Saddlebags or luggage rack

[shamer]

I went the cheap route earlier this summer & spent less than $100 on saddlebags & sissy bar luggage off of eBay. I spent about $100 on the luggage rack/sissy bar combo that was s'posed to be for my bike but I think it was for a different year as I had to build little brackets to extend a few inches on the rear mount. Let me just say, you get what you pay for when it comes to quality & eBay luggage BUT they worked adequately for me - just be sure you willing to apply liberal amounts of mink oil!

Here's some pics from my trip back in July:

Here are the bags & rack up close:

 

[wharrah]

great minds must think alike...

great minds must think alike...

wow... your bike is set up a lot like mine...! Nice taste!

and, when it comes to the question of 'saddlebags or luggage rack', I say... why not do both??

 

[shamer]

Thanks, Wayne! Yours looks darn sharp as well. Are those badges vintage? (I just scored a set of late '60s badges that I'm adding to my tank this winter during it's repainting).

Anyway, IMHO you almost need both rack & saddlebags if you're doing any seriously long trips.

For this trip I had clothing for 2 weeks, rain gear, tools, sleeping bag, sleeping roll, a tent (the one in the background of that second shot), and even a stash of food & a quart of oil! But a sizable chunk of real estate was dedicated to my camera gear (digital SLR, tripod, 3 lenses, etc.) as well. It made for quite change in the feel of the bike at first, but I got used to it pretty quick & after a few hundred miles I forgot how it felt before it was loaded. I have to say that despite the fact that I went cheap, everything held up pretty well over the nearly 2000 miles I rode - especially considering I got caught in some of the worst rain I'd seen in quite a while.

The page linked below shows the sissybar bag that you see in the first pic of my post above. I picked it up for $35 off of ebay (brand new!). It's the one on top left with the detachable duffel. I wasn't terribly impressed with either the way it looked or the quality of the stitching - but at $35 it was no brainer for a penny pincher like me:

http://www.jpcycles.com/catalog/2006MetricCatalog/0456.html



Later!

Shawn

 

[ShirleySerious]

I ordered a saddlebag from motodirectusa and it should arrive tomorrow. Anyone had any good experiences with that company? The bags seemed like a real bargain, but lets hope it fits my bike alright.

 

[Planecrazy]

I ordered a saddlebag from motodirectusa and it should arrive tomorrow. Anyone had any good experiences with that company? The bags seemed like a real bargain, but lets hope it fits my bike alright.

Several of us have had VERY positive experiences with MotodirectUSA, and most importantly the people there seem to REALLY be concerned with customer satisfaction and service. I think you'll be pleased. I bought a magnetic EXL tri-bag from them, and I've been very happy with it to date.

By the way, I'm serious, and don't call me Shirley!:lol:;-)

Regards,

 

[ShirleySerious]

Several of us have had VERY positive experiences with MotodirectUSA, and most importantly the people there seem to REALLY be concerned with customer satisfaction and service. I think you'll be pleased. I bought a magnetic EXL tri-bag from them, and I've been very happy with it to date.

By the way, I'm serious, and don't call me Shirley!:lol:;-)

Regards,

Whoa there really are a lot of members in the area!:shock:

Yep, that's where my handle comes from. Some people think my name is Shirley, but I don't know any guys named Shirley!

No gripes about Motodirectusa yet, but they charge a lot for shipping for something that ships in one day.

 

[Nerobro]

In that PM I mentioend we have a few members around here. 1980GS1000E, FirstTimer, Skreemer, Rab1dw0lf, Blender, JoeNardy, Planecrazy, Plasterdog, and I are all within 40miles of chicago.

 

[Pharkmeh]

wow... your bike is set up a lot like mine...! Nice taste!

and, when it comes to the question of 'saddlebags or luggage rack', I say... why not do both??

Geebuz... thats a really nice lookin bike m8...

I love the 1000S ... but I know the missus would prefer the ride on that....:-s

ohhh my... I feel a 2nd bike comin.....:shock:

thx fur da pics guyz


Phark

 

[Planecrazy]

Whoa there really are a lot of members in the area!:shock:

Yep, that's where my handle comes from. Some people think my name is Shirley, but I don't know any guys named Shirley!

No gripes about Motodirectusa yet, but they charge a lot for shipping for something that ships in one day.

I don't recall what I paid for shipping, but MotodirectUSA didn't have their own website at the time (they sold everything through Ebay) and I think the shipping charge was "in line" with what I would have expected. I DO remember being impressed that they shipped so quickly - that was a definite plus!

By the way, I thought you were a girl and never questioned the screen name until I saw your avatar ... then it became obvious (to me, anyway)! If you haven't already checked out the "Galena" thread you ought to check it out and maybe join us for what will be a very nice weekend of riding and hanging out! Greg probably mentioned it in his PM.

Regards,

 

[MissFabulous]

Check out these guys
http://motodirectusa.com/
Their prices are good. I'm about to try them for a jacket. If I like their product, they'll get a whole lot of business from me.

Let us know how it goes with them. They have a ton of dirt cheap gear! Hope you post something to the Buyer's Links section - thanks!

 

[usin13]

My $.02

My $.02

I bought these from Motodirect for my 77 750 http://stores.skipjack.com/Moto-DirectUSA/Detail.bok?no=46 Granted I've only had them for a little over a month, but they still look good, and motodirect was real prompt with the shipping. I would order from them again. I don't know how quality they are as I have nothing to compare them too, however, I will not hesitate to spray them liberally with a leather protector. So far they have held their shape though.

 

[ShirleySerious]

I got my saddlebags today and I must say, I'm a little disappointed.:|

Someone mentioned it's like cardboard, and it is. I guess you have to break it in, but this stuff is really stiff. Second, they didn't give instructions on how to install it, which looks difficult already because I couldn't manage to make it fit right (my seat opens up to the left). I might be able to solve that in the meantime, but I'll have to see.

 

[Nerobro]

They're stiff for a reason. That stops them from flopping into the wheels, chain, shocks.. etc.

I don't like the "cruiser style" bags for several reasons... this is one of them The sport style bags go over the seat. Just throw the bags over the seat and things should work better for you. Remember you have a E not a L

 

[ShirleySerious]

I was hoping they would fit because it says they "fit almost all bike" there on the site. I didn't think mine would be an exception. I didn't want to throw them over the seat because I have passengers sometimes and it seems like they'd be easy for someone to steal. I'd rather have some hard bags that fit better but that's not really in the budget for now.:|

 

[Jethro]

Yeah, stiff bags are good. You want them to hold thier shape weather they are full or empty. Having the weight shift around while you are riding is a bad thing. I actually bought mine specifically becasue they have hard plastic liners inside, keeping the shape. Have I mentioned I love my Cortech stuff?

 

[ShirleySerious]

I couldn't find anything on their site that would fit my bike, so I guess I'm just gonna return it. Does anyone with my kind of bike (GS550E or with a side opening seat) know what will fit the bike without spending a pretty penny?

 

[Jethro]

I couldn't find anything on their site that would fit my bike, so I guess I'm just gonna return it. Does anyone with my kind of bike (GS550E or with a side opening seat) know what will fit the bike without spending a pretty penny?

Are you trying to get bags that don't have straps over the seat so you can open the seat? If so, you will need to buy hardbags for sure.

The Cortech bags I have shown above come off in about 10 seconds, it takes me longer to unlatch the seat then to remove the bags.

 

[ShirleySerious]

Damn, I guess my bike doesn't give me too many options. A quick google search for "GS550E hardbags" turns up nothing, so I guess saddlebags are out of the question. Those bags Jethro has look nice, but impede passenger space and are out of my price range.

 

[runewolf]

My bags are similar to the moto-direct one posted above... I have mine under my seat GS750E... I had to cut a notch in the leather to accomadate the seat hinge and add a small wedge of wood under the strap in the middle to keep the bags off my pipes, but I've had them for a year now and it has worked. I'm looking for another set that has a thinner width strap so I would not have to cut the leather and may rig up a bar to keep the bags away from the side of my bike. Just haven't really needed to yet.