Sidecar and Trike Resources List
including some technical articles

©
sidecarURL.htm
sidecar section, article 3

 

1. See URL.HTM, for a long list of other resources, SOME of which WILL be pertinent to this Resources List you are perusing.   See also the references.htm page.

NOTE!....

Here is a link to a fair portion of a manual on how to drive a sidecar outfit:
http://www.uralparts.com/uralhow/howride_frame.htm

There are other manuals, etc., available from various sources, such as the USCA...one is called Driving a Sidecar Outfit...often called the Yellow Manual.  There is also one that was a translation from German that has a lot more technical information, called "Riding with a Sidecar".  This was translated and is available in America.....THAT...and some other quite valuable additional materials is available from Hal Kendall....who has a LOT of information (4 manuals) available on ONE CD he produced...which UPDATES that manual....or, better said, is the updated manual.    This CD is entitled:   Sidecar Manual, Sidecar Operator Manual, Sidecar Catalog, Riding with a Sidecar.  
You do not have to get the CD....as...the same information is 
available free, all 4 of the books, at www.sidecar.com/links3.asp

However, you CAN, if you want, get Hal's stuff on CD-ROM, for only $10.00; contact him directly at  hal-kendall@worldnet.att.net

2.  HANDICAPPED RESOURCES:
The A.M.A. has a page with a listing of sidecar and trike companies, etc., that deal with handicapped riders/drivers.
That URL is:
http://www.ama-cycle.org/roadride/DISBresourcelistings.asp

National Handicapped Motorcyclist Association
315 W. 21 street
Ste 6F
New York, NY  10011

Electric shifting items:
Adaptive Motorcycling
PO Box 36
Stockholm, WI 54769
(715) 442-2069
www.adaptivemotorcycling.com
stump@cannon.net

Disabled Riders of America
http://dra.thewyz.com

As far as I know, the old Tomco company which made all sorts of rigs, etc., for handicapped riders, was bought out by www.lifemotorsinc.com

Titan Engine Works, sidecars, Ronald Campbell, 747 Gunnison Ave. #7; Grand Junction, CO
Ron is a representative of the USCA, and is at 225 S. 13th Place, Grand Junction, CO  81501, 970-241-1325.  Ron has been sidecaring, etc., for many decades.
lakotaman@acsol.net


Pingel Enterprises, who have been around for a lot of years,  have available electric up/down shifters, bolt-on affairs, kits to fit various makes and models.
2072  11th Avenue
Adams, WI   53910
608-339-7999
800-4-pingel
www.pingelonline.com

Lowell Neff (Neff Design & Engineering)
Custom and stock fabrication, especially good at handicapped items and leading link forks, wheels, and subframes, etc.
Quality stuff!   Lowell's stuff is excellent; some is quite innovative; and he does vastly more than just handicapped stuff:
Box 475, Dragoon, AZ  85609
520-586-9642
Lowell also has a website.  BEST to telephone him.   Lowell is handicapped, himself, lives in the middle of the desert at the southeast corner of Arizona, and is QUITE the craftsman, you would be astonished at his machine shop, etc., and his competence and quality of his products.

3.  Other sources for sidecars, mounts, ETC (besides the above list in section 2, which are not JUST for the handicapped, particularly see Neff.::

Sideffects (Steerite conversions).  They also do frames, wheels, hand conversions, hitches, rigs in general.    www.sidecars.ca  they are in Kamloops, B.C., Canada

Jay and Tara Giese
Dauntless Motors
sidehack@msn.com

253-638-1793
Jay and Tara's website contains a lot of information, and Jay is very well known throughout the sidecar community.   
www.dauntlessmotors.com

Mr. Sidecar himself, with experience going back MANY decades in building, racing, etc... is Doug Bingham.  VERY knowledgeable!
Side Strider, Inc.  
15838 Arminta Street, Unit 25
Van Nuys, CA  91406
(818) 780-5542
FAX (818) 780-1587
http://www.sidestrider.com

Wuma Inc. "By Guenther"
6891 W  US Hy 150
Fredericksburg, IN 47120
812-472-3739
Guenther Wuest, who overhauls transmissions, AND HAS A CONVERSION TO THE BMW 5 SPEED, TO GIVE A REVERSE GEAR.  It is $2500 or so to do this, probably includes a full overhaul.  The reverse conversion is a full driveable gear, and uses an electromagnet for the shifting to prevent accidental engagement.  Neutral ends up between reverse and first, all forward gears are shifted UP.  A LOT of internal transmission parts are new, or are machined.  14 gears!  Shifting gears are undercut for easy shifting.  Changes are also made to the cover plate and housing, and a switch is put on the handlebar.  Ratios end up as 6 in reverse, 4.26 in first, 2.85 in second, 2.07 in third, 1.67 in fourth, and 1.50 in fifth.
Wuest@blueriver.net


Questions sometimes come up about the Chang Jiang rigs.  For a reasonable and decent history, see:
http://www.changjiangunlimited.com/hist.htm

Custom trailers, Ural wheels, accessories, ...sales and service on Ural and Royal Enfield, ETC.   Gene Langford, dba Holopaw Corvette, Inc., (407) 892-1901.   

There are probably 35 or 40 more companies doing sidecar work.  If you don't see what you want on my URL and this sidecar page, ask me....or ask the SCT LIST!....huge amount of experience and knowledge on that LIST!!...see just below:

4.   INFORMATION!....A wonderful resource is the Yahoo Groups Sidecar LIST....an e-mailing LIST.....called SCT2.  Sign up at Yahoo.  This is a world-wide group.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sct
This group has a diverse membership, very active, and there is almost nothing about sidecars that is not known by LIST Members!

Sidecar group in the United Kingdom (England), they have been around a very very long time:
http://www.sidecars.org.uk/


5.  For manufacturer's involved with sidecars and trikes in general, resources such as the Sidecar LIST (SCT2) on Yahoo, and industry websites, are easily found.   SEE the url.htm link in item #1, above, for some.

There are also well-known manufacturer's of trikes, such as Lehman Industries.

6.  Some information from Duane Ausherman on the setting up of the BMW Earles forks models....Installing, Adjusting, Greasing......etc.  :  http://w6rec.com/duane/bmw/swingarm.htm
Note that Earle's Forks have  the adjustment hole for solo/sidecar on the downtubes and not on the swingarm.    A picture from Duane's site of the Earle's adjusting holes:
http://w6rec.com/duane/bmw/leftsw.jpg

7.  I have some disagreements on a FEW points in most of the 'how-to-drive' books, and with the organization, Evergreen, and its policies.   The best information is available free, Hal Kendall's writings, at
www.sidecar.com/links3.asp  You can also get the sidecar manual from that link.  However, you can also get Hal's stuff on CD, contact him directly at  hkendall1@houston.rr.com

8.
    http://motorcycle-memories.com/
This is a source for LOTS of photos of old time motorcycles AND sidecars, etc.

This site has a fabulous collection of hundreds of photos of old 3-wheelers.
http://www.3wheelers.com

9.  For hard-to-find antique and other sizes of car tires for sidecars and tugs:
http://performanceplustire.com/products/antiqueTires/#prodAnchor

Also, see Coker tire company.

10.  Subscribe to Hack'd.    See:   www.hackd.com
Hack'd Magazine
hackdmag1@yahoo.com
POB 58
Buckhanon, WV 26201

11.  Join USCA

12.  Sidecar-related sources on the Internet.  I have shamelessly copied this Claude Stanley list from the SCT LIST (a Yahoo group);...and, will delete it entirely, and then paste a new entire list here, from time to time....or, just edit it.
NOTE!....these are NOT hyperlinked, so you will have to copy them!

http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/ARRSC/
http://groups.msn.com/Coolhackers
http://www.mcnews.com/anforum/forum
http://www.sidecar.org.uk/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/sidecarissues/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/SCofNE/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/USCANORTHEASTREGION/
http://www.sidecar.com
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/dneprheads/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/flexitsidecarclub/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/HARLEYSIDECAR/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hawaiisidecars/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/NE3WheelersClub/
http://au.groups.yahoo.com/group/ozsidecars/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/sidecarsuk/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/sidehackers/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/SKUNKtails/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/slash2conversions/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Steib/
http://imzwa.secureforum.com/login
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/USCAcentral/
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/wagnerscycle/
http://fr.groups.yahoo.com/group/zeuspassion/
http://hpsidecars.com/
http://adventuresidecar.com/index.html

13.  I have not yet used this product, but it sounds intriguing.   Many a time we sidecarists put on car tires, or change tire sizes fairly radically.   This can effect speedometer and odometer readings considerably.   So can modifying drive ratios.   Those with mechanical speedometers/odometers have choices of  modifying them, or some other means of recalibration.  Those that have such as toothed wheels and magnetic pickups...or Hall devices pickups...etc.....either must modify the electronics of the speedometer-odometer (sometimes the speedometer can be adjusted and the odometer is a fixed method, such as the stepper motor on a BMW K model bike)....or find another method...or accept the errors.
This company makes a digital, ADJUSTABLE electronic divider box, just for this purpose:
www.blackrobotics.com



Revisions: 
05/29/2006:  add section 12
05/29/2006.  edit section 12 slightly, and give acknowledgement to Claude Stanley
11/03/2006:  add http://www.sidecar.com/files/SC_Manual.pdf
12/30/2006:  update with a lot more information
06/01/2007:  Add #13
07/22/2007:  Add hyperlinks for Hal Kendall, etc.
01/09/2008:  fix hyperlinks for sidecar.com

Return to the HomePage

Return to the Technical Index Page