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Bike in Pickup


bowdog

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Taking my bike with me this weekend to N.C and while there I am going to ride in a charity ride with some Gibbs Racing guys. Queston i have is:

I have canyon Dancers i am going to strap handle bars with and was going to put a commercial grade ratchet strap over swing arm. Don't have a way (and will not drill into my new truck) to mount a wheel chaulk. Do you guys think this is sufficiant for such a long trip and or do you have any better ideas on how i should strap?

Let the gang bang begin!

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I'm not sure how strong your bars are, but I use soft ties on my lower triple clamps and strap them from there cause my bars do quite a bit of flexing.

Sounds like fun!

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attach a chock to a sheet of plywood that's cut to the width of your truck bed. I did this for months before drilling through the bed of my ranger.

If you don't have a bed liner, you can even through a blanket underneath the board to avoid scratching the bed. you just don't want that front tire sliding out from under the bars...

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What I do....

Tie front end down, using canyon dancers.

put bike in gear and picking up back of bike spin the tire so the bike doesnt roll back

then I tie 2 (non ratcheting) straps onto passenger pegs to keep the rear from hopping around and help stabalize side to side.

Look at a baxley stand (spelled right i think), i use them as added protection in a truck without bolting it down

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attach a chock to a sheet of plywood that's cut to the width of your truck bed. I did this for months before drilling through the bed of my ranger.

If you don't have a bed liner, you can even through a blanket underneath the board to avoid scratching the bed. you just don't want that front tire sliding out from under the bars...

This is a good idea, i did not think about that!! That is what i am worried about is the front tire sliding and my straps loosening or something.

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I'm not sure how strong your bars are, but I use soft ties on my lower triple clamps and strap them from there cause my bars do quite a bit of flexing.

Sounds like fun!

Thanks, another good idea, may tie there as well for added piece of mind.

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Doesn't the floor of your truck have ribbing? The tire isn't going anywhere. Getting it in there is the most dangerous part.

Yes a little, standard Ford bed liner.

You bubbys worry too much.

:lol:says the guy who made me strap a 4 wheel drive quad in that has a parking break!!!!

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The bed floor had ridges no?

Strap it down with the forks compressed about halfway, then add an extra couple straps low around the bottom edge of the wheel if you are nervous - then the front wheel will no slide out sideways.

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What I do....

Tie front end down, using canyon dancers.

put bike in gear and picking up back of bike spin the tire so the bike doesnt roll back

then I tie 2 (non ratcheting) straps onto passenger pegs to keep the rear from hopping around and help stabalize side to side.

I have always been leery of transporting the bike in gear. The transmission is made to take stress from engine loading, but I don't like the idea of it dealing with bumps, etc. while it's being transported.

a couple of straps around the back wheel or to the passenger pegs is plenty to keep it from hopping, but honestly that shouldn't be an issue. the rear of the bike is free to rise and fall on its own suspension. Unlike the front (which is compressed with straps), the rear suspension should just eat up bumps as if the bike were riding over them.

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I've always used three straps and a canyon dancer. Just tighten the front down halfway and then tighten the other straps to the passenger pegs. Just make sure the bike is upright and not on the kick stand. When your done give the bike a little shake the truck should rock and it'll be good.

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attach a chock to a sheet of plywood that's cut to the width of your truck bed. I did this for months before drilling through the bed of my ranger..

This is a BAD idea. The tires on the bike have better traction on your truck bed than that sheet of plywood. I take the straps and loop them thru the triple or handle bar clamps. Then I tie off to the rear foot pegs. Most importantly I nose my bikes into the corner of the bed and leave them in gear. I've yet to have anything worse than a strap loosen up a click or two by the end of the trip to places as far away and the Adirondacks or South Carolina.

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This is a BAD idea. The tires on the bike have better traction on your truck bed than that sheet of plywood. I take the straps and loop them thru the triple or handle bar clamps. Then I tie off to the rear foot pegs. Most importantly I nose my bikes into the corner of the bed and leave them in gear. I've yet to have anything worse than a strap loosen up a click or two by the end of the trip to places as far away and the Adirondacks or South Carolina.

Traction wont matter since the chock holds the front tire in place no matter the surface under it. The strapped bike applies pressure to the chock/plywood, the plywood cut to the width of your bed keeps the chock in place, and the chock keeps the front tire in place. The only way this would fail is if he lost a side of his bed or if both straps frag apart simultaneously.

Thanx for the tip Redkow, I'm getting a chock and bolt it to a 2x12 cut to width of mine now since my Tacoma has a plastic bed insert ( no sheet metal, its seriously a cast plastic ) and I fear drilling it. Might even do this fore AND aft of the bike so it surely wont roll out in case of strap failure ( shortbed, long bike, means gate down ). Condors are sweet but not in the budget for me when I can buy a pair of standard chocks at HarborFreight for $30 and already have a stick of 2x12

Edited by Hellmutt
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Late to the party but before I had a Condor I ran two extra straps wrapped around the rear of the front wheel to keep it from turning. This was suggested by a friend the first time I loaded a street bike. Not sure if it's really necessary, but I like stuff secure in the bed so it doesn't cramp my asshole driving style.

Bikes with passenger pegs I lightly strapped down the rear with those, trackbike I ran a strap through the rear wheel and wrapped around a spoke to resist any potential side-to-side swinging.

Never used ratchet straps on a bike, 600# push-button style have always done the job for me. Always nervous about cranking down too hard on clip-ons, if you can tie to the triple without plastic getting in the way that would be much more gooder.

I assume you're talking R6 and not the 450. For the 450 throw two straps on the handlebars, kick it sideways if necessary to shut the tailgate, and call it good.

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