Need a Ramp

[Yeti 0]

Fellow SDAR peeps, I need your collective wisdom.

I have never transported my bike in my truck but it is time to do it. So I have two questions:

1. I need a ramp (duh). Anything in particular I should look for? Folding or not? Steel v aluminum? Cost?

2. How do I secure the bike in the bed? I assume that I could just put some eye bolts in the bed with fender washers and I'd be good to go. Good idea? Bad idea? Better ideas??

I'm all ears!!

Thanks in advance!!

[Crawdaddy 96]

Fellow SDAR peeps, I need your collective wisdom.

I have never transported my bike in my truck but it is time to do it. So I have two questions:

1. I need a ramp (duh). Anything in particular I should look for? Folding or not? Steel v aluminum? Cost?

2. How do I secure the bike in the bed? I assume that I could just put some eye bolts in the bed with fender washers and I'd be good to go. Good idea? Bad idea? Better ideas??

I'm all ears!!

Thanks in advance!!

"2" ramps.......one to walk on and one to roll the bike on (especially helpful (necessary) if/when you want to load a heavy road bike instead of a dirt bike)

Just buy two 2" X 12" X 8' pressure treated boards and cut them off at 7.5'. The remaining .5' will be a steel ramp tip that you can pick up from various sources.......also a good idea to put some sort of hook on the underside of each ramp so you can secure it to your bumper.....prevents the ramp from slipping away whne traveling up/down on it.......

(this advice has been given with the assumption that you have a long bed.....not some wimpy short bed)

If you have a shortbed, you might want to look for a folding ramp since the wood option will be a pretty short ramp at 6' in total length......regardless, always helps to find a suitable incline to back up/load against

[bikeslut 1]

I have a short bed; the board hangs out even with the tailgate down... I just use a bike stand to step up in to the truck, and other than exposing my panties, its never been an issue.

Sally

[darylhunter 1]

Every truck I've had, has had existing tie down anchors in the bed corners. They've all been Fords though and maybe this is just something Ford does.

I'd check with the parts shop for what ever brand truck you have and they may have a recommended tie down anchor kit.

I like Chris's idea of two ramps, but have never gone that way myself. I have a folding aluminum ramp and then use a plastic stool or bike stand as a step to help me step into the bed as I'm loading the bike. You might try taking a couple practice steps up into the truck using a bicycle instead of your motorcycle the first time to help aid in proper step stool placement.

It's helpful to plan your loading/unloading spot in such a way as to drop the tailgate closer to the ground, i.e., drop the rear wheels into a rut or at the bottom of a V in the ground. This lessens the height that you have to raise yourself and the bike into the truck.

Using a tie down to anchor the ramp to the truck is a good idea to help prevent the ramp from slipping off the tailgate as you are loading/unloading.

Because I'm lazy, I usually start the bike and use the motor to help pull the bike up the ramp. Hint, do it with the motor warm or with the choke still on because you don't want to stall the bike half way up the ramp.

I hit the ramp at a brisk walking pace and step right on up into the truck. With practice you can do it at a smooth flowing pace - too slow and tentative and you risk loosing your balance with the bike.

That's where a spotter comes in handy. It's nice to have someone on hand even if you are seasoned. Personally I prefer that they just stand there to help in case I mess up and not touch the bike to try to help me - it throws me off a bit because I'm so used to doing myself.

Not a hard process at all with the lighter dirt bikes, but with bigger street bikes and some of the heavier adventure bikes I'd definitely enlist the aid of a spotter until you get the hang of it.

[bikeslut 1]

fake name to the white courtesy phone

[paulmbowers 236]

I use a double-wide folding aluminum atv ramp, having used all the previously-mentioned methods, and I like it the best.

I use two tie-downs, both with soft-tie loops around the fork legs just above the triple clamp. I also use a single extra-long tiedown that goes from one side of the rear corner, around the rear tire/wheel once, then over to the opposite corner to keep the rear end stable.

I've cut all the hooks off the tie-downs and have replaced them with gated climbing carabiners I bought off ebay. Hooks WILL come un-hooked, carabiners will not. The mountaineering kind are strong enough to lift my entire truck- the hardware store kind are not.

My truck is a longbed, and I place the bike immediately behind the driver's seat to allow for visibility using the rear-view mirror. Shortbed trucks will need to have the bike diagonally across the bed.

I added stainless eyes on each corner of the bed, through-bolted with stainless nylock nuts on the opposite side.

I'm not anal, I'm just fussy.

This image might help a little:

Sallie

[Spyder 2]

I have never transported my bike in my truck but it is time to do it. So I have two questions:

You could always do this:

Should work for the truck too.

Yeti, which bike are you loading in what kinda truck?

If you are loading the GS , you will want something more appropriate for that heavy bike. If you are loading the Honda, which I assume you are, there are many options out there for you.

I was using the wood ramp with the Ramp Ends for the 625. But it seemed like that with my fat ass on one board and the bike on the other the 2 cheapo pine 2 x 8 x 7.5' would bend just to the breaking point. I think a stronger wood, say Oak, would suffice. So I went a completely different way entirely. With a custom hitch and hauler. And put the shell back on.

What ever ramp you get be sure, until you get good at loading/unloading the bike, you use the straps to hold the ramp in place to the tailgate (attached to the bumper or trailer hitch). It's no fun at all to start a ride after dropping your bike while unloading.

Spyder

Oh, FN, I like the idea of the carabiners. Please show us a picture of those, thanks.

And finally, if any of you want to have them sewn on to the straps ..... I have a commercial machine that can do it.

[Strega 0]

I use...

From MotoSport.com:

HIGH ROLLER TIEDOWNS

and...

^^ Ancra Soft Hooks

[paulmbowers 236]

Carabiner on one side helps, but hooks I do not like.

Here's some snaps:

Tiedowns have carabiners on both ends. Eyes in bed of truck are through-bolted, with large diameter fender washers on both sides, and nuts on both sides to prevent rotation.

[Yeti 0]

Yeti, which bike are you loading in what kinda truck?

If you are loading the GS , you will want something more appropriate for that heavy bike. If you are loading the Honda, which I assume you are, there are many options out there for you.

And finally, if any of you want to have them sewn on to the straps ..... I have a commercial machine that can do it.

Oh hell no!!! Not the GS. I like my truck! And it's not a semi.

It's an '87 F150. And it would be the XR I'd be loading.

I may take you up on the offer of the commercial machine. The idea of using carabiners on the truck end of the tie downs sound really good to me.

[paulmbowers 236]

You dont even need to have them sewn. Just cut the hooks that comes with the tie-downs, I used a little roto-cutter wheel. The carabiners just thread on.

I'm amused by your Mac Meda Destruction avatar. Old School LJ.

fn

[Zenosan 2]

You dont even need to have them sewn. Just cut the hooks that comes with the tie-downs, I used a little roto-cutter wheel. The carabiners just thread on.

I'm amused by your Mac Meda Destruction avatar. Old School LJ.

fn

All good advice. I used Chris's two boards for many years with no problem. I now use the ATV folding aluminum just because I am getting old. You need to walk up the ramp with the bike if you are by yourself. If you have a heavy bike it needs to be running and you can master walking along side driving it up. But...................I had friends who regularly rode their bikes up the ramp at a pretty good pace. In a pinch I rode my Yamaha Virago into the back of my old Toyota and hit the front of the bed hard enough to bend it. I don't think I would do it again unless I really had too. I have done it with the Huskys without too much trouble but they are pretty light. Pretty risky.

Don

[paulmbowers 236]

I regularly ride in, but only when suited up. I leave the ramp in place (or close to it) when I ride, so when I return, I ride in with all gear on. Although I'm careful not to gas it while on the ramp. It would be most unfortunate to shoot the ramp out behind the truck. I used to ride my xt250 up a single douglas fir 2x8 a LONG time ago.

Duh.

fn

[Yeti 0]

You dont even need to have them sewn. Just cut the hooks that comes with the tie-downs, I used a little roto-cutter wheel. The carabiners just thread on.

I'm amused by your Mac Meda Destruction avatar. Old School LJ.

fn

Ah, good point. And I've got a bunch of locking biners sitting in my garage from when I used to climb.

Very old school. A few people have commented on it. Jack was a family friend (and our mailman) for many many years.

[Zenosan 2]

I regularly ride in, but only when suited up. I leave the ramp in place (or close to it) when I ride, so when I return, I ride in with all gear on. Although I'm careful not to gas it while on the ramp. It would be most unfortunate to shoot the ramp out behind the truck. I used to ride my xt250 up a single douglas fir 2x8 a LONG time ago.

Duh.

fn

What year was your XT250. I have an 84 XT250 I bought for my daughter years ago because she thought it was pretty. It has about 2000 miles on it now. I use it as my loaner when I have company up at Lake Powell. Nice bike.

Don

[2Wheels 0]

If you have tie downs with S hooks and you're driving over a bumpy road, put a bungee through the round end of the hook. That prevents the hook from coming off if the bike bounces slightly to one side.

My first tie downs were the ratcheting kind. The other kind - I'll call them slip tie downs since I don't know whether they have an actual name - are easier to use. To tighten the slip tie downs, pull the handlebars to one side as you pull the tie down. It's possible to tighten them until the forks are at the bottom of their travel. If you don't want to compress your forks that much, you can stick a piece of wood (a 2x4 will work) between the front tire and the attaching point for the front fender. Rocky Mountain ATV sells a gizmo you can use instead of a piece of wood.

[paulmbowers 236]

I have (of course) one of those gizmos. I used it until I asked Precision Concepts if they thought them necessary. Nope, they say. No fork seal damage, spring damage, etc.

That's good enough for me.

[Strega 0]

Fork Saver's rock.

[Yeti 0]

Ok, so I guess that answers my questions.

Anyone got a spare folding ramp they want/need to unload??

[BRP Robbs 0]

I have seen some very scary trailer setups with some riders (and I've been guilty at times too - perceived necessity is the mother of disaster), so I'm gonna throw out a couple safety issues to consider...

Yeti, as a climber I'm sure you know this, but for anyone else - carabiners lose the majority of their strength when they are open. The climbing ones even have a little depiction stamped onto them with the rated strengths. Even open they are probably plenty strong for this application, but better safe than sorry. To prevent them from opening, either use the locking kind (more expensive) or just clip them in such a way that nothing in your bed could shift and push the gate open as you drive.

The other thing to consider is the geometry of the strain you are putting on your tiedowns. The smaller the angle between the direction the load wants to go and the direction the tiedown is running, the better. Basically, the bike wants to tip sideways, so if the tiedown was completely horizontal the load on it would be exactly the same as the tipping force of the bike. As you move the tiedown point down, or closer to the load's pivot point (the wheels of the bike), you increase the strain on your setup exponentially. You could easily end up with a force of thousands of pounds of pull on those cheapo, 400lbs-rated, non-ratchet straps a lot of us use. And also on your handlebars. And also on the tiedown point you installed with a drill and a fender washer you self-installed in your truck. Basically it's using the same principle a claw hammer uses to pull a nail out of a piece of wood.

Sorry, I tend to talk too much, so I'll wrap it up, but hopefully this prevents someone from making a very expensive error in judgment. If anyone wants a further explanation of any of this stuff, pm me so I don't take up any more of the thread with this stuff.

Robbs

[Strega 0]

Lemme guess, Physics Major?

[Yeti 0]

Lemme guess, Physics Major?

Worse, helicopter pilot. Keeping all of those parts flying in formation requires a LOT of physics!

Robbs, where would you recommend putting the eye bolts in the truck bed? And would you recommend putting them as wide as possible or close together?

Yeti

[Crawdaddy 96]

Lemme guess, Physics Major?

Worse, helicopter pilot. Keeping all of those parts flying in formation requires a LOT of physics!

Robbs, where would you recommend putting the eye bolts in the truck bed? And would you recommend putting them as wide as possible or close together?

Yeti

I strap mine into the top of the rails of the truck bed all the way up front with front wheel against the front of the truck bed.....that way they're high and wide and pulling the load forward.....and leave the bike in gear NOT nuetral...

[RogerTOWM 0]

Lemme guess, Physics Major?

Worse, helicopter pilot. Keeping all of those parts flying in formation requires a LOT of physics!

Harbor freight in El Cajon has some inexpensive folding ramps. And they also have some motorcycle chalks that you might want to check out. I have also seen ramps at Home Depot and Lowes.

I don’t know anything about flying choppers. I’ve only been in them long enough to jump out. I definitely don’t know anything about physics, but I have used a hammer before. Does that count?

I use tie down points at the top of my truck side rails, is that ok?

[Strega 0]

Worse, helicopter pilot. Keeping all of those parts flying in formation requires a LOT of physics!

That's not Physics...

The Helicopter beats the air into submission.