Wife Sue and I will retire in two years and we have been doing the planning regarding travel, what to use for an RV and all the questions and options that go with that, how to haul a motorcycle with us, whether to drag a Hack along and instead. The reason there being setting up the RV as a base and tooling around we will need either a car or SUV to use as a grocery getter so that we would not have to go to the store in the RV… that complicates things. So thinking that the Hack is the better option vs a motorcycle without one.
We have a Hack now on the Moto Guzzi EV 1100, Sue likes it well enough but I am thinking that the Harley Electra Glide will make a better tug as it just has more grunt and some creature comforts that I have gotten used to; cruise, radio, great weather protection although the Guzzi with the Aerofoil fairing is no slouch.
So in that we will need a new chair for the HD, I will need to do all that research as to which is better suited to our needs, Sue’s comfort etc.
The most important question to answer besides which car to use is whether I need to add a Leading Link Fork to the HD or swap triples for EZ –Steer or just what happens there…?
The Guzzi Hack has been equipped with the Unit Forks Leading Link set up for nearly ten years now, since the second year that we purchased it.
So, opine please, I will keep in mind that the opinions that you all state are just that and I need to make up me own mind however, just to know the options is a great start.
Appreciate any input.
Best,
Rob
HI Rob, as triple tree's are made of the Harley I would go with the tree's. Your Guzzi more then likely as you were not able to find tree's for the Guzzi, we made tree's for a while but not a lot of demand for Guzzi items. While links have some advantages on a bike like the Electraglide I doubt you could push the bike hard enough to notice the difference. Tree's are a lot less money and keep the stock look to the rig.
The Harley is nice as you can add reverse to the bike, nice to have but not a must however some times loading the rig onto or into a trailer and off can be easier with reverse. What ever sidecar you go with make sure that it comes with proper bike specific mounts not a bunch of "universal" type frame clamps they tell you will fit your bike. As more then likely you are going to have the rig for many years make sure that Sue (and perhaps down the road you, as you never truly know what the future will bring) is easy to get in and out of and has a seating position that will work for years to come. If I were doing this I would go with an Indian instead as they seem to make a great sidecar bike. At this link http://www.dmcsidecars.com/video/ There are three video's the first tells you about us, the next two are the entire installation process for one of our Tomahawk SE sidecars onto an Indian. This will give you an idea of how we do things.
There are many very good (and a few not so good) sidecars out there. In our line up most of our sidecars can be built with a Harley type fender and a matching Harley front wheel and the Tomahawk can be built with either a wire wheel or an Indian front wheel. The M72C, M72CX, Expedition and the Tomahawk SE are the most popular we offer for people in your situation. All of these sidecars are fairly wide except for the M72C which if you are going to be using a toy hauler type RV might be a consideration as you must be able to get it through the door.
I would be glad to answer any questions you may have.
Jay G
DMC sidecars
866-638-1793
www.dmcsidecars.com
Hey Jay, All good info, appreciate the input. That is a plus, swapping the trees vs an entire fork assembly. I am not opposed to a LL on the HD however, to your point I like the idea of having the front end appear to remain as stock as possible. The Guzzi with the LL fork on it now needs to have a stock front fender grafted onto it, that Unit fender has always bugged me but that is really not a priority... I keep "Thinking about it"... lol Will raked trees require a slightly longer stanchion to suit or no...? I would probably add a reverse just because I am not getting any younger and pushing a rig is not a blast. I do always try to back into a space or insure that I can just drive away but that option can keep one out of trouble too. Correct, Sue will need to be in on the type of car we add, she is the one that has to get in and out of the chair. We would certainly go with the specific mounts for the chair/tug combination. I have actually learned a thing or two in my days of motorcycling and sidecar mounts being one of the most valuable lessons. Having been a fan of the HD for a few years I would not want to swap to Indian now even though we have a friend that is a sales manager at the Augusta Indian/Triumph etc dealership and he raves about them.. We'll see. My plan is to consolidate some of the motorcycles in the garage, I have started that process actually as I just will not need all of them hanging around so trimming down is in the works. The '14 Stelvio can go, as much as I love that Guzzi, I can downsize to a V7 or something else for solo work. The EV Guzzi Rig can go as well to help make the transition to the HD chair. It is my guess that Sue will want something with a bit more space than the Tomahawk models, they look great but in my "More is better" mentality, the Champions are the balls. Up to her really. And we are still running the options and numbers for the RV, I doubt it will be a Toyhauler but maybe. I have no issues with hauling a trailer with the rig on it. More later, Thanks much Jay. Best, Rob
The triple tree's come with spacers for the forks to keep the ride height the same, The Tomahawk sidecars are quite a bit larger then one would think, what we did was start with a 1940's Indian type sidecar and make it larger by about 20% as modern Indians are larger and so are modern people. Many sidecars like the Champion Escort or some of the Hannigan sidecars that open to get you in and out while they look easy to get in and out of the seat is quite low to the point where when peoples knees start giving them concerns we have added seat lifts. The Expedition is by far our easiest sidecar to get in and out of and the seating position is the most optimal. We of course can do the Expedition for the Stelvio or the Harley. I do not have a photo of the Expedition on a Stelvio but I do have our M72DX.
Jay G
DMC sidecars
www.dmcsidecars.com
866-638-1793
Rob,
You can use all Harley parts to change your Electra Glide. Here is a link, http://www.ultraboy.us/Harley%20Raked%20Triple%20Trees.pdf. I did this on a 2003 Electra Glide and it works great for under $700. I originally only changed the triple trees, but later added the Tri Glide forks and it made a huge difference.
Link doesn't work AZ.
Try this link http://www.ultraboy.us/ It is the 6th Here's the link from the top.
