Loading a motorcycle into the rear of an expedition truck
 

Hi

I am in the planning stages of an expedition camper.

I originally planned to have a platform on the rear of the vehicle ( MB 1017 ) that would hold the spare tyres and a motorcycle ( Transalp style )

I am now thinking that it would be alot more secure if these were actually housed within the rear of the box cabin and were loaded either via a large rear locker opening or via a side locker opening.

My problem is working out how to get a 160 KG motorcycle into the rear of the cabin which will be 1.5 meters off the ground.

I am thinking of at crane sytems or long ramps.

I am sure that this is a problem that has been discussed before .

If anyone has any solutions, especially with diagrams or pictures i would be very grateful and it might point me in the right direction

Many thanks

Neil UK

bike hitch
 

Hi Neil

Here in Australia some of the "Grey Nomads" ( retired farts) use a hitch system on the back of their campers for their motor bikes. Most are supplied by a company called Hitchmate. Maybe you have something similar in the UK. Have a look at their website, you may get some ideas.

Cheers
Marty

HitchMate Cargo Carriers, Motorcycle Carriers
Blue Ox Carriers

Thanks

We have similar product here.

I am hoping to conceal the bike entirely within the cabin of the truck, I just cant work out the best way of lifting it in there

Neil

Can you get a smaller/lighter bike you could carry?

You can usually enlist the help of locals wherever you are to help with lifting for a small price...

Many hands make light work.

Van Crane
 

You see lots of small trucks (tyre depot, road maintenance etc) with this type of thing fitted. Not necessarily electric so ignore the silly price. I guess it would be pretty easy to fabricate a copy with a manual winch as well.
Lightweight Vehicle Mounted Crane

Thanks for the links and advice.

I can't really go smaller with the bike as it needs to carry two of us and we are not 20 anymore.

I like the look of the crane arm and think that this is the route I will go. I probably would have a hand winch instead of the electric one.

Thanks

Neil

Westfalia have a range of electric and hand cranked winches.


Search at Westfalia Mail Order UK

Good luck

38

What about a taillift from a commercial - depends if you've got the available weight for it but you could probabily shorten it

Just a thought as regards a crane, wind up or electric. You say you are not now going to drop it on the load bed but have it inside somewhere.
If you have a crane, will it swing to inside as well?
It's not very helpful if you can lift the bike, but then it's left swinging up in the air and you can't roll it inside.
If you see what I mean.

winch
 

I have one of these for lifting my spare wheel, cheap and cheerful.

Superwinch LT2000 12v DC Winch 907kg Pull - Machine Mart

Graeme

could you not just use a beam that slides out with a lifting winch on it, lift bike to desired height then slide beam back inside, much like the things you get for removing engines from cars. You could always make a baseplate with a bike stand, roll bike onto that secure then lift and slide in, to make it more stable.

All great ideas

The bike will end up transverse in therear of the truck, I think the winch / crane method needs to be explored more

thanks for all the advice

Neil

Hi Neil, this was discussed here about a year ago.

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...-vehicle-39971

Chris S

horse trailer
 

How does one get a 500kg horse into a trailer truck?? Right let it walk up a ramp.

One could think of the same for a bike. 1.5 meter is not that high and I assume the truck living unit will be some 2 meters high which gives you a 2 meter ramp length already. If you can think of extending the 2 meter by using a double hinge with a ground support in the middle, giving you a 4 meter ramp, then you will have a moderate angel (22 degr) and sufficient width to drive the bike in (approx 0.8 meter; the width of storage area is dictated by the width of handle bars) and out backwards with brakes engaged. Or, if you want to go really crazy, have the same set up on the other side too so you can drive one side and out on the other side.

You will need some solid gas dampers on the door and some anti slip surface, like the horse trailer. Actual seen a setup like this where the bike was stored outside between cabin and living unit. The ramp was a loose steel ladder. No need for complex constructions.
cheers,
Noel

Saw this at Bad Kissingen last year..

Might be worth looking at the Unicat website for some ideas. Most of their trucks I've seen on the road have a bike in the back. They also made a truck that fits a Smart car in the back!

Thanks for all the advice and pointers , loads to take in

many thanks

Neil

Hi

a guy here in Agonda had a a MAN truck with a simple electric winch on a rail/ grirder. The girder somehow extends out from the back (inside of the truck) pushes the bike out then lowers it to the ground. Really easy and simple to use. Will get his email address to you so you can get in touch.

all the best Mark

I'm really interested in seeing more images of similar ideas / systems. I'd really like to get a bike mounted on the back of my mog, but want to do it high (to stop folks messing with it), and still easy / safe to get it up and down from there.

One of my buddies is suggesting a truck lift (like you'd see on the back of a delivery truck) and therefore mounted onto the chassis instead of the body (my camper body is made from 50mm box section covered, so has a steel frame I can work from). Other ideas involve mounting to the camper body.

I'd love to hear from someone who's dont this, and then used it on a long trip with bad roads....

Merv

I have just been to the Allrad show in Bad Kissingen Germany.

I must have seen dozens of systems for lifting a bike into a truck.

My conclusion is that anything hydraulic would usually involve lots of weight so I think I will be opting for the light weight crane arm that lifts the bike off the ground and swings it onto either a platform or into the rear or into the truck..

I would even go as far as suggesting that a hand winch would be best in case you have total power loss ie the batteries are flat. With a hand winch at least you can still get the bike off whereas an electrical or hydraulic system requires electrical power.

Having seen all the trucks at the show and all the complicated sytems I can't help but ask myself, what happens if it goes wrong in middle of nowhere..

My conclusion with this and other problems is keep it simple.

Hand winch and crane arm, how simple is that

Hope this helps

Neil

Totally agree Neil. When everything goes wrong is when you probably need most the bike, so better if you keep it simple and have it easily!

I don't think there's any need for hydraulics or electrics.

I have lifted up my Dr Zed with a couple of dinghy blocks. One double and a single rigged right gives you a 3:1 ratio and that was just about OK.

I’m sure if you made a simple swing-out arm you would manage it with some string and wheels.

Maybe take a look at how tenders are lifted on the back of boats, that’d give you some ideas. Then you just need something a bit like a Dave Cooper trials bike rack to sit the bike on, a few straps and you’re away.

Hi Neil,

I don't know whether the topic is still current (only saw it now), but I can tell you my solution works perfect. A 50 eur electric winch does the job even if the engine is not running. You can see the picture of it here. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
Cheers,
Tilen