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Cruiser
Posts: 297
VA | Ok, after talking to a tech about installing the CB/ICOM, and him saying he's done several and it took him 5 hours, I've decided to have my dealer do it since it was included in the cost already. So, I gotta take it myself, no one to give me a ride home (over 1 hour each way). So, my buddy has a nice 4' X 8' trailer that he hauls his Harley Ultra Classic on every now and then. It has a wheel chock and good tie down points, not concerned about being able to secure it. But, has anyone done it with this size trailer. I know my Vision is longer than his classic, although wheelbase is only 2" longer when comparing manuals. I just hate to go pick it up to find out it won't fit. Any insights would be appreciated. I just hate to trailer it when I could ride it, but I got little choice and a little too busy to do the install myself. Thanks.
Marc |
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Cruiser
Posts: 235
Evergreen, CO | If the wheelbase is only 2" longer than the Harley Ultra, you should have no problem. Is the trailer a flat bed with no sides, have a rear ramp that folds up, a rear vertical piece that fits in place, or is it open? Hopefully it is open, as the total length of the Vision is quite a bit longer than the total length of the Ultra. If the trailer is open front & rear, I highly doubt that you will have any issues. The length of the Vision is 103"-105" (street vs. tour) which is well over an 8' length of 96". This says that if the trailer is closed front and rear, Houston, you have a problem. If one end or the other is open, you can probably make it work. Hope this all works out for you.... |
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Cruiser
Posts: 297
VA | The back is open, so not worried there. More worried about the rear wheel having some real estate on the trailer itself. Thanks for the reply though.
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Visionary
Posts: 1350
| I would suggest finding a U-Haul that has the M/C trailer they rent and going there to check it out. I believe the Vision should fit with no problem. It is a great trailer and not very expensive.
I am not a fan of hauling M/Cs on landscape trailer for any distance. I have seen way too many on the side of the road back and forth to Sturgis. Also you and your bike are at the mercy of the other guy. Ex: Years ago I bought a 1928 Buick and my boss loaned me his truck and stock car trailer. Lucky for me everything went fine until I got home. I unloaded the car and moved the truck and trailer so I could get the Buick in the driveway and watched a tire roll by? Yes, a tire from the trailer came off. My boss had forgotten to tell me that the wheels come loose and I needed to tightened them often.  So beware of good intentions.... |
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Visionary
Posts: 1324
So Cal | Maybe pollolittle knows. I think he had a run in with a couple of 4"X8" sheets of sheetrock. I dont think he had time to stop and take measurments though.
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Cruiser
Posts: 235
Evergreen, CO | I have researched both the wheelbase of my former Harley that I trailered numerous times. It was a Heritage Softail Classic, and had a wheelbase of 64.5 inches. The Victory Vision has a wheelbase of 65.7 inches, according to the rider's manual. I can tell you a high degree of certainty that there was more than sufficient room on my trailer, whose bed was EXACTLY 4'X8' (48"X96" , as the bed of the trailer was a full sheet of plywood. The difference between the Vision wheelbase and trailer length is slightly over 30", so envision 15" ahead of the front tire's contact patch, and 15" behind the rear tire's contact patch.
I once trailered my bike from Monrovia in the San Gabriel Valley area of SoCal to the Prescott, AZ area. This was a trip of around 450 miles. I installed 4 large eyelets, one near each corner, into the trailer frame, and used regular motorcycle tie down straps to hold the bike in place. I had absolutely NO problem, and I cannot imagine that an additional 1.2 inches of wheelbase that the Vision has over my Heritage would make a significant difference in the safety of trailering the bike. It WILL fit. You just need to tie it down properly. If you do not have experience doing this, please try to find another rider who does help you the first time. Safe places to tie off the motorcycle that will provide proper strength, stability, and prevent damage, how much to compress the front suspension when tying down the front, and tying down the rear of the bike to prevent the rear from walking while underway on the trailer, are all important. After synching the motorcycle ties, I usually tie an additional knot in each strap around the "grips" to make sure the strap grips do not permit the strap from "un-synching" after hitting bumps and uneven portions of the roads you travel.
I hope this helps you.....
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Cruiser
Posts: 257
Under the Rule of Jedi - Masshole | Also an FYI...
I've seen this done many times, DO NOT tie the bike down while it is on the side stand.
Also DO NOT tie down by the handle bars. This might be ok on a small, light bike, but on a big heavy bike it puts way to much stress on the handlebar mounts.
Straps are cheap (there are also cheap ones) I always double up on the front ones.
Just incase you didn't know. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 297
VA | I just got back and I can tell you that it fits grea ton a 4'X8" trailer. Had plenty of room near the back. The bags and rear hangs over, but not a big deal. I was kinda when I looked in the manual that it wasn't real clear about where to tie it off. It said to move the turn signals up the fork, and tie off over top of the bottom triple tree? Can't say I saw any turn signals, so not sure if that's a typo or not. But, I did take my ratchet tie-downs and loop them over the bottom triple tree. For anyone else that has to trailer the Vision, it's a two man job almost to tie it down. Right next to the triple tree is some brake lines, and some electrical. Not wanting to pinch anything, I had to get on top of the bike and reach down in through the handlebars to make sure I wasn't catching anything else, then feed it back down. But it worked great. I couldn't find a way to get a tie down through the rear swingarm, so I tied them off to the tip overs on the back. I figure if they can support the weight of the bike on it's side, should work for a tie down. Either way it worked and the dealer said I did it exactly right. Interesting note, I saw this when I was looking for tie down spots in the front. Underneath the bike, just in front of the forks, part of the frame, is a "loop." The dealer uses it when it's on the lift. I asked about it, and he said I could have used it, but it was probably more secure the way that I did it. Just thought I'd let ya'll know. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 235
Evergreen, CO | Glad everything worked out for you ok......now YOU are the expert in trailering a Vision (which hopefully should be a rare occurrence for all of us!!). |
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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 10
| there is a spot to hook to in the front under the headlight on the frame , its made for a tie down for each side, on the rear you hook to the tip over plates (thats probably not what they are called but I am sure you know what I mean). As far as loading by yourself, I purchased from my victory dealer a tie down that you hook to your grips first , pull them tight between the grips, then you can get off with your stand down and do each side to the trailer, this can be done by yourself, you still need the other tiedowns front and rear, you don't want the tie I on the grips to support the weight of the bike, but it works when you are by yourself |
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Iron Butt
Posts: 742
North Orange County CA | As to the proper method for mounting for tie downs -
There are threaded holes on the inside of the front tipover plates that were designed to accept large eyelets. I watched them installed on my new Steel Grey Vision (83 miles, and suffering from ignition switch failure) this morning as it was loaded onto the dealers trailer. Very nice as there are no straps rubbing on painted parts.
The back end was secured using soft loop tie downs on the rear tip overs.
The bars were also strapped (soft loops again) but only to keep the bike straight not to support any of its weight.
The gentelman that picked up my bike told me that the Vision comes with these anchors/eyelets installed to secure them to the bottom of the crates that they are shipped in; so the dealers probably have quite a few sets hanging around.
I am planning on asking for a set when I pick up my bike, so that the next time the electrical system craps out, I will have a way to keep the tow operator from trashing my paint by improperly strapping it.
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Cruiser
Posts: 141
Cumming, GA | I was told by my dealer that you should not use the eyelets that come on the bike, but the provided tie-down slots over the front wheel. I have had to trailer a couple of times and they worked great. |
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Iron Butt
Posts: 600
Linwood, MI | Tarpits99 - 2008-07-16 9:32 PM
There are threaded holes on the inside of the front tipover plates that were designed to accept large eyelets. I watched them installed on my new Steel Grey Vision (83 miles, and suffering from ignition switch failure) this morning as it was loaded onto the dealers trailer. Very nice as there are no straps rubbing on painted parts.
While it is true that those holes are there (my bike came with the eyebolts still inserted there...), according to the service manual the way Divesharc did it is the proper way to tie it down for transport. |
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Iron Butt
Posts: 725
Reno County, KS | BlueOx USA - 2008-05-02 5:11 AM
I would suggest finding a U-Haul that has the M/C trailer they rent and going there to check it out. I believe the Vision should fit with no problem.
The ONE motorcycle trailer (it's aluminium with a fold up rear ramp) U-haul rents will NOT work. Been down that road. You can't swing the ramp up with rear hanging out. An 8ft trailer will work with an open back. Being 200mi. away from my enclosed trailer, I put my Vision in the back of my Colorado 6ft box bed with the rear wheel riding on the tailgate in the middle. The rear of the bike hung out a little over a foot or so. We strapped some 2X8's together for the back wheel to ride on to keep the tailgate from getting mashed in (again). I had a buddy tell me that a full size pickup won't have that problem. Turns out he was wrong. LOL It rode fine. BTW, it is much easier to take the front fender off the bike than it is to chock the front wheel with something extravagent. It is only 6 screws and the one of the metric allen wrenches with the road kit fits. I always used the tie-down ring above the front wheel everytime I've trailored it (and I hate trailoring ANY motorcycle but...). I would NEVER use the tipovers to strap the bike on a trailer. Can you imagine how much the weight is multiplied by leverage at the bottom of the bike when you make turns with the trailer??? The owners manual shows exactly where to tie down at. The rear is supposed to be secured by the holes in the swingarm, according to the manual. I don't like this at all because it rubs the bottom of the exhaust and it forces me to ratchet backwards when the front straps are already hella-tight. Oh well...
-Will
Edited by bigwill5150 2008-07-17 5:47 AM
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Has anyone trailered on a 4'X8'?
