Just wondering what preferences people have for bike position and tie-downs when trailering their bikes - especially for long distances.

I put the Iron in the trailer this afternoon to see how it fit, and found that an extra inch of trailer length wouldn't go astray! 

So the first question is whether to keep the bike aligned and have to then secure the gate by some other means, or to put the bike on an angle instead. Does it really matter how the bike is positioned, or does it just come down to preference? (I'm thinking in particular about issues with tying it down, depending on how the bike is positioned.)

As for tying it down, the plan is to have two straps for the front forks, and one each side attached to the subframe. I may even throw in an extra strap or two just for peace of mind, given the time and distance involved.

Unlike other bikes I've trailered before, this is one I actually care about keeping in the very best condition possible, hence the naive paranoia! :-)

So, any comments or advice - or corrections - would be appreciated.

I got a mate (who trailers lots of bikes) to do mine. All I remember was he used 4 ropes and 2 straps. The straps were up the front on the handles bars (its was a street bob btw)...and that's about how much attention I paid His advice was to put rags on anything the straps/ropes would touch and to have someone sitting on the bike (to compress the shockers) when tying it down. We had the bike at an angle btw, to get the gate closed, but I've seen him put boards underneath when using a smaller trailer.
He stopped once on a two hour drive...personally I would have stopped to check the ropes everytime I hit a big bump...lol.

I moved a bike in a box trailer years ago interstate by modifying the trailer cause it was short with the bike straight and in the centre.

2 lenghts of angle iron bolted to the headboard of the trailer and the floor on a 45 degree angle to stop the front wheel from slipping and straps from the bars to the trailer. One trick is to block the forks with a chunk of wood to prevent the forks from being compressed all the way down. Saves your springs and fork seals.

With the tailgate off, (mine came off) Bolt 2 lenghts of agle iron to the floor for the back wheel. On the rear I just wrapped a rope around the angle iron and rear tyre. Seen some bend the frame of their dirt bike by strapping high and compressing the rear suspension.

I was more worried about the bike than the trailer so I wasn't worried about drilling some holes in the trailer. Afterwards the angle iron can come off and the bolts stayed to fill the holes.

I have u loops welded into the checker plate floor of my trail in the 4 corners where they don't get in the way of using it as a normal trailer and I use a motorbike specific front ratchet tie down set (costs a bit and they won't fit all types of bars) but the advantage is they have 2 fabric loops that slip over the bars so the bars won't turn sideways and you don't need to use channel on the front wheel to stop it turning. My trailer is 8 foot by 5 foot so I don't have to worry about length. At the rear I use a pair of tie downs to stop the back moving sideways.

My front one looks like the ones linked below, some come with the ratchet part attached and others you get the ratches as another buy.

http://lockitt.com/AccessTieDown1.htm#canyondancer

 The day has pretty much arrived (Friday), so here goes...

 

After some minor dramas with the ramp (don't ask!), I got the bike up on the trailer and picked up the rear wheel and shoved it around the get the front wheel into the corner. This gave sufficient clearance to be able to close the gate, and I then tied it down as per the photo. I think it should do the job. The front straps are cinched as tight as possible, and then likewise with the single strap on the rear wheel, with two more straps on the high side and one on the low side. It shouldn't go anywhere. I cut up an old towel to cover all rub points, just in case.

Needless to say, I'll be stopping frequently on the drive down to Canberra to check the straps - and the wheel bearings too, just to be safe! There's no substitute for paranoia when you're transporting your baby that sort of distance in the back of a trailer.

Perfect run to Canberra on the weekend. One strap needed a minor retension around the halfway point, but otherwise they stayed nice and tight the whole way. No damage, no issues, no worries.

7x4 box trailer, fitted eye bolts to floor also alum checker plate. Added tool box to the front. Use the spare tyre for a stopper. Always put block of timber under frame to stop suspension being stressed by tie downs. Prob done 9000km in this trailer all good so far ... had one strap tear but always use six.

I've got a 7x4 trailer, but the iron is about an inch too long to have the gate up. I had to pick it up at the rear and pivot to get it fully into the corner, which made putting anything else under it too much of a challenge. In addition to the straps you can see, there was another one around the rear wheel. The strap that loosened slightly was the long one on the left at the front. It only needed one click on the ratchet to get it fully tensioned again.

 evil love your gtr in the back ground man that brings back some memories.

It's getting a bigger engine 666 ... going from 308 to 350.