Newbie - Motorcycle in a Bearhawk 4 Place?

[PrestonT23]

Hello all,

Newbie here interested in building a 4-place bearhawk. I'm ready to order the plans (slow build) but I am thinking I should wait for the Bravo model to become available (was told a few months). A little about me, I am currently training for my PPL at about 25 hours getting ready to solo! I've been building things my whole life and been dreaming about building a plane for the past 10 years. I am really attracted to the utility factor that the Bearhawk can provide which leads me to my question. For those of you who are building or flying a Bearhawk. would it seem feasible to fit a small motorcycle in the back with the rear seat removed? I was browsing online and found the Motopod company www.motorcyclepilot.com. The motorcycle is advertised to weigh about 220# dry. It seems that if it could fit, the Bearhawk would have no problem hauling its weight. What do you all think? Am I crazy?

Thanks,
Preston

[Battson]

Preston - welcome to the group!

Without disassembling the motorbike, the challenge is the length of the front forks combined with the width of the handlebars. It would be close... I bet you could find a way to make it work.

We have no problems carrying a 15ft inflatable boat and outboard motor, plus two sets of dive gear including weights, just to give an idea of the utility available.

[PrestonT23]

Thank you, It seems as though Motopod has created foldable handlebars, lowered suspension and an easily removable front wheel. With those modifications, I would imagine it would help quite a bit. It would be interesting trying to load it into the plane... Any idea of the length/width dimensions with the rear seat removed?

[Battson]

There's going to be heaps of room if they have all those mods on their Motopod bike.

With the back seats out, there's about 1.6 - 1.7m length at a guess, about 1.0m wide, and height varying at about 1.2-1.4m (I am guessing that one too) depending how you do your headliner.

[PrestonT23]

Thank you for the dimensions Battson! Now I just need to figure out an easy way to load and unload it.

[whee]

It depends on the motorcycle. I know a guy that hauls a Honda Trail 50 in his Maule. I remember looking at those motopods several years ago and thinking, "I'd rather take my Honda Trail 90." One day I was working on my BH in the garage and I wondered if I could fit my MTB in the back without taking off the tires or anything. My MTB has 27.5" wheels, 3.5" wide tires and really wide handle bars. I successfully fit it in the plane without any disassembly and I could have fit my wife's MTB in next to it, but is was tight. I'd be willing to bet I could fit a Trail 90 in there without too much trouble.

[PrestonT23]

Thank you for the response, sounds promising!

[Av8rPaul]

I have a BWM R1200GS. It will not fit.

[Pat Fagan]

I wanted to weigh in on this last week but couldn't spare the time as I was to meet Cate in AZ at noon for a camping trip. First off, Eric in BC carries two Honda 50s in his Bearhawk. I wanted a road licensed motorcycle and thought the Honda 90 would fit the bill. They have no clutch and a single down tube between the steering column and the engine mount. I figured I could modify that tube to allow it to separate easily. Remove the needle from the carb and unplug the wiring harness and you would have two easier to manage pieces. Problem is the bike weighs close to 400 lbs. Even disassembled in two pieces I think the effort to lift it in and out over the door lip would be too much strain on my back. They had metal fenders and other items that could probably be modified to lessen the weight, but I hate to cobble up what is now a classic. I've got my eye out for an old frame that I could modify for my needs and still keep the original intact.

[Bcone1381]

It seems as though I saw where a person built a super cub that could receive a motorcycle attached under the fuselage like a belly pod. It was not in a belly pod, rather somehow attached to it and exposed out in the open. As I looked for that thread, I came across this thread. https://www.backcountrypilot.org/for...otorcycle-6777

[PrestonT23]

That is a good thread there Bcone, thank you. Would a Honda 90 fit two people?

[whee]

That is a good thread there Bcone, thank you. Would a Honda 90 fit two people?

All depends on you definition of "fit." My wife and unused to ride a 90 all the time together and were totally comfortable doing so. One of my buddies uses a 50 or maybe a 70, I can't remember which, for river shuttles. Two dudes on that little bike isn't awesome but it gets the job done.

What about an electric bike? I kinda think a electric conversion to our old MTBs would be a sweet way to go. There is a guy on the back country pilot forum that is way into them. Seems like he is getting good range and is having a blast.