R80RT, looking to add a sidecar....

I guess it depends on how adventurous your girl is. She might be more comfortable in a full bodied Ural. Mark your Calendar for the first weekend in June and come up to the SKUNKS in the Woods Rally at Cameron, WI. http://www.cwizard.com/skunk/
I'm probably going to be in Watertown the first weekend in April if you want to look at a Ural car up close.

Hey, Andy!
I live in the Milwaukee area, Sussex, to be exact.
You are more than welcome to come over and visit,check out my rig, go for a ride [you and your girl]
That platform setup you posted is not for everyday use with passengers..it is for mostly off road use. if you are planning on any kind of highway riding, forget the platform! you will also need over 100 pounds of ballast to keep the SC wheel on the ground in turns.
get a standard SC, enclosed. better for hauling passengers, STUFF, groceries, ETC.
My bike is in the middle of a teardown and refurbish[ not drivetrain], being reassembled now. striping the painted parts now and reassembling.
Yes you will need subframe on the Beemer.
A LL is a great addition , I highly reccommend it, but not absolutrely necessary. that can be added later.
one of the important things is your passenger must be comfy...easy to get in and out.
nothing could be more of a PIA then having trouble getting in or out of a sidecar. that will discourage many potential passengers from going along..some can get in OK, but it is a devil trying to stand up and get out.also, the seat needs to be high enough so the pasenger can see all around..not sitting down on the floor area. they want to enjoy the scenery also!
Email me off list if you want to stop over..I'm retired and usually around any time..
Rwzinda@earthlink.net

A sidecar similar to what you pictured can be utilized for the street if it is setup and constructed properly. You will have to be weight concious of course as you would not have the weight of a conventional body. A swaybar would be a decent addition to help keep stabilty in line. These type of sidecar are popular in some places and can be a ton of fun if you have an adventurous passenger. I am currently building one for a friend right now which has been a challege but should work out well. Lots of under seat storage,high seating position, grab rails, 10 gallon auxillary fuel tank,swaybar, car tires all around, custom leading link, sidecar brake etc. Weather protection for passenger? Not much 🙂
As Bob said you do not need a leading link although they are a nice feature.
I ran a platform on my K 100 rig for a while. It was built with stabilty in mind and worked very well. My wife would not ride on it though...lol.

Thanks for the great advise. How do you feel about sidecar brakes? None, drum, disc?

My girl(no drivers license) and I usually get every where by bicycle. I need something to transport my gear to work around the city of Milwaukee. We also have another bike that we ride two up when there isn't ice/snow on the ground.

I aways feel that if the sidecar brake saves you one time, It was worth every penny of the cost. Also have you ever heard some one complain that they have to much brake?
Some of the places that say you do not need a brake I suspect do not know how to hook up a brake.
Jay Giese
Dauntless Motors Corporation

Jay wrote:
>>Some of the places that say you do not need a brake I suspect do not know how to hook up a brake.<<

Maybe some 🙂

makes sense about a brake. What kind would you add if you had your druthers? Disk/Drum or can you switch easily later?

With the weight of a sidecar. Is it 1/3 unladen? seems like a lot of sidecars are over 200lbs. Which seems heavy for a bike being 600lbs. But my lack of experience my being showing thru here...

thanks again-andy

I've always taken it to mean "going down the road". My Valkyrie only weighs around 750lbs. But when I'm on it and I have the normal stuff in the saddlebags it's over 1000.
However, remember that if you set up the sidecar to usually carry a 200 lb. passenger, you'll be way off balance running to the grocery store with it empty. If you're going to error, do it on the side of a too heavy sidecar.
I don't think anyone's ever been hurt because the sidecar was too heavy and didn't come up. :0)

yup, Mike is right...better to be too heavy.
The bike weight needs to be calculated WITH the driver's weight included. and the sidecar with NO passenger.
IE...600 pound bike plus 200 pound driver = 800 pound bike..a 250 pound sidecar matches up there closely.
That is the way you will be driving it many times.
any additional weight to the sidecar will be considered a benefit.

Thanks! that makes more sense...I was beginning to wonder with the weights of the sidecars I was seeing....

On the subject of brakes. Would you prefer disk or drum? Purely personal, should match rear of bike?

On brakes:
If sidecar brake is linked:
Some disc brake setups link with the front master cylinder, some to the rear. Almost none have a brake and rotor that match the motorcycles brakes.
Some factory mechanical drum combos like URAL, Dnepr,CJ, have sidecar brakes that match the motorcycles brakes (front and rear) in swept volume (drum size and shoe size). The leverage however is different than the bike.
If sidecar brake is not linked:
An independent pedal allows the driver to opt between the use or non use of the sidecar brake. If ajacent to the bike brake they can be both operated similtaniously, or if desired the braking can be finessed between the two pedals (Handy in offroad work).
Proportioned brakes:
Work well most of the time as long as the weight/traction ratio remains somewhat stable between the bike and the sidecar.
Inherent problems with all linked systems:
There are so many variables in weight, traction, wheel/tire sizes, road surfaces and brake efficiency with any combo that the driver will still have to correct steer to overcome any one or more of these factor at any given time. Engineered three wheeled ABS maybe for a fix?
No sidecar brake:
Driver must correct to the right to overcome the inertia of the sidecar. This is something the driver is doing constantly anytime the rig is decelerated.
Since one must correct steering for accelerating, deceleration, braking, turning, road camber, et cetera, the sidecar brake is still an optional accessory as opposed to an absolute necessity.
Factory rigs seem to work well with them. Years of experience and engineering come into play here.
Some aftermarket combos work well with them. Some aftermarket combos do not work well with them.

Moral: A well matched bike/sidecar with a well matched braking system is enjoyable to drive. If not well matched, chuck the sidecar brake.

Lonnie

Thank you for the brake info....

I was originally looking at the above platform, unsure now, and I had the option of disk, drum or nothing. That is why I was wondering. Nice to know that it is not necessary.

I was thinking independant pedal but one that was activated if bike rear was used with a simple mechanical link. So the two rear brake pedal would be next to each other. I could use the rear sidecar brake alone, but if I used the rear bike brake a simple lever would engage the sidecar brake. I think that 'snowbum' from airhead lore did something like this, so no original thought processes on my side.

Pictures of Snowbum's setup are here at http://www.sidecar.com/megabbs/photos/photo-thumbnails.asp?albumid=36

Depending upon the gear you plan to haul, you might be happier with a full bodied sidecar. It will be more secure simply by virtue of being out of sit if under the tonneau or in the trunk. Jay also carries the standard Ural hack, so he could set you up with either.

If your gear is large or odd shaped you might find you like the platform better. They are fun to drive.

There is more to matching a sidecar to a bike than simply weight ratio. Track width and other factors can be used to compensate for a light rig. Also, where you put the weight will make a huge difference-weight towards the front of the sidecar can actually be a very bad thing. Weight near the sidecar axle can be very effective. You can get by with less ballast if it is well placed- very low and to the right rear but inside the tipover lines.

Jay can set up the platform to work well for your use if that is what you decide you want. Platforms are way fun, but the standard sidecar may be a more practical commuter.