General topics » U-Haul MC Trailer..........Strap Happiness

All,

Being late October, William Penn's little bit of Paradise, the Commonwealth, is well into the various forms of Deer hunting season, Archery, Mussleloader, Boomerang, Machete, etc., so one has some additional risk issues to consider for a 9A service appointment that's 130-miles away. Do you ride in pre-dawn darkness for a few hours and cream the Bambi running from Elmer Fudd or do you rent a U-haul trailer and let Bambi eat front Pick-up bumper? I choose the latter for my recent 30K service and front tire replacement.

Now, at $15 per day, the U-Haul MC trailer is one of the few remaining good buys in this world. Built from galvanized steel, it's like the proverbial Brick Outhouse and my 4-cylinder Tacoma rarely spends much time in 5th gear when pulling the load. But, for all it's great features, the available tie-down points have always been at odds with my RS's fairing. If one wraps the soft ties around the fork tubes above the bottom triple clamp and attaches a ratchet strap between the soft tie and the provided tie-down point, the ratchet strap will rub against and spread the fairing. That's never good.

So, this time around on my periodic trailering adventure, I decided to find a tie down configuration that used the available attachment points and didn't cause paint damage. Did I mention, I'm not overly busy at this time.

My solution is to wrap the soft ties around the fork tube and route the free end in front of the lower triple clamp. Then attach the right-side ratchet strap to the left soft-tie.
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However, you want to route the ratchet strap behind the fork leg.
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If the strap is routed in front of the fork tube, there's a possibility of rubbing on the painted fender. Routed behind the fork tube, the strap seems to clear the fender and any possible paint damage is hidden by the fork tube.
Configured in this manner, you achieve a nice splay angle on the straps to 1) compress the front wheel in to the wheel chuck and 2) lateral tension to prevent side movement.
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Although secondary, I attach a second set of straps at the passenger peg assembly mounts to prevent sideways motion of the bike's back end.
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These straps are also nice for "centering" the bike before attaching the front straps

All that for an oil change and new tire?

Zitat von Pyrrho im Beitrag #2

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All that for an oil change and new tire?

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #3

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Pre-dawn or early evening riding at this time of year isn't that safe with deer.

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Zitat von Lee im Beitrag #4

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #3

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Pre-dawn or early evening riding at this time of year isn't that safe with deer.

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We have the same problem here. Just too risky to ride in the dark early morning and early evening.
350 miles for us so we plan to ride down Monday during daylight hours and get a motel.
Show up at the shop when they open.
Do the paperwork, have the shop rekey the luggage locks and head home during daylight.
I'll put put pigtails on the battery so we can use our heated jacket.

The last time I went to the shop in the fall I left in the dark and had to dodge 3 or 4 dead deer in the middle of my lane on the interstate. I also had fog :(

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #5

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your 350-mile (I assume one-way) .

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Zitat von Lee im Beitrag #6

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #5

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your 350-mile (I assume one-way) .

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350 is the round trip. Not a problem in the summer but this week we would not have time to do everything during daylight hours.

I have a trailer I should grease the bearings and replace the 14 year old tires before I use it out of town.
In the past I have not been temped to haul the bikes there because it would be difficult for me to get the trailer in the small area behind the shop.
The owner recently bought a old gas station next to the shop and it has a large flat parking area in front making it easy to pull in and out with a trailer.

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #7

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You go to Engle's, don't you?

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #3

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15-miles was the maximum distance between deer carcasses on the way down.
So yeah, all that.

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Zitat von Pyrrho im Beitrag #9

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Zitat von Mr. 36654 im Beitrag #3

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15-miles was the maximum distance between deer carcasses on the way down.
So yeah, all that.

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According to the manual, the 30K mile maintenance is just an oil & filter change. How much did the dealer charge for that? My point was you can change your own oil and tires. Along with the cost of a 2-day trailer rental and gas to tow it in a pickup truck 260 miles, the money you'd save would cover whatever tools you don't already have and certainly would have taken less time.

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I have towed my RS using the U-Haul MC trailer (I agree, a great deal if you don't already have a trailer). I used the Canyon Dancer bar harness and it worked well for the front with a couple more straps in the rear. The U-Haul tie down points certainly aren't optimal.
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Great tips for strapping the bike into a Uhaul.

I have a Baxley Sport Chock that I use when I go the UHaul route. It makes loading the bike easier and moves it back enough so the owners manual strategy works fine. I will definitely remember your strategy if I ever have to tie down the bike without the extra chock.

Zitat von TriangleRider im Beitrag #12

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Great tips for strapping the bike into a Uhaul.

I have a Baxley Sport Chock that I use when I go the UHaul route. It makes loading the bike easier and moves it back enough so the owners manual strategy works fine. I will definitely remember your strategy if I ever have to tie down the bike without the extra chock.

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The forward tension of the straps attached to the forks keeps the chock in place.