Now have to run it up on boards to get a drain pan under it to change the oil plus the bottom rubs when running up on lift.
Has a Champion sidecar with hydraulic leveler and their EZ Steer rake kit; auto tire in rear, rear MC tire up front.
Called Champion it hear what they say about raising it. Asked if their rake kit could handle longer front fork tubes. They don't know of anyone who has tried it.
Talked to Progressive about longer rear shocks, they only offer shorter shocks, no one asks for longer ones. Hyperpro will build the longer shocks.
So, installing four inch longer front fork tubes and one inch over rear shocks would give more ground clearance, but.... has anyone tried it? Were you satisfied with the results?
Would like to talk with someone who has tried this before plunging in too deep.
just my 2 cents but wouldn't it be better to keep the height down for better handling, the lower the center of gravity the better
I know what you mean
I run a car tire on my 1500 and it did lower the rear, I just keep the air maxed out in the rear to bring the body back up. this helps with trail effect and lifts it back up just a little at the swing arm
I also raised my front tubes in the tree to help and this lowered the bike also. I can't get a normal plastic self contained oil pan under it anymore but I can get a round tin drain pan under it just fine
I too have to put it on a board to get my jack lift under it, BUT as long as that is the only time I have to worry about it I am OK
Why do you need to raise it up? For oil change you can use board. Any other reason? What tire do you have on the rear?
I have the same outfit you have. 1500/Escort with 15 inch car tire on rear. E-Z steer on front does , lower it and I think they used to come with risers on top of the forks. I found some after-market extensions that are threaded to fit in the tops of the forks instead of the caps. They are one and a half inches. Brings the front up where it was originally. I also keep the Progressive shock up quite firm in the rear. Still need a board under the wheels for oil changes. By the way this rig is for sale now over on Complete rigs for sale section because I now have an 1800/Hannigan.
Ralph Taylor
Out in Montana
Can you give info about some after-market extensions that are threaded to fit in the tops of the forks instead of the caps?
We run the bikes on a plank lifting them up 1.5 inches this allows us to then put the GL1500 and many other bike up on our bike lift, no problem at all. If you are working on the ground why not just run it up on a few planks and then have it set up so that you can remove the planks under the center of the bike. For as seldom as you need to get under the bike this seems a lot simpler and cheaper. we some times will use an automotive floor jack and lift on the front lower boss near the hiem joint.
Making changes to the bike will alter the trail and drive line "U" joint angles and you will want to realign the sidecar when done. Lots of work and expense for little gain.
Jay G
DMC sidecars
www.dmcsidecars.com
866-638-1793
VLAD, the place I got them from is: Cad to Chrome, Oakley, MI. They are kind of spendy at $95 a pair but they are well made. The only thing about them was they were 1mm smaller diameter so I had to put a spacer in to match the rest of the tube size. I don't know if it was my 89 had larger fork tubes but they worked out ok. Jay may be right about the gain. However, I didn't notice any ill effect. Of course I am checking alignment quite often anyway.
Thanks for info SidehackRalf. What did you use for spacer?
Why do you want to raise Goldwing?
Currently on the rear of the Wing is a Goodyear Assurance FuelMax 175/60-16. Have had no problems with it, but am mounting a Austone Taxi Tire 175R-16 on the rear next week. The Austone is taller, that will raise the rear some.
Also have a brand new Dunlop Graspic DS-3 175/60-16 that is for sale. $90 shipped 48 states. I believe is same height as Goodyear.
Why do I want to raise the GoldWing? Am assembling the pieces to build a popup camper sidecar for the Wing for a planned tour of remote sections of Canada and Alaska in 2017. The custom up there seems to be when grading the gravel roads, leave a 6" high ridge of loose gravel down the middle of the road... or along the edge dividing the roadway from the camping areas. There are also the major potholes, pavement cracks and invisible frost heaves to contend with. Ground clearance and a good belly pan are a necessity or ride slower.
The Wing has the power and torque to push that wall of air on the front of the camper at highway speeds. But has little ground clearance. A big plus ... I have the Wing, know it and trust it, with only 74,000 miles.
Jay makes some good points, may just have to ride slower and forget about trying to raise it if doing so might weaken or induce other parts to fail.
Vlad, the threaded extensions are machined out of aluminum billet stock. They have threads on the bottom to thread into the tops of the forks and I think a 17mm hex nut on top.
The reason is that when you move the front wheel ahead you lose height so I've been told Champion included these extensions to maintain height. I have a 15 inch car wheel conversion with radial tire so it sits pretty low in the back. Jay's idea about changing the trail with the front end higher has me thinking that maybe I shouldn't have the extensions.
I rode this rig to Alaska in 2008 and the belly pan scraped some gravel sometimes but I had no trouble otherwise. The frost heaves and chuckholes were sort of fun most of the time you could fly the chair over them if you time it right. Hard to average more than 35 mph. But the views are fantastic. My buddy and I both rode 1500's and both needed fork seals when we got back.
CCJon
please start a thread with some pictures of your sidecar camper build. I saw a picture once where someone took a mini mate camper and installed it on the hack frame. is that what you have in mind or are you custom building it.
While not but much, raising the front end with fork extensions will increase trail, not reduce it but by so little it is more theory then any real world difference.
Jay G
DMC sidecars
www.dmcsidecars.com
CCjon - 2/27/2016 5:53 PM
Currently on the rear of the Wing is a Goodyear Assurance FuelMax 175/60-16. Have had no problems with it, but am mounting a Austone Taxi Tire 175R-16 on the rear next week. The Austone is taller, that will raise the rear some.
Also have a brand new Dunlop Graspic DS-3 175/60-16 that is for sale. $90 shipped 48 states. I believe is same height as Goodyear.
Why do I want to raise the GoldWing? Am assembling the pieces to build a popup camper sidecar for the Wing for a planned tour of remote sections of Canada and Alaska in 2017. The custom up there seems to be when grading the gravel roads, leave a 6" high ridge of loose gravel down the middle of the road... or along the edge dividing the roadway from the camping areas. There are also the major potholes, pavement cracks and invisible frost heaves to contend with. Ground clearance and a good belly pan are a necessity or ride slower.
The Wing has the power and torque to push that wall of air on the front of the camper at highway speeds. But has little ground clearance. A big plus ... I have the Wing, know it and trust it, with only 74,000 miles.
Jay makes some good points, may just have to ride slower and forget about trying to raise it if doing so might weaken or induce other parts to fail.
May be you need to build a popup camper sidecar om KLR. And build platform to carry KLR on Goldwing.
I dream about removable popup camper with dirt bike carrier I can use on each of my rig( just change it when i need).
I saw a picture once where someone took a mini mate camper and installed it on the hack frame
AJ, Am copying that idea plus make some mods to it. The minimate camper arrived last month, still have to go pick up the sidecar chassis I bought in Albuquerque. Will be a slow build, but plan to post up a thread of it.
