Motorcycle shipping is a process that can be from a couple of hours to days or even weeks and months long, which means that you need to make sure that your motorcycle is perfectly secured during the transportation process so it doesn’t get damaged.
Organizing motorcycle transportation to a new location demands preparation where your motorcycle needs to be protected with safety equipment to be shipped effectively and safely. The best way to protect your bike during the transportation is to secure it in a crate.
So how do you crate a motorcycle? As a general rule, you need to get basic materials such as oversized wood pallets, plywood of different dimensions, hammers, and nails, screws, fastening belts, carriage bolts. These materials are required for making crates, and the most important thing is to build a perfect crate for your bike.
Further in this article, we will show you step by step guide on how to crate your motorcycle correctly, so you will know everything to make your favorite bike arrive at the desired location in one piece and without any damage. Stay with us to learn more.
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The Things You Need to Know Before Creating Your Motorcycle Crate
You need to consider a couple of steps before you start creating your bike. The first thing you need to do is talk with the company you intend to ship your motorcycle to and tell them your crating ideas. Since there are many shipping companies, each one of them has its requirements that may be different from another company’s requirements.
It can happen that you build your motorcycle shipping crate without previously talking to the shipping company, and you might build it the wrong way, which means that you will either have to change the company or build the crate once again, which is both time and money consuming process.
We will give you a couple of questions you should ask the company before making the crate:
- Do you need to drain all the fuel from your motorcycle before transportation?
- Do you need to disconnect the battery before you ship the bike?
- Do you need to take off the mirrors and handlebars?
- Are there any insurance options, and what are the options?
- What wood type can you use to build your crate if you ship your motorcycle internationally?
After you get the answers to these questions, you should do a few other things before you put your motorcycle on the crate:
- You need to check your motorcycle visually, inspect if there are any scratches or damages, and take photos of your entire bike to compare how it looked before and how it looks once it arrived at the destination.
- Wash your motorcycle, and this especially goes if you ship your motorcycle internationally.
- Check the motorcycle’s battery and tire pressure.
- Disconnect the alarm.
- Make sure that there is no more than a quarter of the fuel left inside the tank before creating it.
- Check for any loose accessories and make sure there are no any because they could do some kind of damage during transportation.
The Benefits of Using a Crate for Shipping Your Motorcycle
A motorcycle crate is one of the best ways to protect your motorcycle during transportation, and building a high-quality one will undoubtedly ensure that your motorcycle arrives at the destination in one piece and without any damage. Building your own crate is not something complicated to do, and it will save you a lot of money, and a great thing about it is that you only need a couple of basic materials like wood, nails, a hammer, and so.
You also need to be aware that purchased and rented crates won’t necessarily be 100% perfect for your motorcycle. This is why many riders decide to make their own crates that are perfect for the dimensions of their motorcycles.
There are many benefits of making your crate, and here are some of the best:
- The transportation process will be much easier
- Stabilizes your motorcycle so it cant move during transportation
- Process your motorcycle from weather conditions such as rain, wind, snow
- Protects your bike from “jumping” around in case of bumpy roads and similar
What Material Will You Need to Build a Crate?
Before buying the items and materials needed to make your crate, you need to measure your bike’s width, length, height, and weight. With that being said, making a crate doesn’t need any special items but very basic things that we will make a list of so that you find it handy when purchasing them.
Note: Write the motorcycle measurements on a piece of paper or on your mobile phone so they are any at all times, and you can consult them when needed most.
Here is the list of things you will need:
- 4 2x4s cut to the width of the pallet
- 2 2x4s cut to the length of the pallet
- 4 pieces of ¼” or ½” plywood cut to the size of the pallet
- 2 pieces of ¼” or ½” plywood cut to the width of the pallet
- Wingnuts
- Carriage bolts
- Hammer and nails
- Fastening belts
- Table saw (if you plan to cut the wood on your own)
- Wood screws
- Oversized wood pallet
How Do You Build the Crate?
If you decide to build a crate on your own, you need to know that safety is the most important element in the process of making the crate, and also, you need to make a crate that will protect your motorcycle at all costs.
Tip: Wear your safety goggles and protective equipment while building your crate, and make sure if you are building a crate in a garage or some similar space that the workspace you are making the crate is well ventilated and you have enough light.
So, let’s start with the process:
Step 1: Prepare the Pallet
The first thing you need to do is place the oversized pallet on the ground. Take the plywood and put it on the overtop of the pallet. Make sure not to leave much overhang and use screws to fasten the plywood to the pallet.
Step 2: Place your Motorcycle
In this step, you need to put your motorcycle on the plywood so the motorcycle stands up.
Step 3: Attach the Shorter 2x4s
Take shorter 2x4s and attach them to every corner of the plywood that you previously attached to the pallet. You need to place the 2x4s vertically and use screws to secure them.
Step 4: Connect Plywood
Make the sides of the crate by connecting the plywood to the 2x4s. You will need to use a drilled screw and put it every three feet. You will also need to secure the 2x4s with wingnuts and carriage bolts at the corner. After completing all of these, you should now have a cube.
Step 5: Position Your Motorcycle
You need to make your motorcycle stable, secure, and not moving around. Use fastening belts to secure your bike to the bottom of the crate and its sides. By doing so, you stop it from moving while it is being shipped. You need to fasten the belts tightly because that way, your motorcycle won’t move around in case of hitting some bumps on the road.
Step 6: Attach the Longer 2x4s
In this step, you will create a frame, and you will do it by fastening the longer 2x4s on the top of the crate.
Step 7: Make the Top of the Crate
Take the last piece of plywood and use it to create the top of your crate. Once you position the plywood on the top, you must secure it with screws.
Step 8: Place a Warning Sign on the Crate
You need to secure your motorcycle as much as you can, and placing a warning sign such as “FRAGILE” on a crate will warn that this shipping needs to be handled with care.
What Is the Cost of Making a Crate?
Buying a crate is pretty expensive, and it can cost you from 500$-1000$ while renting a crate can range from 300$-400$, which means that you can save a lot of money by creating your own crate. The price of creating your crate is 200$-250$, which means that you will save more than double than buying price.
However, you need to know that making your crate out of wood is a process that takes a lot of time, and it can be a little complicated, especially if you are first time dealing with this kind of task. That is why you should also calculate the hours you will spend on creating the crate and decide if it is the right decision to DIY the crate or you should buy or rent the crate.
Who Can You Choose For Picking a Crate?
If you figure out that creating the crate on your own can be a job too difficult for you to perform, you can hire a company that will do it for you. Federal Motorcycle Transport is one of the motorcycle shippers specializing in motorcycle shipping and is one of the best in that field. They will give you the best service and take care of your motorcycle.
They ship more than 5000 motorcycles every year in the US, which means that they are very reliable, and you can be sure that your motorcycle will be in good hands.
Is Motorcycle Shipping Expensive?
If you decide to ship your motorcycle with Federal Motorcycle Transport, there are a few options that offer you discounts, such as discounts for members of the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA), eBay customers, and members of the Harley Owners Group (HOG).
If you want to know The Cost of Motorcycle Shipping and the Cheapest Options, click this link to find more.
Final Thoughts
The safety of your motorcycle and getting it from one location to another should be your top priority when shipping it. This means that other than choosing a great shipping company, you need to have a perfectly suited and created motorcycle crate that is responsible for your motorcycle’s safety and security.