Triumphrat

Tntimbo · 10-31-2012, 10:04 AM

Anyone out there mounted a sidecar on a 900 T-bird?

Looking for someone with some expertice in this area.
T

M.G.Vig · 10-31-2012, 11:47 AM

I know that Watsonian used to make a chair for the Tbird. They are still in business, so it might be worthwhile getting in touch. There used to be a TV show here called "The Two Fat Ladies", and they bombed around the UK with a Tbird + chair!

Slinky · 10-31-2012, 02:20 PM

Hot chicks, Triumph style..

hawk#1 · 10-31-2012, 04:33 PM

lol slinky the one that drives the outfit is now dead,but i did have the good fortune to see the outfit up close but for the life of me i cant remember what it was but i have saw a few with watsonian carson e bay

jaguartvr · 10-31-2012, 05:37 PM

For Gods sake don't!
I thought it looked like a good idea and fitted the same sidecar as pictured in the 2 fat ladies picture, Watsonian GP. Looked fantastic, Took it out for a test ride ( yes it had all been set up properly), hit the first bend, then hit the kerb. Luckily the kerb was high enough to force the bike around the corner. As it straightened up I was brave and accelerated, this caused uncontrolled wobbling of the handlebars but smoothed out at about 40mph. Then......Oh F**k.....bend, slammed the anchors on and managed to fly around the courner at 5mph, which in my opinion is the safe top speed.
Hats off to anyone who rides a sidecar, very brave or insane...the jurys still out.
Removed the sidecar and sold it, I do still however have the full engine cradle assembly (over £500 from Watsonian and at least a 3 month delivery wait) for anyone brave or at I'd enough

Darien · 11-01-2012, 05:57 PM

Hey Jag,

Sounds like you figured out how to drive a side hack;... at least that is what it looks like when I see some of those Ural rigs here in the states!

Then again one of the guys in our local British Motorcycle Association of Colorado (www.bmacinc.com) has a new Bonnie with a leaning side car that he built.

Frankly if I could afford it, I might go that route.

Darien

Merlyn · 11-01-2012, 08:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaguartvr

For Gods sake don't!
I thought it looked like a good idea and fitted the same sidecar as pictured in the 2 fat ladies picture, Watsonian GP. Looked fantastic, Took it out for a test ride ( yes it had all been set up properly), hit the first bend, then hit the kerb. Luckily the kerb was high enough to force the bike around the corner. As it straightened up I was brave and accelerated, this caused uncontrolled wobbling of the handlebars but smoothed out at about 40mph. Then......Oh F**k.....bend, slammed the anchors on and managed to fly around the courner at 5mph, which in my opinion is the safe top speed.
Hats off to anyone who rides a sidecar, very brave or insane...the jurys still out.
Removed the sidecar and sold it, I do still however have the full engine cradle assembly (over £500 from Watsonian and at least a 3 month delivery wait) for anyone brave or at I'd enough

My next motorcycle purchase is going to be a Ural Tourist. I had one back in '00 in Denver, and they are an absolute hoot to drive, if you survive the learning curve. If you ever get a shot at a pre-97 Ural, you should give hacks another whirl. Just be careful on right turns, and NEVER change lanes in a right hand sweeper on the highway. Flying the sidecar at 70mph (a 650 Ural's red-line in 5th top speed) is TERRIFYING.

As for brave or insane? Both, in just about equal portions. You have to be to ride a motorcycle full time in Vegas :: chuckle ::

A Triumph hack is a VERY interesting idea. I wonder what you'd have to do with the gearing to make it ride right? Hrmmm....

Merlyn

Tntimbo · 11-08-2012, 12:45 PM

After a lot of checking around, and making several inquiry's I discovered a fellow by the name of Doug Bingham.

Nicknamed "Mr. Sidecar", he has several awards for his sidecar achivements, including at least 3 emmy awards for providing mobile film platforms for the TV and movie making industry.

He used to race sidecar rigs in his youth.

His primary personal rig is a TBird Sport with 2 passenger "Woodie" custom sidecar that he built. He has fitted several brands of sidecars to classic 3 cyl TBirds. (Sent me pictures)

He provided me with a ton of info that I will need some time to digest. He also put me in touch with a sub-frame builder in the Mid-west who has built several sub-frames for the Thunderbird.
T

OldHarpy · 12-16-2012, 04:42 PM

i've got a combination of Legend and Hedingham sidecar. It was set up by the sidecar company when the bike was new [2000] though I didn't own it then. It requires no effort to ride, it is very neutral with just a slight pull to the left if you let go of the handlebars.
It is not "physically much harder than a solo", twisty roads don't give me "a workout" and I don't need to expend much effort to ride it. Which is just as well cos I'm just a weedy woman. Heaven help us, combos are fun! Get one, I'd say!

MDA · 12-17-2012, 04:10 AM

I have a 2002 Thunderbird with a Cozy (Indian) sidecar attached. I have been riding it for about 7 years and although it took a bit of setting up, it is now perfect. It has leading links and a steering dampner (from a VW) fitted. Without those two things it wobbled about at about 40 km/h, but the new front end and dampner have fixed the problem. I can drive at any speed, hands-free, without any steering wobble at all.
I have even fitted the seat in the sidecar with a "lifter" to make it easier to get out:

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