PBJ

" I'm not a Metz fan--I run Avons--but I'm wondering if a thing I saw recently on ABC News could shed some light on the subject. It was an investigative report by John(?) Ross and dealt with the manufacturing dates on tires; some companies are selling tires that were produced as long as 10 or 12 years before they are bought off the shelf as "new." One of the consequences, according to the report, is "tires dried out on the inside" causing separation of tread at low mileages. They used anecdotal evidence for the most part--similar to the Bridgstone problem a few years back--but there was one shot of a tire in a cage that destructed while spinning. No guarantee that it was properly inflated or anything else though--just their implication that is was. By the way, they were going by the manufactured-date code on the tires. For instance, the code 199 translated to the 19th week of 1999 for manufacture. 1902 would be the 19th week of 2002. I brought up this problem on another thread about the risks of buying tires from catalogs. I'm not condeming catalog companies in general just that I had a persoanl experience of one selling me tires that were almost 8 yrears old. I didn't suffer failure on the road but my "new" tires wouldn't pass inspection and following year due to dry rot. the catalog company stiffed me on the refund but the tire company sent me a new set in exchange for the manufacturing dates off both tires.

I have a Rack on my old Venturer and have used it often but its good advice to make sure the trunk is packed full. This way the weight of the pack on the rack is resting on the contents in the trunk and not just resting on the empty trunk lid without any support underneath. It could cause stress fractures around the mounting bolt holes.

Don't rush the set up unless you know someone thats done a few. Theres knowing worst than fighting a rig down the road thats not set up properly its exhausting to say the very least and not alot of fun if your constantly having to hold it straight cause its wanting to pull one way or the other. A prpoer set up should allow you to hole the tiller( Bars) with one hand without alot of effort to go straight down the road. A set up is always a compromise to roads too. If you ride mostly highways then back roads will be trickier and vise versa. Don't forget a chair is NOT a motorcycle you push right to go right, left to go left until that chair wheel lift off the ground then its a motorcycle again. NEVER forget this! If you do it could be the last mistake you make especially if a car or truck is coming the other way. Ask my girl friend Joanna sometime about our Adirondack trip last year, talk about close calls, and i've been riding a chair for ten years

At this time I wasn't planning on it but I can look into possibly going. My first best advice is get a subscription to Hack'd magazine It only comes out quarterly but its chocked full of good advice. They have an On line sight too. The motorvation is a pretty good side car. Yours looks like its gotten alot of use but they 're easy to clean up and touch up. I know you're planning on using for the dogs right, just remember to add a little more weight . A battery like I suggested would be excellent and it will help with the electrical drain of the sidecar lights. Different companies use different set up methods but their all basically the same. There are mounting brackets that attach to the frame and then adjustable arms that bolt in. Each arm has a specific function and each adjustment depends on the others.. On my Velorex the bottom rear is the central locator. The wheel axle of the sidecar should be about 10 inchs ahead of the bikes rear wheel axle( approximately). This creates a stability to the whole unit too far back and it causes too much drag too far forward and it plows. the front lowrer arm controls toe in or the amount the car points toward the bike. The rear upper arm control the tilt forward or back of the car. And the upper front controlls the bikes lean out away from the car to compensate for road crowning. Crowning is thwe curve for water run off built into roads . With an ideal set up the bike and car ride the crown on either side with enough lean out the bike become straight while running down the road . I' hope i'm not babbling if you want we can talk on the phone.

Nice Motorvation unit. You'll have alot of fun with that. Good luck in the set up and learning about the world of sidecaring.

Retired people don't get a chance to ride to work! How about an International Ride NOT to work day LOL!

My choice is North Platte Kansas. North Platte is almosy exactly in the middle of the U.S. and its wihtin several hundred miles of the Black Hills. Its also located on the North platte river and it has several State and national parks in the area for camping. It would give members from the 4 corners of the country and Canada and Mexico relatively equal distances to travel.

Driving a hack is a real ball . It takes time to learn but its a kick. There are even electric stabilizers that you can get that allow you to adjust the pitch and lean on the sidecar depending on the type of rode you ride. Setting up a chair is an art form and takes time to get just to your liking. The bike needs to lean out at a 5 degree angle to the chair and the chairs nose need to piont in toward the bike. Finding just the right balance point for the loads your carrying and the road crowns you most usually ride. Drainage crowns vary based on rode type . This is all important in setting her up. A good set up should only pull slighty upon serious excelleration, but be almost neutral at speed. Once crown angles are set up the bike rides straight while the chair rides balanced on the other side of the crown usually with a tire in each road track. I know it sounds like alot but once you learn it all you realize you have a skill not everyone one has . Some non hackers look at a chair with distain but its not a skill everyone can do without time and practice. Once you're good through you can keep up with most everyone. Good luck Muffinman and welcome to the club.

I have a question, doesn't running a ct on a bike create a problem with the Insurance companies paying up on an accident? I mean you know insurance companies look for excuses to not pay. I would think that if someone went down with a car tire because of a kick out or Broken cords are found due to Ct's having to be over inflated to get the bead to set. Is that taking a gamble with the insurance? those guys check these sites you know and look for info like this stuff we post here . Has ANYONE darksider or not considered this? This is a question worth exploring and NOT a negative comment.

I brought my 85 back from Michigan in the back of a Chey crew cab with a short box. We rolled it in and strapped it right down and the bike made the whole trip back to new York with out a buge and that was while travelling at an average of 75 miles an hour. We did have to keep the tail gate down with a board under the rear wheel to help distribute the weight. This was purely a safety precaution for the truck which was a rental. But A 1st gen will definitely fit in the back of a pick up.

Having read this I now know I joined the right group as well.

also try a local boat shop that does fiberglass repair they should eb able to lay patchs from the inside that add polymer to fill any missing pieces . Your may not have to replace it after that. My 85 had fiberglass repair. Looks like a homemade job but its on the bottom and not readily visible. the trunks solid and waterproof.

I'll keep you in mind thank for the advise.

yes its a very good reason and I've stated so in the darkside sight but finding a tire thin enough is the trick. hopefully those on the darksdide thread will help me with info. But Hack'd magazine has some excellent suggestions on tires from Europe and China with old style flat profiles that work well .In fact because they're realatively cheap $30-40 bucks they recommend you buy several pairs and let them harden for better wear.

I find it a real mystery that the material of the seats would do this. But you have all given me some great suggestions. I think first i'm going to experiment with the gasoline and carb cleaner. As I said Nail polish remover was taking some of it up. I called the County office about getting a Naugh permit and they told me that you can only hunt them in odd numbered years so I wouldn't be able to shoot a couple until next season. Beside Naugh's in New york are rather smal and I might have to take down 4 or 5 to get a descent seat out of them. I'm going to be looking into the motorcycle seat cover and the Fibrenew site as well. Both look really good but then too i'd wait until fall when I'm putting the bike up for that loooong winters rest. Finally hear in the Finger Lakes area we have a lot of upholsterser because of all the boats here so I'll price them against the on line places. Thank you to everyone for all the info I really appreciate it. Phil.

I guess I'll justs break down and buy a new one.

Having ridden a hack for over 10 years here are some answers to your questions. In New York you also do not have a title or need to register or plate a sidecar.Some do have plate holders so if you have an old vanity plate you can mount that. In New York you can have passengers in a side car without a helmet IF you have a top on the car. Seat belts are not Required. The sidecar will produce an addition drain on the electrical system but you can over come this with a car battery in the back of the car to run the bike. as far as parking is concerned you can part with bikes or with cars , pulling through is a good idea though so you don'rt have to push the rig out backwards. Wingers no longer need to worry about that. Gas mileage will be more determined by the weight of the passenger/load and how heavy your throttle hand is. Rigs eat through tires faster because they do what is calleda "crab walk" the bike pulling the sidecar is pulled slightly to the side by the resistantce of the car this scrubs down the tire . The flatter a profile tire you can find the better or the cheapest because its going to go fast . Expect no more than two seasons if that depending how much you ride. Do cagers notice you more? YES! THE INTERESTING THING ABOUT SIDECARS IS THEY ARE INCREDIBLY VISIBLE. You' d think you were riding in a brightly colored circus wagen the way people see you. Mothers, fathers , kids can see you a mile away. THEY PASS YOU SMILING AND WAVING AS IF YOUR SOME KIND OF TIME TRAVELLER THAT JUST PLOPPED DOWN IN FRONT OF THEM. Its trully amazing. The only explaination I have for it is that a sidecar is very unusual visialy and because people don't see them often it becomes a point of curiousity and grabs their attention. They definitely see you more and will even watch you as you go by. I once blew threw a speed trap at 15mph over the limit and all the cop did was smile and wave. I was shocked. One last thing and this is important the sidecar WILL limit your top speed especially depending on your load as the bike pulls the car along it is plowing forward just as you would lean forward pulling a load with a rope, at a certain speed ( for my rig its about 80 to 85 the back end will get so light that the back tire actually starts to lose traction. The engine will start to rev but you won't be going any faster. Remember to balance the weight between the rig and the bike. Rigs don't counter steer like a motorcycle. But the moment the car wheel leaves the ground the thing becomes a bike again and suddenly your going left when you were turning right. ITS the MOST DANGEROUS THING ABOUT A SIDECAR! Thats why you most always keep weight to the rig by leaning into it on a right hand turn ( passenger too) like a snowmobile. I hope this has answered your questions and then some. Please contact me with any more questions. They are fun to ride and a challenge. Someone once told me no rides a sidecar because they just want to. They usually have family or pets to carry but once you learn to ride one its a skill you become proud of. I do ! Phil.

Kandaje, spoken like a true warrior who has faced death and worried about those who yet don't realize the horror they are about to face. Thanks for those words brother. It adds some balance to what we all are told at times.