Front Tie Down Location

I've never had a reason to move our SilverWings on a trailer or in a truck. But, recently I helped a friend who had trailered his and had a sticking throttle after he got the bike home. He had looped his soft hand straps over the grips and the resulting pulling action had caused the throttle grip to slide outboard. This caused the throttle to stick while open and the throttle would not close on its own.

I believe that a set of Canyon Dancers http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/5/18/179/13223/ITEM/Canyon-Dancer-Bar-Harness-II.aspx would have prevented the slip of the throttle grip. But, I've also heard of some handle bars being bent as a result of the tension used to hold the bike securely. There is really no reason to use this much force, but it happens. The bike should have some rebound left in the front suspension, it should not be bottomed out.

The best location to tie down in my opinion is the large piece of cast metal that serves as the fork tube clamp (figure 1).



See the soft hands looped around the structure in figure 2. Take care not to trap the brake lines inside the loop.



And last a close up of one of the loops.

jdeereanton wrote:

See the soft hands looped around the structure in figure 2. Take care not to trap the brake lines inside the loop.

I cannot believe how many times I have heard that someone bent their handlebars on the SWing.

Excellent advise and great pictures

One more thing, some people try to use the thin loop near the bottom of the panel in the back to strap the SWing down. Do not use the think loop it was designed solely for position in the original shipping crate. I have seen the thin loop break from attaching the soft straps to it. Attach the straps to the aluminum wing passenger hand grab which is more than strong enough.

I carry five soft straps with 4,500 lbs strength tightly rapped and held together with zip-ties in the left glove compartment stacked all the way on the very bottom. The five straps for

- 2 Front fastening in the exact location you have shown
- 2 Rear fastening for rear aluminum wing rail
- 1 To wrap on the front or rear wheel to prevent forward/backward movement

If I ever need to be towed, then I will use these soft-ties to fasten to the SWing. They can then attach their metal hooks to soft-tie loops.

When I initially composed this I did not recall that my bike had been on a trailer. Actually it was a Roll On-Roll Off transport.



When the ro-ro operator arrived he had a box full of these magical little double looped web straps. The length of the straps meant that there was a good bit of "tail" left over and that tail is what you see wrapped around the hand grips.

His solution for the rear was even simpler. The device at the front made this particular rear tie-down strategy possible.

jdeereanton wrote:

When I initially composed this I did not recall that my bike had been on a trailer. Actually it was a Roll On-Roll Off transport.

After waiting for hours When my tow truck showed up, I asked if he had any soft tie-downs or any special gear for a motorcycle .. .he said no. He said he never had any problems with "motorcycles" before. I then said so you think you are going to fasten the SWing down with metal chain and ratchet down until it does move ... his answer was YUP. He was also planning on fastening at the handlebar ... which I knew would bend them.

I refused his service.

Which is why I carry my own now ... now I no longer depending on the towing service.

The metal chain may be fine for "motorcycles" but not one with a lot of tupperware.

And that's why I called the folks at the Honda Riders Club of America and asked them to recommend a tow service that was familiar with motorcycles.

Looking at the spot where you have your straps and wondering if it would work to hook into the hole in the center, I have straps but they have hooks which would catch in the center hole,
Craig

That hole which you can see in the center is not accessible from the top as it is filled with - steering stem (see the attached image captured from the parts manual).

Thanks, I thought that there was a rectangular hole in front but on closer examination I see it is a blind hole. looks like a trip to Tractor supply or Harbor Freight is in order to get the proper straps. Don't need them right but like to be prepared in advance.
Thanks
Craig

"Oldie" but "goodie" information on attaching tow straps. Hope this helps. It's got pictures.

That's where I attached the straps on the SW as well. The only difference is I use 'soft straps' that I made out of Sampson Yacht Braid. Mainly because I had some and know how to bend an eye in double braid rope from my years sailing. That's an excellent tie down point on the front of the bike, that's a very solid point on the forks and tying down to that point will keep the fork straight ahead as well as pulling the bike down on its springs a bit.
When loading bikes on a trailer or truck I park the bike with the front wheel against the front wall of the truck bed or trailer with the side stand down. I attach the front and rear tie downs to the left side of the bike first, just snug. Then attach the right side straps and pull the bike upright off the stand with the right side straps. This way it's easy to do it without help and the bike ends up vertical with just about the right amount of suspension compression.

Most tow truck drivers really don't know all that much about securing a bike. Also the truck with such a light load 500lbs instead of 4000lbs will ride hard. I've seen one bike with a badly bent side stand because the driver tied it down while the bike was on the side stand. I hate to think what would have been damaged had the bike been on the center stand. Especially if it had come off the center stand while on the truck. If you have to call a wrecker be sure you watch carefully what the driver does. I'd also take a picture of the bike prior to the truck getting underway in case you have damage.