motorcycle haul

[DarkNinja52]

If there is information for this somehwere on here please direct me, I couldn't find it but wasn't really sure what keywords to look for.

real quick - more information can be provided if necessary but i don't feel like typing and im sure no one feels like reading, here we go

new bike bought in PA where im working for the summer
going to school in new york in 2 weeks
taking the bike with me, but can not ride it to there
how do i get it there cheaply and safely?
what equipment will i need? tie down straps? rent a trailer? truck? shipping companies cost too much.
do i need some type of wheel stands/blocks/locks/gizmo/gadget/thing-a-ma-jig if i rent a truck?
and...
go

[CC Cowboy]

You answered all the questions.

[DarkNinja52]

Im renting a pick up truck, I need tie downs/ straps
my dad told me to get a front wheel stand, im not sure what he exactly means, and im sure he has no idea either.. any ideas?

[kkim]

http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=21370&

http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=13986&

[ARF07]

When I bought mine, we took it home in a pickup. All we used were straps. Just make sure you bring some rags to put between the straps and the bike, just to make sure it doesn't get scratched. Oh and find somewhere that you can back the truck up to and unload the bike. Its a real PITA trying to back it off the truck, unless you have a really big ramp. good luck man

[DarkNinja52]

Originally Posted by kkim

http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=21370&

http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=13986&

kkim to the rescue as usual, greatly appreciated.

Originally Posted by ARF07

When I bought mine, we took it home in a pickup. All we used were straps. Just make sure you bring some rags to put between the straps and the bike, just to make sure it doesn't get scratched. Oh and find somewhere that you can back the truck up to and unload the bike. Its a real PITA trying to back it off the truck, unless you have a really big ramp. good luck man

Good advice, hopefully everything goes smoothly im sure i'll keep you guys posted with my life, although im also sure people have their own things to worry about

good stuff guys

[HKr1]

Personally, I bought a truck, ready ramp, baxley chock, cayon dancers & rite ties. Oh, and a little cooler to step on. Truck was the biggest exspense

I tell ya thou, the first couple times putting the bike up there was kinda scary.

[DarkNinja52]

well after buying the bike... i dont think i can afford a truck, or even a ramp, or even rope...

[ARF07]

^ yea I understand that man. I go back to college Monday. It's 2 hours away from my house but I'm riding my bike up, having someone pick me up there, then driving my car up not much for hauling as it's kinda a pain. Are you far enough away from school that you can't ride it back?

[DarkNinja52]

long story short
school in NY
mom in NY
summer job in PA
Dad in PA
summer im usually in PA with my dad
the rest of the year im either at my moms or at school.
the locations in ny and pa are about 4 hours away and i just got my license so even if i wanted to do it, i wouldnt be able to safely
and since im a college student, i cant afford much else past basic gear and the bike.. maybe a uhaul truck

[ARF07]

Oh ok yea, I wouldn't drive that either. Sorry man, I hope it works out well. Let us know what you figure out and how well it works so next time I haul I'll know what to do

[Grn99Kawi]

I rented a Uhaul trailer to get mine home when I bought it.. wasn't running that great before I got it.

What about a simple cargo van? Use a piece of wood as a ramp and tie it down inside with some ratcheting tie downs (and towels)?

That would minimize cost but fit the bill... plus vans are good to drive on parkways like teh belt and southern state... bigger trucks and trailers have to take the BQE and LIE... of course a pickup will work just as well if you can get one.

[sofo]

If I was still living in the east I'd collect a few friends and ride the trip with you so you could ride your bike to New York. In light of that, some kind of truck with either mounts or straps is your other DIY option. The last thing I can think of is talking to a dealer / bike shop and see if they have any way to ship the bike to a dealer in New York for you. Not sure if that would be cost-prohibitive though.

[DarkNinja52]

Originally Posted by ARF07

Oh ok yea, I wouldn't drive that either. Sorry man, I hope it works out well. Let us know what you figure out and how well it works so next time I haul I'll know what to do

I'll def you guys updated with what happens and what works and what doesnt, still looking at a few possibilities but im running out of time (friday)

Originally Posted by Grn99Kawi

I rented a Uhaul trailer to get mine home when I bought it.. wasn't running that great before I got it.

What about a simple cargo van? Use a piece of wood as a ramp and tie it down inside with some ratcheting tie downs (and towels)?

That would minimize cost but fit the bill... plus vans are good to drive on parkways like teh belt and southern state... bigger trucks and trailers have to take the BQE and LIE... of course a pickup will work just as well if you can get one.

To get a trailer i'll need something with a hitch, my dad's suv doesnt have one and it's leased anyway so it would have to come off if i payed the $150 -200 for the hitch. I was looking at uhaul cargo vans but im not sure if i would be able to tie the bike down properly in the back of the van. a pickup truck would do the job, but both the van and the pickup truck need to be returned to the original uhaul, and they are priced based on mileage which means two way trip x .69 = around 300 plus rentals, tie downs, and chocks if i need. Their moving trucks have ramps and can be returned to a uhaul in new york and would be half the price, but im not sure how good a moving truck is for transporting a bike.


I don't mind taking the bqe and the lie if it means getting my bike home ok, bqe isnt fun but lie isn't too bad, i would jsut take it to the 135 and go south from there,

Originally Posted by sofo

If I was still living in the east I'd collect a few friends and ride the trip with you so you could ride your bike to New York. In light of that, some kind of truck with either mounts or straps is your other DIY option. The last thing I can think of is talking to a dealer / bike shop and see if they have any way to ship the bike to a dealer in New York for you. Not sure if that would be cost-prohibitive though.

A truck with mounts or straps sounds good im just concerned about the kind of straps i need, how to strap the bike down, and would i need chocks or can i use 2x4's? things like really making sure the bike is going to be secure.

[noche_caliente]

you wouldn't need much of anything other than tie downs - I'll see if I can find a good pic of my bike in my trailer for you - the canyon dancer and similar knock-offs show it pretty well. As long as you get it snugged in to the cab it won't go anywhere - ask old guy what he did - he has some great pics of bringing his new bike home in the truck.
My husband, and older guy and his college-aged son picked mine up into a truck without much trouble - I'm sure if you get 3-4 buddies you'll have similar success

[DarkNinja52]

Originally Posted by noche_caliente

you wouldn't need much of anything other than tie downs - I'll see if I can find a good pic of my bike in my trailer for you - the canyon dancer and similar knock-offs show it pretty well. As long as you get it snugged in to the cab it won't go anywhere - ask old guy what he did - he has some great pics of bringing his new bike home in the truck.
My husband, and older guy and his college-aged son picked mine up into a truck without much trouble - I'm sure if you get 3-4 buddies you'll have similar success

How far did you have to take the bike? I felt like a few tie downs would be alright, but I have to travel through the PA turnpike, nj turnpike, a few bridges (goethals/verrazano) in ny then the Long island express way. So idk if the length of the trip will make any difference, but the longer i'm on the road the more likely something can happen

[kkim]

buy quality tie downs... not walmart specials. I only use Ancra brand ties downs and use only the original red ones due to their strap rating.

[DarkNinja52]

Originally Posted by kkim

buy quality tie downs... not walmart specials. I only use Ancra brand ties downs and use only the original red ones due to their strap rating.

I was going to buy Ancra's from my dealer, but they suggested MSR's because they have soft loops, and said that Ancra's didn't. It was about $25 for a pair and I bought two pairs. I just can't figure out how to use them ): they have two loops and two hooks and I'm not saying I'm a genius, but I'm not slow either but I can't figure these damn things out and every picture I see on the internet looks like everyone does it differently.

Any suggestions?

[kkim]

does what differently?

[CC Cowboy]

Originally Posted by HKr1

Personally, I bought a truck, ready ramp, baxley chock, cayon dancers & rite ties. Oh, and a little cooler to step on. Truck was the biggest exspense

I tell ya thou, the first couple times putting the bike up there was kinda scary.

Who are you kidding? It was a big cooler and you never stepped on it, just opened about every 3 to 5 minutes to grab another one.

[DarkNinja52]

People strap the bike down using the two hooks and two loops on the tie downs differently according to pictures i've seen. Theres a buckle, and then a short strap with a hook and short strap with a loop, and then theres two long straps (the adjustable ones) with a hook and one with a loop. And i've seen pictures of people using different hooks and different loops and tieing things and hooking things and looping things, so I'm just wondering if theres a right way to use the tie downs, or if its just "heres two hooks and two loops, just get the damn bike to stay" type of ordeal. sorry if i'm not very specific or using general terms, I'm not sure how to describe these types of things.

[kkim]

did you read through the links I posted?

[DarkNinja52]

Originally Posted by kkim

did you read through the links I posted?

Yup, got a really good idea of how to position the bike in the truck and where to strap the tie downs to, but I really cant even tell which side is up just by looking at the tie downs and I didn't see anything in there. Lol i just don't know how to use the tie downs i guess, maybe i'll figure it out once i actually get the bike in the truck on friday, but just looking at the tie downs, I'm not sure which side goes down which side goes up, i just dont want to scratch the bike with the hooks or the buckle, and since their are soft loops on the tie downs, im sure theres a way to safely do it, im just not sure how ):
i'l take a nother look at the threads, I really appreciate your help, I guess i have been kind of 'slow' this week

[kkim]

post a picture of the MSR straps you bought.

[DarkNinja52]

The first pic is from the web because I'm not sure how well you can see the pictures I took with my fone.
The last four pics are 1. back of the buckle, 2. front of the buckle. 3. the short straps that are connected (1 loop 1 hook) 4. the long straps that slip through the buckle (1 loop 1 hook)

[kkim]

the 2 hooks are obviously what you use to hook with.

press the cam buckle in the middle and get the hooks so they are about 3-4 feet apart.

the hook end with the short straps is what you use on the bar end. loop the straps around the bars somewhere you will not be pinching any wires under it. After you loop the strap, hook the loop end of the strap with the hook.

hook the other end of the tie down to you attachment point on your truck, trailer... whatever you end up using.

pull the loop of the strap that is closest to the the cam buckle to tighten the strap.

read the links I included earlier to complete the tie down of the bike. you really only need 2 tie downs, but if you have 4, that's fine, too. save them as a backup or you can tie the rear of the bike down, though it's not needed.

try not to get any twists in the tie down strap. The straighter, when installed, the better.

[DarkNinja52]

Originally Posted by kkim

the 2 hooks are obviously what you use to hook with.

press the cam buckle in the middle and get the hooks so they are about 3-4 feet apart.

the hook end with the short straps is what you use on the bar end. loop the straps around the bars somewhere you will not be pinching any wires under it. After you loop the strap, hook the loop end of the strap with the hook.

hook the other end of the tie down to you attachment point on your truck, trailer... whatever you end up using.

pull the loop of the strap that is closest to the the cam buckle to tighten the strap.

read the links I included earlier to complete the tie down of the bike. you really only need 2 tie downs, but if you have 4, that's fine, too. save them as a backup or you can tie the rear of the bike down, though it's not needed.

try not to get any twists in the tie down strap. The straighter, when installed, the better.

So the cam buckle will be up towards the bike while the long straps (one hooked to the truck, the loop used to tigthen the buckle) will be down at the bottom?
I also heard that cam's aren't as good as ratchet buckle. Should i trade in the second set i have for some ratchet buckles?


Thank you so much, I got 4 total because I dont have a chock, but I'm also going to do what you suggested about keeping the wheel up against the wall and something on the front brake lever. I didn't open the second set of tie downs so if I feel secure with only 2 tiedowns, I ll just return the others, but without a chock and a 4 hour drive, I think I rather have the piece of mind using 4 tie downs, (although I'll be worried about the bike the whole time anyway )

I really appreciate your help and time. There are so many good, helpful people on here and I think you set such a great example for everyone to follow. and of course I will pay it forward! you have a way of silently leading by example which is awesome. Thank you again.

[kkim]

Originally Posted by DarkNinja52

So the cam buckle will be up towards the bike while the long straps (one hooked to the truck, the loop used to tigthen the buckle) will be down at the bottom?I also heard that cam's aren't as good as ratchet buckle. Should i trade in the second set i have for some ratchet buckles?

yes! I also tie the loose end of that extra strap around the tie down strap that is between the truck and the cam buckle for extra security should the cam buckle fail. I've never had a cam buckle fail, so it's only a precaution. It also prevents the loose part of the strap from flapping in the wind, which can lead to the webbing material fraying. I prefer the cam buckle type over the ratchet type as they are less complicated for something to fail. (and cheaper )

Use the two straps and the brake lever trick and just check that the bike is sitting upright every now and then in your rear view mirror. If something starts to shift/move, it's usually a slow process and you'll have lots of time to pull over and redo the straps.

[DarkNinja52]

Today is the day, After a week or so worth of research and gathering information, I should be ok to do this.

I will be using a 14ft uhaul truck (couldnt get a trailer because I don't have a hitch). The 10ft truck didnt have a ramp so I just got the bigger truck with a ramp for like $20 more w/e.

Using 2 or 4 cam buckles depending on how secure I feel the bike is, I might also rig up some type of wheel chock with some spare wood. I appreciate the tips kkim, I definitely feel a bit safer about doing this. (still not 100% safe because.. you know... i dont like tying my baby into the back of a truck...).

ill try to take some pictures of the event.

anyone know how i should get it on the truck? try it slowly ride it up with some help to balance, or try to walk it up with some help?

[CRXTrek]

I'd walk it up with lots of helpers. Or back the truck to a hill or ditch
Be sure to stop often and check that the straps are still tight.

[DarkNinja52]

Originally Posted by CRXTrek

I'd walk it up with lots of helpers. Or back the truck to a hill or ditch
Be sure to stop often and check that the straps are still tight.

thanks man, i should def find a hill or something.

And i'll def be stopping more than often to check up on her.

i've heard from a bunch of places taht people have successfully done this. (uhaul truck not meant for motorcycles used to transport a motorcycle) havent heard any horror stories, i guess people dont talk about them, or have lost their internet privledges because of it

[tinng321]

Wait.
Why can't you ride the bike to ny?
Where in ny?
How far from pa to your school?
I rode my bike from central jersely all the way up to mass.
I don't know about your bladder but I had to stop frequently to release myself.
That was the only thing that annoyed me.

[BlueTyke]

Hauled two motorcycles in the back of a Uhaul actually. Along with all our stuff from the cross country move.

I don't have any pictures of it but I do remember it. The bikes were strapped in after the stuff was loaded and secured in place with storage bars. THe bikes were strapped in with cannyon dancers and straps similar to the ones you have. They were hooked through the tie bars in the side of the Uhaul. Loaded by using the trucks very own loading ramp. I must point out that this is one of the big ones (not hte largest but not a pickup either, Usually about 19.95 - 30 a day or so). His bike (Busa) has a wheel dock that his was loaded into. Tyke was just strapped in.

My only suggestion is to make sure any area of contact is well protected. My front fender was rubbed down through the paint because a strap was resting on it.

[Hokie11]

has anyone tried one of these that attach to a regular 2x2 trailer hitch?

http://www.prohoists.com/Shopping.idc?ProductID=35

[DarkNinja52]

Originally Posted by tinng321

Wait.
Why can't you ride the bike to ny?
Where in ny?
How far from pa to your school?
I rode my bike from central jersely all the way up to mass.
I don't know about your bladder but I had to stop frequently to release myself.
That was the only thing that annoyed me.

Originally Posted by DarkNinja52

long story short
school in NY
mom in NY
summer job in PA
Dad in PA
summer im usually in PA with my dad
the rest of the year im either at my moms or at school.
the locations in ny and pa are about 4 hours away and i just got my license so even if i wanted to do it, i wouldnt be able to safely
and since im a college student, i cant afford much else past basic gear and the bike.. maybe a uhaul truck

k good talk

Originally Posted by BlueTyke

Hauled two motorcycles in the back of a Uhaul actually. Along with all our stuff from the cross country move.

I don't have any pictures of it but I do remember it. The bikes were strapped in after the stuff was loaded and secured in place with storage bars. THe bikes were strapped in with cannyon dancers and straps similar to the ones you have. They were hooked through the tie bars in the side of the Uhaul. Loaded by using the trucks very own loading ramp. I must point out that this is one of the big ones (not hte largest but not a pickup either, Usually about 19.95 - 30 a day or so). His bike (Busa) has a wheel dock that his was loaded into. Tyke was just strapped in.

My only suggestion is to make sure any area of contact is well protected. My front fender was rubbed down through the paint because a strap was resting on it.

Well the truck has a ramp, its a 14ft truck, i got it for 2 days and 171 miles for around $180, i can just drop it off at a uhaul wen i get to ny (yes they let you do that with certain trucks).

Sounds like its very do-able, i just hope the bars inside the uhaul are strong enough, but it doesn't seem like you had a problem.
I'll watch out for straps rubbing on the paint, thanks for the heads up!

[Alex]

Originally Posted by DarkNinja52

k good talk

[DarkNinja52]

glad you enjoyed that Alex.

As for the trip: WIN!
pictures and details to follow shortly, but now it is bed time, tomorrow I will be 21 and I will no longer have work because today was my last day, and i will be in vegas in a few days, and I have my bike and I'm happy, good nite all

[DarkNinja52]

pictures and details postponed.
trip to vegas for my 21st (so the bike made it to ny but will have to spend some time alone ): while im away for a few days)
the pictures of the haul are on my dads camera, so i'll post them up when i have time with some details for anyone that doesnt have a wheel chock or a trailer for their bike and decides to use a ghetto uhaul.

[Grn99Kawi]

Enjoy Vegas.. and be ready to ride when you get back..

[DarkNinja52]

Two weeks after the bike has arrived safely, I have the pictures and details and will describe what was done, incase anyone else doesn't have a pickup truck or something with a hitch for a trailer. This is probably not legal at all.

Rented a 14ft uhaul moving truck because you're allowed to take it one way and return it at your destination. Also because the 10ft didn't have a ramp... Supposedly.

Bought some tie downs (see earlier post). 4 of them, two pairs, because I don't have a wheel chock and can't screw anything into a rented truck for obvious reasons.

Now to get the bike in the truck, my dad wanted to just run the bike up the ramp and hope that the front wheel would pop over the 4-5inch ledge on the truck at the top of the ramp. Seeing how neither of us could even hold the bike up at the top of the ramp while we were standing on the ground, i didn't like this idea at all. If the bike hits the bump and goes in the truck... were still outside. If the bike hits the bump and goes any other way, there's no way we'd be able to stop it from falling down. So find some friends, preferable some that like you.
OR
I put the bike on the side walk and onto the grass and went up a hill. Then backed the truck into a parking spot near the hill, then pulled the ramp out of the truck onto the hill so the angle would be much less. We were able to get the bike in the truck by rolling it up the ramp kinda fast but because of the hill and the lowered angle, we were not that much below the bike when we got it on the truck so we were able to just jump right in the truck with the bike as it was rolling (or atleast i was).

Position the front wheel right up against the back wall (by the cab of the truck) and make sure the bike is centered and straight.


I put the bike in first gear so it couldn't roll around. If you are not using something to support the wheels like a wheel chock, then I suggest you do this also, but I have heard either way its not necessary from techs at my dealer. Strap something around the right handle bar to engage the front brakes.(giant rubber band or rope or something, be creative i dont care, my dad had some weird strip of elastic cloth) Put the bike on the kick stand and go get your tie downs!

K so use tie downs that have soft loops or get cyclecynch or canyon dancers so you don't scratch your bike. Refer to the pictures for exact locations I used because I don't really know the parts of the bike or the truck. Loop one end of the tie down onto the RIGHT SIDE fork of the front wheel above the fairing right under the handle bars. Put a cloth or small towel between the fairing and the tie down so you don't wear off your paint during travel.







Check to make sure the tie down under the handle bar isn't rubbing against or is strapped around any cables or something that may break, or rip the tie down.

Then tie the other end of the tie down to the lowest forward most part of the wooden panel on the right side of the truck. Do the right side first so just in case you don't do it right and the bike wants to fall left, it will go on the kick stand(which should still be down). Tighten the right side a bit but make sure the bike is still pulling left a little bit (so you have some slack to tie the left side).

Go ahead and do the same thing with the left side (leave the kickstand down for now). Make sure the tie downs are positioned correctly and WILL support the bike and that the wooden bars on the truck ARE NOT loose.






Have someone (or yourself) sit on the bike in order to compress the suspension about 1/3rd of the way. If the suspension is not compressed, it can compress during travel and create some wiggle room for it to brake free or even create enough momentum to pull the wooden bars off the truck walls and/or brake the tie downs. DO NOT compress it fully or you can blow your suspension.

With someone on the bike holding it straight up, tighten the tie downs as much as possible. You want the tie downs pulling away(left/right) , down (under you), and forward(towards the front of the truck), but not too much any of those directions or physic's won't allow for this magic trick that were about to do. (refer to the pictures please). When everything is tightened properly, slowly get off the bike and make sure it stays standing straight up.

Although the bike looks stable, without a wheel chock, I wouldn't trust only two tie downs, and i don't recommend that you should either.
I put the other two tie downs around the metal part that holds the passenger pegs (refer to pictures).



The bike didn't take any damage in this area from the tie downs and they were away from anything that could have ripped them so I had no problems with this.

Go ahead and do the same thing with these as you did the front ones. Sit on the bike again and tighten these back ones and check the front ones again because you can never be too careful.

Make sure everything is secure and you're good to go. I suggest doing a practice run around the block or something before hitting the road.





Stop every 45 minutes to an hour and check the tie downs and bike. I have heard that if the bike is going to fall over, it's going to be a slow process so you will have time to fix it before it happens. Only problem is you have to actually stop and check or else you can't do anything about it obviously. Fortunately every time I stopped to check, the bike was perfectly fine and required no adjustments.

After reaching your destination:
When you take the tie downs off, make sure someone is on the bike again, because you don't want to release all the pressure from the suspension too quickly and have the bike "jump" and fall over (there are probably also technical reasons).

Getting the bike off the truck isn't as bad as getting it on. Would be nice to have a hill or loading dock or something. I wanted to turn the bike around in the truck and ride it down with my hand on the brake nice and easy. Sounds like it would have worked, but we just rolled it down by hand (after shifting into neutral, don't forget the bike was in gear the whole trip) and the bike kind of jumped off the ramp towards the end but was fine. Not the way I wanted to do it but it worked. Find a hill, or even a really high curb, anything makes a difference.

This may or may not be legal, i have no idea. ALSO, just remember that there are some parkways that trucks can't go on, so keep that in mind. I broke the rules, it was only for an exit or so but luckily was not pulled over.

Questions or comments are welcome. I also welcome any advice I may have forgotten to mention. Remember that this is NOT the safest way to transport a motorcycle but this way has been proven to work if you have no other options.

A few (well, a lot i guess) of things I learned and mentioned are from kkim, thank you kkim for your help. Also anyone else that I bothered and that has given me help with this, I thank you very much.

Stay safe guys.