ramps & tie down straps

[FZ1LA]

What ramps & tie down staps would work good with a 95 Nissan king cab truck? Anything local? Anything to avoid? The truck has a plastic bed liner with ridges on the floor. Would it be better to take that out? It's got a camper top on it now but i'm going to take that off. Oh, and what about wheel chocks?
Thanks, John

[Ritten]

As long as the truck is a 2wd height I think you can pretty much use any regular 4 wheeler bi-fold or tri-folding ramps with your FZ1. I don't care for the single track ramps as I like to ride my bike up and down. I use a 5 1/2' bi-folding ramp which works fine in my 4x4 with the GS ground clearance. As long as you have 6' of bed space and a sturdy tailgate you shouldn't have any problems with length.

I drove out to Vegas last year, made multiple offroad and rock climbing expeditions, and not once did the bike budge in the back. Ratchet straps are the best for your forks, and regular pull straps are sufficient for backups. No chock needed if you secure it tightly. (but don't bottom out your forks).

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v679/RSTed1000/Vegas%202006/IMG_1870.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v679/RSTed1000/Vegas%202006/IMG_1859.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v679/RSTed1000/Vegas%202006/IMG_1831.jpg

[Juice]

I went to lowes ant lunch and picked up this folding ramp......$89.00 each.


http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=249092-29318-7452700&lpage=none

[Juice]

They also have the steel model for $57.00

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=220441-15476-802&lpage=none

[FZ1LA]

Yep, my truck is 2wd height and the truck bed is 6 foot.

[scooterhose]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v679/RSTed1000/Vegas%202006/IMG_1831.jpg


I have that same ramp. Works well, I like it!

[jason70360]

I went to lowes ant lunch and picked up this folding ramp......$89.00 each.


http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=249092-29318-7452700&lpage=none

I have some like this also. The good thing about these are you can stack them to make a 10' long ramp if you have a bike with little ground clearance.

But it can be a scary if you're alone and trying to balance the bike.

[Juice]

I only bought one they sell them separate and they do fold up.....



I have some like this also. The good thing about these are you can stack them to make a 10' long ramp if you have a bike with little ground clearance.

But it can be a scary if you're alone and trying to balance the bike.

[FZ1LA]

I went to lowes ant lunch and picked up this folding ramp......$89.00 each.


http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=249092-29318-7452700&lpage=none

I went to lowes on millerville this mourning and saw those. I would have to ride my bike up the ramp and i was worried that the cross bars would make for a bumpy ride for motorcycle tires. I'm going back and checking them out again.
Thanks

[Juice]

You might be right. I'm only using them to put my sons mini in the back of my Bronco...



I went to lowes on millerville this mourning and saw those. I would have to ride my bike up the ramp and i was worried that the cross bars would make for a bumpy ride for motorcycle tires. I'm going back and checking them out again.
Thanks

[iridefar]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v679/RSTed1000/Vegas%202006/IMG_1859.jpg

Ted, may the motorcycle gods forgive you for that...



+1 on what Ted said about not bottoming out the forks, but I don't think it matters if you use ratchet straps or pull straps. The physics are the same (the forks don't know the difference). Just make sure you tie up the extra strap or it will blow in the wind and polish the paint right off of your bike.

Also be careful backing out of a truck with a plastic bed liner. The front tire will not grip on that liner. I found that out the hard way many years ago.

[scooterhose]

Ted, may the motorcycle gods forgive you for that...



+1 on what Ted said about not bottoming out the forks, but I don't think it matters if you use ratchet straps or pull straps. The physics are the same (the forks don't know the difference). Just make sure you tie up the extra strap or it will blow in the wind and polish the paint right off of your bike.

Also be careful backing out of a truck with a plastic bed liner. The front tire will not grip on that liner. I found that out the hard way many years ago.




I use these (http://www.motoworldracing.com/Applied-Racing-Suspension-Saver.html). You can make the bike far more secure to boot.

[iridefar]

I use these (http://www.motoworldracing.com/Applied-Racing-Suspension-Saver.html). You can make the bike far more secure to boot.

I use those too, but unfortunately they do not fit all bikes.

[Ritten]

Ted, may the motorcycle gods forgive you for that...



+1 on what Ted said about not bottoming out the forks, but I don't think it matters if you use ratchet straps or pull straps. The physics are the same (the forks don't know the difference). Just make sure you tie up the extra strap or it will blow in the wind and polish the paint right off of your bike.



I think the motorcycle God has been given plenty enough praise from me. No worries there. :D

As far as the pull straps being equal, under heavy loads I've seen the pull straps come loose over time. Ratchet straps are mechanically locked to not loosen any so those are the only thing I trust up front. Yes, how they connect to the bike is the same, but how they hold tension are two different mechanics.

[Fitty]

The few times I've had a bike in the back of a truck I've used whatever type of ratchet strap I could pick up at Wal-Mart. I'm not qualified to comment, but most of the regular racer/trackday guys on the FZ1 board say pull-type Ancras or nothing.

[FZ1LA]

I took the camper top off yesterday. The truck sure looks a lot different.
Also did a lot of research on the internet and here is the first draft of my plan.

The plastic liner is all one piece, floor, side walls. I sure hate the thought of sliping on it so i'm going to put 3/4" pressure treated plywood over it and bolt it down.

Then bolt a Baxley Wheel Chock to the plywood so i can load the bike by myself.

Black Widow ramps and Ancra staps

I thinking of useing 4 staps at the front of the bike, at least two would be the ratchet type. That way if one does get loose it will have a back up.

I'm going to try to find out if the suspension saver will work on my bike, thanks Scooter.

This might be over doing it but i'm not experienced/smart enough to do it the easy way, lol. Thanks again everyone

[iridefar]

As far as the pull straps being equal, under heavy loads I've seen the pull straps come loose over time. Ratchet straps are mechanically locked to not loosen any so those are the only thing I trust up front. Yes, how they connect to the bike is the same, but how they hold tension are two different mechanics.

I was responding to your comment that "Ratchet straps are the best for your forks". Now I understand what you were saying. You are saying that ratchet straps are the best to use to tie down your forks (not that they protect your forks). I misread your post.

I still prefer the pull strapsbecause they are faster and easier to deal with, but I always tie a series of half-hitch knots in my straps to secure them (this also keeps the extra strap length from flopping around).

There is one constant truth about any mechanical mechanism: they will fail. So I even tie my ratchet straps. We used to use them on our trucks at my old job and I have seen plenty of them fail.

The ratchet straps certainly do help when loading a bike alone, though.

[Ritten]

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