Appeal No. 96-0324 Application 08/045,747 by heating it with a torch, and then send it out to be plated. The result is an unsafe fork that may collapse, a bicycle frame that is lowered to the point that the pedals may hit the ground, and a high price when the cost of bending and plating is included. Appellant's improvement over the prior art springer fork is set forth and briefly explained in the specification at page 4, line 29 through page 5, line 14, as follows: In accordance with the present invention, the low rider springer fork is made by bending a 26 inch fork to make a 20 inch curved fork. The bending is done cold, that is, without heating the fork and without damaging the chrome plating. The fork is bent into a smooth curve having about a six inch bending radius. The bend is slightly less than a ninety degree bend, and is in the range of about 70 degrees to about 80 degrees. Struts that are normally a part of the springer fork are shortened to accommodate the change from a 26 inch fork to a 20 inch curved fork. This bend gives the appearance of a low rider without bringing the pedals closer to the ground. No re-chroming is necessary, and there is no buckling of metal. The low rider springer fork is used with a standard 20 inch wheel and a standard 20 inch fender. A threaded fastener is affixed to the bottom of the steer tube for fastening the fender. A long screw may be passed through a hole in the fender and into the threaded fastener in the bottom of the steer 3Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 NextLast modified: November 3, 2007