Outfit on a harley

chopper

chopper

Club Member
just chucking thoughts about in my head at the moment, but have an idea to get a sidecar for my softail (04) so that my daughter (3 years old) who adores bikes can perhaps get it to them a bit earlier, whats the cost and availability like of these things? also as the majority of the time it wouldnt be attached are these things easily removable/mountable? and were would one go about finding one?

all help appreciated

Ta
Neil
 
Re: Outfit on a harley

Hi Neil, drop chaos a pm, he used to have a chair on his softy. I'm sure he will tell you some scary stories.:)
 
Re: Outfit on a harley

Have you ever riding on or in an outfit?

My good friend had an outfit as his family transport for years, he made riding it look easy, we however didn't :eek: It has to go down as one of the most technical driving/riding experiences i have ever had the misfortune to experience. From memory (so don't quote me) when you change up the outfit pulled to the right, when you braked or throttled back it pulled left. It took several miles to get used to the way she handled, it certainly wasn't my cup of tea...

He has since passed his car test and now rides solo and the watsonian chair went to another "victim". I would recommend experiencing one, before spending hours tracking one down and then potentially wasting a couple of grand only to find you have a similiar oppinion to me :smile:
 
Re: Outfit on a harley

i used to have a double adult on my bike,20 odd years ago when kids were little i loved it you can spin in circles even lift the chair up :9399D3F58B324EE1B68:9399D3F58B324EE1B68 on corners ,when empty of course we had great times ,but as others have said it does take a while ,and strong arms as there is a lot of pulling and pushing on the bars as they are totaly different to steer compared to a bike but great fun your daughter will love it:wink :try one first before you buy:439:
 
Re: Outfit on a harley

Like they say above you will either love it or hate it.

Make sure whatever you do that the sidecar is set up correctly as this will add or subtract to your experience.

Alot of people have been put off outfits through incorrect or bad fitting and no tuition on how to ride one successfully.

We have one on a Dyna and toured Poland and took it to Faaker See (together with daughter and trailer) with no problems.

Try going to the experts like Watsonian if you do not personally know anyone who can fit one properly. The Sidecar club is also a source of info and help.

One thing to remember.....

As soon as you buy a sidecar you will be inundated with offers of others that are both better and cheaper than the one you have just purchased....

Try one, you might just come to love it. Wish I'd never sold mine.:redface:
 
Re: Outfit on a harley

Hi, I've got a Watsonian Monaco (single seat) fitted to my FLHS (Electra Glide), I had never ridden an outfit before, But because I have a bad leg I didn't want to stop riding my Glide,
(I remember as a kid that my dad used to have outfits) when it came to the point where I thought I'd not be able to ride solo anymore, I thought I'd give one a go rather than going to the expense of triking the bike, The first time out on it was quite scary (I put a bag of sand in to keep the chair down) it took some getting used to, But I rode it very slowly down to my local train station (about a mile) with my other half following and because it was a sunday there was nothing on the large car park, So I took out the sand and my other half (Brew) showed me what he wanted me to do, I went round in circles (both ways) for a while and then started going a little faster and getting the chair up in the air so that if it ever happened while out on the road I didn't panic, It also gave me a lot of confidence and got me used to the strange handling, When riding back home I had a grin from ear to ear and was really chuffed with myself that I'd managed to conquer it, I don't get bad handling (we've fitted a steering damper) with it (as other people have mentioned it's how it's set up) Me and Brew have fitted my sidecar ourselves and it has never given us any problems, I have got some information on setting one up if this would be of any use to you, If you pm me with your email address I can send it to you or depending where abouts you live I'm sure Brew wouldn't mind helping you fit one if that's the way you decide to go, I'm also in the Federation of Sidecar Clubs so I get a club mag which sometimes as sidecars for sale, Then there is also ebay I have seen some sell cheap on there.
I love riding the outfit, I've been to a lot of rallies on it and it's now even painted to match the bike, I won't be getting rid of it until I'm to old lol to ride and I hope that won't be for many moons yet, Anyway if there's anything that you need help with or any information we could help you with, Please don't hesitate to contact me and I'll do my best to answer anything that I can, Regards,
Minnie.
(the biker minx).:D
P.S Oh! and if you hadn't noticed by now I'm also FEMALE and yes you really do need very strong arms hee hee hee.
 
Re: Outfit on a harley

Well said and beuitifully put biker minx bet you got arms like arnie:439:
 
Re: Outfit on a harley

look on the web , M,P C, ural dealers . they do a training course for combinations , on and off road . try before you buy . I personaly found sidecars a painfull experiance .
 
Re: Outfit on a harley

I had a BSA B33 with a sidecar years ago, it was loads of fun once I got the hang of it. It's very technical and has to be learned

However this was in the days when Brit bikes were cheap and disposable... it spent a lot of time parked in the drive because I didn't want to get stuck in traffic in the rain. You get the disadvantages of driving plus the disadvantages of riding too.

chain consumption was very high, also tyres. Plus, nobody wanted to ride in it.... its plain uncomfortable, cold and cramped. So, its was lots of fun but I've never felt any serious urge to have another one
 
Re: Outfit on a harley

dont do it it had my h-d sidecared and it was horrible they just wont go were you wont them to go get a trike they are much more safer ...... ps i do have a sidecar for sale for ?350 with full hd fittings if you are anyone else would like to but it ride free pervypaul
 
Re: Outfit on a harley

one thing about sidecars is that there is definitely a relationship between the relative weights of the bike and chair. A 650cc BSA weighing under 400lb with a 200lb Garrard with a 19" wheel and trailing link suspension on the side is one thing, a 700lb ElectraGlide with one of those little fibreglass Watsonians with a 10" trailer wheel is rather a different matter.
 
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