I had a minor mishap and my 2022 gas gas txt 300 fell on its side. There seems to have been some torque between the wheel and bar as it tweaked the forks such that they were not perpendicular anymore. This also bent the front fender brace where it attaches to the forks. Is this pretty common or did I have something loose? Can I ride without that brace/bracket in place (no worries about no fender, thinking structurally)? Is that brace aluminum so that it is sacrificed instead of damaging the forks or can I replace it with a steel one?

Loosen everything and bring it back into alignment then torque everything back down, odds are there is less damage then you think. Bracket is important in that, you only have a spring in one fork leg, so the only thing keeping the spring side and dampening side lower fork legs moving in unison is the strength of the axle and that fender brace. Align and tighten the fender brace last.

Triple clamps also hold the forks in place/alignment. The fender bracket is toast. It was pretty badly bent and it is brittle aluminum so couldn't really bend it back without it breaking.

18 hours ago, bw123 said:

Triple clamps also hold the forks in place/alignment. ...

That's what I meant by loosen everything.

Gotcha. Yes, I loosened everything, including the steering stem, and got it all lined up no problem.

Still looking for input on how often this happens with trials bikes and whether I can ride without that brace/bracket in place. My enduro bike has no such thing and takes much harder hits, but the triples are beefier.

Also, wondering if that brace is aluminum so that it is sacrificed instead of damaging the forks or whether I can replace it with a steel one.

15 hours ago, bw123 said:

.... My enduro bike has no such thing and takes much harder hits, but the triples are beefier.

Also, wondering if that brace is aluminum so that it is sacrificed instead of damaging the forks or whether I can replace it with a steel one.

Would that be your enduro bike fitted with USD forks?

... things are made out of aluminum on competition trials bikes because aluminum weighs 1/3rd. that of steel which also has a tendency to rust. Same as with your enduro bike the axle provides the majority of support required to keep the fork legs running as one. Everything is beefier on your enduro bike to the tune of almost 80 additional pounds.

How easy is it to twist and or break a modern trials bike? It's not easy at all, I've launched my bikes off cliffs and experienced relatively little damage, but I do tend to buy other then Gasgas bikes which are not exactly the sturdiest in the market but generally are the cheapest to buy. Example your foot peg brackets are welded to the tube steel frame and not replaceable bolt on components attached to an aluminum casting. Tube frame cracks around the headstock have been reported by owners and many friends that do own current models tell me the rear fenders are very expensive when they needed replacement. Beta has an even more fragile front fender brace made out of plastic.

Front fork stanchion tubes (also aluminum) are the most expensive part that can be easy damaged by just a small scratch, but you can buy sacrificial fork guards to help protect those.

Edited 7 hours ago7 hr by lemur