Uncrated Motorcycle Shipping?

[JoJo357]

Greetings, been awhile since i had a Motorcycle shipped across country==Any decent leads transporting uncrated at a reasonable rate currently? Thank You, *M.A.D.*

[exeric]

That's a good question. I've been looking at bikes on ebay, and then getting a shipping quote with that ebay algorithm. Even if those quotes are low, it would probably be cheaper than driving (within reason, of course). But, there are a lot of unknowns, and how reliable are those shippers. I've also wondered about the "uncrated" aspect, and if the shipper takes precautions with the bike. I've always bought bikes in person, and did my own transportation so I have no idea what to be mindful of.

[JoJo357]

Same Same Eric, i used to hop in the van and Go Go Go. Currently, Gas is cheaper down south, but traveling out West it steadily rises. Unfortunately, this Motorcycle happens to be West of my location. The uncrated shippers i've heard(No personal Experience's), supposedly are Motorcycle minded/riders, and handle with respect and caution. Hopefully, someone will respond here with actual past contact?
Thanx, *M.A.D.*

[Steve Swan]

one man's "reasonable rate" might be an unreasonable rate to another........

fwiw, i contracted week before last with www.Haulbikes.com to bring me a 1967 Royal Enfield Interceptor, delivered door to door, Plymouth, MA to Fort Collins, CO for flat fee of $600. would be roughly a 60+ hour round trip of 4040 miles, 5 hotel nights, 6 days on the road = about $450 for gas, $375 in hotels, $50 for food, not counting wear and tear on my truck with bike in open bed. to "do it" myself at $875+ vs Haulbikes at $600, was an easy decision. Haulbikes picked the bike up 4/28, i expect it here next week. Haulbikes has picked up and delivered several bikes for me the past couple years, their entire operation is PROFESSIONAL.

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[Steve Swan]

i sold an decent 1973 XL 250 Honda to a fellow in Michigan, i forget who he used to freight the bike, the pickup driver with a bad knee and a bypass heart surgery the year before came in a late 90's open bed pickup pulling a 2 wheel trailer, he asked if i knew of a good garage as he was having trouble with his truck. and he had non-motorcycle stuff loose in the back of his truck where he put the bike and loose stuff in the trailer. now for an old Honda dirt bike, maybe barely ok. for a bike i wanted kept safe and secure, no frickin' way. The driver was a nice fellow, a former motorcycle guy himself, he was contracted by some (i forgot name of) internet outfit. as an independent hauler, he told me he had to competitively submit a bid to the internet outfit who then picked the cheapest bid.

[Rollo]

I have used Daily Direct, Haul Bikes and Allied Federal and for me Allied was the best. They have a much more extensive network and delivered on a promised date. Price were competitive but none of them are cheap. Call all of them and talk to them and I think you will see what I mean. Allied run trucks one the coasts and the mid west and transfers bikes to terminals for more timely delivery rather than wait until they have a full load. Much better system than running a couple of trucks all over the country picking up and dropping off as they go. Allied has a huge fleet and trailers to make it happen and have been doing it a long time. The others will get it there eventually but when is the question. Allied give as date specific. Had them go from coast to coast and in between. Just my experience!

Tom (Rollo) Hardy
AMCA#12766

[Green Indian]

I used Haul Bikes in October 2016 for two Indians and both sustained damage. My '42 Chief's handle bar got snapped at the point where the tube meets the casting and the second Indian sustained slight damage to the frame paint because one of their drivers used a tie down that wasn't soft enough and the rubbing motion burnished a large amount of scratch marks into the frame on two sides by the battery. I was able to polish out that damage myself but it should have never happened.

I shipped in October and it was $450 per bike to go from So Cal (Stanton) to Gettysburg PA, which was the cheapest I've ever shipped a motorcycle across country.

I filed a claim with Haul Bikes, even though I had a $500 deductible and after 6 months of persistence they finally cut me a check for $450 which will cover the cost of a good reproduction handlebar. But my original is toast. In someways they did me a favor. The old guy I bought the Chief from had chrome plated those handlebars and during the polishing process someone polished that thin wall metal tubing down to almost nothing in terms of thickness. I'm glad it snapped when it did and not after the bike was restored and I was riding it. Here's the photo I got from Haul Bike the day after they picked up the '42 Chief. It was a sinking feeling to get an email the day after a motorcycle is picked up, let me tell you.

Despite the damage I would use Haul Bikes again; they made good on the damage that was caused during their transporting of my motorcycles. My theory about the polishing of the handlebar for plating is just that, a theory. It might have been the cause; however, when Haul Bikes straps down a motorcycle they really strap that bike down so if any part is weakened, the potential for damage increases.

[Steve Swan]

good to hear experience from others on different shippers. sounds like the person who 'polished' the handlebars too thin created the failure, not the transporter.

Federal picked up my V11 i sold the week before last. 1 minimally English speaking individual and one non-English speaking individual appeared at my residence came up in a large box van (with NO advance notice) loaded with non-motorcycle stuff laying loose in the van. the bike barely fit on their lift. once they took the handlebars, it was out of my hands and in theirs. hasta la vista, my baby.

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[duffeycycles]

Keyboard dropped a bike I shipped,broke only repop part & they made good....Had a customer with Chubbies fat bars....hit a bump & both sides of the bars broke where they were welded...didn't ride much after that

[JoJo357]

Haul Bikes made You one Helluva deal 'Green Indian'! Did you blackmail them?--haha. I also see no one mentioned shipping discounts from H.O.G. or AMA Memberships. Never checked, but does the AMCA have shipping discounts?--if not, they should! Thanks for the input guys. *M.A.D.*
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[D.A.Bagin]

I used Allied a few years ago to ship a bike from Orlando to North Jersey. The bike went for roundabout trip over hill and dale but got to it's destination in perfect order. Was a little concerned about the number of times it was off and on a truck but all was well. Also took about 2 weeks for the bikes vacation.

[painterdale]

Quite a few years ago, maybe close to 10, I used Gold Rush Motorsports out of N.C. to ship one of my bikes from Md. to Ca. and back. The driver's name was Ron White. Easy to remember! This guy treated my bike like it was his own. He happened to be in California before my bike was scheduled to be brought back so he decided to check on it. It was ready to come back so he called me and told me he had it. He was in contact all the time. It took a North American tour on the way back but that was OK. He seemed flattered to be trusted with it although it was with some high end cars. If I remember right, it ran $1500 round trip.
Dale

[Green Indian]

[QUOTE=JoJo357;163379]"Haul Bikes made You one Helluva deal 'Green Indian'! Did you blackmail them?"

That's why I would use them again. They never did say how they broke the handle bar. Was it tied down and snapped due to the stress or was it dropped when the bike was off loaded in York, PA at terminal while it waited for the next cross country truck. I personally think it was dropped. They never did tell me what happened so any structural weakness could have played a part in the handle bar breaking off. The fact that they contacted me right away and stayed in contact through out the process speaks volumes about their customer service. Like I said in my first post, I had a $500 deductible and to their credit they made good on the damage that happened while the motorcycle was entrusted to their care. Not a lot of business operate like that today.

[eldomike]

http://www.keyboardmotorcycleshipping.com/

A good company...the owner designed a rolling rack system just for motorcycles years ago. Once the motorcycle is tied down to the rack it stay on that rack until delivered to the customer..

[JoJo357]

Those racks are similar to the H.D. rack system eldomike. Prior to these, H.D. shipped motorcycles one time, on solid oak skids that were disposed at the dealer's discretion. Now, those racks go back to H.D. for numerous deliveries.
I've had shipments by Boat and Air. On boat deliveries, there was a 3-4 month receive option, as far as when your Motorcycle arrived. The contract stated, whenever they found enough room to accommodate your crate, they put it in the hole. If you're not in any hurry, the cost difference was phenomenal as opposed to a 'right now' delivery! Funny, every time i shipped via Boat, i ended up never waiting more than 2-3 weeks, before they found a spot to park it! I wonder if land shipments would operate this way? This way, they have no hurries, and can juggle routing at their convenance--and save You hundreds in cost. All in All, i can't help thinking about Burt Munro's first trip ordeal to the USA to run the Salts. haha.
*M.A.D.*