What's the possibility of mounting up a side car to my F3-T .. Anyone ever done it?

[fatenhappy]

Just mulling this over a little, & a couple of grey cells collided & went into auto gibber..... but maybe this might help your cogitation just a little. I've seen an RT down this way that had the entire LH Pannier removed basically cut off from the outside edge of the Pillion's LH handgrip assy, & a wheelchair rack affixed in place of that pannier.... and I reckon I've seen a pic of a similar RT that BRP had modified to install a motorised wheelchair lifter for a disabled Veteran. Bearing that in mind, I don't believe the F3-T's are really all that much different wrt their built in panniers, so maybe if you looked into taking the LH Pannier off in much the same way.... that should let you get the outfit tucked in closer to the thrust centreline by about 100-150mms or so, maybe even more, and thereby significantly reduce the drag & steering problems that fitting a chair would normally add. :dontknow: Just a thought at his stage, but still!

While I was thinking along those lines, pondering on the issues it could raise up front with steering etc, I thought that maybe if you use the rear-most front suspension frame mounting points (Upper? Lower? Both??) to secure a trailing link projecting out & back in order to locate the front end of your proposed outfits outrigger wheel, so you should be able to allow for enough 'adjustments' in the outrigger's wheel alignment (toe in/out etc) to help fix any tracking or steering issues. I alreadh discovered that it wasn't all that hard to 'convert' the OE frame end front suspension mounting points in order to make the front end a whole lot more 'fine-tunable' (snail screws & eccentric washers might be old hat, but hey, they work!) so I don't think the tracking & wheel alignment changes you'd need to sort would be too hard to overcome. Heck, make the outfits' outer skin or overall shape similar to just the LH half of the shape you've already drawn, tuck it right in close to where the LH pannier is (or was, if you remove it!) & you could very nearly slot most of the extra bulk in effectively behind the LH front wheel, with the outrigger wheel being the widest point of the whole lot but angled & suspended so that it doesn't add any significant drag or any significant tendency to 'fly' on hard LH turns.... it might add a little to your 'tightest turning circle' that way tho, but the extra inboard weight could make for 'rocket sled on rails' turns, & if you tie the chair suspension into the main bike's suspension with a supersized BajaRon Bar to transfer suspension compression, you might even get the same impact turning right too!! Get it right & there'd be no way you'd ever lift the inside front wheel again, whichever way you turn!! :2thumbs:

This could be verrrry innnnterrresting, and a whole lotta fun too!! :yes: hyea: :clap: But could we raise it 150mm & stick on a set of knobbly muddies or off road tires to get it out & hit the fire tracks?? :shocked:

Believe it or not Peter, I have spent a lot and I mean a lot of today addressing exactly these same issues ...

Re; removing that left hand saddle bag ... I have been going thru the Qld Road laws with a fine tooth comb and the only hi-cup I have now come across is total width .. which they designate as 1860mm in total.

So back to the Spyder drawing board with a fine tooth comb - (knowing in the back of my mind the total standard width of the Spyder is already 1497mm (1500mm) ... So that gives me now a total of just 360mm more to the new limit point past the current extremity.

So I began by measuring from the outside of the left hand side of the machine's stabilizing bar (as seen when riding - which is the further most projecting point sticking out from that side of the bike - beside the foot pegs of course) to a point parallel and equal to the outside of the left forward wheel mudguard/fender ..... which is 550mm

I know I can only go out another 360mm so that is 910mm maximum from the outer most point of the side of the bike to the new total extremity of 1860mm.

I now measured the existing stock mudguard's width of a front wheel (at its widest point) which was 190mm which I have to deduct minimum from the extremity ...

So 190 - from my 910 width = 720mm ...

Although not a shed load to spare, when times are like they are now and my amputated stump has been playing up, I have been sitting in my wheel chair nearly all day every day for the past week ... so I am using it as my reference for spacial comfort. Now I am not a small bloke ... I am 6'3" and weigh 90 kilos (that's really close to 200lb in the old money) ... my wheel chair to the outside of the arm rests is 600mm so that gives me the better part of 120mm or n5" spare.

Now bare in mind you are exactly right Peter the left hand pannier will have to come off and be worked into the rear off side of the new adaption. In my mind that is no problem as I fully intend 'likening' the design of the side car to the existing F3 .... So the pannier at the rear on that side will suit as will another front grill similar to the Spyders existing and so on ...

I know its cutting things fine but hey, lifes a challenge.

I also noted the other requirement from the Departments web site is for a 'manual' handbrake to the side car wheel ... I guess that comes from horse and cart thinking but yea that's easy enough to achieve as well ...

So its still woo woo all steam ahead ! :yes: :yes: :yes:

 

[fatenhappy]

Will the laws in Australia allow you to have 4 wheels. It probably would not fall under the law for trailers, since it will carry a passenger. Something to check before you get too far into it.

Spyders here in Qld are registered as a trike and trikes are registered 'under' motorcycle legislation which is Section 12B - (motor cycles registered to carry a pillion passenger) ... The current legislation having read it from cover to cover specifically goes in to how a side car must comply with attachment and to what standard of engineering but no where does it mention maximum wheels the unit is allowed to have in total.

Since their is no specific case saying no, I am going full steam ahead and will make sure everything is carried out to a high engineering standard.

As part of the legislation there is no where either that states the side car has to be formally inspected or registered, it just gives its maximum width of the total unit and bike on the carriageway and states it must be fitted with an independent manual hand/park/emergency type brake call it what ever you will ... easy !

 

[fatenhappy]

A little money, and a lot of love can accomplish anything!:clap::clap:I think if you remove the side case that would narrow the track and affect the steering less. You should be able to attach to the frame in several point with flexible couplings to reduce the effect of the side car on the ride. A ridged mounting would likely be very rough to ride for both of you. As MS progresses she may be in a wheelchair eventually so I'd consider a platform on the side car frame rather than just a saddle. You obviously are putting a lot of thought into this project along with love. I wish you well and please keep us posted. Some Mechanical Engineers with CAD experience may be able to help you also????:bowdown::bowdown:

This is in fact the one area I am still mulling over .... i.e. making it really easy for Cathy to just 'swing' herself around side ways. Whether that involves a completely opening top section or what ever I just don't know right now .. I am pretty sure there will have to be a Mk1, a Mk2, a Mk3 model etc and so on till its 100% suited to her requirements ...

 

[fatenhappy]

A little money, and a lot of love can accomplish anything!:clap::clap:I think if you remove the side case that would narrow the track and affect the steering less. You should be able to attach to the frame in several point with flexible couplings to reduce the effect of the side car on the ride. A ridged mounting would likely be very rough to ride for both of you. As MS progresses she may be in a wheelchair eventually so I'd consider a platform on the side car frame rather than just a saddle. You obviously are putting a lot of thought into this project along with love. I wish you well and please keep us posted. Some Mechanical Engineers with CAD experience may be able to help you also????:bowdown::bowdown:

Sidecars, broom broom and Pixie dust

I was 99% sure this could be done and then just today what was able to find, but a German based company 'Kalich side cars' who specialise in what they call 'swing'type side car mounting ... In other words the bike rider rides and leans as normal, but the side car stays absolutely parallel to the road ... I won't or need the 'swing' side of this, but it does prove to me I don't need any upper, or high-mount supports forCathy's side car project.

The other thing I really like .. if you go to their web site although written in German (which is easy enough to translate using 'MS-WORD") ... They set their 'boats' which we know as the actual side car nice and low to the ground .. may-be only 10 to 15cm or so off the ground. ... (4" or so) That'll make it fairly easy to incorporate my ideas of totally bagging the suspension to take it right to ground level so Cathy will be able to enter and exit fairly easily as we require ...

Almost there now before starting to actually measure, cut and create ... hopefully during the next few days ..

As an aside ; just doing the tracking and both my ECU; which has all-butlanded at the doors of Canadian based ‘Monster ECU’ for its dose of insanity or'pixie dust' which-ever way you prefer to think of it!! and, just as good, .... a couple of custom pieces of short exhaust from the UK are just about to leave there as well destination .. my place !....

Stay tuned, it’s all happening ... Yehaa! ...

 

[PMK]

Sidecars, broom broom and Pixie dust

I was 99% sure this could be done and then just today what was able to find, but a German based company 'Kalich side cars' who specialise in what they call 'swing'type side car mounting ... In other words the bike rider rides and leans as normal, but the side car stays absolutely parallel to the road ... I won't or need the 'swing' side of this, but it does prove to me I don't need any upper, or high-mount supports forCathy's side car project.

The other thing I really like .. if you go to their web site although written in German (which is easy enough to translate using 'MS-WORD") ... They set their 'boats' which we know as the actual side car nice and low to the ground .. may-be only 10 to 15cm or so off the ground. ... (4" or so) That'll make it fairly easy to incorporate my ideas of totally bagging the suspension to take it right to ground level so Cathy will be able to enter and exit fairly easily as we require ...

Almost there now before starting to actually measure, cut and create ... hopefully during the next few days ..

As an aside ; just doing the tracking and both my ECU; which has all-butlanded at the doors of Canadian based ‘Monster ECU’ for its dose of insanity or'pixie dust' which-ever way you prefer to think of it!! and, just as good, .... a couple of custom pieces of short exhaust from the UK are just about to leave there as well destination .. my place !....

Stay tuned, it’s all happening ... Yehaa! ...

Did you notice how they kindly moderated our discussion off of the FB group. Message me, I have some ideas for making this work very well.

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

SPYDER PLUS SIDECAR

Sidecars, broom broom and Pixie dust

I was 99% sure this could be done and then just today what was able to find, but a German based company 'Kalich side cars' who specialise in what they call 'swing'type side car mounting ... In other words the bike rider rides and leans as normal, but the side car stays absolutely parallel to the road ... I won't or need the 'swing' side of this, but it does prove to me I don't need any upper, or high-mount supports forCathy's side car project.

The other thing I really like .. if you go to their web site although written in German (which is easy enough to translate using 'MS-WORD") ... They set their 'boats' which we know as the actual side car nice and low to the ground .. may-be only 10 to 15cm or so off the ground. ... (4" or so) That'll make it fairly easy to incorporate my ideas of totally bagging the suspension to take it right to ground level so Cathy will be able to enter and exit fairly easily as we require ...

Almost there now before starting to actually measure, cut and create ... hopefully during the next few days ..

As an aside ; just doing the tracking and both my ECU; which has all-butlanded at the doors of Canadian based ‘Monster ECU’ for its dose of insanity or'pixie dust' which-ever way you prefer to think of it!! and, just as good, .... a couple of custom pieces of short exhaust from the UK are just about to leave there as well destination .. my place !....

Stay tuned, it’s all happening ... Yehaa! ...

Well I respect your DIY thinking process , but after all is said and done ....A new Gold Wing with side car will cost 1/3rd. of what the Spyder & side car is going to cost ...and the GW set-up will be SAFE ....yours will be a GUESS on the Safety thing .......... Stay safe ..... Mike :thumbup:

 

[cheska]

sidecar

OK my 2 cents. Fatenhappy I give you credit for thinking out of the box and trying to get a mc unit to take your wife with you.

Years ago when I was more energetic and wild I built at 2 different times 2 different sidecar units. The first one was a Harley

bike with a harley sidecar I managed to find. The 2nd was a Honda Gl1200 with a off brand sidecar. Both worked reasonably well.

But for saftey and longer distance they were not the best. Next came factory trike conversions in my opion they were 100% safer

and better. Next came the Spdyer. Great but not what you need. For safety and enjoyment I would recommend you check out

some manufactures which make factory sidecar units. The Russian Ural seems to be the best and has been around the longest.

Also please drive a sidecar unit if you can because they drive horrible but can be a blast for short drives. Please remember

these are only my thoughts and experiences. Best of luck to you and your wife. Bob

 

[fatenhappy]

Well I respect your DIY thinking process , but after all is said and done ....A new Gold Wing with side car will cost 1/3rd. of what the Spyder & side car is going to cost ...and the GW set-up will be SAFE ....yours will be a GUESS on the Safety thing .......... Stay safe ..... Mike :thumbup:

That's not even vaguely on the money ... This has nothing to do with cost and all about building something totally suited to my wife's requirements ... Why because I can! .. Besides I don't won't Goldwing crap hanging off the beast ... This is what I am shooting for and all is ago right now ... Just try and tell me that's not about the prettiest side car you have ever seen ..

 

[fatenhappy]

OK my 2 cents. Fatenhappy I give you credit for thinking out of the box and trying to get a mc unit to take your wife with you.

Years ago when I was more energetic and wild I built at 2 different times 2 different sidecar units. The first one was a Harley

bike with a harley sidecar I managed to find. The 2nd was a Honda Gl1200 with a off brand sidecar. Both worked reasonably well.

But for saftey and longer distance they were not the best. Next came factory trike conversions in my opion they were 100% safer

and better. Next came the Spdyer. Great but not what you need. For safety and enjoyment I would recommend you check out

some manufactures which make factory sidecar units. The Russian Ural seems to be the best and has been around the longest.

Also please drive a sidecar unit if you can because they drive horrible but can be a blast for short drives. Please remember

these are only my thoughts and experiences. Best of luck to you and your wife. Bob

Thanks Bob ... If I knew how to put a link up here that would work I would do so but the twice I have tried in the past all I got is a black screen - I can't be bothered wasting my time on that right now .... But, in the mean time just take a moment and go onto YouTube to google up Schwenker based side cars design ....

These are the only thing that come close to what I envisage ... As well as what they have, I have added so the thing is 'bagged' and will drop totally to the ground for my wife to get in and out.

With respect ... If everyone just stayed with the norm, we would still be scratching our heads to see what we could do with a 'rolling stone'.

(Certainly not getting ansy so please don't anyone take it that way ... I am just explaining) A lot may well scoff at what I am about to say and again I really don't care .... I asked the Lord to provide the Spyder for me late last year so I can do what ever he has install, and as far as I am concerned he did, as originally I had no way of affording it! .. (So again, apologies straight up to any who are not of the faith, but I am) ... If I wasn't willing to sit in it myself (as I used to say to my aviation students) ... then sure as hell I'm not putting my wife in it.

 

[sylvester]

heck, if they can come up with a SIDE-CAR for my little VESPA, why not for your SPYD3R as well.....
View attachment 161105 View attachment 161106 View attachment 161107 View attachment 161108
best of luck with this project.... wish i could help...
Dan P
SPYD3R

beautiful little set up had a lambretta once:clap:

 

[fatenhappy]

The 2 in the above post, both appear to be goldwing trikes, with a sidecar.
I wish I could suggest a way to make this happen for you, but I have no skills or expertise in this area. I truly hope you are able to make this week for you and your bride. I will be keeping up with this and wishing you both the very best.

Mate its all good ... everything is steam rolling ahead ..

 

[fatenhappy]

So hopefully everything is in the final stages of the planning phase for the side-car project..

I was really heartened to have found the 'Schwenker' based side car architecture on YT. I am currently still spending further time enhancing it to what we require. I have worked things out to the point of now totally and safely adding air bag suspension to the unit. This will also allow for the passenger compartment to drop to the ground as required for Cathy as we require it. In the mean time whilst in the driving height, everything is locked for total safety.

So in the mean time not wanting to be idle, I've been changing out my secondary muffler / silencer and aft, to something more of a straight through easier breathing system. My shock of horrors really came home when finding out by measuring with a micrometre, the inlet to the stock muffler was cut back from 49mm from the cat area, to a 42mm inlet .... (that's at the pipe entrance to flow to the pipe itself - not at the mouth entrance) .... Anyway, by my calculations, limiting the machine to 111 hp max.

I suppose when the bike is rated to 115hp @ 7200 rpm its spot on BRP's calculations! From all my research on air flow, exhausts etc, apparently we are supposed to go down in size rather than up so as to not sacrifice back pressure, pulse effect etc.

Anyway I am driving to-wards what is to be achieved rather than what is stock ... By my calculations I need really close to just under a 2" system so 2" it will be. That's exactly what has been installed so far, and that's what I honed in on finishing off today .... or at least started to ...

So I got most of the exhaust cut and trial fitted yesterday and left it right there over-nite..... Today everything was supposed to be real easy..... it was supposed to be full steam ahead to finish off the main support bracket for the main muffler ... Well, that's what was intended ... What actually resulted was ... "you know when you are sure you've got exactly that peace you're after some-where and all you have to do is find it ...."That's right, the whole damn garage finally got a good clean up and sorting out" ... And, no bracket was there to be found ... anywhere ... so about 5 or 6 hours later I still had to make one .. "Idiot!" So at the close of play tonight, the new bracket has been finished, painted and drying (and that's where it will stay for a few days until it hardens) ....

As far as the attachments ... the first is a fantastic example of a 'Schwenker' architecture side car .. I love it ... , the second is the actual design that goes into making the basic side car along these lines (minus my dropping / bagging or the actual bike attachment specs) ... the third was close of play last night and where it will remain for the next few days ... and finally ... guess what .. I haven't spoken about this at all ... these are my hub conversion fresh and back from manufacture from the standard Spyder 3*90 pcd to of all things the 'Smart' car stud pattern ... Why, because IMO, the Smart Cars have truck loads more wide wheel choices than what are available right now out there for the Spyders ...

Am I a happy camper right now tonight ?... you bet ya!

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

SIDECAR PROGRESS

:clap::clap::clap:........ I have voiced my concerns about this project ... ( from an engineering standpoint ) , but I'm VERY impressed with your muffler work ...... from the pic, it looks like you have figured a way to have your exhaust system SWIVEL in sync with the swing arm ..... very ingenious Mate :yes::yes::yes:............ Mike :thumbup:, however I am still sending ray:ray:ray:ray:ray:................... Mike :thumbup:

 

[Joel The Biker]

I am sure you have already thought of this, but thought I would mention it anyway. I see a possible problem with the exhaust. First, it will be positioned close to your wife's left ear. So you wont want it to be very loud. Second, to fit a sidecar to a spyder, it will have to be located farther to the rear of the bike. This could mean your wife will be inhaling exhaust fumes. Ideally, you would want the muffler to exit the left side of the spyder which could be a challenge with the drive belt in the way.

Other challenges I see are, trying to find enough structure at the rear of a spyder to securely attach a sidecar. And then there are some physics problems you will have to overcome. Not so much during acceleration, but definitely during braking.

As a mechanical engineer, I am very interested to see what you ultimately come up with and if it works. Safety should be priority #1!!! Test your sidecar using sandbags first to see how the spyder reacts to all that weight attached to the side.

I am not going to tell you it wont work. But there will certainly be many challenges to overcome, making the whole project very daunting. I hope you succeed. But I do agree with others, that there are better and safer alternatives to using a Spyder.

opcorn:Watching with great interest.

 

[fatenhappy]

I am sure you have already thought of this, but thought I would mention it anyway. I see a possible problem with the exhaust. First, it will be positioned close to your wife's left ear. So you wont want it to be very loud. Second, to fit a sidecar to a spyder, it will have to be located farther to the rear of the bike. This could mean your wife will be inhaling exhaust fumes. Ideally, you would want the muffler to exit the left side of the spyder which could be a challenge with the drive belt in the way.

Other challenges I see are, trying to find enough structure at the rear of a spyder to securely attach a sidecar. And then there are some physics problems you will have to overcome. Not so much during acceleration, but definitely during braking.

As a mechanical engineer, I am very interested to see what you ultimately come up with and if it works. Safety should be priority #1!!! Test your sidecar using sandbags first to see how the spyder reacts to all that weight attached to the side.

I am not going to tell you it wont work. But there will certainly be many challenges to overcome, making the whole project very daunting. I hope you succeed. But I do agree with others, that there are better and safer alternatives to using a Spyder.

opcorn:Watching with great interest.

Hey Joel .. I really do appreciate your input ....

Bingo .. this is the sort of thing I was after ... Because we are in Australia and drive RHD and not like the US on the left ... The side car actually gets mounted on our kerb side, which is the same side of the bike where the belt drive is located ...

You have indeed made me think a bit more about the exhaust exit point and its direction at any rate ... As it is, you probably can't see it from the photo, but it is currently situated down and 'away' from the bike. I'll see how its finally positioning goes as far as the exhaust tip is situated when I get the final bracing mounted in a couple of days time after the paint 'hardens' up a bit more.

A longer term goal is to manufacture and fit up a complete 2" length tuned exhaust system to the bike .... There may possibly even be a turbo fit .... It has been done using the aero turbos from Canada in the past ,,, but that would be some time away as yet ...

It took a lot of research, but as far as the actual mounting up goes, the way the German's and other Europeans do it, is build and add a complete custom sub frame to the bike, secure that in place and then mount everything off to the side-car unit from the sub frame . They then anchor off that with 'heim' joints and adjust things up accordingly and so effectively 'spreading the load' .... Works very effectively for them so I see no need to try to improve on what they have already perfected ... As an extra bonus straight off the pillion foot peg points are going to be removed so they are also available .... cheers again ...

 

[fatenhappy]

And no, you are reading this correctly .... What's the possiblity of mounting up a side-car to my F3-T ... Anyone ever done it?

I'm a 66 year old lower left leg amputee .... love riding, always have. February just gone this year, I splashed out and bought my latest ride, a 2017 F3-T in the SE6 variant ... so all paddle shift auto - fantastic.

My wife has had MS for the passed 35 plus years.... (and in any case, being an ex nurse she is far from partial to motorcycles at all at any time ... In her words .... she has seen first hand all the damage that can come from them) .. Despite this I have always quietly tried to coherse, poke and and gently 'push' her towards relaxing and join me on any of the bikes over the years, but always to no avail.

Taking this into account I've still always had it in the back of my mind to some how, totally include Cathy as much as possible with this current ride as well. I was 99% sure when buying 'any' traditional bike, the pillion set up even physically for her could not work.

My quandry also right now is Cathy's MS is to the stage where she cannot self support very well and is extremely tentatively of taking more than just a couple of steps at all, unsupported.

So this has still been going over and over in my mind and for no particular reason, even more so of late.

Then just the other day and again for no particular reason, I thought ... I wonder if it would be possible to mount up a side car to the new Spyder ... To me this would be the perfect solution ... Previously and to tell the absolute truth, I had not even vaguely given any side car option a thought. I guess you just very rarely see them about, if at all these days.

Leading up to this revelation I now have Cathy to the stage where she would be keen to come along (so she now says) if I can find a way. To me the side car thought would be fantastic as all I need her to do would be sit in there and let the day go past and 'enjoy the ride'

Anyone had any experience with this type of 'adaption' for the Spyder ... Cheers and thanks in advance

Just a heads up with a quick edit ... I had also posted this same thread in the how to do it yourself section also looking for alternate comments from there. It appears I am not allowed to comment on more than one of the same thread .. fare enough ... also as an aside we are not allow to tow folks in a trailer in Australia end of story .. cheers and thanks again for your inputs ...

Well, it's been a couple of weeks of silence but everything has been literally ago and 'burning the mid-night oil' most nights to make sure things are right the first time.

Got to admit, I don't have things 110% right, just at the minute but probably at least a minimum of 95% the way there …

I am basing everything on the European - 'Schwenker - Swing - Sidecar' system ... These sidecars are as close as I have ever found for a suitable basis to my thoughts ... I

All guns are blazing so the unit drops totally to ground level ... (this has been the total hold up in the design) ... all so as to service Cathy's MS as best I can …

Maybe another week or two and I should be right to build the initial 'trial' mock up before the real thing .... (I would prefer to get everything sorted right at the get go rather than going back, time and time again) ... This sort of things reminds me a lot of doing trials with aircraft mods ....

 

[tim1]

sidecar guru

Hey buddy, for what it is worth, there is a sidecar guru in Washinton Named Jay at Dauntless Sidecars and he truly is amazing. It would not hurt to pick his brain a bit, he is old like us and has many mile on sidecars. His shop build custom rigs. Project looks doable. Tim

 

[fatenhappy]

Hey buddy, for what it is worth, there is a sidecar guru in Washinton Named Jay at Dauntless Sidecars and he truly is amazing. It would not hurt to pick his brain a bit, he is old like us and has many mile on sidecars. His shop build custom rigs. Project looks doable. Tim

Appreciate your thoughts Tim … My only problem with the suggestion is I am based in Queensland Australia … However, I will still have sniff about and see if he has anything listed on the web .. thanks again !

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

side- car project

I am sure you have already thought of this, but thought I would mention it anyway. I see a possible problem with the exhaust. First, it will be positioned close to your wife's left ear. So you wont want it to be very loud. Second, to fit a sidecar to a spyder, it will have to be located farther to the rear of the bike. This could mean your wife will be inhaling exhaust fumes. Ideally, you would want the muffler to exit the left side of the spyder which could be a challenge with the drive belt in the way.

Other challenges I see are, trying to find enough structure at the rear of a spyder to securely attach a sidecar. And then there are some physics problems you will have to overcome. Not so much during acceleration, but definitely during braking.

As a mechanical engineer, I am very interested to see what you ultimately come up with and if it works. Safety should be priority #1!!! Test your sidecar using sandbags first to see how the spyder reacts to all that weight attached to the side.

I am not going to tell you it wont work. But there will certainly be many challenges to overcome, making the whole project very daunting. I hope you succeed. But I do agree with others, that there are better and safer alternatives to using a Spyder.

opcorn:Watching with great interest.

Joel, on this topic you are :bdh:.... I'm not a " Mechanical engineer " , but I have created many items ( check my album on the 917 project car ) and I would be last person to throw water on an idea ..... there are usually ways to get an IDEA to a Physical reality .....and Elon Musk and or Bill Gates could get this done .... But I think the OP is probably not in that financial company ...... I changed the shock ANGLES of all my Spyders by creating a bolt on bracket that was formed to fit the frame area of the shock top. Quite a few people have told me what I did was extremely dangerous and foolish ( not the two BRP Techs who drove my Spyder though :roflblack: ) the change was only 18 degree's ..... what the OP is trying for ... to me is mind-boggling, and I believe almost anything can be worked out. But what the OP is trying to do is beyond a normal amount of development $$$ .... look what ISCI charges for their Spyder handbrake system ..... Does anyone believe the parts are worth $ 1300.00. I have posted to the OP my concerns, so this isn't a roundabout way of slamming Him..... I have genuine concerns about HER safety.... A few or a few hundred miles with sandbags is only going to prove it didn't FAIL within that mileage. There would be no guarantee 10 miles further and the sidecar wouldn't suffer a catastrophic collapse. I hope the OP reads this post and maybe He will have a new prospective about the possibilities of it's construction ....... Later .... Mike :thumbup:

 

[fatenhappy]

Joel, on this topic you are :bdh:.... I'm not a " Mechanical engineer " , but I have created many items ( check my album on the 917 project car ) and I would be last person to throw water on an idea ..... there are usually ways to get an IDEA to a Physical reality .....and Elon Musk and or Bill Gates could get this done .... But I think the OP is probably not in that financial company ...... I changed the shock ANGLES of all my Spyders by creating a bolt on bracket that was formed to fit the frame area of the shock top. Quite a few people have told me what I did was extremely dangerous and foolish ( not the two BRP Techs who drove my Spyder though :roflblack: ) the change was only 18 degree's ..... what the OP is trying for ... to me is mind-boggling, and I believe almost anything can be worked out. But what the OP is trying to do is beyond a normal amount of development $$$ .... look what ISCI charges for their Spyder handbrake system ..... Does anyone believe the parts are worth $ 1300.00. I have posted to the OP my concerns, so this isn't a roundabout way of slamming Him..... I have genuine concerns about HER safety.... A few or a few hundred miles with sandbags is only going to prove it didn't FAIL within that mileage. There would be no guarantee 10 miles further and the sidecar wouldn't suffer a catastrophic collapse. I hope the OP reads this post and maybe He will have a new prospective about the possibilities of it's construction ....... Later .... Mike :thumbup:

Thanks Mike … (and say no more !)

Here are three good reasons why I KNOW I can do this by modifying, building and adapting a version of the Polish ‘Swenker’ side car setup ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GntsHZY6KPQ … The German giant BMW know it’s possible as shown here … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=235TVSBjIlY&t=106s Then another ‘Swenker ‘adaption … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m28XZXu1_7Y
Never say never ! ... I used to say to my Aviation based students ... “If you are notwilling to swap seats with the passenger looking down at you, don’t release the aircraft” … For the greater part of my adult life I was based around a highly safety based industry. Just because I am now retired does not mean my ethos has changed one little bit !