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Trailering a Rig

All right, it is a mark of shame to trailer any bike. It either means you aren't good enough to maintain and repair it yourself (shame!), you aren't man enough to ride it where you are going (shame! shame!), or you are a poser and the bike is a trailer queen (shame! shame! shame!)

Still (sigh) there are times when even the best of us are reduced to trailering their bike. And if that bike is part of a sidecar rig you do have a problem -- sidecar rigs are too wide for most trailers.

The last time Lady Carol was on a trailer was when I bought her. I had never operated a sidecar rig, and was, frankly, scared of piloting it several hundred miles without any experience. I had no friends with sidecar-operation experience available either, so I swallowed my pride and rented an open U-Haul trailer.

I solved the too-wide problem by separating the sidecar from the bike. Me being a Mechanical Engineer, I employed my considerable guesstimating skills to predict I could get everything to fit. This with only having photographs of the rig and a few key dimensions given me by the owner over the telephone. And it turned out good. I (just!) fit the two sub-assemblies into the trailer by dint of tipping the sidecar on its side (wheel down). Ratcheting straps and moving blankets kept things from banging around.

As solutions go, it wasn't so bad. I was able to get the halves on and off the trailer with a bit of help. And disassembly/reassembly of the rig wasn't so very hard either, again, with help.

But now it's looking like I should trailer the rig again, for a special event, and I'd really like a roll-on, roll-off solution. A landscaping trailer (designed for big lawnmowers) would appear to be wide enough for the job.

My problem is, I'd like to be able to rent, not buy, such a trailer. I've never seen any such for rent. My problem isn't so much the dollars as the storage. I just don't have the space to keep such a big chunk of very-rarely-used hardware.

Ideas? Suggestions?

Best,
Ed Bianchi
Delaware USA
'87 BMW K75C/Dauntless "Lady Carol"

Another U-Haul rental, or maybe you can find a friend or neighbor who has a snomobile or ATV trailer you could rent.

L.

Where are you Ed? Maybe one of us has one you could use. Sometimes I think other people use my trailer more than I do.

Another option for those with limited storage is one of those Tow Dollies for cars. I've seen a number of them adapted to carry a sidecar rig. One isn't as big as a trailer when it comes to find a place to hide it.

After doing some online research, it looks like a snowmobile trailer might be the trick. They typically have a flat, unobstructed deck. One brand I am looking at -- Triton -- has decks over 8 feet wide (101").

Has anybody used snowmobile trailer for their rig? Is this something one can rent?

Ed Bianchi

I don't like snowmobile trailers. They are much too tall to get the bike up there if it is disabled and often too tall if it's running. I went through about 5 or 6 trailers before I found one that I like.

The bed is 80 inches wide and 10 feet long. My Goldwing/Friendship 3 just barely fits, but I can even push it disabled onto the trailer by myself.

This particular trailer is a Loadmaster 8010AL Aluminum Lowboy.

Attached files

Many of our clients have brought their bikes and picked up their finished rigs with these trailers. The main drawback is the deck height. Plenty of muscle, a winch, or a daring driver with good reflexes is needed to mount up the rig. To high a deck and the rig can high cente. In that scenario some Jerry rigging can be needed (or longer ramps) if no sloped surface is available.

Lonnie

Hey Ed, for what it's worth, I have an '85 K100 with EML sidecar and it fits in my 7 X 14 "V" nose enclosed trailer. Yea, it's tight but it fits with a few inches clearance per side. Just need to strap it down so it doesn't bounce around and scrape the sides.

Lynn Keen NE Florida

I use an extra wide wooden utility trailer so that I can get other uses out of it. One way to use a narrower trailer is to put blocks of wood under the bike tires to get it up high enough for that side to clear the fender or rail. I've seen a local sidecar dealer use that method, sometimes with just a 2X4 section in the left rail of a bike trailer so that the left jug on a BMW twin was lifted over the left fender enough to use a narrower trailer than would otherwise have been needed. You could probably do this method with a rental trailer. It's not perfect, but if you only need it once in a blue moon, the engineer in you will love it.

I haul ours back and forth from WA to AZ on a old wood floor utility trailer. Car tire is right on the ride hand rail as the foot peg on the teg goes over the trailer fender. I have been using the tailgate but it is a wind catcher and kills tow vehicle MPG. This trip i will be using folding aluminum ramps. I like the wood deck as i can screw down items to secure them but would sure like one of those fancy aluminum ones also. Think ours cost $800. ,used and even though i license it and maintain it three familes use it for all sorts of hauling chores. It never sits over month when here in WA w/o being uaed. Max

I don't know,..I trailer mine now and then,..hehe crawf.

Attached files

maxm - 10/6/2011 6:31 PM I haul ours back and forth .... Think ours cost $800. ,used and even though i license it and maintain it three familes use it for all sorts of hauling chores. It never sits over month when here in WA w/o being uaed. Max

I bought mine used for about the same price. I have to agree it gets used a lot, but not always for the sidecar. In the last few weeks alone it has hauled lumber for a deck project, a Yamaha Venture barn find, a full complement of pontoon furniture, and a zero turn lawn mower. Later this week it will haul my Nighthawk, Bunkhouse camper, and MSC cargo trailer to winter storage, all in one trip.

After burning out two clutches and three sets of brakes I quit towing my motor home with my bike. I guess I will live with the shame of having my bike on a trailor. oh the shame I feel.

If storage is the primary issue, what about buying a trailer and keeping it at a friend's place who has the room? He'd have the use of the trailer on occasion and you'd have a trailer when you needed. I've got two trailers and have used both for the rig and many other uses as well. One enclosed which serves as a "poor man's RV" when we haul the bike and one tilt trailer for equipment or the bike. I've rescued disabled bikes with both. I had a tent addition made for the enclosed trailer. The ramp sits on jack stands, the tent snaps into place adding more room and ventilation. Lots of options certainly including leaving the trailers home and riding the bike to any destination being still the preferred one.

I do not know if I would try this again, but here is how I got mine home from the shop. It traveled 1,000 miles and never shifted but I was nervous the whole time. Next time I will have a car trailer, there was something about the headlight staring at my side mirror the whole way that made me nervous.

on the trailer

I trailered my GL1100 /Monaco rig for 6 years behind my motorhome on a Aluma Ltd snowmobile trailer.trailer was 8.5' w x 10' long. Had to widen the ramp but drove it on and off without a problem.

I have two enclosed trailers one is a 7' wide (rember that is not the door opening) won't fit won't fit though the opening

The other is 8' wide bike loads with room to spear

I have a big bike a Kawaski vn2000 with sidecar

I use an excess huge wooden power truck so that I can get other uses out of it. One way to use a smaller truck is to put prevents of wooden under the cycle wheels to get it up substantial enough for that area to apparent the fender or track.

Maruti Swift