About the padlocks. They're only to stop the snatch thief. They can be defeated with a screwdriver. But if it's forced, the way the latch is likely to break will leave the latch still functioning. On the fancy latches, if you break them with a screwdriver, can they still be used to close the lids?
just like locks on "flight cases" for musical instruments or DJ gear cool locking mechanism, actually
I had an opportunity to ride Wumpa for a short stint through the park last weekend. LOVE that rig. Comfortable, upright, beautiful. Regarding those latches; I could not get them to stay put on my 950. I ended up having to use straps across the lids to keep them down.
I had trouble with the original Happy Trail latches. They would stay in the latched position but the 'hooks' or 'catches' would disconnect from each other and the lids would bounce open. There was plenty of pressure against them from the rubber seal. This would only happen when I would ride the 950 hard off tarmac. I had other issues too that caused me to abandon them.
OK, thanks. Nice to know those butterfly latches are available but not sure they would've helped the situation on your 950. For right now, my lids have stayed shut, so I got no reason to change out those latches. On the other hand, I haven't put them through any rough use yet.
The latches are installed on my F800GS. It has seen every kind of bumpy riding there is. The last thing I'm worried about on a rocky trail is whether the latches I installed are going to fail. One man's opinion. ;-)
Got talking with Jay the other day and found out that DMC is now buying their shocks (custom-made by Progressive Suspension to DMC spec's) with a heavier spring for the new "DX" sidecars.. The spring on my shock is a 140/200. The new spring is a 200/350. Now, these are not expensive shocks by anyone's measure, but a higher spring rate was appealing and the price was right. So I bought one yesterday. While I was at it, I sourced some new bronze sleeve bushings for the shock mount bolts to make for less slop. Now the car sag is a bit higher so's I got to adjust the lean out . . . again. Headed to the Hells Canyon Rally next week where I hope to thrash the hell out of it and see what it, or I, am able to do in terms of dirt challenges. I'm feeling more competent every day which is prolly a dangerous thing! I know we're not supposed to flog Flea Market stuff in the rest of the forum so I won't mention if I'm selling with my old shock that has about 5000-6000 miles on it to somebody working on a low-cost project.
Hey, Mike-- Thanks! You're the first of my X buddies to come on over to this thread and have a look at the new rig. Sadly, this season the poor old X is gathering dust in the garage while I concentrate on improving my novice sidecarist skills. I promise to get the X out on the road soon!
I've got the sidecar bug, but know nothing. I'd like one for riding in snow and taking the kids/dog/wife/tools etc. for a ride. There is a Ural dealer about 12 miles from me, but I'm concerned about reliability issues. Have you heard of anyone making a different bike/hack 2wd? ...and thanks again for your attention to detail and taking the time to post about it.
Not a lot of options out there, but plenty of opinions. Try these threads-- June 2009 Dec 2007 Jan 2008 March 2010 May 2010 Oct 2009 I haven't tried my rig in snow, but with a car tire on the back and a set of snow chains (yes, I have a set, and I carry them on the rig) I think I could go most anywhere that a 2WD Ural could go carrying the same load. My chains take about 5 minutes to put on and 30 seconds to take off.
The shop guys replaced the weak spring with the heavier one when I got back from Alaska. It was a good improvement. But, I can tell you that the stock shock is good for ~16k miles before they blow.
Gonna go dig some trenches in the sand there, Flatlander? Here they are. Laclede Alpine Premier. I chose them because of how easy they are to get on and off once you practice with them in the garage a few times.
LOL... well, i just want to have a set in my sidecar trunk... they'll be a GREAT CONVERSATION PIECE that i DO PROMISE to use one day soon thanks for the link