Need help strapping down firebolt

[Rogo716]

Picking up my firebolt tomorrow, but have no clue as to what points to strap her down at. I have four thin style ratchet straps. Obviously trying to keep away from the plastics, and anything that will bend or budge easily. Thanks.

 

[jetlee]

The front two go from the top triple to the hooks down low, to keep the top of the bike centered in the bed.

The back two keep the tires centered in the bed so they dont slide sideways and the whole thing flop down.

I don't use the hooks in the conventional manner for motorcycles; I thread the strap through the eyelet in the hook then go to the rathet. This way there's no chance of the hook coming off.

 

[snrusnak]

I use the lower triple for the front with rags to keep from damaging the powder coat. I don't like using hooked ends on the bike as on a bump they can come off. I always wrap through and back to itself. Prefer straps that don't use hooks at all.

Rear if it has passenger peg brackets that's the best place, don't need to go crazy they are just to keep it from bouncing around.

And if you have a 6'4" bed you can shut the gate

PS I never strap the wheel like that I only did that because I knew I was having them powder coated soon.

 

[jetlee]

Even with a short bed, the wife still has issues parking the truck.

...and where did you get the Buell straps?

 

[snrusnak]

lol I know what you mean. I let the wife borrow the truck once and it came back with FOUR curbed tires. Yes, FOUR. I don't even know how that's possible...

In all seriousness thought the quad cab/6'4" bed ram almost seems like it was designed for the xb. I've since got a linex and it's even tighter. Maybe 1/4" to 1/2" gap.

There was a seller on the forum, don't recall his name. Someone else might. I bought a bunch. I'll see how many I have if I have a bunch and you want maybe I'll sell you a few.

 

[jetlee]

If you have extras you'd be willing to part with, yes, I'd like to take a few off.

My wheels came pre-curbed on the truck, so I really don't worry about it. '08 F-150 Crew-Cab FX2 4.5' bed with 2"/4" lowering springs and cholo-wheels, lol, it's just how it came. Would like some nice 17" NASCAR-style wheels and plenty of sidewall. I really enjoy the lowering though, easy access to the bed and in/out of the cab for the baby seat.

 

[snrusnak]

You mean 5'7" bed right?

I also lowered the rear of my ram about 1 or 2 inches. Helps a lot with loading the bike.

 

[go cytocis]

I let the wife borrow the truck once and it came back with FOUR curbed tires. Yes, FOUR. I don't even know how that's possible

The night of my stag party, I was sharing a similar complaint about my fiancé at the time with a good friend. He told me, "a happy marriage isn't about having flawless rims". I have found that to be some of the best advice anyone's ever given me.

 

[snrusnak]

lol well luckily I had good tires and they saved the wheels from damage. The tires were nearly brand new, but they could take the beating luckily. What upset me the most was she didn't even realize she did it nor know how it happened [confused]

Oh well. She has a wrangler now which is incredibly maneuverable and easy to drive so she does well in it. She's really not a bad driver at all but for some reason can't back up worth a damn. I think that's a woman thing

 

[jetlee]

You mean 5'7" bed right?

You're correct. I dunno why I thought I had the 4.5' bed.

 

[bubba_]

similar here except i had some Canyon Dancers..
worked good
(6 hour trip - i was nervous as heck)

- o well; i aint got the pics deal either

 

[user_deleted]

getting back on point.....to answer your question i transport probably 8 XB's a year on average and the single best most secure least difficult method is soft loops. see link below. you simply use 4 tie down points in either your truck bed or any trailer and run front loops over top of lower triple clamp....and each rear loop around peg stirrup. use common sense when cinching down each tie-down. next to a quality tie-down, soft loops are the single best thing in the world for motorcycle transport.

http://www.discountramps.com/soft-l...4&cadevice=c&gclid=CMmu_s7Vwb0CFWZo7Aod6UQAPA

 

[nicholas900]

I cut the metal hook off my front two straps. Then feed the loose end through the loop in the strap where the hook used to be. Then into the ratchet.

 

[egobuster1]

i just throw a strap around the handle bars on both side of my lightning and kind of compress the front shocks down a bit and ratchet till its tight. the straps on the rear of the bike are kind of pointless if the front strapped down properly.

 

[jetlee]

the straps on the rear of the bike are kind of pointless if the front strapped down properly.

Until you hit a bump and the tires slide out sideways. This being the reason I put low straps in back. Someone loaded dad's award-winning Harley in my brothers truck with just a couple straps in front. We were going down the road and *FWUMP!* Looked back and it was laying on its side, front straps still attached.

If you don't have a wheel chock, you should be putting a set of straps mid/low in the rear. The front straps keep the top of the bike centered in the bed, you need a couple straps lower to keep the bottom of the bike centered as well.


I wanted to make sure this one wasn't moving at all, going through mountain passes with high winds:

Yes, that's 8 tie downs. I just noticed that he (friend in background) hooked that strap on the bar incorrectly. :facepalm:

 

[Alien]

Canyon Dancer.

 

[go cytocis]

It's probably moot now if the OP went to pick up the bike today, but several tips I haven't seen mentioned yet:
- preload the the front & rear suspension to ~1/2 way down its full travel to prevent the bike from bouncing around, but still giving it some cushion
- try to angle the straps as close as possible to 45 degrees to provide maximum stability
- tie the straps back on themselves so that it'll still hold even if the ratchet fails

 

[egobuster1]

i think its all personal preferences I've tied many bikes down including motorcycles and dirt bikes with just 2 front fork straps in the back of trucks and on trailers and never had a problem but hey a couple extra straps on the rear sure wouldn't hurt anything.

 

[2004xb12s]

i think its all personal preferences I've tied many bikes down including motorcycles and dirt bikes with just 2 front fork straps in the back of trucks and on trailers and never had a problem but hey a couple extra straps on the rear sure wouldn't hurt anything.

You need some in the back. If you don't then its personal preference that you want your bike falling over. My dad strapped my bike down one time when i wasn't there with just the front two straps and it ended up bouncing halfway off the trailer and being dragged down the road. Once that rear tire slides to one side the front wheel turns and the straps fall off. In my case the straps never fell off and held the bike halfway off the trailer until we could slow down. I don't know why this is a hard concept for people.....

 

[go cytocis]

You need some in the back. If you don't then its personal preference that you want your bike falling over.

[up]
Ever seen how the manufacturers ship bikes to the dealers inside those crates? They use four straps.