Hi all,

I’m considering purchasing a freewheeler and wondered if anyone has any experience of it driving up pavement curbs? Can it? Does anyone know if it can reverse up them as believe the reverse gear is rather weak?

Reason on I ask is on occasion to get on my drive when other family members are home I have to mount the curb, wondering if this was a total stumbling block before I get to excited.

Many thanks

 

How tall is the curb? They say you should not reverse more than 10 seconds. Up hill, with a passenger up hill. Start and stop in short bursts.

Dont let the weak reverse ruin the excitement. Work around it. I was not happy at all that I had to go on 3 wheels. But let me tell ya. These Freewheelers are a ton of fun.

 

Fabricate a small plywood ramp, light weight and easy storage. Paint with cheap exterior paint, store behind shed or garage

 

Reverse won't handle that and more than likely you will drag the mufflers or frame if try going forward over the curb.

 

The ramp idea is the best, but if you must go over a curb, best chance of success is to hit is at an angle. We have a bit of a curb entering the driveway. Both Freewheeler and Tri Glide will drag the mufflers if I don’t hit it at an angle. We always try to limit the use of reverse as much as possible, but I have backed into the driveway on my TG by hitting it at an angle.

The FW is a lot of fun. Comparing the two, the TG is more like a Cadillac where the FW is more like sports car. It feels lighter and more responsive. I feel like I want to hang of the side and drift it through corners.

 

If the curb isn't terribly tall you can ride forward over it. the Wife has done it on hers on at least 2 occasions. I wouldn't try reverse against the curb, it's weak at best. One thing to watch for is driving off the curb, as in back onto the asphalt. Once the rear tire drops your slip-ons will hit.

 

How tall is your curb? I just measured my American curb and it's over 6" tall.

According to the Specs on Harley's web site the Freewheeler has 4.9" of ground clearance.

From looking at a side shot photo the underside of the bike and the mufflers are all about the same height. If your curb is over 5" tall you are going to be dragging the underside going up and the tail pipes going off if you don't have a ramp.

 

Sometimes you can go over it at a bit of an angle, it'll make the transition less sharp, less chance of dragging anything. Too much of an angle though and the front tire may slip and you won't be able to do it. Hold the bars firmly if you try that. Definitely do NOT use the "reverse assist."

 

Thanks all for the replies. My curb is 4 inches high, having a look at options I think I will buy a rubber ramp or make one myself, I have slowly talked myself out of the purchase since March but after having a test drive I definitely think it’s a lot of fun, especially for an relatively inexperienced rider. Hopefully a ramp will be nice and easy.

 

get some cold patch at Lowes or Home depot and reconfigure the curb to your liking, definetly do not rely on the reverse motor to back up a hill. They are not very well designed . I'm kinda kidding on the cold patch, but if you live some place where you can get away with it, go for it!!. just my warped 2 cents.