Help Me, I Might By A Sidecar!

[Barko1]

I've got 7 various bikes in the garage, just sold one and about to sell another but have a wild urge to score a sidecar rig Against better judgement but if I didn't like it I'm sure I could unload it. Anyone out there have experience with a sidehack???

 

[oldnslow]

Yeah, I had a sidecar for a while on a 1969 BMW R50/2. Slower than a rock (but only slightly faster without the sidecar) and mighty cold in the Wisconsin winter. I ended up rolling it on a right-hand turn and earned a custom 3 piece wrist for my efforts to protect that helmet and the head in it.

It will be 35 years next February and that wrist still gives me problems. I should have sacrificed the helmet, it wasn't worth that much. Some say the head wasn't either.

The biggest problem is the power and brakes are to the left of the center of gravity. It wants to turn right on power and left on the brakes. If you put enough weight in the car so it doesn't roll over in right-hand turns, then the power - right and brakes - left issue gets worse. On that R50 I couldn't handle any additional weight at all and it was a very light sidecar, so the right turns were a problem. But it turned left like a sports car! And it was pretty good in the snow.

On the other hand, as Ara has shown us it can haul a lot more stuff than a solo bike. It will never tip over when parked either, and it can be parked at any angle.

 

[oldnslow]

Yeah, I had a sidecar for a while on a 1969 BMW R50/2. Slower than a rock (but only slightly faster without the sidecar) and mighty cold in the Wisconsin winter. I ended up rolling it on a right-hand turn and earned a custom 3 piece wrist for my efforts to protect that helmet and the head in it.

It will be 35 years next February and that wrist still gives me problems. I should have sacrificed the helmet, it wasn't worth that much. Some say the head wasn't either.

The biggest problem is the power and brakes are to the left of the center of gravity. It wants to turn right on power and left on the brakes. If you put enough weight in the car so it doesn't roll over in right-hand turns, then the power - right and brakes - left issue gets worse. On that R50 I couldn't handle any additional weight at all and it was a very light sidecar, so the right turns were a problem. But it turned left like a sports car! And it was pretty good in the snow.

On the other hand, as Ara has shown us it can haul a lot more stuff than a solo bike. It will never tip over when parked either, and it can be parked at any angle.

 

[Stan@FourWheel]

You might want to try e-mailing this guy, or read his travel posts.

He has a big thread of him, his dog, and a sidecar here.

BEEMERCHEF

"3 years and 900 or so days later on the road ..."


http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/index.php?/topic/1752/



his website is ...


http://theoasisofmysoul.com/













.

 

[Barko1]

I've talked with Beemerchef, he surely has done some traveling although I can't really seem to warm to his poetic style Hopefully this one is sturdier than his original, he has had to do a few weld jobs. But the rig has earned the extra maintenance. I made an offer, whay he wanted but haven't heard back yet...........

 

[Rockjok]

I've been running a hack for years and 100K+ miles. It isn't for everyone since there is a lot of effort getting one set up correctly. The hack needs to match the bike size and weight wise and the art of alignment is usually a compromise. If affordable, it's safest to have a real sidecar shop install your subframe/mounts and hack. I did mine myself but it took me several years and tries to get it right. You either love it or hate it with little in between.

When I started out I got a tremendous amount of info from a Yahoo group called SCT (Side Car Talk).

Here's a few pics of mine as it evolved:

The original velorex setup, this hack is way too light for an XS1100:

http://www.imt.net/~rockjok/%20early.jpg

A later version after fabricating a sliding aircraft style canopy:

http://www.imt.net/~rockjok/rig1.jpg

http://www.imt.net/~rockjok/rig2.jpg

My current main ride matches the bike perfectly and has room for all 3 of my dogs plus camping gear:

http://www.imt.net/~rockjok/hack1a.jpg

My recommendation is to find a knowledgable owner (not a salesman) and test ride. Also match your rig to what you want it for. My XS1100 rig will run a freeway all day at 75 and still operate on forest roads but is kinda tricky on gnarly 4X4 roads. An R75 BMW rig I had was better offroad but couldn't go over ~55 on the highway, The 2 wheel drive Urals are really slow but are a blast in snow.

Luck,

Rob

 

[Barko1]

Great pics, I'm sure my dogs would enjoy the breeze The one I am looking at has been set up professionally, steering head mods and a strong/correct subframe. Probably too much power so the owner runs some extra ballast. But I made the offer and haven't heard anything from him in a couple days I think he was going to show it locally but I offered what he wanted, either way I'd like to know what is happening. The FWC is ready to go retrieve it.

 

[Rockjok]

Well congrats, I hope you end up with it. It sounds like it should be well set up. Another tip if you plan on using a trailer to pick it up. Make sure it'll fit on the trailer. A few years ago a guy bought my old beemer rig and after he made a 3000 mile trip we discovered it wouldn't fit on a uhaul trailer. The horizontal jug interfered with the side rail. We ended up buying some lumber and building up the deck half a foot, not elegant but it worked.

A year or so later I sold the sidecar (with the canopy in the pics) and I sent the buyer an exhaustive list of measurements. He decided not to tow a trailer and, after a few hours of disassembly, we managed to get it in the back seat of his small chevy Blazer.

Luck,

Rob