Need to get a motorcycle in and out of a 4x4 ranger
Both my dad and girlfriend ride. My dad has a 69 triumph Bonneville and my girlfriend a harley.....both are regularly giving them problems. I want some way to get the bikes in and out of the bed of the truck if they were to break down somewhere. Its a 99 4x4 so its lifted some, thats the hardest part is getting them up. Thinking of a folding ramp and boatwinch type setup..maybe down the road a remote powered winch for doing it by yourself. Any ideas on the cheapest way to do this or seen it done?
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please do not take any of the above advise as that of an expert!
Do not try it alone. I have had similar setup with a Buell and a Dodge Dakota 4x4. That one, I used a tri-fold heavy duty (me and the bike about 800 pounds, and that's a dynamic load) ramp. I would ride the bike on, but it was sort of a "charge-then, nose-dive brake", which requires lots of biker skill.
For a breakdown (what's with the Harley breaking down?? The Triumph I can understand), and solo, I say you need a trailer. I had thought of a deal hwhere the bike got set up with tie-downs on the ramp as it sat on the tailgate, then jacked the back up level, then roll it forward, but thats' getting into the "buy a trailer" realm. The other approach is to look for nearby ditches and culverts that your 4x4 can be positioned in to make the tailgate a "ride-in or push-in" deal. Loading docks also work well.
the ditch thing sounds like a good thing to keep in mind. Figured with a winch mounted and a remote you could guide the bike and tell the winch to pull.
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please do not take any of the above advise as that of an expert!
True, but just guiding the bike up that steep of a ramp by yourself is a recipe for disaster! Dirt bike, yes, heavy street bike, no. I just made a bracket for a remote control winch that makes it removable, welded to my headache rack. I have yet to put the wiring in place (Too many competing projects!). That one is to load large art pieces by myself.
i had the same problem with getting my snow blower in the back of my truck when it had a problem. got a nice along 6" by 6' bored and went to the school in back of my house and loaded the blower by having the truck down in the parking lot with the blower on the hill.
Sure beats lifting it.
good new was we never had to take it off when we got to the shop.
__________________ 94 ranger 4x4 auto
138,000
31x10.5x15
intake
T-cover
had cherry bomb turbo muffler, flowmaster series 40 (used about 2-3 months make offer clampped on) now cherry glasspack.
2x55w offroad lights in grill
CD with 4 new speakers
500 watt sub w/1500watt amp (has alotta bump in back of seat.)
Tints %20 front %5 back
A couple of suggestions:
1. Tell them to buy Victory motorcycles. )
2. If they have Progressive M/C insurance they get free roadside assistance. Something to check into.
3. How often does it happen? Maybe renting a M/C trailer from UHaul would work out or just buying a nice trailer for that and use it for other things too?
Are they older bikes? Most bikes are dependable. The most problem I see is we tend to just quick an item instead of doing the whole thing then the next weak link fails. My first concern would be gas. M/Cs are very "sensitive" to gas. Maybe they buy from the same station and there is water in the gas? If they are older bikes thye require lots of preventive maintenance. When I ride out to Sturgis in 2 days I always have the shop go through my bike before heading out. A couple of times they caught something that over looked.
A couple of suggestions:
1. Tell them to buy Victory motorcycles. )
2. If they have Progressive M/C insurance they get free roadside assistance. Something to check into.
3. How often does it happen? Maybe renting a M/C trailer from UHaul would work out or just buying a nice trailer for that and use it for other things too?
Are they older bikes? Most bikes are dependable. The most problem I see is we tend to just quick an item instead of doing the whole thing then the next weak link fails. My first concern would be gas. M/Cs are very "sensitive" to gas. Maybe they buy from the same station and there is water in the gas? If they are older bikes thye require lots of preventive maintenance. When I ride out to Sturgis in 2 days I always have the shop go through my bike before heading out. A couple of times they caught something that over looked.
If you read my original post, my dads bike is a 1969 Triumph, that although has been completely restored, is still a 30 year old bike. He rides it all over the place and really enjoys it. Bought it new in 1969. As for my girlfriends harley..most of the breakdowns have been related to a high performance head she put on there and the VERY reputable company that did the work, but in this case screwed everything up over and over again. Changing insurance is a pain, my father is on classic insurance that is way to cheap to change over. Furthermore, waiting on a tow truck is a pain at 2 in the morning when you could just go get it ourselves. Besides, there are times like a couple of weeks ago where it was monsooning here for HOURS AND HOURS and I would have liked to stop by to pick my girlfriend up from work so she didnt have to ride an hour in the rain to the movie we were meeting at. My dad would also like to be able to take the bonnie on trips to shows and not have to take his big rig that gets 8mpg just for one bike!
I brainstormed with a few people last night about ways to do it. Have not committed to anything yet, but have some good ideas.
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please do not take any of the above advise as that of an expert!
Here you go, pal! I just saw this on the local Austin, Tx. Craigslist, and I'm sure you can find them near you, or find a dealer or on-line discount. You could walk a bike up this puppy! I wish I had had one like this!
bikeitswift, thats a good idea. had not thought of ebay/craigslist. If I could find something local and used like that it would work. Wonder how it would fit in the back of a ranger with a motorcycle in it?
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please do not take any of the above advise as that of an expert!
If the girl’s bike is a Sporty or Dyna two moderately strong folks should be able to pick it up. I know they could handle the Bonnie, a bud and I have loaded them before. Another thing that I have always wanted to try is it get a truck mounted crane like this:
How about a basket on the receiver hitch. Low to the ground and with a ramp can be rolled onto the basket by one person. Don't know about weight capacity, maybe 2 hitches needed to handle total bike weight. Here's an example.
bikeitswift, thats a good idea. had not thought of ebay/craigslist. If I could find something local and used like that it would work. Wonder how it would fit in the back of a ranger with a motorcycle in it?
I'd say, up on edge, along the side of the bike, but tied off to prevent any contact.
I had one of the bed mount cranes on a F150. The mount part under the bed has to be tied to the frame with some decent bracket...I buckled the flood in my bed by just using a plate under the bed....also, when you go to swing the load in, you might not have enough vertical clearance.
They used to sell (and probably still do) a holder for the front wheel that goes into your receiver. You then tie off the bike to the bumper ends to keep it stable, then remove the master link and the chain (on the Triumph) on the Harley, you cannot disconnect the belt, so you might risk going slow for short distance in Neutral.
still think the simple idea of a ramp(s) and a winch of some kind are the way to go....the mounts and bulk of a hoist seem very expensive and complicated.
__________________
please do not take any of the above advise as that of an expert!
still think the simple idea of a ramp(s) and a winch of some kind are the way to go....the mounts and bulk of a hoist seem very expensive and complicated.
The "high Siding" of the bike is the concern I have in your doing it solo. If another person was on the opposite side, that would not be a concern...but your post said "solo". Some steps will help a lot to keep you at a controllable level with the bike as you run it up the ramp.
Do not, under any circumstances, use a board...I have seen at least a dozen disasters with that set-up.
Yeah, no boards...I have envisioned half a dozen disasters that could create. It would not be an absolute to be able to do it alone.....but would greatly increase the flexibility of the rig. I dont know if I could describe this right, but a friend suggested to anchors at the back corner of the bed (near the cab). With a hook or something that would attach to each fork and then be drawn as one. We have a way to do it, I just have no way to describe it. That would give you a little "side to side" stability.
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please do not take any of the above advise as that of an expert!
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