Trailering

[queretaro]

Early next month I'm driving about 400 miles to buy an '86 R80RT, and will put it on a mc trailer to bring home. How to secure it is my question. Must I remove the fairing and the BMW saddle bags? I have not done this before, and any suggestions are appreciated.
regards,
Mark

[20774]

I think you need at least four points for tie down. Two up front pulling down on the forks and trying to pull the bike forward. Have the front tire pushed up against the forward part of the trailer or something solid. Two more points pulling down and aft at the rear suspension. It's best if you can get some compression in the front/rear suspension (not fully) in order to keep the bike for pogoing all over the place. If you can get to good frame locations without removing the fairing/bags, that's good. You might want to consider taking the fairing glass off. I've seen another type of tie down which attaches to the ends of the handlebars but doesn't pull the suspension down any. Doesn't seem like a good idea to me. I've hauled one bike in the back of a van as above and it worked out OK. Not much experience but it worked for me. Try to get tie downs that have soft straps that wrap around the frame, not rubberized hooks...that's a recipe for a scratched frame.

Kurt in S.A.

[jcove]

Hi,
You should use Soft Ties. They consist of nylon straps about 12- 14" long.
They don't have any hooks that can scratch your paint. In the front look up under the fairing and make a loop with the strap around the fork brace and fork tube. Use a regular set of tie downs to pull the front down and compress the forks. The rear should not be difficult. Good luck. Jim

[queretaro]

Jim,
Are soft ties the straps with a ratchet for tightening as available at home depot?
regards,
Mark

[20774]

I got my soft ties at the local motorcycle shop. They're only about 24 inches long with loops on either end. You loop one end around the frame/fork and then hook up the ratcheting tie down to the other loop. I'd get something designed for the job rather than getting something too "universal". It all comes down to what you're comfortable with. When I hauled my bike in the van, I had one eye on the road and one eye on the bike for several hundred miles until I began to relax and trust the setup.

Kurt in S.A.

[lkchris]

For front:

http://www.canyondancer.com/

[jcove]

Goodmorning,
Soft ties are probably only available at a cycle shop--I think. Anyhow the have no ratchest or metal on them. You can use the ratchet type to attach to the soft tie and put a lot of tension on the bike forks. Thereby creating a very stable condition. Damage free as long as you keep the straps away from the painted surfaces. Good luck,
Jim Jr

[tuber1]

when we trailerd to Daytona, we only removed the bags to keep inside the vehicle, no probs with the fairing...

[queretaro]

So if I leave the fairing in place, do I pull the rubber gromets out of the fairing and slide them down the fork tubes and then attach 'soft ties' to the tubes above the lower triple clamp?
regards,
Mark

[jcove]

HI,
Yep. Pull the rubber seals, boots, out of there respective openings and loop the soft ties around the triple tree bracket. Jim

[queretaro]

Thank you everyone.
Mark

[The_Veg]

And of course you probably already know this, but do NOT put the bike at an angle in the truck with the front weheel into a corner of the bed. doing so is a recipe for fork misalignment.

[pmdave]

I suppose I'm a little anal retentive, but when I'm securing a two-wheeler on a surface with no rail (for the tires), I add a pair of straps to the bottom of the rear wheel to prevent the tire from skidding sideways and allowing the bike to topple over. This is especially important if the only place to attach the tiedowns (on the trailer or pickup bed) is up high. I wrap around the rear tire at the bottom once or twice and secure to both sides. An attached rail is much better, since it can contain both front and rear wheels.

Definitely "yes" on the soft ties. Otherwise you have to attach metal hooks around something, and take a chance on scratching/dinging. You'll most likely have to visit the cycle shop to find these, but while you're there you can pick up some good motorcycle tiedown straps that work much better than the cheapos from Mr. Walls, Home De-pot, et al. You don't need ratchets, just a simple friction cam, and there's less metal to fly around your fancy paint and plastic.

I also believe in tying off the ends of the straps so they don't whip around and break something. If there's enough strap left over, I can take a bight through the hook eye and make a couple of half hitches.

If it's impossible to avoid having a strap touch paint somewhere, I'll wrap a soft towel around the strap and secure with electrical tape--so the strap isn't rubbing directly on the paint.

pmdave