Rich Gross Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 OK, so Friday the moving company loads the truck for my cross-country move. The RT is going on the truck. I removed the top and side bags, left just a few ounces of fuel in the tank, tightened up anything that can be tightened. I imagine they will muscle it up the rampand tie it down somehow What else do I need to do to protect the bike? Last time I did this, they were unable to lug my Gold Wing up the ramp and ended up having to meet them at a loading ramp. Any advice appreciated. Link to comment
David Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Windshield all the way down. Leave mirrors on to cushion fall if it happens. Remove both black panels behind rider's legs. Clear instructions on how to tie down (NO handlebars; YES front cross brace and rear subframe). Illustrate putting it on center stand. Better yet, tie it down yourself. Take pictures of bike to prove damage later if necessary. Link to comment
One Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 What David says is very important; I'd just add to wrap the windshield with some foam stuff and say a little prayer. The best on your moving. Link to comment
Kathy R Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 How about taking off the mirrors and consider the the windscreen too? Then again that would simply expose the windscreen brackets to harm. But I would remove the mirrors. They like to pop off anyway. You mentioned the "top" and I think that is the plastic, what folks call the "tupperware"? I'd take off anything that can crack easily if bumped...how about those little covers on each side...one is by the center stand handle...you know what I mean. Those are so flimsey and could easily break if bumped. Good luck. Gosh, how long can you hold your breath? Link to comment
Ron_B Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Get a big roll of bubble-wrap to cushion the bike. To secure it, get a roll of that saran wrap-like film that comes on a hand-roller. I moved recently, and found the stuff indispensible (not terribly expensive either) Stretch wrap Bubble wrap Link to comment
Dennis Andress Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Surround it with every mattress you have. With the bike on the sidestand, start use two straps at the back to secure the bike so it can't move forward. Then secure from the left front pulling the bike forward and putting tension on the rear straps. Finally use one strap on the right front to pull the bike upright and off the sidestand. Make sure everyone knows to put the sidestand down and release this strap first when unloading. Put enough downward tension on the straps to slightly compress the front suspension. Link to comment
USAF1 Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Photograph or video the bike at the place you're leaving it at.....with their employees as witnesses if you can. A long, long time ago, I had to leave my bike with a storage company, until Uncle Sam changed its rules, and I eventually got to have it sent to me while stationed in Europe. When it finally showed up (the front of the crate was smashed) I just about died. After removing the crate sides and top, you would have to have said that the bike looked like it had been dropped off the side of a high loading dock, and landed on the passenger backrest...windshield and mirrors. Everything from the handlebars and up, had to be replaced and repainted.....took months. Best of luck to you...... Pat Link to comment
Member #33 Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Remove the windshield and take it with you or pack it separately. Remove the mirrors and front turn signal bulbs and pack or take them separately.. Install soft-tie loops at the four tie-down points so movers can't miss them. Best: tie it down yourself. I have had very good luck with Federal. However, if a regular mover is moving it with household belongings, it's a different story. It did that latter once with an R1150GS and R27, howdever, and it worked out fine. Link to comment
David Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Remove the windshield and take it with you or pack it separately. Remove the mirrors and front turn signal bulbs and pack or take them separately. Removing the windshield makes sense, and I should have suggested that, but I have to disagree with removing the mirrors. They are designed to take the brunt of the impact in a tipover by spreading the impact to the frame. In other words, if the bike goes over, you WANT the mirrors on to prevent further damage. Given that, tape them on with a tape that will come off and tape a piece of rubber on the outermost point of the mirror to prevent scratching. Link to comment
DavidEBSmith Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 Illustrate putting it on center stand. I wouldn't, just so there's no chance that the movers will try to put it on the center stand in the truck and tie it down. The bike should be tied down on the wheels, not either of the stands. Let them only know how to put it on the side stand when they unload it. Take lots and lots of pictures before it goes. Link to comment
Haynes Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 What everyone else said and ..... Be very nice to these guys. Link to comment
Call me Al Posted December 30, 2003 Share Posted December 30, 2003 OK, so Friday the moving company loads the truck for my cross-country move. The RT is going on the truck. I removed the top and side bags, left just a few ounces of fuel in the tank, tightened up anything that can be tightened. I imagine they will muscle it up the rampand tie it down somehow What else do I need to do to protect the bike? Last time I did this, they were unable to lug my Gold Wing up the ramp and ended up having to meet them at a loading ramp. Any advice appreciated. Better yet, send me a plane ticket and I'll ride it back to Tampa for you !!! Link to comment
Rich Gross Posted December 31, 2003 Author Share Posted December 31, 2003 Clear instructions on how to tie down (NO handlebars; YES front cross brace and rear subframe). Great advice - thanks. By the cross brace, I understand you mean the brace to which the handle bars both attach at the center. Rear subframe? I see a couple of slots on the frame to which the top bag attaches (well forward and on the side of the pillion seat). Is that what you mean? You advise putting it on the center stand, but my intuition is that it would be more stable and shock-tolerant if I leave it on the tires, well tied down. Any reason that does not make sense? Haven't felt like this since the first time I left my kids with babysitters 25 years ago . Link to comment
Rich Gross Posted December 31, 2003 Author Share Posted December 31, 2003 Better yet, send me a plane ticket and I'll ride it back to Tampa for you !!! I truly almost decided to ride it out, but my wife and Doberman voted against me. My AZ registration expires 12/31, so I didn't want to tempt fate . The car will look like a blivot (10 lbs of manure in a 5 lb bag...). See you in sunny Fla. Link to comment
wildLoon Posted December 31, 2003 Share Posted December 31, 2003 If it were my bike being transported by a bonded and insured moving company, I would take detailed pictures of the bike near the moving van, with their name and unit numbers visible, to document condition of the bike. then I would have one of their representatives sign a sheet of paper which notes any exceptions to the motorcycle. It would then be up to the carrier and their insurance carrier to secure the motorcycle in their equiptment in any fashion they deem approptiate. If there are any exceptions to said motorcycle on delivery, refuse it until you are made whole. Any legitimate carrier carries insurance for such claims and has no qualms about making their client whole for their errors. that is what insurance if for. John Link to comment
Jeff98362 Posted December 31, 2003 Share Posted December 31, 2003 Mayflower just moved mine, damage was about $500. Claim pending! Take pictures before it goes.... GOOD LUCK Link to comment
Mike Posted December 31, 2003 Share Posted December 31, 2003 Rich-- I used to be a claims officer for the USAF, and handled a lot of claims arising out of damage during the shipment of household goods and vehicles. I learned a couple tricks of the trade waaaay back then. I think they still apply. First, the suggestion to take numerous dated pictures of the RT is good advice. However, the most important thing to watch for is the packer's annotation of pre-existing damage to your bike (or anything they're packing for that matter). They note these things with abbreviations on the line item inventory/manifest that is completed at the time they pack the items. The moving companies push their employees to annotate every teeny cosmetic blemish and, in some cases, have them mark everything as scratched, blemished, etc., regardless of whether it actually is damaged. That way, if damage does occur, they can point back to the inventory, which you will have signed, and claim that any damage was pre-existing, thereby denying your claim. First, you should try to get your RT loaded on a motorcycle pallet. Lots of companies have them and it minimizes the risk of damage to your motorcycle. Call and discuss this with the company as soon as they open for business tomorrow. It pays to be on your toes--and, if necessary, demanding--during the packing process. If there's something you don't like on the inventory, note your exception in writing on the inventory. . If you don't like the way the bike (or anything else for that matter) is being packed, make them stop and do it right. Demand a supervisor come to your house if necessary. And, whatever you do, make sure you receive and retain a copy of the inventory, and immediately note any damage upon delivery The bottom line is--and I've had a lot of experience in this area--some movers are excellent and hire well-paid professionals, while others hire temp workers at minimum wage who don't know what they're doing. If you encounter the latter, your move can be a disaster. If you are dealing with real professionals, you'll likely encounter little, if any, damage. It sounds like you've done this before, so I apologize if I'm being a little alarmist. It's just that I've occasionally seen some really stupid (and dishonest) things done by moving companies. You need to be ready to be aggressive with them if you don't like the way they are securing your bike. Link to comment
David Posted December 31, 2003 Share Posted December 31, 2003 By the cross brace, I understand you mean the brace to which the handle bars both attach at the center. That's called the triple clamp, typically. By cross brace I mean the horizontal bar between the slider tubes (looks like a fork), about halfway down. In this picture, you'll see roughly what I mean. It's a GS, but the idea is the same: Rear subframe? I see a couple of slots on the frame to which the top bag attaches (well forward and on the side of the pillion seat). Is that what you mean? Remove the black panel that allows you to reach the rear preload adjuster. In that area there are several black tubes. Just use one of those. It works for both sides. You advise putting it on the center stand, but my intuition is that it would be more stable and shock-tolerant if I leave it on the tires, well tied down. Any reason that does not make sense? My thinking was that it would be less likely to fall over as they unpacked around it. But I think you are correct. As Eebie pointed out, the suspension won't work well while it's on the center stand. So scratch that part of the advice. Link to comment
Rich Gross Posted December 31, 2003 Author Share Posted December 31, 2003 Great advice, Mike. I will unpack the camera (which I already packed) and make sure I take pictures of the bike all around, with the moving truck in the background. Stay tuned for a follow-up post in a week or so. Link to comment
Rich Gross Posted December 31, 2003 Author Share Posted December 31, 2003 Thanks a million for the pics and added explanations. I will follow your advice, along with that of the others. Wish I were riding it out... Link to comment
kld41 Posted December 31, 2003 Share Posted December 31, 2003 You cant trailer that rascal behind your car/truck? Can you palletize the RT in the van? You know you can probably air that bike for less than $500 and not have to sweat any damages. Link to comment
DavidEBSmith Posted December 31, 2003 Share Posted December 31, 2003 To try to clarify (although these pictures might not help too much) here is where you should tie down the front: Wrap tie-down extensions around the fork legs right above the cross-brace. The GS picture looks like you're tieing to the sliding part of the fork tubes, but on the RT, the fork tube above and below the cross-brace is solid - the slider is higher. You should ratchet the front tie-downs down solidly. You don't have to worry about compressing the suspension, as you would if you tie down to the handlebars, because you're tieing down below the front shock. As the truck goes over bumps, the body of the bike will bounce up and down on the suspension over the normal range of travel, as it's intended to do. (It is a bit scary to look in the rear view mirror and see the bike bouncing around on a trailer, but it's more secure to tie it down this way than to tie it down with the suspension compressed. The rear tiedowns go to the black frame members highlighted below that you find when you remove the black plastic side panels. These tiedowns really only stabilize the back of the bike - they don't do the brunt of the hold-down work. You can wrap soft tie-down extensions around the frame tubes or hook the tie-downs directly to the tubes. Run these rear tie-downs in the opposite direction from the front ones - if the front ones run to tie-down points in front of the bike, run these backwards, and if the front ones run to tie-down points behind the front fork, run the rear ones forward. The idea is that, in addition to side-to-side bracing, you want one set of tie-downs pulling the bike forward, and one set pulling it backward, so it won't roll. If you have both sets of tie-downs pulling the bike in the same direction, it can roll in that direction, the tie-downs will go slack, and it will fall over. The tie-downs should be arranged something like this: Once you have the bike tied down, put it in gear so it won't roll. Remember that it's in gear when you try to roll it off the truck. As stated before, don't put it on the center stand. The stand isn't designed for having the bike bounce on it for thousands of miles. (Same goes for the side stand). Moreover, if the bike is on the center stand, it's less stable than if it's on two wheels, because it can teeter fore and aft on the center stand. Finally, unless you tie the center stand to the front fork, there's a chance that the bike could shift forward and roll off the center stand. Link to comment
Rich Gross Posted December 31, 2003 Author Share Posted December 31, 2003 Excellent diagrams, David. Thanks very much. I have attached yellow ribbons to all 4 tie-down sites on the bike so the movers won't have to wonder about it. Got the windscreen wrapped and down and will say a prayer. Link to comment
Rich Gross Posted December 31, 2003 Author Share Posted December 31, 2003 You cant trailer that rascal behind your car/truck? Unfortunately, both our cars are too small to pull a trailer for this kind of a trip, esp heavily packed to begin with. So, I'll take before-pictures, tie it down right, and hold my breath. Link to comment
patof Posted January 4, 2004 Share Posted January 4, 2004 Excellent suggestions guys. I might be in that situation if my plans goes well. But silly question, wouldn't be simpler to put it on a trailer and bring it with you? Link to comment
Dances_With_Wiener_Dogs Posted January 4, 2004 Share Posted January 4, 2004 Regarding insurance...make sure that you get an appropriate rider that covers the replacement cost of the bike. Movers typically offer a low dollar based on weight, like $0.50 per pound. Your home owners may cover it. Best to check. Much luck, Link to comment
Rich Gross Posted January 8, 2004 Author Share Posted January 8, 2004 My RT and I have arrived safe and sound in Tampa. I found some soft-ties at Iron Horse in Tucson, tied them to the four correct tie-down points on the bike, and told the van driver that he was to tie them down ONLY by these points. He did this, but still found it a bit wobbly, so added a lateral support tie-down around the bike at seat level. I think he just didn't get the original 4 quite tight enough. Anyhow, the bike came rolling off just fine, and the only sign of the trip is some gunk where the sticky tape holding the windshield padding contacted the plastic. Looking forward to new riding friends. I will probably need a refresher course in straight and level riding . Thanks for all the advice on moving the bike. It worked! Link to comment
kld41 Posted January 8, 2004 Share Posted January 8, 2004 Good for you - get a trailer before next time though ! Link to comment
Dennis Andress Posted January 8, 2004 Share Posted January 8, 2004 Glad to hear the good news. If I may ask, why did you give up Tucson for Florida? Link to comment
Rich Gross Posted January 8, 2004 Author Share Posted January 8, 2004 If I may ask, why did you give up Tucson for Florida? I hate scenic, twisty, mountain roads and >8 months a year of ideal riding conditions. Actually, it was a career move and both are great places with great weather. There are so many "yeah, but.."'s to consider: Tucson has the mountains, but Tampa has the ocean. Tampa is humid, but Tucson is REALLY hot and parched at times. Tucson has the scenery, but Tampa has alot more to do. Tucson has no mosquitos, Tampa has no scorpions and rattlers (OK, at least not as many). The desert is beautiful, but so are towering oaks and pines and greenery.... etc. etc. There is no winner here, just differences. As far as motorcycling, I consider myself an avid recreational rider but my life does not revolve around it quite as much as it does for many others here, so not a big factor in the decision. Maybe when I retire... In the end it is the people you know who define a good home town. We have been blessed to meet such folks wherever we have lived. Link to comment
SMM Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 OK, after the fact but here's another suggestion, do Google Search on Canyon Dancer, it's a most elegant harness that fits onto handle bars such that tie down straps can be connected to handle bar directly, it works great for me... Link to comment
Kbasa Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 We moved three bikes here to Cali from Boston a few years ago. They built a dividing wall out of boxes and braced it with crossbars. Then they muscled the bike into a position across faciing sideways across the trailer. They put up another short wall of boxes, braced them with a cross bar and then completely packed the area around the bike with moving blankets. That bike couldn't have fallen over any possible way. They did this for each of the three bikes and they all made it here without a scratch. We moved a K75C, an R11RS and a Honda VFR. I folded the mirrors up on the VFR and we made sure the bags were off of the Beemers. They put the saddlebags in a box for me too, which was nice. I wouldn't sweat it. Link to comment
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