Very nice work on this job!!

Here's some pictures of my '56 Goulding Rocket sidecar that I redid a couple of years ago and attached to my '59 Duo-Glide.

 

Not a Harley Davidson, but still a great sidecar bike <br/>

 

I have never been in a sidecar or on a motorcycle with a sidecar, does it ride like a trike?

 

No! On a hard right turn (tub on the right, American/most European style), it can be easy to lift the car wheel off the road. Can be exciting when you're not expecting it. Hard left turn, really hard, and you don't lean your body way left, you can lift the back wheel, and severe enough, do a forward flip to the right; only seen that in videos, never tried, don't want to. Accelerate, it pulls right, let off the gas or just use the rear brake and it pulls left (with sidecar equipped brake anyway); front and rear together, tracks pretty straight. The asymmetry in handling takes some getting used to, and for a while you might wiggle a bit, but it shouldn't take long for your autopilot to kick in and compensate without thinking about it. Bumps and potholes are going to cause a wiggle, no getting around the change in geometry as the car bumps up and down, tilting the bike.

I got an old Ural a couple years ago to give my grandson rides, and liked it enough to get a newer one (that would start all the time ) last year. Won't replace a 2 wheeler for me, but for another kind of riding, it's interesting. Especially in a few inches of snow; I wouldn't dare try drifting around corners with my Harleys.

If/when I get to a point I can't reliably hold up the Tour Glide, but could ride otherwise, I'd certainly consider hanging a sidecar on it. One thing to remember about sidecaring any bike, you're going to take a big hit in gas mileage. Still way more economical for the mile or two runs to the grocery store, compared to my van, anyway. Way more fun, too. And I put less than 1000 miles on the van last year. One thing that would be real nice with a big twin Harley for the driver, you could put car tires on it and get a lot more miles on them than bike tires. No need for rounded tires on a hack.

I still find it amusing that so many people stop and look at a sidecar rig, want to talk about it, and wave when it goes by. My Harleys, any 2 wheeler I've had, never got near that much attention.

 

Sounds like an interesting riding experience with a side car, I have been trying to remember and I don't think I have ever seen a motorcycle and sidecar in person!

 

Buddy had a '79 or '80 FLH with factory hack in that ugly metallic brown color. He pulled the trunk off, sprayed all the bodywork od green, with white WW2 invasion stars on the tanks. Hand painted 6 small rising sun flags on the hack with Testors & a fine brush.

We'd go to "doings" & various other events & there'd be all kindsa big money, store-bought choppers & a lot of really nice bikes & people would walk right past 'em all to check out Tom's hack.

Perfect for beer runs, too.

 

Here's a couple of pics of my past sidecar rig. Sorry, not a Harley! I'm in the process of having a Motorvation Spyder mated to my 97' FXSTC. I'll post pics when it's complete.

 

Here is my 60 pan that I never should have sold, still kicking myself in the *** over that one. And my 00 Road King hack I just got back in September, I knew I was getting 2 new knees this winter and figured the hack might be easier than my CVO Ultra for awhile. And my little dog I'm going to try and haul around this summer. I'm in the market for an original 1966 HD sidecar for my 66 FLH if someone stumbles across one.

 

I forgot to mention, kids love 'em.



I think he needs a new Harley jacket, must've grown a bit, used to fit...

Can be used for holiday decorations, too. Is Halloween a holiday?

 

I really liked those big old spring seats, think those were the most comfortable bikes in the world back then.