Tailgate and motorcycle question

Morning guys, I'm fairly new here and have a question. I have a 2019 off road, and I also have a Yamaha Bolt (530-ish pounds) that I built out in a bobber. The bike fits in the bed of the truck with the rear tire sitting on the tailgate. Do you think it would be a problem for me to drive 7-8 hours with it resting on the tailgate? I don't want to risk breaking anything, or warping the tailgate if thats possible. I'm admittedly ignorant here, and really don't want to risk damaging the tailgate. I know all 530 pounds isn't resting on the back wheel, but I don't know what the tailgate is rated for, and how long.

 

Smart to be cautious! As far as I know, there is no published tailgate rating.
I would park the bike on a board, a sheet of plywood, etc so the rear tire (over the tailgate) and the front tire are on it, helping to reduce the stress on the tailgate. Maybe overkill, but what's the alternative? A tailgate failure would not only cost a ton to fix, but may allow your bike to fall over too.

 

I've done 500lb bikes in a pickup bed, not in a Tacoma. I think a lot of the stress on a tail gate is loading and unloading when the weight of the bike is cantilevered out on the end of the open tailgate.

 

Great suggestion.

A full sheet of plywood (4'X8') cut to 41.5" width and 60.5" length for short bed and 73.7" for long bed.

And a good technique to ramp-up the bike too!

 

I got my sister to use a board to distribute the weight for her snowmobile shes had no issues, gotta work smart!

 

As others said, I'd go with a sheet of plywood that extends out to the length of tailgate. I've seen way too many pictures on here of bent tailgates from heavy motos.

 

Do not skimp with 1/4 in plywood either ... I would cover myself by getting 3/4 in minimum. Plywood is multiple cross-direction layers that may "delaminate" under too much pressure.

 

3/8 would be plenty. but yeah, 1/4 inch? what's the point? lol.

once upon a time, my summer job was making plywood. Was a good learning experience and gave a new respect for my dad who had been doing it for nearly my entire life. Worked layup, so actually placing each layer and the "core" that gets the glue and goes between each piece of veneer right before going in the steam press. Kinda bummed I can't find the old video of Bob Vila visiting the place.


FOUND IT: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HQJW_vA9X4

13:16 for layup, and 13:30 for a blink and you'll miss it shot of my dad feeding core through the glue rollers, lol.

Not that anyone cares... just a fun bit of nostalgia for me.

 

Fun to watch!

Yeah, 3/8" would be enough strength...that 3/4" is heavy AF but very durable. lol

 

Could get a tailgate reinforcement if you have money to burn

 

If you have experience loading a 500lb bike into a pickup, yur good to go. If not, it is best accomplished backing your pickup up so the wheels set at the bottom of a drive way so your bed is lower and having more than just you to load it. It is real easy to lose control moving up a ramp. A bike that big I found it best to have a ramp wide enough to walk up with the bike rather than step up.

I made a front wheel chock out of 2x4's. The base boards were made to be a snug fit between the bed walls. low tech but it worked well rolling the bike directly into the chock.

Last tip, make sure the gas tank is almost empty...Less weight to move.

Go slow, have help and it will be successful.

Post pics of bike, please. 50 yrs of riding and having owned 30+ bikes, I never get tired of looking at them.

 

Someone made this, posted an image of their build ...

 

My 2¢, it’ll be fine just as it is.
I load 2 dirtbikes (about 550lbs of bike and gear) in the bed most weekends for 8 years in my Tacoma.
I also transport my street bike the same way a time or two each year.

The tailgate has not sagged nor crushed in on the inner side.
Realistically, probably about 250lbs are near the end of the on the tailgate.
Heck a few buddies sitting on the end of the gate down is over 300.
I wouldn’t stress it.

 

This is how I transported my 1982 Suzuki GS750T back in 2013 in my SUV days:



Much easier to load/unload.

 

Harbor Freight Special with 3/4" plywood added:

 

300 pounds spread over a foot or more is much different than 250 pounds over the width of a motorcycle tire. And if you ride the machine up you are talking about far more than 250 pounds.

I would not risk this sorta thing happening. It's happened enough there are multiple vendors selling reinforcement panels. It isn't made up.

 

Holy Moly!

Does that bike even weigh 500 lbs?

EDIT: Sorry I skipped your explanation. lol

 

Looks like you just answered the question!