Total Motorcycle Community Forums

Trailering a bike can be a chore, or it can be pulled off without a hitch... (Pun intended..)

Below are a couple of articles on tying down a bike. I think a necessity would be a wheel chock. It can be as simple as a couple of 45* 2x4 frames or a commercial one as pictured here... The purpose of the chock is to prevent the front tire from sliding sideways and it will also make tying down the bike an easier job...


http://www.sportutilitytrailers.com/mot ... cedure.htm

http://www.motorcyclecruiser.com/street ... index.html


Edit: I wouldn't hesitate to temporarily install a chock in a rental... Just make sure your work is neat and tidy so covering up your install can be as easy as a couple of carriage bolts to plug the offending holes... (scuff them up a bit so they look a bit aged... lol.)

I recently shipped a bike, I priced out renting a u-haul one way, that ended up being more expensive by the time i factored in getting myself to the bike (flight from NJ to LA) In the end I went with these guys. http://www.autotransportspecialty.com/ They have a driver, I think his name is Brad, who actually specializes in shipping motorcycles, he runs door to door, and has the hooks ups in his trailer so that you don't need to crate the bike. Right next to mine inside the truck was an Orange County Chopper (wow do they look amazing in person!!) Needless to say I had an amazing experience. I would recommend these guys and no one else to anyone for any bike in a heartbeat. If you, or anyone, ever has to ship a bike, either use these guys, or research who you are going with on transportationreviews.com. There are some bad operations out there, and they are NOT all the same.

You need to use a company who specifically knows how to ship bikes, otherwise you might end up with a poorly done, yet expensive crate job, with your bike being handled by multiple drivers, in multiple shipping hubs in multiple cities, where it could sit around in a warehouse for a few days waiting for the next driver to pick it up (this is kind of like flying somewhere with connecting flights). A standard crate service shipping company quoted me like $957 and 3 weeks to do it. Brad charged me just like $750 and it took 10 days. It would be cooler if you can ride it home yourself, but if you end up having to ship it, this is my advice. Good luck!

Lion_Lady wrote:Why not just do round trip? Buy a couple bags of play sand (less than $5 each) to put on the trailer so it doesn't bounce around so much on your way there...

P

well i could, but I am expanding my search for a small bike because I will be driving through these areas. I dont want to make it home, then rent a bike and go back down with a trailer. I mean i could, but I would like to do a one wayrental if i happen to find a cool bike while i drive the lenght of the country since I have to anyway.

So after your MSF course...did u feel confident enough or would you reccomend driving the bike on your own for a 4-6 hr trip with plenty of breaks?

Monkey wrote:...
So after your MSF course...did u feel confident enough or would you reccomend driving the bike on your own for a 4-6 hr trip with plenty of breaks?

Well, it could be cool, but it might be dangerous also. You'd need to spend some time (at least an hour) in safe neighborhood to get used to it and re-practice stuff from MSF. Then, can you trust the bike? It's used and you don't know its history. It can get ugly if something dies on you while riding. Can you pick an alternative route home, avoiding major highways? What if, on the day of the transaction, weather doesn't cooperate?

Don't be impatient or in a hurry. I'd rent a trailer, get ready to strap any bike and go hunting.

K

U-Haul rents motorcyle trailers. http://www.uhaul.com/guide/index.aspx?e ... motorcycle

When I bought my bike, I used my truck and a 6' bifold ramp to take it home. The previous owner rode the bike into the bed. We locked the bike's steering and put the side stand down. Then we used ratcheting tie downs attached to the front fork and rear frame to partially compress the bike's suspension.

If you have recently taken the MSF course, you may be able to ride your bike home. However, riding several hundred miles on the first ride is pretty crazy. If you decide to go with a truck or trailer, have the previous owner or dealership help you load and secure your bike. If you go with a 250cc cruiser, be advised that even though the bike is light, there is little top end acceleration. A 600cc cruiser will have more power but may be uncomfortably heavy for a beginner.

when I bought my bike I was 200km from home

i took a day to practice starting, stopping, turning, changing gears and various other manuvers in a large high school parking lot. then i practiced in limited access subdivision for an hour more, just riding around, stopping at stopsigns and turning.

the next day i road home, it was a 4 hour trip because I had to go the long way (couldn't ride on the freeway due to license restriction) I took a break at the 2 hour mark. When I got home my hands were like claws because one of the roads i had to take seemed to have a stop light every 500 feet... that was no fun

i started early to avoid most traffic. I probably wasn't ready for the free way as that's a whole different kind of riding than rural highways. I recently upgraded my license and took the highway, i found wind was pain in the "O Ring" and i was bounced around a bit, it's also a lot more fatiguing than at 20-30km slower.

one thing to remember is to drink lots of water and gatorade (or your favourite sports drink) for the minerals.


otherwise a cheap trailer from walmart (i think they have them for 800$) I couldn't find them on their site but their competition up here has a similar trailer for about the same price