A machine from the stable of Horst Ullrich, like the sidecar driveshaft.



BIG D

dang... there's some engineering going on there!

I was on a run at the weekend in Cork and there was a German WW2 BMW military sidecar outfit on it. It had a differential where we have the bevel drive and a half shaft out to the side car wheel. The two wheels were effectively on the one axle instead of the sidecar wheel being slightly ahead of the motorcycle rear wheel.

92KK

A serious bit of gear. I was going to comment that in a way it was a return to old BMW ideas with the shaft going to the chair, but I see you've mentioned it. I would how much road speed is lost with that extra grunt?

There's something about sidecars that seems to run the whole gamut of creative urges....

92KK K100LT 193214 wrote:I was on a run at the weekend in Cork and there was a German WW2 BMW military sidecar outfit on it. It had a differential where we have the bevel drive and a half shaft out to the side car wheel. The two wheels were effectively on the one axle instead of the sidecar wheel being slightly ahead of the motorcycle rear wheel.
92KK

Sounds like a Ural to me! We have 'em on the floor alongside the BMWs. They are arcahic throwbacks, but they're making a good effort with Keihin carbies, Brembo brakes, Bosch and other ancillaries.

The Urals don't have a driven sidecar wheel these days. I went to a test ride session with some of the Glen Innes Ulysses types the other week.



With an effective touring speed of 85-90kph, they are really only suitable for the back roads and lanes these days. I found them fun to ride, but very slow and with a short wheel base, quite twitchy in the front end. Not sure what they'd be like 'at speed', but Jon Taylor, the importer here in the New England at Kentucky, acknowledged they are not designed for speed work.



Kinda fun though and the Brembos work well. They've been bored out to 750 and the carbs are good too.

Sean...mumbling on and should be out there riding.

They do offer a 2WD model in the the US called the 'Gear Up'. The North American distributor is just up the road from Seattle. They're good for 90 km/h cruising all day on secondary roads, but are a bit of a strain on the 'interstate' highway system. Those who buy 'em love 'em. We also offer a 'jet up' kit for after engine run-in which uncorks the exhaust and richens the carbie mixture. One bloke goes 'muddin' with his every weekend.

http://www.imz-ural.com/2012-ural-gear-up/

Interesting. There would also appear to be a fairly significant price difference between the US and here. ( Depending on how much rego etc costs there).
So, what exactly do you do, TWB/GITH?
Sean.

I remember that the MT10 side valve had the sidecar drive and as you guys have mentioned was basicaly a 1942 spec bike just missing a MG40 gun and yes great down country lanes or off road but not serious high speed highway use.

Fun all the same I love them.



BIG D

Yeah, I love old twins...flat ones, parallel ones...L shaped ones. I have a long and silly history of Triumph and Norton and Ducati ownership. My K bike is about as modern a bike as I've every owned I think!

I knew a guy who bought 2 urals in the early 80s. one had a side car and one didnt. We all laughed at him. Not because he got the bikes. We just laughed at him. No idea if he still has them. He said they were the same as was built in the 40's. No idea if that was true.

In the 80's they pretty much WERE the same...if not actually THE same...salvaged.
You could buy a 650 for $650.
Ah, those were the days.

And you got a $65 motorcycle

Well...there's that.

I met a bloke at the Bretti rally who runs the ural club rally in weabonga got invited and went for years till the old girl came off the road, he had a sidecar and a bike used the same plate for both, both painted the same and the poor coppers knew no different, he was laughing at them then. coppers never knew where or how to tell them apart

I had a mate who did the same thing! Got away with it for years...then got all silly and joined a 1%er club and called himself Cozzack. Seemed a bit silly after he sold them and got a Hardly Driveable. The Dnepr may have gone faster.

Saxon7 wrote:Interesting. There would also appear to be a fairly significant price difference between the US and here. ( Depending on how much rego etc costs there).
So, what exactly do you do, TWB/GITH?
Sean.

US price on an out the door K1600GTL is about $27000. Australian price for the very same is $39000. And our dollar is worth about $1.04 to theirs, amongst other darker, deeper reasons. Yes, a difference alright! The US market is a major one, unlike our relatively puny market. BMWNA negotiate prices on motorbikes, parts and accessories well in advance and sell about +/-20,000 bikes a year compared to Aus/NZ at about +/-2,000 combined. That explains some of it.

I work in spares at a large BMW/Ural and formerly Husky dealership near Tacoma, Washington, temporarily. I used to work here years ago and came back for a Summer stint.

The only thing I covet on a Ur(in)al is the reverse gear.

Paul.

What about the shovel? They come with a very nice shovel.

I know they are not to everyones taste but I feel biking is better of for having diverse machines like that, I know an old farmer who has an early model with a plank where the chair was to carry bales of straw to a few beast's he has over the hills, the stuff he runs it on the tax man would have a fit he uses all sorts of concoctions, and I must admit I have considered once or twice getting rid of the old Landrover and using one when I go shooting more fun

I once had one of these in the 70's cracking little machine it was.

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Now if I could find one of these beasts what fun I would have.

Not that long ago I was playing with a 650 Dnepr outfit, great fun with the reverse gear, shovel and machine gun mount, we had it painted in German desert group colours but sadly could not licence it for road use as there were no registration documents or vin plate. We could have registered it as a new machine but the chair was on the wrong side so would not be allowed over here. "Flying the chair" is something I can heartily recommend.

I had an MZ 251 for a while when I lived in Leipzig. It was a surprisingly competent motorcycle! Sadly it was stolen in Prague.
Don't get me wrong...I like all kinds of bikes and I like the Ural outfits.....They are are fun and I enjoy the seat of your pants riding, like my old Triumph...but realistically they are not up to serious touring on Australian roads and distances. For an outfit and travelling here you really need something with a bit of speed and grunt....say, like a K bike.

I'm watching a blog by a bloke called Sven Altmann who is riding a Ural outfit from Dresden to wherever....he has just done a complete gearbox and drive train rebuild in Bucharest....Even the casing had a crack in it.
Sean.

Found the pic.