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Motorcycle Loading Ramp

14K views 29 replies 22 participants last post by  sourdo 
#1 ·
Anyone have or would suggest any Motorcycle Loading Ramps for our trucks?

Need to move my 08 Harley Street Glide to an alternate location and not safe to ride it where I am going...

Let me know -- thanks guys for your continued input!
 
#2 ·
My old standby involves backing up against a ditch or hill where you can roll straight onto the tailgate. Conventional ramps (like the ones I used to load my 4-wheeler) are sketchy as hell, especially with a heavier bike. Given the option, a small low-floor trailer is my preference.
 
#4 ·
I can't speak from personal experience with a motorcycle ramp but I have used ATV ramps all the time. The Black Widow listed above looks like a good one. No matter which one you choose make sure it has lots of cross bars like the Black Widow for better footing. ATV ramps have wide spots that your foot would go straight through and you would have a very bad day if that happened.
 
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#5 ·
The biggest problem, even if you have the correct ramp, is the height above ground for the truck bed. Riding a Harley up a steep ramp is "shakey". You are not talking about a lightweight dirt bike. Then you have to deal with the clearance issue UNDER the motorcycle. Look under your bike. Just a few inches of clearance. Now run it up a steep ramp not contoured to go straight into the bed and you "roof" on the bottom.

Falling off from that kind of height is not "high" on my list. Even riding a quad up into a pickup bed is shakey. You are trending where I don't want to go and I know, oh how I know.

Get a small trailer.
 
#6 ·
Lots ofvideos on youtube on how "not" to do it. I agree with previous post, use a ditch to your advantage if possible.
 
#9 ·
Looking for a trailer now gents. Thanks for the input
 
#11 ·
I don't disagree with a trailer as I also have one as well as the black widow ramps. The nice thing with the ramps is ease of carry and use - they come in different lengths that help offset loading angle. Second part of loading with ramps is people try to gas it up the ramp and stop - doable but the real secret is learning to use just enough gas to walk them up - the black widow has ample footing width on both sides as well as close spaced rungs for putting your feet down.

Not affiliated just see too many people using skinny ramps you have to ride up at speed - these ramps just enough gas to walk it is all you need.

Trailer I use is an Aluma Motorcycle/Bike Trailers - Aluminum | Aluma Trailers

Still have to ride up the not terribly wide ramp it comes with - or use black widow ramps and have a fulll width ramp. It is way easier on gas then the old enclosed cargo trailer I used and my bikes don't mind if they gat wet as I ride (by accident) in the rain often when I am down in the smokies.

Whatever your choice remember better to slow ride it in then fast.
 
#12 ·
I had ramps similar to the black widow ramps. Lesson learned - when the front tire is a foot up the ramp and the back tire is still on the ground, your legs will NOT be long enough to reach the ground. Ask me how I learned that lesson! Solution was to put two 2X8 boards on the lower part of the ramp/ground. Space the boards far enough apart so you can ride the bike between them, then slowly walk your way up the ramp. Coming down is another adventure! Put the transmission in gear (engine off) and use the clutch to brake the back wheel while you brake the front normally. Ask me how I learned that one too! Don't forget the boards for your feet while you're going down either.

If you get and enclosed motorcycle trailer you can avoid all this crap and you'll have a place to store the Harley too. Plus you can haul stuff for other people as soon as they learn you have a trailer.
 
#14 ·
Great idea... Never thought about the two 2X6's under the frame before. I always worried I would compress the forks down too much and would hurt the bike. This will take care of that for sure.

Thanks for the tip!
 
#18 ·
I agree with the captain that a trailer is the ideal way to go. I have to disagree about starting a new thread when we already have one that's titled "MOTORCYCLE LOADING RAMP" The new post will put any age thread back on the top of the list. Sure makes it easier when searching the forum. I believe in keeping it simple.
 
#19 ·
If you decide to use a ramp be sure to have someone ready to video the event so if things go south we’re here to critique because we’ve never made that mistake :rolleyes:
 
#20 · (Edited)
If it's a 1 time use just rent a uhaul motorcycle trailer. If your going to hauling it a lot look into a loader. Cost about $3500, but 1 person can load a full size dresser in 10 minutes by them self.

Look at my avatar - that's a Triumph Rocket III in the back of my Ram. Used Mountain Master lift. Have hauled it all over the country.
 
#21 ·
Have a 600lb steel hitch mount motorcycle transverse loaded ramp and mount. Put my XR-400 on it w/o issue. Can dig up a pic let me know. Not sure what your HD weight its however the handle bars would be the biggest issue.
 
#22 ·
Harleys are heavy. I used to own a BMW R1200RT. I rode with a local group here in Colorado that was brand-agnostic but most rode cruisers and most were HDs. I used to have friendly debates with the HD enthusiasts who complained that they couldn't hear my bike running. I reminded them that a comparable Harley Road King weighed 900+ pounds and made 89hp stock. The RT was 505 pounds and made over 100hp stock (the 2019 is 136hp). Different strokes. Anyway, as most have noted, the issue with getting a bike in the bed of a truck is, in off-road driving terms, an issue of approach angle. Rent a trailer. U-Haul has a vehicle hauling trailer that rents for about forty bucks a day. Be safe. Spend forty dollars.
 
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#29 ·
Best to use something to chock up the front wheel. Just tying the bike can cause that front wheel to move to the side and the bike to kind of "lie down' inside the ties. Been hauling motorcycles since the 1950's. Had a few fails. Actually, quite a few.

On both of my trailers I have movable Condor Wheel chocks or plain chocks for the front wheel. Without chocking that front wheel you are doing to wrong. Then the rest of the tying is just to keep the front wheel forward into that chock.
 
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