Motorcyclists, Check In Here!

[Tom B]

On 7/28/2022 at 5:43 PM, gregintenn said:

So the guys on the Harley forum don’t think this bag setup is safe. They say too much weight too high and behind the rear axle. What say you guys?

Well, I have taken trips on my Ultra with a large tank bag on top of the tourpack, it looked similar. Didnt notice much of a difference.  Make sure you load up that front bag with lots of weight to counteract the rear-LOL.

[Tom B]

On 7/28/2022 at 5:43 PM, gregintenn said:

So the guys on the Harley forum don’t think this bag setup is safe. They say too much weight too high and behind the rear axle. What say you guys?

 And unless I missed something about a passenger, I always use a big backpack tied right behind me on the passenger seat to hold more stuff. Most of my long trips I have taken alone, so I had plenty of room for anything I wanted to bring.

Edited July 31, 2022 by Tom B

[gregintenn]

Just now, Tom B said:

 And unless I missed something about a passenger, I always use a big backpack tied right behind me on the passenger seat to hold more stuff

Wife is the passenger. Otherwise, I’d just put what I need in my pants pocket.

[Tom B]

I hear ya. Those dang hair dryers and make up bags take up too much room.

[gregintenn]

2 minutes ago, Tom B said:

I hear ya. Those dang hair dryers and make up bags take up too much room.

If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy!

[OldIronFan]

On 7/28/2022 at 4:43 PM, gregintenn said:

So the guys on the Harley forum don’t think this bag setup is safe. They say too much weight too high and behind the rear axle. What say you guys?

I would not ride it. Looks uncomfortable and awkward. Hard to say how it will behave in the wind, especially a crosswind fully loaded.

If you have a way to ditch the low (small) swing arm bag and get traditional side bags that is the route I would go. Then lower the rear bag to seat height as a back rest. I would loose the handle bar bag as well or at least scale it significantly down. Looks like way too much weight to have on your suspension and bars unless you have your down pillows stuffed in there.

The above setup was 9 to 10 days including camping gear, extra cold weather gear, and rain gear. I over packed and should have left the tank bag at home. The passenger bag is simply a cover to hold a small 6 pack cooler for drinks and snacks.
The left side case had tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, camp towel, tool kit, tire kit, camp knife, and spare light.
Right case is a go bag of clothes that I can pull right out and take up to a room if I am staying in a hotel rather than camping. That bag has all of my clothes for the trip. Also in that right case is a spare pair of street shoes and a pair of flip flops if I need some for a camp shower. Finally there is rain gear in there as well. 
Rear trunk has spare riding gloves, ball cap, first aide kit, jetboil stove, coffee, tea bags, snacks, food, face shield cleaner and microfiber towel, spare camp towel, hoodie or pullover jacket, spare knife, spare flashlight, and plenty of space for road souvenirs. I ended up buying a few t-shirts and a hoodie for gifts along the way and they went in there. 

Like I said I could have left the entire tank bag at home. I could have left a few changes of clothes at home. All in all I could have dropped another 10lbs off the bike easy, maybe 15 or more.  

[Darrell]

1 hour ago, OldIronFan said:

So the guys on the Harley forum don’t think this bag setup is safe. They say too much weight too high and behind the rear axle. What say you guys?

Have you ridden the bike the way it's set up and with a full load in the bags? You should know pretty quickly whether or not you're comfortable with it. I'd be VERY concerned about having that weight out back, as it effectively unloads your front tire. If you were to hit a bump in a corner you might find yourself dealing with serious understeer or a wheelie.

I'm pretty sure I'd grind that low side bag away in half an hour, too. But again, it's mainly a matter of whether or not you feel comfortable and confident. 

[gregintenn]

1 hour ago, Darrell said:

Have you ridden the bike the way it's set up and with a full load in the bags? You should know pretty quickly whether or not you're comfortable with it. I'd be VERY concerned about having that weight out back, as it effectively unloads your front tire. If you were to hit a bump in a corner you might find yourself dealing with serious understeer or a wheelie.

I'm pretty sure I'd grind that low side bag away in half an hour, too. But again, it's mainly a matter of whether or not you feel comfortable and confident. 

I’m comfortable and confident standing up to the gates of hell, but that doesn’t overcome the laws of gravity, inertia, and physics. Thanks for everyone’s advice. We’ll load er down and give it a go locally before traveling.

[RED333]

On 7/28/2022 at 4:43 PM, gregintenn said:

So the guys on the Harley forum don’t think this bag setup is safe. They say too much weight too high and behind the rear axle. What say you guys?

Now just my $0.02, up hill around a corner and apply power is not going to be fun, when you apply power the weight is going to rotate the bike back around the rear wheel, the front is going to get very light and you will not be able to steer.

[gregintenn]

Dang! I just jumped on the bike for a quick trip to the Harbor Freight store in Gallatin.

Walking out of the store, I gave a quick glance up in the sky.

I’ll just say it doesn’t take long to get back home when you see the cloud I saw.

[Darrell]

1 hour ago, gregintenn said:

I’ll just say it doesn’t take long to get back home when you see the cloud I saw.

I've been risking it a lot these past few weeks. If the forecast says there's a 50% chance of rain I figure the forecaster is just flipping a coin, and I ride anyway. Heck, I've been wet before....   But I must say that when it rains around here it often comes down in buckets.

[Darrell]

[gregintenn]

Lotta work right there!^^^

[gregintenn]

I put 250 miles on my bike today. T’was awesome! That is all.

[Trekbike]

11 minutes ago, gregintenn said:

I put 250 miles on my bike today. T’was awesome! That is all.

Where did you go?

[gregintenn]

44 minutes ago, Trekbike said:

Where did you go?

Furthest away place was Rough River dam in Kentucky. I took the scenic route there and back.

[Darrell]

I rode from my home in Hebbertsburg  to Murfreesboro via Hwy 70 this morning. The forecast said that it was likely to be a dry ride there, but that I'd be pushing my luck on the way home. Sure enough, midway between Sparta and Crossville the sky opened up on me and I was pretty darned wet within a minute or two. It was warm, though, so not too uncomfortable. I had all my rain gear with me, but I never had time to put it on! Oh well, the ride was still fun, about two hours in each direction. 

[WillyK]

5 hours ago, Darrell said:

I rode from my home in Hebbertsburg  to Murfreesboro via Hwy 70 this morning. The forecast said that it was likely to be a dry ride there, but that I'd be pushing my luck on the way home. Sure enough, midway between Sparta and Crossville the sky opened up on me and I was pretty darned wet within a minute or two. It was warm, though, so not too uncomfortable. I had all my rain gear with me, but I never had time to put it on! Oh well, the ride was still fun, about two hours in each direction. 

We were going to do Crossville to Sparta today till I looked at the radar. Tomorrow looks good though.

[gregintenn]

An old biker taught me a great trick for washing your bike the other day. Instead of fussing with a chamois cloth, just blow dry it with a leaf blower. Ya’ll probably know this already, but I was glad to learn it, so I posted it in case somebody else out there is as dumb as I am. LOL

Edited September 6, 2022 by gregintenn

[Rob112o]

What picture hosting site are you guys using to dumb down the pics?

[Smith]

My oldest boy (17) and I rode from Hermitage around Center Hill Lake and back using back roads this past Monday. Great ride! He's loving his Suzuki S40 and I love my Strat. Love riding with my son. 

[gregintenn]

42 minutes ago, Smith said:

My oldest boy (17) and I rode from Hermitage around Center Hill Lake and back using back roads this past Monday. Great ride! He's loving his Suzuki S40 and I love my Strat. Love riding with my son. 

I almost bought that bike and kept it for myself.

[Smith]

3 minutes ago, gregintenn said:

I almost bought that bike and kept it for myself.

Glad you didn't. He loves it! I got to say it's a fun bike to ride. Compared to my 800 lb Strat, it's nimble on the switchbacks and keeps up just fine on the highway! Now, I gotta find my younger son a bike. They both took the MSF course this past weekend and he's getting his DL in a few weeks.

[gregintenn]

14 minutes ago, Smith said:

Glad you didn't. He loves it! I got to say it's a fun bike to ride. Compared to my 800 lb Strat, it's nimble on the switchbacks and keeps up just fine on the highway! Now, I gotta find my younger son a bike. They both took the MSF course this past weekend and he's getting his DL in a few weeks.

That course is great. I’m glad I took it a couple of years ago, even though I’ve ridden for over 40 years. I still learned a lot.

[gregintenn]

9 hours ago, Rob112o said:

What picture hosting site are you guys using to dumb down the pics?

I use Imgur. Probably better options out there, but it works fine.