Max Metal Custom Motorcycles

You have acquired your new motorcycle.  You have cleaned and polished and maybe added new pegs, handlebars, and other items to make this bike uniquely yours. 

Then the time comes when you need to load it on a trailer or in a pickup.  You go to Discount-Mart and buy the discounted tie-down straps because they are cheap.  You load your bike, strap it down and away you go. 

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As a motorcycle shop owner, there have been a number of opportunities to help stand a customer’s motorcycle back up up before it can be unloaded.  That is a sick feeling.  The owner is usually making unsightly comments about the choice of cheap straps or rope he used.  I don’t care if it is a stock production motorcycle or a full custom with a mega-buck paint job. It’s sickening to see the motorcycle laying on its side. I hate the disappointment in the owners face.  The bike seems to never be the same after that.  It has been damaged and violated.  That scrub or dent is a painful reminder. 

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The function of tie-down straps.

The function of a tie-down strap is simple.  Securely support the motorcycle in an upright position without scratching the paint and chrome, or denting the sheet metal.  Meanwhile, the motorcycle is jerking around on a jolting trailer which is hitting pavement joints and pot holes and going down the road at 70 MPH.  That is what the tie-down strap is supposed to do.

I wish I could say I’ve never dropped a cycle in a trailer.  I did once, a long time ago.  It was a used Honda 360 I had just bought.  I did several things wrong.  I used rope.  The trailer had a slick floor and I didn’t tie the the wheel to keep it from sliding.  And that brings up a question.    

Why not rope? 

Rope is a last ditch choice to be used only when no other option is available.  Ropes stretch excessively letting the motorcycle move.  The knots can be difficult to untie.  Re-tightening a rope during a long trip is clumsy because of having to untie and then retying the knots.  The security is only as good as the person’s ability to tie knots.  Unbuffered rope rubs paint and chrome.  It is difficult to keep the motorcycle controlled, so it doesn’t fall over during a single handed tie-down or unloading.  This the reason for using tie-down straps and not rope. 

Considerations when choosing Tie-Down straps.

Length

Lengths are available from 4′ to 12′.  Make sure the length is enough to reach the trailer tie points. 

Load limit

The Discount-Mart straps generally have a 300-600 pound load limit.  Most tie-down straps at the Discount-Mart are actually cargo straps made to secure bulk loads on pickups and trailers.  Straps designed for motorcycles are generally 1000 pound or more working strength.  A 1200-2600 pound limit is common.  More is better.

Buckle strap or ratchet strap

The primary straps holding the motorcycle in position are the two straps fastened to the front of the bike.  The fastening location is commonly the triple-tree or handlebars.  I prefer the triple-tree location.  It is generally recommended that ratchet straps be used for this purpose.  Ratchets are less likely to slip.  After mastering the use of the ratchets, tie down becomes fairly simple.  It is easy to cinch the bike into place.  It is easy to retighten on a long trip.

Many people use buckle straps for the primary support.  This is where trouble comes when using cheap straps.  Aside from low working strength, the fabric material in the cheap straps is usually hard and the serrations in the buckle have difficulty getting a bite, so the strap slips and the bike falls.  The buckle straps designed for motorcycles are higher strength.  A softer and thicker strap material is used which is easier for the buckle to grab.  There is less chance of the buckle slipping. 

Generally, buckle straps are used when securing the front tire to keep it from slipping out from under the bike and when tying the rear of the bike to keep it from walking side to side.

Metal hook type

Most straps use  “J” hooks which are coated with a rubbery material.  If you prefer hooking to the handlebar with the hook, not all hooks are large enough to fit the inch handle bar diameter.  Make sure the hook is large enough.

Some straps use one coated “J” hook and one caribiner style hook for the trailer side which has a “snap-flip”.  This is used to keep the hook in place even if the strap gets slack.  It is also helpful by keeping the hook fastened when loading a cycle by yourself. 

“Soft Hook”

This is a feature I really like.  The “soft hook” is actually an additional length of strap material with a loop that is added to one end of the tie-down.  The “soft hook” is threaded through the desired fastening location on the cylce.  The loop on the “soft hook” is slipped over the “J” hook and the strap is then pulled tight.  Many times, a “soft hook” can be used to get a good fastening location when a metal hook will not fit.  Only fabric is touching the bike, not coated metal.  On some bikes, this is the only way to easily keep the hook from making contact with paint and sheet metal parts and causing damage.  For further protection, the metal hook is held away from the bike.  The soft hook can be used with a fleece sleeve to give more paint and chrome protection.

Fleece sleeve

Generally, the fleece sleeve is a natural or synthetic wool material.  It is slipped over the “soft hook” or a tie strap and used to buffer paint and chrome at the tie down point.  It adds protection in addition to the fabric of the “soft hooks” or tie straps.

Tie Straps

The tie strap is a fabric loop used as an alternate to the “soft hook”.  It is a fabric strap about 18-24″ long with a loop sewn on both ends.  It is used similarly to the “soft hook”.  It can be used with, and many times is included with, the fleece sleeve.   

 

Conclusion

My thought is…. I paid good money for my bike,  I’ll pay for good straps.

Safe trailering to ya.  Keep the shiny side up.

These are links to our web store MotorcycleStuffWarehouse.com.  These links feature the products mentioned in the article. Feel free to look round the store. This is just a sample.
Tie-Down Straps 
Soft-Hook
Tie Straps
Ratchet with sheepskin sleeve
Caribiner style hook ratchet
Caribiner style hook buckle