| Author | Message | ||
     Gernick |
Anyone use a hoist to get your bike off of a truck? Any good places for a sling where things are not going to get damaged? I'm almost thinking I should toss this into the XBoard. | ||
| Trevd |
What kind of truck? Pickup? I've used a couple of 2X6 "ramps" before, and it worked fine... | ||
| Ratbuell |
Back the pickup into a ditch, or up to a berm on the side of the road. It will put the tailgate closer to the ground that way. Go to home depot. Get three 2x8's and two 2x4's. Nail or screw the 2x4s to one of the 2x8s to make a U shape. Use that one as your bike ramp, the 2x4s will help keep you from steering off the board. Use the other two 2x8s as foot ramps, one on each side. I use a ratchet strap loop on those to keep my feet from splitting them apart if I have to lean. Get on the bike like you're riding. Bike off. Front brake to control your descent - if you start to go to one side, release the brake and coast down the 'hill', momentum will keep you upright. | ||
| Gernick |
Full sized dodge. The bed is 37" high. I'd like to get ramps but funds are a little bit on the tight side right now. Although I might be able to get by with some planks. There's a ditch in the backyard thats perfect for this but there be snow on the ground. I'll be able to get the truck in, not sure if I'll be able to get it out. | ||
| Etennuly |
I'm almost thinking I should toss this into the XBoard. Are you afraid the Uly guys won't help out a nub SS owner?  I have picked mine off from the pick up with my front end loader. The bike weighs in at around 450 pounds. Most of those small ratchet straps are individually rated at 1200 pounds each. So with a few of them it is a safe pick. I hooked mine on the bars near where they clamp on the steering head and the rear on the sides of the upper bag mounts, using four points on the bike. The main things to look for are; #1 do no damage to the bike. The worst thing that can happen is dropping the bike, second is scratching or leaving marks from the straps. So tie the straps in a way that they cannot slip. I usually forgo the hooks at this point because if it is hanging on the hooks, they can slip. I run the strap through and tie a single wrap at the hook end, the hook will prevent it from slipping through a simple knot. If you have to hook or tie on a part that has powder coat wrap it with several layers of a soft cloth first, make sure the strap and cloth cannot slip. I used both end hooks on my front loader bucket so that it worked like a load equalizer bar. That way the pick on the straps is straight up which is what helps to avoid slippage of the straps. Make sure you are comfortable with your set up, if it doesn't look right or feel right, reset it. Good luck with that. | ||
| Mnrider |
One other thing,get some help. You don't want it to fall on you. | ||
| Rwcfrank |
GO to the nearest loading dock at a commercial building. | ||
| Cyclonedon |
I have a folding ATV ramp, but I still like to back into a ditch to bring down the incline of the ramp. Always keep your right hand on the front brake when unloading! | ||
| Towpro |
My neighbor has a steep bank that raises up off his driveway. I back my truck (dodge) up to the bank, then using planks (and his 2 sons) and we just back it off. Tips: 1) Put an eye bolt in the bike plank, and run a tie down strap from the eye bolt to the hitch of the truck. This stops the plank from falling off the tailgate when you back the bike up. (the planks always seem to fall when the front wheel hits them and bike is already on planks  ) 2) Depending on the angle of the plank, the exhaust might hit on the plank as you back the bike off (maybe even knocking the plank off the tailgate, see tip 1). I know the Buell blast was really bad for this, but I brought the Uly home in an enclosed trailer. 3) If no banks are available (because of snow), go to the back of a local warehouse or loading dock that has a pile of skids (and bring human help and planks). Use the planks to go from the tailgate to a pile of skids around 2' high, 2 skids deep (long enough so you can get the whole bike onto the skids). Back the bike out of the truck onto the pile of skids. Then use the same planks to get the bike off the skids onto the ground (don't forget the help so someone can hold the bike up while it's on the skids, as you move the planks. | ||
| Matchanu |
Start it up, rev the engine, pop the clutch, pop a wheelie and jump it off. Gotta test that off road suspension somehow. Yes I'm kidding. | ||
| Hooper |
I'm waiting for Electraglider to chime in here with a picture of a some movie stunt motorcyclist jumping off the back of a truck at full speed. Wait for it... | ||
| Johnboy777 |
I don't have ramps, so I unloaded mine off the pick up on to the front porch - then rode it down the stairs with my son and his buddy holding on to the rear grab rails of the seat. . | ||
| Xbimmer |
I'm waiting for Electraglider to chime in here with a picture of a some movie stunt motorcyclist jumping off the back of a truck at full speed. Wait for it... When we moved I was last year I was bringing the Beemer and the Uly in the first trip load, in a Budget Rental truck with a ramp. They're tall, but I figured it wouldn't be a problem. Hit the ramp with the Uly nice and steady under power thinking the torque would walk it right up. Didn't expect the ramp to flex halfway up... suddenly increasing the angle... with my butt 6ft from the ground and nowhere to put my feet down, and the bike slowing immediately. I gassed it and the bike shot forward and up with the front wheel losing contact as we entered the truck. It was all I could do to get it stopped before the front wall. Scared the crap out of me but everything worked out ok and my kids and neighbors got a great laugh out of the spectacle.  | ||
| Cyclonedon |
Tips: 1) Put an eye bolt in the bike plank, and run a tie down strap from the eye bolt to the hitch of the truck. This stops the plank from falling off the tailgate when you back the bike up. (the planks always seem to fall when the front wheel hits them and bike is already on planks good idea. When I first got my ramp and was loading my 4-wheeler, I was wondering why the chains on the ramp because I was just going to drive right up on the truck bed. When I went to load the 4-wheeler, everything was going well until I got the front tires on the tailgate and the rear tires spun the ramp out. Good thing I always loaded snowmobles and 4-wheelers standing on a peg with one knee on the seat for a rapid exit. I was able to just keep the machine from falling back on me so now I ALWAYS chain the ramp to the tailgate! | ||
| Etennuly |
Xbimmer, My company works on rental fleets of moving trucks. I do the transporting(for risk and insurance purposes) That ride up the ramp thing is something I do as many as six times a day when things are busy. I use my Uly for moving the trucks to and from the rental dealer lots so that I don't have the expense of an employee and or another vehicle with a trailer to transport them. A simple rule for anyone trying it, have the truck on a solid level surface if possible, loose gravel, sand, and grass all suck. The truck must have a reasonable amount of space behind it to get a true straight run at it. Always check the floor for pins, screws, staples, nails and debris. First gear clutch fully out.(I know that equals 11 mph, you have to be committed to the act) Do not pull the clutch in until the front tire has cleared the ramp. Quickly and gently on the brakes, if the tires are wet it will slide, if there is any dust on the floor it will slide. Did you try to roll it out backwards?  I take my top box off, turn it around and ride it down forward. You get used to it after the first couple hundred times! | ||
| Blk_uly |
Just don't do it like these guys did  | ||
| Blk_uly |
This would be more like it  | ||
| Gernick |
Alright, thanks for all the advice folks. Etennuly thanks for the places to run a strap. I unloaded my Triumph off of a truck the same way. That one was a bit easier due to it having a steel perimeter frame. Bag mounts? Are we talking about the frame for the hard luggage or is the bike set up for the frames already? I ended up with a Uly, not an SS.  | ||
| Pkforbes87 |
This is what I got to unload the Uly. I have a shorter drop to the ground from my S-15, but I always just un/loaded the X1 by hand. Get a friend standing in the bed to stabilize the bike then carry the ass end weight far enough back to get the muffler clear of the tailgate. Might be a little more difficult with your full size truck though.. $69.99  http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem. taf?Itemnumber=44649 | ||
| Florida_lime |
The ramp I use has a safety strap of steel cable that I connect to the rear bumper. Too often it is possible for the bike's brakes to pull the ramp back off the vehicle while unloading. Something to think about for anyone going the economy route and making their own -- I don't want to read the "Guess what happened to me when I tried to unload my Uly" stories.  | ||
| Sprintex |
Rent a U-Haul trailer. | ||
| Motorbike |
Johnboy, I believe you should get the reward for "Most creative way to unload a bike"! I can just picture that in my mind as I read it. Might be a little harder to load that way though, right? Just pickin' on ya! Sorry. Good night Johnboy.  I bet you've never hear that before! | ||
| Ratbuell |
XBimmer - sounds like one time I rode to my folks' house for mom's birthday. They're in FL, I'm in MD. It's a hike. I rode my FLHP down because...I wanted to 'go for a ride'  Anyway, I get there, and they say "we're going to give you some furniture". Um....look in the driveway - where am I gonna put a couch?? We rented a box truck big enough for the bagger and the furniture. Problem was, it was the last one they had and the ramp was MIA. Hmm. Furniture, no problem. FLH...problem. Home Depot here we come. One 2x12 later, and I had the truck backed up to their driveway waiting(it had an upslope to help cut the angle). There I sat on the FLHP, top of the driveway, looking at what appeared to be a toothpick sticking out of a cave, thinking "I've gotta ride up that???". Sat there idling for about ten minutes psyching myself up. Finally just went with it. Got halfway up the board, it flexed (remember - 800 pound bagger here), and my mind's eye saw it snapping and me driving square into the rear bumper. But...it held, and I put one helluva skidmark through the box, trying not to drive into the dashboard of the truck I borrowed a proper ramp from the Ryder depot in MD to offload it....lol | ||
| Etennuly |
Yes, my Uly has the factory hard bags and I put the strap to the sides of the top bag rack as close to the triple tail/seat as possible. You will be liking the Uly soon enough.....awesome machine for sure.  Have you had a chance to suffer from permagrin yet? | ||
| Gernick |
Not yet. Hopefully very soon. I really can't wait to go for a nice ride on it. I might even break my no salt rule. | ||
| Buewulf |
Stretch before attempting... | ||
| Johnboy777 |
""Johnboy, I believe you should get the reward for "Most creative way to unload a bike"! I can just picture that in my mind as I read it. Might be a little harder to load that way though, right? Just pickin' on ya! Sorry. Good night Johnboy. I bet you've never hear that before!"" Thanks, man - I'm a borderline genius, I recon. Yeah, it was ugly as hell, actually. I told Chris to hold my beer and watch out, but he thought better of it and decided he and his friend would help guide it down the stairs while I rode it. I told them just to let it fall on them, so as not to nick it up, if it goes over. Bones heal, but scratches on a bike are forever. I bounced around quite a bit as it plopped down the stairs - not at all as smooth as you see it done on TV. | ||
| Johnboy777 |
Here ya go - check this out. | ||
| Gernick |
Nifty! | ||
| Sleez |
i'd like to see how easy it is to load and unload it from the dolly thingy! |
