. That's why I like them.

After the front wheel flew off my PK Ripper while I was in the air hitting the sidewalk fork first no bends or crack I became a believer.

When I was a kid I thought the name alone was so cool and I really liked the beefy look they had.

Still do!

I like the beefy look of the legs. Strong as anything and just a must have on an SE.

Back in the 80's the leg tube diameter was so much larger than anything else they just totally stood out in a crowd. The style is a 3 demensional interpetation of the slantline forks offered by race inc and cycle pro at that time, is also very unique. For a frame company to name their forks was and is highly creative. Think of it, what did GT, Torker, Red Line, Hutch and Diamond Back Call their forks? Finally the workmanship and finish was and is jewel like. The old man was telling the truth when he advertised; "se racing, bmx innovation".

Mx Mug

Everything else is just a fork

I would like to know who thought up the name (OM?)and how it came about?

I understand the nostalgic value of the SE landing gear. But seriously... they are tanks, and I saw my friend's older brother fold a pair in half coming down from a table top when we were kids. They are beefy, they do look cool and they are NEARLY indestructable but... c'mon, SE should make a lighter weight race model. I would prefer an older tange fork personaly. I have a new white 24" landing gear fork that I don't know what to do with. it probably weighs about...mmm...320 pounds! lol...Anyone interested?
Alright... go ahead and bash me.

I don't see the hype on the originals, the dropouts were paper thin and folded up at the sight of a real jump. Yes they looked sweet but not very strong.

the om set the jumping distance record on a om flyer equiped with landing gear. It may have had something to do with that. Does anyone know the actual weight of 20 and 24" landing gear?

Dude, I like you very much and I predict you will end up a moderator.

How do you like that?

Stay cool, I like reading your posts.

-Richard

SE DID make LG lites.

I had a set on my '82 Quad.

They took ALL the abuse I could give them. I actually cracked the frame and broke a pair of Vector bars before the forks gave out.

After I sold the F/F to a good friend, HE finally cracked one of the dropouts. But he beat the heck out of that bike!

OM = OLD MAN, Scot was the first Old Man (rider/racer) of BMX

They were the first oversized fork so they were always the best option for replacement forks. Also, the offset was smaller than most so it made your bike feel lively, even if you were on a CW!

If there threadless, I'm interested.

Mx Mug

the best most used bmx fork of all time...thats the fact...

Can anyone say bologna cuts... and who didn't like bologna as a kid???

For a rider, there was no better fork. For a racer, I wouldn't put them on my PK. I raced my PK with Skyway TA forks. The logic was simple there.... they were the lightest full size fork for the lightest full size frame.

To this day, they are still the coolest looking fork IMO even on my kids 16" lil ripper.

I would use the LG Lites On A racer They are just as lite as a Skyway but Skyway had a history of breaking also.

Probably because they don't know how cool Bottema forks are....

Action Now Magazine ~1980/1










Admittedly the Black Landing Gear forks I took off the 97 Quad did look pretty cool , but that old photo of the Quadangle doing trails riding BITD , is a classic inspirational picture.

JB

MX MUG for me says it all above.

LG's were unique - the separate naming based on aircraft technology - how intelligent is that? It's Genius. The look, the diameter, the Army Stencil Logos etc.

The only down side to the first gen forks was the dropout thickness which was about 1.5mm - ridiculous.

I started with a set of LG Lites and cracked them at the leg junction with the steerer, had them repaired by a friends father who was a welding wizard, sold them on and finished with a set of full LG's.

Never once had a problem.

As far as dropout thicknesses go up to the mid 80's most manufacturers I was aware of were all using what looked like paper thin stamped dropouts. You could fatigue and break off anyones dropouts by hand if the wheels weren't in place.

Designers and manufacturers were still learning!

Landing Gear Were One Of The Best Looking Forks Available, Not Only That They Were Strong As Hell
I Never Bent Or Broke A Set, And I Was The Type That Would Do Extreme Jumping Back In The Day, IE. Flying Up & Down Hairpins, Massive Doubles, Triples, 360's, Tabletops ETC..
Also This Has Never Been Brought Up I Don't Think, The Steering Crown To The Early Landing Gear Fork Looks About The Same Thickness As The Famous Original Bottema Fork, I Own Both Bottema And Landing Gear And Appear Almost Identical.

The Landing Gear name is tied to Airplanes and also used in the trucking industry for trailer legs. The LG stencil, like said above was probably a military copy. LG are cool. I just loved the name of them. Wanna race fork, Use LG Lites.

I was just sitting in my kitchen, eating some leftover Chinese food and began to admire the LG's on my Assassin. They are as unique today as ever. Actually, I think too many of the forks today look like the same forks with different stickers. I have some Redline cruiser forks from 2003 that look just like some DK forks my brother ordered from J&R.