Hey, you ingenious trikers - -

[zhgma]

We need to get our Voyager equipped Suzuki Blvd C50 into the bed of our F150. One problem is the low clearance (4”) of the belly section of the Voyager! One ramp website has a ramp calculator which says that we need a 14’ ramp - no one has one that long! And, how would we fit it in the bed? Some have said, "Just find a ditch, back the truck into that & use a short ramp." (Not always a convenient ditch around when you need one!) Others have suggested a trailer - that's not an option, since we pull the truck behind our motorhome! Another problem with ramps that we have found is that the Voyager wheels measure 53” – outside to outside. There are several loaders/tilting ramps out there, but we hate to invest another $3,000-5,000 right now! Plus, we CAN’T be the only ones needing to put a rig like that in a truck – some other ingenious rider HAS to have come up with a way to solve the problem!

Have spent HOURS on the net (& forums) looking for a solution & still haven’t found one! We’re getting to the point where we HAVE to find a solution – we leave soon for my summer job in VA – hate to rent a U-Haul for the bike & drive both the truck & motorhome.
Thanks in advance for y’all’s help!

(Bikers have got to be the friendliest, most helpful people on earth – as newbies, we’ve spent untold hours in shops asking questions & had only 1 person act as if putting up with us was a pain!)

 

[Trikerjim]

Hi zhgma and welcome to the club! My only suggestion and the way I would move the bike would be to remove the Voyager kit, load the bike with a good ramp, then reinstall when you get there. If your moving is not every few months or yearly, I think it would be worth the trouble. I'm sure you'll get some good ideas from this bunch, that's just my thought. Ride safe..

 

[zhgma]

Hey, Triker Jim - Thx for the suggestion. Problem is that the voyager kit weighs ~ 185#!! We would have to get that into the truck also! (Not quite that strong anymore!) We don't plan to carry the bike often, but won't necessarily have young muscles to help on both ends of our trip! (And, we may decide to go for a ride while we're enroute to wherever we plan to end up! Itineraries are made to be altered if there's something neat to see or do on the way!)

 

[Ozarkryder]

I have seen ramps that have a curve to them for just the problem you are talking about. They claim they work on lowered, stretched bikes. Another thing I have seen is someone cut a 2' piece of 2X12 (which is 1 1/2" width)
and cut the ends at about a 20° angle. The board was covered by marine deck/step tread that glues (he also stapled it) on to provide traction. He put 4 L brackets on the bottom that fit in the ramp slots and was attached with pins so it wouldn't come off. The board was put just below the end of the ramp by the tailgate - it lifted the wheel enough to clear the angle at the top of the ramp. This was for a 2 wheeler, kind of scared me as if the bike wasn't lined up just right it might fall off the side of the board, and off the ramp. It was a wide ride-up ramp with room on both sides to put his feet down. He said it had worked for him for 3 years, and he loaded by himself. He was a full-timer, and also hauled the bike in the bed of a pick-em-up behind his motorhome, and it came off and went back on everytime he moved.

I have a set of ramps the are in 6 pieces. 2 attach end-to-end and are 18" wide. The other sections are 9" wide and go on either side of the middle ramp the same way and have enough width to put my feet down. The outside pieces can be placed wide enough for the trike wheels, and all sections fit together to make an arc in the middle to lessen the angle at the top of the ramp. Haven't tried it with the trike, as I have a utility trailer if I haul Her Purpleness, but the Harley goes up with room to spare - it has 4 1/2" of clearance.

I am sure you measured, but I am curious - How wide is the bed of the truck?Is the Voyager kit narrow enough that the wheels fit in the bed?

 

[North of 49]

Loading Trike

I had the same problem when we loaded my bike(pre trike) and went from Canada to Texas in the winter. I had no idea where I could un-load, but I simply went to bike dealers, and they were all very accomodating, and let me use their ramps. They were all permanent types, well built, and worked really well. Some even offered to help me off load. I usually made a small purchase as a thanks as none asked for any money. If you aren't going to unload often, this may be an option. Only had a problem once on a weekend, as the dealer was closed and ramp was locked up. Another possiblity is that farm equipment dealers usually have large ramps to load equipment. Good luck!

 

[zhgma]

Hallelujah! We FINALLY found a couple of ramps that will work – a 7’ x 60” Zero-Turn Mower & Trike trifold. We’ll just have to hook the 2 together & prop the middle! (Don’t know why they had been hiding for the past 10 days while we’ve been searching – they just popped up at the last minute!) Carry them on a ladder rack (which is our next search - - Thank goodness Uncle Sam knew we were gonna need some extra $$ this spring!! LOL)
This company was SO helpful – don’t know if I can give their name or not – I don’t want to get into trouble, but would love to let y’all know who is willing to help (besides forum members, that is)!

 

[newtriker]

extra long ramps

We have a similar dilemma (kind of). We have a 550 truck, we haul a 38' fifth wheel, and behind that pull a 10' wells cargo trailer. Sold the bike, bought a trike so it barely fits in the trailer. With the trike came a Dart trailer that we want to haul along with the trike, but definitely no room in the cargo trailer. The little dart trailer is 81/2 feet long and would fit on top of the cargo trailer, but we can't figure out a safe way to get it up and down. We live in our fifth wheel so we travel to places, then make trips from wherever we are and really want the Dart motorcycle trailer with us. I have been looking on the internet for extra long ramps, bi-fold and tri-fold, but they are still not long enough. I'm guess we need something 15 feet or longer. The trailer is 6 feet tall. Any suggestions? Thanks....

 

[katfish16]

Newtriker, if U know anyone who welds they can build U some ramps out of some channel iron. U are not talking a great deal of weight for the trailer. I would run the channel all the way onto the top of the trailer put a small 12volt winch on a piece of steel at the top front of the trailer to use to pull the trailer up the angle iron. Weld a couple of eyes on the side of the channel on top of the triler to secure the trialer down
would also put a triler ball up there so the trailer coupler would hook up just like it was on ur trike. that way U know it will not get loose. Now Have I totally confused U

 

[ben721364]

I looked at the Voyager video and think that your best bet may be to remove the kit before loading the bike. As you said, it is heavy but it also rolls. Just a thought. It may save some time and money...