I will sometimes want to take my TW to a trailhead without having to ride it there and want to figure out the best way to transport it. I bought a couple of ramps at Harbor Freight the other day and was able to get the bike up one while walking up the other one. I had the TW in first gear with the engine on and used it to help power it up the ramp. It worked, but was a little scary and, as I plan to often go solo, don't want to start a practice that will one day turn ugly.
It's occured to me to get a third ramp, then sit on the bike and ride ip up slowly with a foot on each side ramp. That might be ok going up. Coming down backwards might be a bit hairy though.
I've also seen receiver-mounted carriers which look like they might be a bit more "user-friendly" for solo loading.
What I'd like to engineer would be something that would allow loading the bike onto it at ground level and then with some kind of lever system, raise the bike to bed level. Ever seen anything like that?
What is your preferred method and how would you rank it with regard to safety?
I have loaded the bike both ways you have said. The tw is not too heavy so loaded that way is not too bad. I keep the weight on the left side when riding up and sitting on the bike. You might just use a plank on the right side instead of getting another ramp. You just need something to put your foot on.
They do make a unit that you load an winch it up. I have seen it work. It is real slick and pricy. I wasn[t that interested, so I can't tell you who made it or the price. I just knew I could not aford that type of deal.
I have a small 2 rail trailer I bought off Craigslist. It is very light and I tow it with my Honda CRV. It is low to the ground and easy to load. I paid $300 for it and another $200 for the trailer hitch and balls and straps and stuff. The only downside is storage. It does take up room.
I have loaded the bike both ways you have said. The tw is not too heavy so loaded that way is not too bad. I keep the weight on the left side when riding up and sitting on the bike. You might just use a plank on the right side instead of getting another ramp. You just need something to put your foot on.
They do make a unit that you load an winch it up. I have seen it work. It is real slick and pricy. I wasn[t that interested, so I can't tell you who made it or the price. I just knew I could not aford that type of deal.
The idea of a plank as a third ramp to my right leg to walk up while seated on the bike had occurred to me as is s the cheapest option. Fortunately, the TW is light enough and geared so low that "riding" it up doesn't seem too hairy. Backing down... well, guess I'll have to see...
When I back it down I have done it both ways. On and off the seat.
If I am off the seat, I put my hip against the bike, and lean it toward me, and keep the front brake on, and inch it down. The steepness is the hard part. A ditch as the one guy suggested helps.
You might also try finding a steep ditch to practice backing up.
I have the crewcab S10 with a short bed...so I placed a 3/4" piece of plywood in the bed and anchored it to the tailgate.
I mostly transport in my Chevy S10 4X4 which is low enough I can walk beside the bike and roll it up the single ramp...drop the kickstand as soon as it gets on the tailgate...then get up in the truck bed and rool it into a frontwheel chock...
I have transported it in my wife's Ford F150...it is a struggle, but I can use the walk up by stretching....if I used her pickup for transport all the time, I would buy one of these ramps I saw in Cyclegear.com website...
I bought a wide Quad ramp. Now I can ride the Dub into the bed of my F-250. Just be sure to use the safety cables so you don't kick the ramp from underneath you.
I have had a chance to use all three methods. Getting the bike into the back of my Ford Ranger left me feeling the most uncomfortable. I purchased a ramp set from Harbor Freight as well. To make that system 'safer' I covered one ramp with expanded metal for traction. This was the ramp I walked on while powering the bike up, felt very secure, but still steep.
I then made a hitch mount tray to carry the bike lower and further back. This made loading the bike very easy, but the suspension on the Ranger was not up to supporting a 350lb load that far to the rear of the truck. The rear of the truck sagged notably and I am very sure my headlights would not reveal much of the road ahead at night.
What I now have is a nice aluminium two bike trailer that is easy to move about the yard and with the modified ramps mentioned earlier, getting the TW and XR aboard has worked the best. I am even able to haul the bike (s) behind my 96 Saturn Coupe. Gerry
I have the same ramp HenryJ showed above (http://www.discountramps.com/motorcycle-carrier.htm) I use it on my Rodgeline, no problems, and very comfortable. I do feel the weight a little as far as handling (front end is a little light), but not as bad as a utility trailer with my UTV on it, or the boat, or....
I bout the TW and the rack primarily for my motorhome, but have yet to use it that way (3 weeks and 500 miles
6 1/2 foot X 10 foot (bed size) Aluminum utility trailer ( Aluma Ltd http://www.alumaklm.com/ ) with (removable Pingle-style) wheel chocks and D-rings bolted to the floor. The trailer has a full-width aluminum ramp which I use when hauling my lawn tractor or large bikes. For really long trips with the TWs I easily remove the ramp and leave it at home (for less wind drag): I just have a short piece of 2x12 with a metal ramp end on it to use as a loading ramp (the trailer is only off the ground about a foot). A buddy has their 5x8 bed size trailer.
Although they make dedicated motorcycle trailers, if you have need of a multi-purpose trailer, I really like my set-up: my trailer only weighs about 500 pounds, and is easily pushed around by one person. I use the raised loading ramp like a handle, and with the tongue-jack wheel down I can push the whole thing around like a big shopping cart--see the link above to see the ramp.
Although mine is 12 years old, the aluminum construction has meant no maintenance needed except tires or wheel bearing lube. The removable wheel chocks leave the entire bed open for hauling things, and the bed rails and stake pockets make it easy to attach things using straps, Ancra tie down loops, etc...
Pushing it up can be hard work, but... my neighbour used to ride his motocrosser up the ramp into his pickup all the time. Then one day the rear wheel slipped off the ramp and he did a backwards flip, and the bike landed right on top of him. Once he extracted himself, he said it took him weeks to recover, and he was young then. He won't load that way now for love nor money. Just be very careful, if you need the bike going to get up, consider a wide ramp (or two - one to walk on, one for bike), and put bike in first gear and walk up beside it. Bike slips, it gets bruised, but you don't!
Yesterday I modified my technique a bit and it felt considerably safer. I inverted one of the Harbor Frieght ramps so that it was upside down, that is to say the cycle wheel ran up --inside-- the concave side of the ramp so it could not easily slide off the side. (Center Ramp looked like this -- [___] I had the second Harbor Freight ramp to the left for my foot to walk on and added a third 2x6x8' plank on the right for the right foot. I anchored everything down well with ratchet straps to the receiver hooks so it could not move away from the truck. Finally, I sat on the bike and powered it up while sitting on it, one foot on each of the side ramps while it ran up the center inverted ramp.
It didn't seem too hairy, other than the fact that I needed a little bit of momentum approaching the ramp (it would not pull up the ramp in first gear from a standing start without stalling and popping the clutch didn't seem a good idea
). The trick seems to be quick on the front brake once the bike is up and into the bed so as not to hit the front the of bed.
Backing down, I sat on the bike, had the engine running and clutch pulled so I could use that if needed to slow my decent. Being sure everything was well lined up before backing down was important. Easing off on the front brake as needed eased her down.)
It would seem as with most things, being slow, cautious, and not getting in a hurry greatly increases the safety factor.
That having been said, maybe a utility trailer would be a good investment. (Though then I'd have to find space to store a trailer, register it, etc.)
I'm gonna keep refining my technique for additional safety. Meanwhile it's interesting to read what solutions others have come up with.
Another option for the ramp crowd: I found a couple links to a neat ramp I recently saw at my local dealer. It has a dip in it about half-way up to catch your rear tire; so you push your bike half-way up, the dip holds it in place while you get into the truck, and then you can pull the bike up the rest of the way. The parts guy (a motocrosser) said it works really slick.
Well, the final products were posted, the readers voted and the results have been tallied, and it looks like the Ogio Stepup Ramp is the coolest product of the 2009 Indianapolis Motorcycle Dealer Expo. Although the ASV Triple Clamps gave the Ogio Ramp a run for its money early on, the final stretch allowed Ogio to pull a convincing lead over the rest of the products in the final vote.
I snagged this idea from the other forum I check daily (www.infamousnissan.com) because it is super popular there.
I replaced my old grips with a nice set of Pro Grip 714s ($9.99 shipped from www.motorcycle-superstore.com), swapped out my fuel petcock because it was nearly impossible to...
Have read lots of posts on the death wing front tire. I live in Tampa area and we have a lot of SAND (yuk). Just wanted to ask specifically for opinions on what tire is best for sand? If you have an opinion and can provide detail (exact size etc) it would be much appreciated.
Hey guys,
Considering a ricochet skid plate. I was on their website and noticed that they have a black anodized version (I couldn’t find a pic on their site). Anybody out there have the black on the black / brown (18’-20’) TW? How do you think the black anodized metal looks? Add a picture if you...
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