Recommend an all weather motorcycle cover.
November 28, 2010 6:27 AM Subscribe
What is your recommendation for an all weather, including winter, motorcycle cover?
So, the wife and I are downsizing and have purchased a great little rebuilt cottage on a hill overlooking the lake... this postage size lot does NOT have room for a garage, in fact putting a small shed on it will be next to impossible due to the 40 degree slope of the property. I'm left with two choices, pay $50 a month to have indoor storage for the Harley (2 miles to the nearest storage facility), or keep it on the cement slab off the driveway and cover it (nope, there's not room on the slab for a shed, it's only about 4 feet wide).
Keeping it in storage is less than ideal, it would mean driving two miles to get it when I want to ride, which would eliminate a lot of the spontaneous quick trips.
Covering it has the huge disadvantage of dealing with moisture issues, especially during the long Michigan winter when I might not ride it for a couple of months at a stretch.
Before I go the storage route, does anyone have a recommendation for a quality cover that would not contribute to deterioration due to moisture?
(if it makes a difference, the bike is a HD 883 Sportster)
So, the wife and I are downsizing and have purchased a great little rebuilt cottage on a hill overlooking the lake... this postage size lot does NOT have room for a garage, in fact putting a small shed on it will be next to impossible due to the 40 degree slope of the property. I'm left with two choices, pay $50 a month to have indoor storage for the Harley (2 miles to the nearest storage facility), or keep it on the cement slab off the driveway and cover it (nope, there's not room on the slab for a shed, it's only about 4 feet wide).
Keeping it in storage is less than ideal, it would mean driving two miles to get it when I want to ride, which would eliminate a lot of the spontaneous quick trips.
Covering it has the huge disadvantage of dealing with moisture issues, especially during the long Michigan winter when I might not ride it for a couple of months at a stretch.
Before I go the storage route, does anyone have a recommendation for a quality cover that would not contribute to deterioration due to moisture?
(if it makes a difference, the bike is a HD 883 Sportster)
Response by poster: I'm not too worried about the wind, there's significant woods around the property to dampen the wind at the house, and the bike weighs nearly 600 lbs. Believe it or not, there's really not room on this lot for even a small structure... the house takes up most of the space, and the required setback from the lot lines keeps me from building an outbuilding. This was an old, oddly platted lake community....originally meant for cottages.
posted by HuronBob at 7:06 AM on November 28, 2010
posted by HuronBob at 7:06 AM on November 28, 2010
I've had this conversation with a number of grizzled moto-heads over the last couple of years, and the consistent theme has been:
Doesn't matter what cover you buy, you will have moisture issues.
It's simply not possible to keep the bike bone-dry, the way you could in an indoor environment. Breathable covers don't help much when you've got snow/ice/sleet/rain coming down for hours/days/weeks on end.
My SV650 sits outside under a cover in NYC, and the winters are pretty tough on the chrome bits - 3 winters have resulted in an accumulation of rust pits on the front forks. I'm (somewhat) ok with that because it's a city bike, and it's ok if it takes some abuse.
How often are you really planning on riding it this winter? If it's a nice bike, I'd seriously consider paying the money to keep it in good shape. The extra few minutes of driving aren't much when you consider that you'll probably spend 30 minutes replacing the battery & checking everything before going for a ride anyways.
posted by swngnmonk at 8:56 AM on November 28, 2010
Doesn't matter what cover you buy, you will have moisture issues.
It's simply not possible to keep the bike bone-dry, the way you could in an indoor environment. Breathable covers don't help much when you've got snow/ice/sleet/rain coming down for hours/days/weeks on end.
My SV650 sits outside under a cover in NYC, and the winters are pretty tough on the chrome bits - 3 winters have resulted in an accumulation of rust pits on the front forks. I'm (somewhat) ok with that because it's a city bike, and it's ok if it takes some abuse.
How often are you really planning on riding it this winter? If it's a nice bike, I'd seriously consider paying the money to keep it in good shape. The extra few minutes of driving aren't much when you consider that you'll probably spend 30 minutes replacing the battery & checking everything before going for a ride anyways.
posted by swngnmonk at 8:56 AM on November 28, 2010
They do make bag shelters for bikes like this one which include a bag of dessicant to help with moisture. Depending on where it is, this might be good.
posted by Thistledown at 10:12 AM on November 28, 2010
posted by Thistledown at 10:12 AM on November 28, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
When I last had to store a bike outside, I bought one like this. Other than the afore-mentioned blowing over incident, it was fine, with no moisture problems. Still, it's a hassle and not really a great solution.
posted by Forktine at 7:00 AM on November 28, 2010