Anyone ever develop a spare wheel carrier?

I was riding home tonight and thinking of my next project. Has anyone ever developed or tried to develop a dual tire carrier that mounts to the back of the bike and will hold one or 2 spare wheels? If not, consider this a common law copyright. Please describe any issues you can think of with this setup, aside from out-board weight, blocking indicators and tags, etc.

I am going to draw this out over the weekend and start working on a prototype.

Jesse in Atlanta

Why?

Reasons someone would want to carry a spare wheel daily: Huh?

Reasons someone would load a spare tire or wheel on their scooter to bring home: If you had no other transportation to move such a large heavy object, perhaps, but typically you change these things if the scooter has a malfunction, in which case you wouldn't be driving it to the store to get a replacement.

Maybe if you worked for a dealership in a rural area and used it as a
delivery bike?

Maybe if you were going to the track to race your Silverwing and needed
to have it in your pit?

Good luck in your quest,
If you're serious about working on a prototype, I have two friends,
Einstein & Rosen that have a plans for a bridge for sale.

I did see one with a bicycle mounted to the side, bicycle front tire was on the other side

DBSPEVACK You are totally misunderstanding my intention (your sarcasm isn't appreciated, btw)- I like to ride long distance (I drove a 1200 mile round trip 2 summers ago, and 900 miles round trip last summer), and one of my big fears is having a blowout in a remote location. I happen to own a spare set of wheels that I bought on Ebay (so that I can always have a fresh set on hand- I go through a lot of tires). I would like to have the ability to carry these wheels with me on long rides. My idea is to develop a plate with a metal dowel attached that I can mount to my spoiler base plate that will hold both of my wheels to the back of the bike. I would add outboard signals and license plate holder which would be blocked by the wheels when mounted. I would guess the wheels weigh 40lbs together, which is considerably less than a passenger would weigh.

Jesse

But sarcasm is one of my most popular services....

Okay, okay, lets say you have a legitimate need.
I invite you to consider that it might be more practical to find a way to carry only tires rather than entire wheels with tires on them.

Perhaps two tires stacked act as a container for other gear. If for any reason you go down or the bike tips over, they act as a cushion.
This cuts the weight considerably also.

For most people (maybe not you) the most commonly overlooked maintenance item is tire pressure. You might find it of value, since you go thru so many, to invest in a tire pressure monitoring system. Doing so will improve the life of your tires considerably. Also the one benefit of using nitrogen in your tires is that tire pressure does not vary much depending on tire temperature.
You might also consider having a special set of tires just for long distance trips. This way you can tag how many miles are on them at the end of each trip to anticipate their suitability for the next trip.

Also you might find it more practical to consider preventative maintenance such as various semifluidic additives that you add when installing a tire to automatically seal tire leaks.

If you have a major blowout or someone slashes your tires and requires tire replacement there would be an extreme expense to having a tire sent overnight to a shop if you didn't have a spare with you and the local tire shop didn't have one in stock, I can understand you not wanting the expense.
Another alternative includes prepping your spare tires for shipping and leaving them with a buddy, so you just give him the address and he ships it to you if you need it. You get your preferred tire at only the cost of shipping, and only if you need it.

Of course a major blowout often results in ending the trip, and anything not secured against impact level forces becomes a missile anyway.
And any deliberate slashing would likely include your spares.

The chances of a blowout are not high, and the extra effort necessary to take spares vs. the convenience of not having to deal with them unless necessary is something for you to consider. I think your idea is unique in the Silverwing world, but comparatively impractical.

Ultimately if you are insistent on a build, then my recommendation is to find a way to secure a round container of some sort around which the tires can be securely placed.

Good Luck.
Dan

Dan

If I have complete wheels/tires and bring my battery powered impact gun, 27mm 1/2" drive socket and my full set of metric 3/8" drive sockets and allen key sockets I would be covered to do a field swap anywhere for no added cost/hassle. I might even bring my 1/2" torque wrench for the complete job. If I just brought the tires I would still have to get the bike towed or do the job myself with a handheld bead breaker and tire spoons (done once and it was a nightmare). In that case I would still need to remove the wheels- does my solution really sound so silly?

I do use Ride-on tire sealant and have been investigating a TPMS. One brand I was investigating- Orange, went out of business a few months ago so they're out of the running. I would go with the in-tire sensor over the tire cap which have been known to lose air.
My tire wear has to do with mileage- I often drive 500 highway miles per week commuting and am up to 36000 miles on my '03.

The resulting product might be ugly, but as we said in my previous life as an automotive accessory development engineer- don't let good taste get in the way of selling accessories.

Jesse

How about a DIY Trials-type sidecar...maybe with a Thule type cargo case. Still leaves room for a stack of wheels. Low CG too

toolboxjesse wrote:

Does my solution really sound so silly?

I do use Ride-on tire sealant and have been investigating a TPMS. One brand I was investigating- Orange, went out of business a few months ago so they're out of the running. I would go with the in-tire sensor over the tire cap which have been known to lose air.
My tire wear has to do with mileage- I often drive 500 highway miles per week commuting and am up to 36000 miles on my '03.

The resulting product might be ugly, but as we said in my previous life as an automotive accessory development engineer- don't let good taste get in the way of selling accessories.

Jesse

Jesse,

What you're doing isn't silly.
I guess its a matter of perspective.
Its nice to be able to do your own repairs.
Its just don't think the problem is frequent enough to warrant the hassle of carrying around the necessary items.
Even John Grinsel (million mile John) doesn't carry extra wheels.
I've been around Silverwings since 2003.
I've seen every mod. Hell, I invented half of them (or so it feels like).
Never have I heard of a Silverwing owner that carried is own wheels, or even tires.

We all make judgment calls when it comes to risk, and how much time, effort, and convenience we are willing to give up to avoid risk. Your judgment and mine are dissimilar, based in large part upon our different backgrounds.


I've had good luck with the products from Kisantech,
although I have not used the TPMS particularly.
https://www.kisantech.com/index.php?cat_id=6

Dan

In 200,000 miles of road trips and local riding on three Goldwings I never had a tire problem. My brother got a flat in his BMW's rear tire but we just plugged it and re-inflated it with the built in compressor on my GW. I carry a tire plug set and small 12V compressor in my SW. Major tire damage is pretty rare. If I were traveling the Alcan Highway again or some other road in sparsley inhabited country it might make sense to carry a spare. I'd just carry the tire sans wheel and the tools necessary to put it on. A torque wrench I wouldn't carry, it's really unnecessary. Once you've removed and replaced a wheel with a torque wrench it's not hard to get close enough without the torque wrench. I carry the minimum in tools necessary to make necessary repairs not enough for major work. Worse came to worse I'd ship the bike home and transport myself by air, train or bus. If you really want to carry all that stuff consider a trailer. A covered trailer offers security, you can lock your stuff up.

I went to a Helix rally in Germany in the late 1990's where one the riders carried front and rear spare wheels and tyres on his Helix. They were fixed on either side of his scooter at the front end mounted quite high.

First get some real riding experience----yes spare wheel tire might be nice....scooters used to feature this and interchangeable wheels, BMW sidecar, Harley had wheels that were interchangable and spare on sidecar.

With over 1.5 million two wheel miles...North Cap to southern Italy in Europe/Alaska to Central America/49 states/Asia I have always gotten back.

I carry hand pump/tools to remove wheels/repair kit, etc. I enjoyed my 2 stroke Vespas with spare tires.

Best way to get there and back with least worries=start with fresh set of tires/new Japanese made bike. Seldom have I walked. Do own work.

I did figure out way to carry spare rear tire for Helix for planned trip to Alaska----but took my 750 Honda NightHawk instead with fresh set of iron tuff Kendas installed in Seattle. Trip, no tire trouble.

With SilverWing (and others, modern) nice to have spare exhaust packing/gasket along. Think rear wheel removal.

Sounds like a project to get your teeth into.

For me, having decent tyres and puncture sealant would be my limit. As I have said before, tyres with 'stuff' in em, a credit card and breakdown cover are all I need!!!!!

Such is my attitude towards riding!

How much stuff do we carry thinking it's essential and never actually use out on the road. Extra oil, bulb kit, extra tools, first aid kits, rolls of electrical and gaffer tape, lengths of wire, zip or cable ties, fuses, puncture repair kits, tyre pumps, tyre levers, hi-vis vests, torch, WD40, etc. I've returned home from many a tour without doing anything except check the oil level or tyre pressures, and you wouldn't go off for a long trip without plenty of tread on the tyres would you.

After losing two Airflow upper screens out on the road I could easily argue the case I should always ride with a spare, but I don't.

Puncture repair kit and a tyre pump is all you should need to carry. Carrying two full wheels and tyres is slightly over the top IMHO. Where you are thinking of mounting them may give rise to stability issues.


Would you need spare tyres in a wormhole?


Cheers,

Jesse,

You've had a lot of people weigh in on this, several with considerably more experience than you have had.
I believe the consensus is in.

As an exercise in problem solving, its a great idea,

But short of having a tardis for underseat storage you are way past the point of diminishing returns in terms of over preparation for the worst.


Hmmmm....I wonder if anyone has ever tried to turn a trike into a dually.

Good Luck,

Dan

Jesse,
If you try and cater for every eventuality then you'll have a large van following behind you loaded up with a spare everything and every tool you need to do any work. But what happens when you are carrying one spare of every part and the spare you fitted breaks? - You are cream crackered. Think of all that expensive petrol you have wasted lugging all that crap around that you didn't need.

Cheers,

Jesse I agree with most of the above. I understand your desire to make a "new" accessory but personally I would not use this UNLESS I was taking a ALCAN highway trip or doing a VERY long Adventure trip. I too am concerned about the stability as to weight being carried too far back. The compressor and plug kit mentioned would be a good option. I took a solitary trip with my SWing of nearly 2000 miles this summer and had NO problems, tires or other wise.

My two cents is purchase a Plus membership to the Automobile Club as I did, so if towing is necessary THEY will pay to haul you to nearest dealer.

That said if you do devise this system please post pictures? Good luck!

It's always a conundrum, if you carry a spare tire, spare CVT belt, spare head light bulbs, you just gotta know it will be the brake master cylinder that will fail. That's the real problem with carrying a lot of spare parts.

A cell phone and a credit card can solve most problems while traveling. Honda dealers are close to most cities around the world. Some shippers are very quick, really faster then the dealers in delivering parts. I have serviced my Silver Wing in 5 states, Generally routine maintenance. I have hauled it only once when a bearing failed. In 36,000 miles.
Your idea reminds me of the Vespa and Lambretta tire with wheel spare.
An idea for location in my mind without measurement would be behind your feet and legs on the running boards.
I carry tools, small air compressor, tire patch kit, a small battery charger, credit card and cell phone. I really like my ram mount when traveling and GPS. It will lead me to Honda.Good luck with your ideas.
This is how I look when traveling

Jesse

If you are chafing at the bit to develop an "accessory", why not give some thought to coming up with a good quality MSR Bottle holder --either a single holder or a double bottle holder. Maybe something which could be mounted under the tail wing or possibly attached to the grab rails.

Touratech's aluminum bottle holder mounts are a top quality design with a budget busting price to boot. There's no reason that a equally decent design couldn't be produced at half the price.

Sure the John Deer Tool Tube will handle a single MSR Bottle but, to me, it's just too clunky.

Tim

I have heard of people using welding rod tubes for tools and MSR container storage.

The following assumes that plugging the hole, adding sealent, starting with good tires, etc., etc. is not enough and some type of tire failure occurs.

Changing a tire on the SWing could be done by nearly any mechanic - either at their shop (preferably by getting a tow) or at some protected spot not to far from your breakdown point ASSUMING that you can direct the mechanic on how to get the wheel off AND you have a NEW tire. In California it seems as if no one carries SWing size tires - they need to be special ordered - takes about 2 days to get them - guess you could pay a premium and get them the next day in a major metropolitan area - but could be 3 days in some remote location. When I mount a set of Pirelli Diablo tires, I order a set for storage in my garage. My typical MAXIMUM range from home does not exceed 500 miles - so my worse case scenario for tire replacement is either same day or next day, as I can have the spare tires driven to me by a family member. No need for me to carry any tires/wheels.

My rear tire wears out before 8,000 miles - and not much tread left at 5,000 miles. For me, on any trip over 4,000 miles, it would be nice to carry a rear tire (my front tire can go longer than any trip I could do) along for the ride which I would use as soon as my tire used up most of my tread - or alternatively (preferably) have a tire drop arranged and just have the tire changed regardless of tire condition at the 4-5,000 mark.

In summary, for long trips - if I ever took one - I would be interested in a rear tire carrier.