Hauling bike in a U-Haul

[Jesse85]

Hi All. I recently accepted a new job offer in D.C. and was wondering if anyone has ever hauled their bike in the back of a u-haul truck. I know that it is ok to haul inside the truck because U-Hauls website sells a chock that is built especially for their trucks but it is $119 bucks and I'd rather avoid the added expense (I could rent the bike trailer cheaper) I also want to avoid getting the trailer just for the bike, because I dont want the extra space in truck to go to waste.. What I really need to know is what gear (tie downs, ratchet straps, etc) and in what quantity I need to get to be successful. I will be getting the 20' truck so I am not really worried about space I just dont want to have my bike fall while it is back there. I thought about sandwiching the bike between matresses and strapping it to a sidewall but I dont know. Thanks for any advice.

[alex.s]

make sure the truck has places to tie down to inside... its been awhile since i've been in a uhaul but i'm sure they do... i wouldn't trust the side wall. make sure you have 4 tie-downs... ratchet straps might be overkill... every time i load a bike into a truck i put the wheel straight against the front of the storage area so it can't go forward anymore. i usually secure it both with the wheels and to the suspended area... not just the suspended area, otherwise when you hit the brakes and the bikes suspension compresses, the tiestraps get looser and if it gets too loose you risk bad things happening.

[CZroe]

For 1-way, it still ain't cheap. I checked.

[miss_syn]

It might be cheaper to get your bike shipped. Fuel costs go into the price of the rental and those add up.

I think it's $400 to get it shipped that far.

[EsrTek]

As long as the truck has the slots to add the straps, it will be no problem.

We put our company's truck drivers Harley Sportster 1200cc into the back of his 18 wheeler's trailer. He is usually stuck in the town he delivers in all week, and has nothing to do when not driving the truck, so he takes the bike down.
We use straps on each handlebar, and 1 strap to each side of his sissy bar, w/ the kickstand down and leave it in 1st gear.
He has gone from TN to TX/FL like this many times.

[Bo0stZomb13]

I took my bike from chicago, IL to jacksonville, fl. I used a canyon dancer and a tie downs. Make sure to put something under the stand if you use it (depending on truck). Heard rumors of people punching holes in the bottem of the truck.

[gogoKawi]

This brings back memories. I put the 250 in the back of a uhaul when I moved from Ft Lauderdale to DC. I had a 14 foot truck which was packed to the top. I put the bike in first and made sure that every soft article I owned was around it, on the sides and on top. Bags of clothes, pillows, sheets, and blankets are your friend. I also put an exercise ball between the nose of the bike and the wall. I made it to DC with no problems at all.
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[whiteboy]

I will be doing the uhal move in 6 weeks with 2 bikes but my plan is handlebar tiedowns and a tie down on the seat along with either first gear or a bile stand whichever might be more secure. This sounds like a pain realy but beats spending 200 bucks on 2 bike blocks from uhal. Good luck and tell us how the move goes.

[mrlmd]

The canyon dancers or similar is a good idea because it keeps the ropes/straps away from the fairings and tanks. Tie down the front wheel so it stays straight, tie off the rear wheel. If you want, cover the bike with a blanket and tie a line around the whole bike either over the seat and around, or over the pillion and around through the rear wheel down to the floor somewhere. It's not going to move, you don't need a chock for the front wheel if you tie the bike down properly.
Do not rest the bike on the stand- it has to be able to ride on its' own suspension.
Make sure there are no oil or gas leaks.
A Uhaul trailer that you can fit the bike in along with a bunch of other stuff would be much cheaper than a Uhaul truck to rent, plus probably cheaper to tow with your car if you have a hitch on it, because those trucks maybe get only 12 mpg on the road if you are lucky. You could probably buy a utility trailer for less than the cost of renting something and then sell it when you get to where you are going if you don't need it anymore.

["A"]

IMO, Canyon Dancers are more likely to cause damage to your handlebars..
Secure your bike during transport by the fork legs & swing arm or wheels.. handlebars are meant to control the bike while it's in motion, not to support strengths required to secure a bike while it's being transported.

[mrlmd]

I don't want to get into an argument with you, but that's ridiculous. They have never been reported anywhere to cause damage to any bike and the force or torque on the bars is negligible compared to the strength of the bars and there's very little force required to keep the bike upright if it's balanced right and tied down angled off to the sides. Like you said, that's your opinion. not based on any facts.
Do not put the bike up on either the center stand or on a rear stand, it should be riding on it's own suspension, slightly compressed, so it can move up and down as if on the road. That is a much softer, gentler ride than on a rigid mount, and it won't punch a hole in the floor of the trailer. That's also the way every professional transports a bike, riding on it's own rubber on the floor of the trailer, tied down to slightly compress the front forks.
I have transported many bikes hundreds of miles on a flat bed trailer and have tied them down by the bars and/or the forks and have never had any problems at all. The force on the bars is not straight down, it's a at least a 30-45 degree angle out to the side, and nowhere near anything like needed to bend the bars. You could keep the bike upright with the force of a finger or two to keep it from falling over when you are supporting it from that height.
You can even look at my avatar to see how I brought my bike home from a 400 mile trip.

[Buffalony]

I just did this with my two bikes at the end of last year. Drove them up the ramp into a budget 16 footer. Put them right in front with the tire against the wood. There were hard wood anchor points vertically and horizontally on the walls and they were plenty strong enough. I used ratchet tie downs, 3-4 on each bike. I got the bikes in as close to the left and right wall as I could, anchored them both on the left and right side of the box, then ratcheted them down compressing their suspensions, also paying attention to the direction of the hooks on the strap ends. They didnt budge the whole trip. There was enough room to turn the bikes around and drive them straight down the ramp. I'll think you'll do just fine with a 20 foot truck. keep the tie down anchor points as close to the floor as possible.

[Alex]

Originally Posted by mrlmd

I don't want to get into an argument with you, but that's ridiculous. They have never been reported anywhere to cause damage to any bike and the force or torque on the bars is negligible compared to the strength of the bars and there's very little force required to keep the bike upright if it's balanced right and tied down angled off to the sides.

I agree with your direct point (Canyon Dancers are not going to torque the bars enough to bend them unless the straps are so overtightened past the point of reasonableness). But - there have been many reports of the original design canyon dancers damaging the throttle tube housing and tearing of the grips. Some folks use a small piece of PVC pipe around the grips to then put the dancers over, so the grips are protected a bit better. www.cyclecynch.com came out with a product that prevented this grip damage, and new design CD's that came out later have cups on the end of the bars that help out quite a bit.

["A"]

Originally Posted by mrlmd

I don't want to get into an argument with you, but that's ridiculous. They have never been reported anywhere to cause damage to any bike and the force or torque on the bars is negligible compared to the strength of the bars and there's very little force required to keep the bike upright if it's balanced right and tied down angled off to the sides. Like you said, that's your opinion. not based on any facts.

Never?
I've seen actual motorcycles that were damaged using Canyon Dancers. If you've never seen it doesn't mean they don't exist, they are all factual.

Originally Posted by mrlmd

Do not put the bike up on either the center stand or on a rear stand, it should be riding on it's own suspension, slightly compressed, so it can move up and down as if on the road. That is a much softer, gentler ride than on a rigid mount, and it won't punch a hole in the floor of the trailer. That's also the way every professional transports a bike, riding on it's own rubber on the floor of the trailer, tied down to slightly compress the front forks.

Actually, suspension shoule be free during transport. Motorcycles should be secured by the axles of its wheels, those are the parts of a motorcycle that are actually designed to support the weight and forces of the motorcycle during transport or motion.

Originally Posted by mrlmd

I have transported many bikes hundreds of miles on a flat bed trailer and have tied them down by the bars and/or the forks and have never had any problems at all. The force on the bars is not straight down, it's a at least a 30-45 degree angle out to the side, and nowhere near anything like needed to bend the bars. You could keep the bike upright with the force of a finger or two to keep it from falling over when you are supporting it from that height.

I've transported hundreds of different motorcycles over long distances, I think I know how to correctly secure a motorcycle for transport.

Originally Posted by Alex

I agree with your direct point (Canyon Dancers are not going to torque the bars enough to bend them unless the straps are so overtightened past the point of reasonableness). But - there have been many reports of the original design canyon dancers damaging the throttle tube housing and tearing of the grips. Some folks use a small piece of PVC pipe around the grips to then put the dancers over, so the grips are protected a bit better. www.cyclecynch.com came out with a product that prevented this grip damage, and new design CD's that came out later have cups on the end of the bars that help out quite a bit.

Why risk the damage?
Plenty of other ways to secure a motorcycle without limiting the suspension or using constant suspension compressing force on the handlebars... not to mention spending the extra $$ for Canyon Dancers vs regular ratchet strapes and soft-ties.

[mrlmd]

"Actually, suspension shoule be free during transport. Motorcycles should be secured by the axles of its wheels, those are the parts of a motorcycle that are actually designed to support the weight and forces of the motorcycle during transport or motion."

And OH pray, tell. how do you do that? How do you tie down the bike by it's axles? And keep it from tipping over? Educate the rest of us, please.
I've never seen any professional motorcycle transport do that so tell us how it's done.

The cost comparison between Canyon Dancers. soft ties with loops, etc, etc, is negligible and they all work basically the same way. I often just use a length of rope as well as adjustable nylon straps, and that is actually the cheapest and most adaptable and works just as well as anything else. I really don't understand why this has to be made so complicated when it's really a pretty simple thing to do.

["A"]

Originally Posted by mrlmd

And OH pray, tell. how do you do that? How do you tie down the bike by it's axles? And keep it from tipping over? Educate the rest of us, please.
I've never seen any professional motorcycle transport do that so tell us how it's done.

Again, if you've never seen it or don't know how doesn't mean they don't exist.

Professional motorcycle transport? just people who transport motorcycles for a profit.. just like movers, not necessarily give a damn if your stuff get to destination in one piece or without damage. Especially on a motorcycle when suspensions are compressed over long period of time, damages that you can't even see.

Originally Posted by mrlmd

The cost comparison between Canyon Dancers. soft ties with loops, etc, etc, is negligible and they all work basically the same way. I often just use a length of rope as well as adjustable nylon straps, and that is actually the cheapest and most adaptable and works just as well as anything else. I really don't understand why this has to be made so complicated when it's really a pretty simple thing to do.

Bent handlebar is not cheap nor easy to replace.

[mrlmd]

So you are not even going to answer me/us and tell us how this is done? How do you secure a bike by the axles of its wheels?

Professional motorcycle transports don't give a damn about your stuff? Damages to motorcycle suspensions you can't even see? Bent handlebars? These guys survive on providing a quality service, recommendations, etc. or they don't survive in the marketplace. Maybe you are one of those guys with an empty pickup shuffling bikes around for a quick buck.

You are spouting off crap as fact you can't back up or document. Don't add confusion to something pretty straight forward if you have nothing constructive to say or of any educational value.

[Alex]

Lighten up, Marc.

Here's what people have been excited about for transporting trackbikes the past few years:

Link to original page on YouTube.

http://www.pit-bull.com/trailer-restraint.shtml

There are other designs based on the same concept. Doesn't mean everyone needs to go out and buy one of these, but it's a pretty compelling idea if one is transporting their bike(s) often.

[mrlmd]

Nice of you to come to try to come to N Ja's rescue and explain that to the rest of us.
Now that's really a great invention - $280 for the restraint, $80-100 for the necessary pins for each specific bike. plus the tax and you're talking about $400 for a trailer tie down. You'd have to make a lot of trips to justify spending that kind of money, not just a once in a while move. Costs as much as the trailer almost, but I guess the cost pays for the advertising and hype. Hardly worth it and totally unnecessary IMO, for a cross state or even a cross many state move, as all these other much less expensive methods work just as well, possibly take up slightly more room width wise, but do not damage your bike either if done right. You also have to screw the mount into the floor of the trailer so how are you going to do that with a rented trailer and not pay for the damage you caused?
Pay your money, take your choice, whatever you want to do.

[Alex]

I'm not rescuing anybody, other than a thread with a silly ***-for-tat argument in it. All the OP needs is some advice on how people carry their bikes in Uhaul's, and a variety of suggestions can all work just fine. N Ja's issues/opinions with using Canyon Dancers are not unique to him, and actually are shared by a good number of folks. That said, if people are careful with 'em, they might never have an issue. The basics are just that, pretty basic. If you use straps, make sure they are tight enough to hold the bike in place without being so tight that they compress the suspension too much, or put too much torque on the attachment points. If you're using the handlebars, be extra careful about the amount of torque applied, especially when using ratcheting tie-downs. Make sure that however the straps are attached, that they do not rub on any exposed bodywork as the bike moves slightly. And if you have the cash (or have a need for the chocks for storage or transport more than a single trip), there are some neat options out there that can be more secure than straps, better on the suspension, and quicker/easier to load/unload. In addition to the Pit Bull type solutions, check out the Condor stuff, and even the Baxley stuff.

[mrlmd]

I have no problem with any of these $4-500 contraptions but the original question posed was how to transport a bike in a UHaul trailer for a 5-600 mile trip, not how do I do this multiple times or once every week or so to go to the track repeatedly. All the original tie-down suggestions were valid and have been shown to work well and then the crap started with criticism that Canyon Dancers cause bar and grip damage, can bend bars, professional movers don't give a damn, compressing the suspension causes unseen damage, etc., which is all crap and unnecessary confusion for Jesse85 to sift through.
It's rather simple to tie down a bike in or on a trailer for safe transport and if there's other stuff going in the trailer too, just make sure it's all well packed and secure, and there's nothing to rub on or fly into the bike. Why is this so difficult?

["A"]

You can easily loop a soft-tie around the front and rear axles of a motorcycle and use ratchet straps to the floor or hooks in the bed of a pickup truck.

Pitbull setup is quite expensive, but not soft-ties and ratchet straps, four of each should do, adds up to maybe $20-30.

Like I said before, I've transported hundreds of motorcycles over long distances. I have seen the damage that straps to the handlebars/grips when not used properly. Suspension damage, too in fork seal damage or even worse, scored sliders... not to mention the spring rate of the suspension can be affected if you compress the suspension with straps over long period of time.

[krakatak]

I transported a '96 CBR 600 F3 from Saint Louis to Boston in the back of a covered UHaul trailer. Not the smallest one, but the next size up. It had rings in the front corners and the wooden bumpers down the sides, so I tied down (ratcheting tie downs) canyon dancers on the front to the rings and from the passenger pegs to the side railing/bumpers. I had rubbermaid containers with other belongings that I wedged in the front to prevent the front wheel from slipping to the sides. I had it tensioned enough to keep it in place, but not cranked to the utmost, and loosened it up when we stopped for the night. As far as I could tell there were no ill effects from the trip (disclaimer: YMMV!)

And, as long as you need the truck/trailer anyways to move the rest of your stuff, I can't call this an 'expensive' option for moving your bike

Good luck!