In the "I love to watch a good bar fight" tradition; I (almost) never have trouble starting my Indian (I can laugh while I'm sitting at the computer).
Apparently Jay Leno and his turbine powered rig weren't invited to this shootout.
I handed my GL the grocery list a while back and sent it to the store. It hasn't come back yet so I guess I'd better hop on the Low Rider and see if it got lost.
(The GL doesn't have a GPS). Everything else one could imagine, but no GPS.
Speaking of starting trouble, or better yet starter trouble, last friday morning I had to attend a 6 a.m. meeting at my plant. As I was getting ready to leave, there was a young kid from third shift out trying to kick start his Harley. I don't know what model it was, but it appeared to be quite new and I could see it had a starter. He said the starter was bad and he has been waiting since last fall for replacement parts. It was obvious that kicking was not working. Every third or fourth kick it would fire, then sputter and die. I could tell he was getting worn out, so I offered to push start him. He was absolutely clueless! Had no idea what I was talking about and couldn't quite grasp the concept of putting into second gear after it was rolling. He kept dropping it into low and stopping dead. When I repeated that he needed to try 2nd gear he refused, saying he was taught to always start in first. Then he made the fatal mistake. He suggested that maybe push starting only works on those cheap bikes, and he pointed to my Valkyrie. I then wished him well and left. A couple hours later I came past the plant on my way home and he was still sitting on the curb next to his bike. Maybe now he knows what his grandfather meant by "don't bite the hand that's feeding you."
I would try the Ron Dee Voo as sugested here by others. BUT........! There always is one. I would not get caught in the "price" trap......you must match the tug and the boat to be happy. You need to find a sidecar that is roughly 1/3 the weight of the bike. You should not put a Velorex on a FatBoy (I've seen one....don't laugh). You should not put a GIANT 2 Seater on a scooter either. You can find 100's of examples of poorly matched rigs where people have "saved money" buy purchasing a sidecar based on the "price" of the sidecar only. They soon find out they bought a miss-matched rig and spent 1000's re-engineering it, when they could have just bought the right rig for thier bike in the first place. There are good and bad about every rig...you have to decide for yourself.
My Experience and 2 cents:
I have a Champion Legend on a Harley Softail....looks good....rides good...and is a good weight match for the big bike. What I like: It's stylish and looks good with my 50's style motif on the HD. It has a coil over leading link style suspension on the sidecar...The fit and finish is nice....the over all balance is good. What I don't like: It does not have a brake (acceptable brake power as is, but it would not hurt to have the sidecar brake!)....it does not have "adjustable trim" to adjust for load and road crown.
I also have a Hannigan GTL on a Gold Wing 1800....which is a HUGE sidecar.....but with the power of the goldwing...it is barley noticable since it is set up right. What I like: STYLE is awsome! It looks like a factory option.....The handling is great, like a sports car....tons of storage so you can over pack on long trips.....many creature comforts for the wife: headset, fan, 12v, adjustable seat, roof & snap in windows...adjustable trim for the sidecar (improves tracking on crowned roads and variable loads in the sidecar) and a brake. What I don't like: It wasn't free! LOL
Good luck with your decision!
Dundertaker
pgdvg@yahoo.com
Don't know where you are in VA, but there's a Ural dealer in Asheville NC, and Blue Moon just North of Atlanta purports to sell Steibs, but I'm not sure they have the parts to hook them up to a motorcycle.
Dundertaker,
Good post!! It is sad when a person gets sideca rfever and then rushes into getting a hack that is way too light for their bike. They go out and sometimes get the impression that all sidecars are a joke. Or, go out and scare themselves half silly and stuff th esidecar in the shed. Of course I have bought a coupe that were parked in a shed so that was not all bad 🙂
Thanks guys, I've learned a lot by these last few months, one of my concerns was getting a side car to light. I'm going to ride out to Ashville and take a look one weekend when I'm off. We are in the process of moving to Central Va soon, so I have to put the sidecar off for a while (left a house for an apartment) until we buy another house. But on the plus side, that will force me to be patient and continue to learn, before I make my decision . And I hope to see more in person in the meantime, one more reason for road trips. I'd love to go to the RON VEE DOO, but I've already promised my Financial manager that I'd take her to the beach that weekend. Thanks again, and keep posting, I'll be reading.
Dooley wrote:
>>I'd love to go to the RON VEE DOO, but I've already promised my Financial manager that I'd take her to the beach that weekend. Thanks again, and keep posting, I'll be reading.<<
If it helps we can get you a couple of bags of white sand and dump them near your tent to sit on. There is also a large creek at the rally site. The RON DEE VOO Beach? 🙂
Just kidding...or maybe not.
