I've got my west-to-east trip planned out and yesterday, I set out to arrange the shipping of the bike. Last year, Haulbikes shipped my bike from HD in Oakland to HD in NH for $575, but I was without my bike for a good month or longer. Hey, it was part of the price I had to pay. I called them yesterday to arrange shipping again and was told it would take 10-12 weeks for the bike to get there! Obviously, I'm not going to be without my bike for that long...not an option.
After doing some research here, I called a few places and checked out some places on the web. I just booked transportation with Federal Motorcycle Transport from MA to OR. It's a little more pricey at $734, but I guess it could have been worse. They allow the saddle bags and tourpack to be fully packed which is a positive for me. All they require is for the gas to be drained(not completely). The best thing is that I will only be without the bike for about 1-1/2 - 2 weeks max...that is if everything goes as planned. Just wanted to pass this on as this seems to be a pretty good alternative. For a little bit, I was considering just riding the bike to OR vs shipping, but time constraints do not allow.

 

In all my years of riding and touring, I've never shipped my bike.
It's not that I'm opposed to doing it, I've just never had a need to.

Looking back, however, I should have done that when I lost a transmission near Houston, TX.
I couldn't locate a new transmission there so I flew back to Detroit, picked up the parts and flew back to Houston and fixed (with a lot of help from my friends) my bike.

For the western (south and north) trips we take, I usually trailer to a central location, store the truck and trailer, and ride the bike(s) and return to the truck for the ride home.

Fuel, though expensive, is cheaper than shipping the bike and flying.
Time is not a real issue for me, and if I was, I'd consider the shipping and flying too.

 

Thanks for posting this. I used Haulbike in 2012 and it took 5 weeks to go from Atlanta to Seattle. I was going to use them this year also but I may be going with FMT. 10-12 weeks...thats crazy!

 

"They allow the saddle bags and tourpack to be fully packed which is a positive for me. "

I checked out their website, and it says "We also ask that you remove any of your belongings from the saddlebags prior to shipping."

Do they make exceptions if you call ahead and arrange this?
Shipping the bike with the bags packed would make things a lot easier!

 

Even if the shipping were free, I wouldn't give my bike up for 10-12 weeks. I don't think 10-12 weeks is their norm, I think it's just a time of high volume for them. No matter how you slice it, that time-frame is way too long.

 

I checked out their website, and it says "We also ask that you remove any of your belongings from the saddlebags prior to shipping."

Do they make exceptions if you call ahead and arrange this?
Shipping the bike with the bags packed would make things a lot easier![/QUOTE]



I asked this specifically during my initial conversation with them. They said yes, it is permissible to fully pack the saddle bags and tour pack as long as they are lockable. After reading your post here, I called again and got the info confirmed again. In todays conversation, the woman told me to have the delivery people call her directly at the time of pick up if there were any problems or questions regarding this. This reassured me. It will certainly make it easier for me to travel to my site of departure this way.

 

Maybe he has another bike to ride while this one is being shipped?

 

I do have a second bike to ride, but still would not part with a bike for shipment much more than 4 weeks. Ten-12 weeks, not even a consideration. Man, do I wish I could ride today! Beautiful day here!

 

This is exactly the info I was searching for (god I love this place) I live in N. Idaho about 30 miles south of Canada, so early spring rides for me are not possible due to weather. Our plan for 2016 is to ship the bike to Florida and make our way home from there. Time won't really be an issue for the shipping, but more like the storage on the other end when the bike gets there ahead of us. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

 

This is an old thread, but glad it helped. I used Federal Transport last year(this thread) and just used them again a couple of weeks ago for anither cross country trip. It actually cost less this year due to lower gas prices. You can have your bike picked up at home or at a Harley dealer and have it delivered to a residence or a Harley dealer. The dealer may or may not charge a small fee for accepting the bike- $30 possibly. Shipping is a great way to go if there are time contraints, weather concerns, etc. Good luck!