2002 BMW Dakar F650GS with a lefty sidecar homebuild

1leglance

2007 Expedition Trophy Champion, Overland Certifie
So time to start working on my sidecar build.

A few things to know, I am putting the hack on the left as that is the side my prosthetic leg is on and it will be much easier to have a nice big foot pad over there. Also easier to get on & off the bike from the right.



I have been doing a bunch of reading here and on other websites along with downloading some serious pdf's....lots to process so time to get direct info from the wise minds around here.



Here is the bike I am building on....





Started by removing the things I won't need, like bashplates, crashbars and such....





Then came the lower subframe which I figure I will substitute my own for...that will give me a few nice mounting points. I have a bunch of 1in square tubing and some round tubing also.





Now first question what do I do about the kickstand switch? Do I rig a bypass harness or ????





Also I figure that the rear upright mount will tie in here at the upper seat support subframe.





This is what I figure to further tear apart and use...swingarm, brakes, wheel, tire, shocks and such.





Goal is 40in track width, and 12in lead...at least based on what I have read....any reasons this is a bad plan?





Looking for any and all thoughts....I will also be adding the Pingel electric shifter at some point soon.

I still have to gather the heim joints and other hardware....suggestions for sources?
 

whatcharterboat

Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
Hi Lance,

How are you mate?

Did you attach photos or have I got a problem?

Does the kickstand switch only trigger a warning light on the instument cluster? Can you think of anything else worthy of a warning light that you could wire into the kickstand circuit? Hey, just a wild thought.

Obviously sidecars here in Oz are usually on the left and I guess you are going to build most of this yourself but let me know if there are any parts you need from here.

I had a guy ready to swap me a FJ1200 sidecar for my little 125 scooter but Julie freaked at the idea of getting into the sidecar so that was the end of that deal.

Kind regards John.
 

goodtimes

Expedition Poseur
I can't see the photo's either - but that's not uncommon when using this connection.

The side stand switch isn't a simple warning light - it will shut the engine down. My vote would be to bypass it.

For heim joints, Wheelers used to sell them (they're local-ish to you), or Poly Performance (both are geared towards the 4wd/rock crawling crowd). I'd suggest McMaster Carr as well, but they never tell you what brand they are selling - so it's hard to avoid the cheap crap with them. Grainger also sells them (search for "bearing", then scroll down to the sub-category of "spherical rod end" - searching directly for the rod ends gives goofy results), but my experience is that their prices are a bit high.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
185,533
Messages
2,875,612
Members
224,922
Latest member
Randy Towles
Top