I just bought a 2005 BMW R1200RT which I plan to mate to the Champion Escort that I currently own. I am looking for options for subframes between the bike/chair.
We might eventually want to upgrade to a wider seat chair for the fiance', but for now the finances don't allow it.
Does anybody know who has already developed a nice subframe for this bike? Has anybody done a car tire conversion for it, and/or a beefed up rear suspension to help support the final drive bearings?
The bike should be delivered from NY sometime next week, and then I get to dig into it and see just what I have commited to. It is a salvage bike from a low-side slide into the curb which scraped up the left side and broke the rear wheel.
Hopefully the fairing mounts will still be straight enough, or it will lots of hours of my time taking everything off to replace it...
Thanks for any input.
Unfortunately, I can't help you re: your tech questions, but sounds like a really cool project.(I'm sure there are several on the forum who will be able to help you). Great idea using a damaged bike to start with. What do you plan to do to the rig, mistly stock, or do you plan addons like tilt, modified trail, etc? Are you going to do it youtself? Post some pics of the bike and sidecar beofre you get started....
I plan on doing as much of the work as possible myself. I have a pretty good shop here, as well as a brother who is a tool-n-die maker, so he can turn out some parts for me if they fit in his pocket... 😉
Going with a salvage title bike really brings the price of admission down, and even if the fairing is not perfectly aligned when I am done, it won't affect the handling of the rig like it would if the bike were still on two wheels.
I have ridden two-wheelers with slightly tweaked fairings, and the best of them were a little unsettling at speed, one was downright dangerous! The air starts to spill off the fairing in an uneven way causing the bike to lean slightly one way, then when the air pressure equalizes, the gyro effect of the wheels tries to pull it back upright. Then the air pushes sideways again, starting an oscilation. It can go from mild and disconserting, to a tank-slapper depending on speed, winds, how much the fairing is tweaked.
With the chair hanging out there, there is always an unbalanced aerodynamic load, so a minor tweak to the fairing is not noticable.
The sidecar is pretty stock right now, but I do intend to add some method of adjusting tilt/leanout while on the fly. I know that there is a bolt-on TILT kit for this sidecar, but I have heard stories of the mechanical actuator dying due to water infiltration into the electronics & gearbox. Unless I can get a very good guarantee that this problem has been fixed, I am thinking about an air-shock with a control unit from a 'Wing or Venture to be able to adjust on the fly with an on-board compressor.
Since the rear wheel is toast, I am looking at car-tire wheel conversions.
I even have a more ambitious idea for a complete swingarm replacement which would incorporate an axle on a double-sided support with tapered roller bearings to take the side loading off of the bearings in the BMW final drive unit.
If I go with a replacement swingarm, I also plan to add a swaybar to the rig, as it would be easy to weld a mount for a swaybar to the fabricated swingarm.
The final version will probably include modified trail, but I have not decided which way to implement that yet. If I go with a car-tire conversion, then possibly a EML or Unit replacement front end. Otherwise, Jay at Dauntless has been making TeleLever lower bridges which bolt into the stock suspension and reduce trail on the BMWs.
The basic driveline/ergos of the bike will remain stock. With 110ph and 84lb-ft of torque, I don't think I will need any performance modifications. And with a stock 720-watt(60 amp) alternator, heated grips, and heated seats; I think the electrical power and driver comforts are well taken care of...
I will try to remember to post photos as work progresses.
Here is a link to the bike I ended up buying:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=310016125223&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=021
Most like Champion use the basic Saginaw 12 VDC Performance Pak* Linear Actuator 5704114 with 4 inch stroke. The "Wiper" on the unit is not up to the job of being exposed to all the grit thrown up by the wheel in a very unfriendly environment.
To correct and protect that shortcomming I used a Fork Boot ment for MX bikes and cut it down a little to cover it. That has kept mine working well for 6 years and aprox 50K sidecar miles so far.
Check in with Claude Stanley of C Stanley MotorSports Corporation for a well built Sub Frame.
swaybar2002@yahoo.com
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/FreedomSidecarsandTrailers/
Let us know how it turns out with a few pics.
check with Claude about car tire for back. i put a rotor and rear brake pads on J.R. Lewis' BMW last fall. he has Claude's car tire conversion. i thought it was a nice set up. ymmv.
fly
Looks like you got a bargain. little plastic, bent frame (what doesn't affect much in the rig)(possibly front fork bent too (easy but time consumeing job with an indicator on the hydraulic press ) and little milage.
Good start point for to hook a sidecar onto it. I don't know if the back wheels base is trong enough, if so your brother might wack off the broken rim and make an adapter for a car rim.
To go with a new made back swing will be a hell of a time because you loose the drive train and double lever action. Then you get back to "rubber cow" times.
Best wishes
Sven Peter
