Strapping down the '06

[FJRocket]

I got to see my '06 AE in the crate this AM before they assembled it. Pretty cool!

I had a nice chat with Jerold, and he told me that all the FJR's came crated the same way.

The only thing holding the FJR in the steel crate is the handlebars and the front forks (axle holes). It comes that way all the way from Japan.

So the point I'm trying to make here is that if you are trailering (or trucking like me!) your bike and you're wondering if a Canyon Dancer or using straps on your bars is ok, well, yes it is.

I think this has been covered before, but just wanted to report that I saw how the bike was in the crate, and after a talk with Jerold and his tech that does the assemblies (and put the bike in my truck), I'll be using a Canyon Dancer all the time to strap in the bike. Not that it'll get much trailer time....

And yes, the bike made it home in one piece strapped to the bed of my 1500 by ratchet straps and a Canyon Dancer. SWEET!

 

[shokdimn]

FJRocket,

Congrats! Any pictures of the bike in your 1500?

 

[Bugnatr]

May your FJR never need Canyon Dancers again! I always carry mine on trips (it's a karma thing you know) but have never used them, nice to know they work.

 

[painman]

If your running the Doug Hines risers on the 06 it is reccomended to "not" secure the bike down using the bars. Otherwise no problemo. PM. <><

 

[FJRocket]

If your running the Doug Hines risers on the 06 it is reccomended to "not" secure the bike down using the bars. Otherwise no problemo. PM. <><

Yes, all the disclaimers apply. YMMV; pro driver, closed course; don't try this at home; yada yada....

We're talking about the stock bars here, not some flimsy aftermarket risers. :huh:

If I was an aftermarket manufacturer, I'd probably say the same thing to protect may ass..ets.

As a consumer, if I thought the risers (or other component) were that weak, they wouldn't go on my bike. <_<

I think if you have D&D or other type of "block" type risers, you'd probably still be ok. I said PROBABLY. I don't know that for sure and don't come crying to me if you screw it up.

If you have the type of riser that can rotate, and the position of the bars can shift with some significant force (like 600 pounds bouncing around in the back on lousy roads), then whatever you tie down with is going to come loose and you're going to dump the bike.

So if you HAVE to trailer your bike, remove your risers first, and you should be fine.

 

[smitty141]

I bought my first FJR from a dealer in Hazzard KY. It was trailered all the way with a bar harness with risers. Second FJR from lower La. to St. Louis the same way. The third came from Maryland to St.Louis with bar risers and a dancer without a problem. Unless the risers are made of cheese, I have never had a problem. But after putting a bunch of miles on my Gixxer, I don't use risers anymore... I think the trick is NOT to put the big pull on the bars. Use other points to tiedown too...Smitty

 

[gulag]

I trailered my 06' 2300 miles home from the dealer's. Used canyon dancers---2 of them,4 straps. I only tighten the straps enough to depress bike's suspension a inch or two. On the FJR I couldn't find good points to attach straps to on the back of the bike,so I ran straps from rear wheel "spokes" at 90 dgree angles to bike to prevent the bike from sliding left or right. I tape all strap hooks shut so they can't release when a bump collapses the bike's suspensions,temporarely loosening the strap & hook. Once on the trip the bike leaned slightly,I adusted back to verticle.Took about 2 minutes. Am Going to make a piece that fits over the seat area(seat removed) that I can run straps off of to secure the back of the bike better. Sometimes I trailer the bike to destinations separated from me by lots of non-curvy roads.The thrill of Kansas is gone.

 

[painman]

If your running the Doug Hines risers on the 06 it is reccomended to "not" secure the bike down using the bars. Otherwise no problemo. PM. <><

Yes, all the disclaimers apply. YMMV; pro driver, closed course; don't try this at home; yada yada....

We're talking about the stock bars here, not some flimsy aftermarket risers. :huh:

If I was an aftermarket manufacturer, I'd probably say the same thing to protect may ass..ets.

As a consumer, if I thought the risers (or other component) were that weak, they wouldn't go on my bike. <_<

I think if you have D&D or other type of "block" type risers, you'd probably still be ok. I said PROBABLY. I don't know that for sure and don't come crying to me if you screw it up.

If you have the type of riser that can rotate, and the position of the bars can shift with some significant force (like 600 pounds bouncing around in the back on lousy roads), then whatever you tie down with is going to come loose and you're going to dump the bike.

So if you HAVE to trailer your bike, remove your risers first, and you should be fine.

First off, the Doug Hines risers are not "flimsy" or any other loosely used word. And personally I don't think Doug would be suggesting you not secure your bike down while using his risers just to cover his rear. That is an insult to a genuine person and donator to this board. Second, anyone who trailers his or her bike knows securing the bike down by the bars is possible but highly "not" reccomended on any bike. Handlebars are "not" designed to take that kind of force especially going down a gravel/bumpy type road. The secure point for the front should be the triple trees. (Note: do not pull the front forks down too far as too much pressure on the seals for extended periods of time can cause leakage). Also, it is highly "not" reccomended to secure any bike by utilizing the wheels as secure points as this could cause damage to them also. This is not to say you cannot secure your bike at these areas, it is just not "reccomended". And it would be a big hassel to remove the risers and replace the bars with the shorter bolts they came with just to tie the bike down. And lastly, it is not "reccomended" to use a bike cover while trailering as the dirt kicked up by the tow vehicle can come between the cover and the paint on the bike and you don't want this to happen. Don't ask me how I know this. Hope this helped, PM. <><

 

[FJRocket]

If your running the Doug Hines risers on the 06 it is reccomended to "not" secure the bike down using the bars. Otherwise no problemo. PM. <><

Yes, all the disclaimers apply. YMMV; pro driver, closed course; don't try this at home; yada yada....

We're talking about the stock bars here, not some flimsy aftermarket risers. :huh:

If I was an aftermarket manufacturer, I'd probably say the same thing to protect may ass..ets.

As a consumer, if I thought the risers (or other component) were that weak, they wouldn't go on my bike. <_<

I think if you have D&D or other type of "block" type risers, you'd probably still be ok. I said PROBABLY. I don't know that for sure and don't come crying to me if you screw it up.

If you have the type of riser that can rotate, and the position of the bars can shift with some significant force (like 600 pounds bouncing around in the back on lousy roads), then whatever you tie down with is going to come loose and you're going to dump the bike.

So if you HAVE to trailer your bike, remove your risers first, and you should be fine.

First off, the Doug Hines risers are not "flimsy" or any other loosely used word. And personally I don't think Doug would be suggesting you not secure your bike down while using his risers just to cover his rear. That is an insult to a genuine person and donator to this board. Second, anyone who trailers his or her bike knows securing the bike down by the bars is possible but highly "not" reccomended on any bike. Handlebars are "not" designed to take that kind of force especially going down a gravel/bumpy type road. The secure point for the front should be the triple trees. (Note: do not pull the front forks down too far as too much pressure on the seals for extended periods of time can cause leakage). Also, it is highly "not" reccomended to secure any bike by utilizing the wheels as secure points as this could cause damage to them also. This is not to say you cannot secure your bike at these areas, it is just not "reccomended". And it would be a big hassel to remove the risers and replace the bars with the shorter bolts they came with just to tie the bike down. And lastly, it is not "reccomended" to use a bike cover while trailering as the dirt kicked up by the tow vehicle can come between the cover and the paint on the bike and you don't want this to happen. Don't ask me how I know this. Hope this helped, PM. <><

CYA seems to be the order or the day!

PM, I meant no disrespect to you, Doug Hines or anyone else. I have a set of risers on order from Doug for my '06, and I'm sure they will be terrific. My wrists and shoulder can't wait! The top half of my post was mostly tougue in cheek. Next time I'll try to use goofier smileys to denote the proper tone.

The original point was that the bars from the factory are strong enough to support the bike in shipping, as demonstrated by the way they are bolted into the crate in Japan. That was the first thing that Jerold at D&H pointed out to me when I saw my bike in the factory crate prior to assembly. The head tech there said the same thing.

I have Lenker Adapters on my '04 and have never strapped the bike down by the bars with them on there. I did in fact strap the bike down by the triple tree area. The Lenkers are not flimsey in the slightest. However, they could rotate with force (I have moved them) and I would NEVER recommend anyone strap a bike down by the bars if they have Lenkers or other rotatable risers.

This time when I strapped the bike in, instead of using ratchet straps, I used the push button kind that came with my Canyon Dancer. Those seemed to work pretty well, and were a bit faster and easier to work with versus the ratcheting kind of strap.

 

[radman]

Frank will be Harley'd to WooFoo courtesy of Mercury, U-Haul, and Canyon Dancer. I intend to ratchet strap the rear via the passenger peg/muff mount, and Canyon Dance the front, and Frank has D&D's. If he arrives partly on the trailer, and partly via UPS, we'll have our answer......

 

[petey]

IMHO canyon dancers should only be used to steady the bike at it's high point, <_< not to use them as the only form securing the front of the bike. :clapping:

 

[radman]

IMHO canyon dancers should only be used to steady the bike at it's high point, <_< not to use them as the only form securing the front of the bike. :clapping:

Understood. But front attachment points are non-existent far as I can discern, unless I somehow lock the wheel down, then use the Dancers to compress the suspension a bit. Won't know till I'm loading it, I guess.

 

[petey]

IMHO canyon dancers should only be used to steady the bike at it's high point, <_< not to use them as the only form securing the front of the bike. :clapping:

Understood. But front attachment points are non-existent far as I can discern, unless I somehow lock the wheel down, then use the Dancers to compress the suspension a bit. Won't know till I'm loading it, I guess.

radman, I'm sure you'll get her there in good shape.

 

[bmwhd]

IMHO canyon dancers should only be used to steady the bike at it's high point, <_< not to use them as the only form securing the front of the bike. :clapping:

Understood. But front attachment points are non-existent far as I can discern, unless I somehow lock the wheel down, then use the Dancers to compress the suspension a bit. Won't know till I'm loading it, I guess.

Is it not possible to use soft ties on the lower triple clamp up from the bottom? I've not even looked, just thinking out loud.

 

[MotorSWATCop]

I have a utility trailer that is set up with Condor Wheel chocks. Ride into them and they stand the bike up for 1 person tie down. I have transported my Wing, a bud's Harley Road King, and several other bikes using these chocks. Hopefully, they will work for the FJR as well. They are very adjustable for different bikes. I always secure to the triple tree w/ soft ties and will prolly do the same from a point on the swingarm for the rear. Just my 2 cents...

 

[painman]

Here is a website I always like to check out. Some good info.

Trailering info

"Tie down 101" near the bottom of the page is good and there are some others. Happy trailering...PM. <><

 

[FJRocket]

I have a utility trailer that is set up with Condor Wheel chocks. Ride into them and they stand the bike up for 1 person tie down. I have transported my Wing, a bud's Harley Road King, and several other bikes using these chocks. Hopefully, they will work for the FJR as well. They are very adjustable for different bikes. I always secure to the triple tree w/ soft ties and will prolly do the same from a point on the swingarm for the rear. Just my 2 cents...

I just helped a guy with a blown up Harley Springer today load up his bike. He had a Condor wheel chock rig. Lemme tell you that the Condor is the shiznitz. He had the Pit Stop model. Shove the bike in and leave it alone. Ok, strap it down to keep it from popping back out, but VERY effective. On my shopping list.

Condor Lifts and Chocks

 

[Toynut]

I have always tied my bikes down using the soft tie downs through the lower triple clamps. Besides having a secure attachment point, there is an extra benefit of keeping the ratchet mechanisms and S-hooks as far away from the upper plastics and tank as possible. Any wear marks(if any) in the area of the triple clamp will never be noticeable, either.

Last fall, I made the mistake of hauling my FJR (winter storage) to my warehouse on a Kendon trailer (since sold). The Kendon has a built in non-adjustable wheel chock on the guide rail that captures the front tire. Unfortunately for me I did not notice how close the lower chin fairing was to the flipped up wheel chock after tightening down the front end. It was just close enough to the chock, that, during the 20 mile drive to the office on our normally rough Michigan roads, some paint on the inside of the chin fairing was rubbed raw. oster_oops:

No real harm done (nickel sized gouge), just annoying as heck. :angry:

Something to watch out for, that's all! :blush2:

 

[MotorSWATCop]

The nice thing about the Condor is that you can reverse the capture track(?). it has a different profile on either end. On my Wing, I had to use the low profile because of the gap between the lower cowl and the rear part of the front fender. I got the chock for $148.00. I feel like it was worth it. bikes are rock solid during transport.