It's been a few years since my last(first) sidecar rig. It's been on my mind alot. Whenever I see one out there(not too often), I get that yearning in my stomach. My previous rig was a 1998 Honda Shadow ACE Tourer with a 2000 Velorex 562 E(pic is on avatar). Some would say- too small of a s/c for the bike. The s/c did not have the upgraded suspension.
My current bikes are a 2015 Harley Ultra Limited and a 1997 Harley Softail Custom. I read somewhere that a s/c could not be mounted on the newer ultra limited's(not sure why, or if this is the truth). If I decided to go with a s/c for the softail, would a Velorex 563 Tour Mode be a good option? Just wondering what the bike/sidecar weight difference and what's optimal. The running weight of the softail custom is about 660# and the 563 is 170#. OK match? I may even consider a Liberty s/c, because I like the looks and heavier weight. To me, the most "classical" looking s/c's are the Velorex, Liberty and Harley. Yes, looks are important to me. Not many Harley s/c's out there and most are old.
Still in the thinking stage. May take a while, but thought I'd ask the experts here. Picture of softail is below. Bike next to it is not my current one.
Check out Texas sidecar. I have a ranger on a Dyna....to me it looks right.
I cannot answer about a sidecar on a 2015 but cannot believe it is not possible. However it could void your warranty. I was going to buy a warranty when I bought the superglide and I asked about sidecars voiding the warranty and I was told yes.
DaveNBPT - 7/20/2015 12:52 PM
... I read somewhere that a s/c could not be mounted on the newer ultra limited (not sure why, or if this is the truth)....
The radiator in the right leg shield on the HD ultra limited rushmore water-head likely interferes with the upper front mount. (Only reason I know of this is a friend recently purchased on of these new Rushmore batwing baggers - who is now disappointed he can't remove the right leg shield for more airflow during these 99-degree summer days.)
Lee
MB5+TW200+CRF250L+GTV300+INT650
XL883R w/Texas Ranger Sidecar
Zuma 50F + Burgman w/Texas Sidecar<Mrs. SwampFox
BillinPA - 7/20/2015 9:05 PM
Check out Texas sidecar. I have a ranger on a Dyna....to me it looks right.
I cannot answer about a sidecar on a 2015 but cannot believe it is not possible. However it could void your warranty. I was going to buy a warranty when I bought the superglide and I asked about sidecars voiding the warranty and I was told yes.
Yes, I believe you are correct. That rules out a s/c for the ultra. Nice rig you have there. I wonder about the weight of the s/c, relative to the bike. For a bike w/ a running weight of about 660#, is a s/c that weighs under 200# an acceptable match?
No reason at all you can not put a sidecar on either bike. More then likely what you heard about your FLH has to do with the fact that Harley does not make mounts for their sidecar which they no longer make any ways and was out dated before WW2 as Harley never got around to adding suspension to the wheel. The Harley sidecar is also a very hard sidecar to get in and out of and to get into the trunk area you have to kick your passenger out and tip the seat back forward. No Velorex should be used on either of your bikes, they are way to light duty and light weight.
We offer many different sidecars for your bike that would all come with proper bike specific mounting hardware. All can be seen at our web site www.dmcsidecars.com we also have steering modifications for either bike and can add real engine driven reverse however on the softtail you would need to change your exhaust system over to one where the pipes come down both sides of the bike. One nice thing about your FLH is that you can run an automotive tire on the stock rear wheel.
Sidecars we offer I can recommend for either bikes from least to most expensive are the Kenna single or double, the M72C, M72CX, Tomahawk, Tomahawk SE (note we would run a Harley type fender rather then the Indian type fender) and our Expedition. I have attached photo's of the M72CX and the Expedition.
Jay G
DMC sidecars
www.dmcsidecars.com
866-638-1793
jaydmc - 7/21/2015 10:08 AM
No reason at all you can not put a sidecar on either bike. More then likely what you heard about your FLH has to do with the fact that Harley does not make mounts for their sidecar which they no longer make any ways and was out dated before WW2 as Harley never got around to adding suspension to the wheel. The Harley sidecar is also a very hard sidecar to get in and out of and to get into the trunk area you have to kick your passenger out and tip the seat back forward. No Velorex should be used on either of your bikes, they are way to light duty and light weight.
We offer many different sidecars for your bike that would all come with proper bike specific mounting hardware. All can be seen at our web site www.dmcsidecars.com we also have steering modifications for either bike and can add real engine driven reverse however on the softtail you would need to change your exhaust system over to one where the pipes come down both sides of the bike. One nice thing about your FLH is that you can run an automotive tire on the stock rear wheel.
Sidecars we offer I can recommend for either bikes from least to most expensive are the Kenna single or double, the M72C, M72CX, Tomahawk, Tomahawk SE (note we would run a Harley type fender rather then the Indian type fender) and our Expedition. I have attached photo's of the M72CX and the Expedition.
Jay G
DMC sidecars
www.dmcsidecars.com
866-638-1793
I appreciate the info, but would not do anything w/ the ulta if it may void the warantee.
All companies say that a sidecar will void the warranty, however the law says that if the aftermarket part does not cause the problem the warranty can not void the warranty.
Jay G
DMC sidecars
866-638-1793
With proper mounts and some ballast the 563 Tour has worked well on dozens of Softtail Harleys we have converted since the Tour models have been around (2004, with no negative feedback).
Lonnie
NWSC
Thanks Lonnie. The "stock" set up for the 563 Tour is adequate? Anything need to be added/modified? Is that a Liberty s/c you have?
Dave
The Street Glide/Liberty rig now belongs to a son. I'm on footback these days.
Lonnie
Jay, if I decide to go with the Velorex 563 T, I may purchase the DMC, model-specific mounts for my 1997 FXSTC. Could you tell me which product # I would get and maybe post pics of these mounts. I saw DMC mounts for the softails, but would the FL softails use the same mounts as the Fx's?
Dave
Hack'n - 7/21/2015 12:21 PM
With proper mounts and some ballast the 563 Tour has worked well on dozens of Softtail Harleys we have converted since the Tour models have been around (2004, with no negative feedback).
Lonnie
NWSC
I was hoping to buy bike-specific mounts for the Velorex 563 T, but Jay at DMC refused to sell them to me. He says the bike is too big for the sidecar. Not sure what other options I have for mounts. I don't know, maybe a smaller bike for the Velorex or a different sidecar brand is a good idea.
Sorry for the slow response I have been a the BMW national rally where I was lucky enough to be able to have dinner with our out going president Al Olme and our incoming president Will Shot, Thank you both for all that you have and are doing for the club.
Just to clarify, We have a safety first policy, safety over sales always, we know of at least one person who is now dead as a "professional" sidecar shop mounted one of the "heavy duty" Velorex sidecars on a bike that it never should have been mounted to. While you might get away with it, the person you down the road you sell it to may not and we do not know how large or heavy that new owner might be. So we would prefer to not sell you some thing that we easily could have just to make a sale. We do not do this simply to try and sell you one of our sidecars. We will be more then happy to provide mounts should you chose to go to a smaller lighter bike or go with a stronger heavier sidecar for your bike.
Jay G
DMC sidecars
www.dmcsidecars.com
866-638-1793
