Hard vs soft luggages for long trips

[milton]

...
I'm going to ride 2-up, so the "middle part" of the GDW soft bags between the 2 bags could be a problem for the pillion (not really comfortable for a long trip), I already sent a PM to Milton to ask his detailed thoughts about those bags, as he used them for his last trip.

Hi Fred,

Apologize for this late reply to your PM. I actually had answered part of your question at this thread:
http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...ll=1#post34096

I might add a few things:
1. I have never taken any trip with a pillion. However, the GDW saddlebags sit quite flat on the backseat and look ok to sit on.
2. They are close to 100% waterproof if you keep all the covers on tight.
3. They are quite durable. Some grueling part of my trip and a getoff did not damage them a bit.
4. I still haven't figured out how to attach them firmly to my bike yet. I just threw them on and rely on their weight to keep them in place. If you remember the last part of my RR, they did come off and took me a while to recover them. However, this can be remedied by installing a top box on the back.
5. Although it's easy to take them on and off the bike, you do need to keep them in sight to avoid petty theft, which may not always be possible.

They are good saddlebags and can go the distance.

[Fred]

Thanks a lot Milton and others for your replies and comments.

I'd wish we could keep this thread alive with some reviews and comments from others.
I'm more convinced for the soft bags now. I could buy some good quality stuff in Europe when I go back for Christmas, but I don't wish to go "overkill" on the preparation of the trip. I'd like to take only what is necessary in terms of reliability, nothing more, and no go the "Ewan & Charley" way with support crews and jeeps.

So if anyone has another opinion and/or tested others saddlebags, please share your comments !

[euphonius]

Dear Fred,

Most important consideration BY FAR when choosing these soft bags is how they sit with respect to your muffler, and what they are made of. If your muffler rides up high, as on our Jialings, and the bags are made of any kind of synthetic fabric, there's a huge chance they'll melt or burn unless you can devise a reliable means of keeping distance between them. This will be complicated by your pillion due to seat compression and other forces that could push the fabric close to the hot pipe. Even a fabric bag (those GDWs look like oil-impregnated canvas) will be damaged by heat, and can burn. The waterproof coating will quickly fail. If the bags have stiffeners inside, these are usually made with nylon, which of course can melt, this defeating their function and putting your stuff at risk of cooking.

So the question is not only "which panniers are good?" but "which work best with my bike?"

Can you find them in the wild here in Shanghai, and see how they sit on your steed?

(Disclosure: I use hard panniers -- the pricy Tourfellas made by Du Rui in Yongkang, Zhejiang.)

cheers

[milton]

...
Most important consideration BY FAR when choosing these soft bags is how they sit with respect to your muffler, and what they are made of. ...

Quite. The heat problem to the saddlebags relative to their position to the muffler was one my concerns as well. However, after 10 days and about 1800km on the road, they seem to have worked ok without visible heat damages. The metal cooling cover over the muffler on our JH600 might have done an adequate job. However, I do plan to get a set of metal luggage racks without the boxes so I can put the saddlebags over them to eliminate this possibility.

[chinabiker]

I personally prefer hard luggage - aluminum cases to be precise - for several reasons

- all stuff inside is better mechanically protected
- boxes can be locked and provide better protection against theft
- boxes can be used for other purposes - tables, steps, chairs, water basin and much more
- if the bike goes down, it doesn't go down all the way and the boxes provide protection

However, I also carry a water and dust proof soft bag for my tent, sleeping bag, mat, tarp, clothes, blanket, towels, ...


Bike in full tour mode



Bike protection

[slabo]

I guess it very much depends on the bike and the type of riding.. but soft luggage can also serve as bike protection. Check out these Wolfman saddlebags:





For me this is the perfect solution. Easy on, easy off, and easy to carry off the bike anywhere. With this setup you hae to put anything sensitive in your top box. Pics off this adv thread >> http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=656302

[bikerdoc]

It depends on the bike and purpose... as others have chimed in already. I have used a combination of both hard and soft luggage over the years on a variety of bikes, but I swear by using a top box having become a convert in China, whereas overseas I used to use a soft backpack on pack-racks. Currently I have 100% leather saddlebags imported from the USA on my 2007 Dragstar Classic 1100 and even though the right hand bag sits very close if not on the rear muffler assembly, nothing has melted, nor does it suffer from any radiant heat issues. One of my mates (an inmate on MCM) prefers to use soft bags, made of synthetic and he's now on his second set. Okay admittedly those are some 200 kuai bags that look all nice and sporty on his Dragstar Custom 1100 but they are not that dust proof nor water proof. My bags are. Also I have a set of genuine Yammie cases on my new XT1200Z, which I will report on later, which for all intensive purposes are just like what Chinabiker posted about above post #15.

I luv topboxes and am sold on the concept in China. I have one mounted on all my bikes with the exception of the XT1200Z which will get one when it arrives in China. I use my ADLO topboxes as day to day storage and shopping carry-alls, and then when touring as my suitcase, since my ADLO's are quick release and can be dis/mounted using the locking key. Upon arrival at hotels/motels I simply use the key, remove the topbox and carry it into the room and presto, there's my suitcase. Bonus is it's lockable, as are hard cases. On the last ride I did October holidays, I used my topbox as described while another rider used his BMW R1150GS side cases in the same way. My leather saddle bags are attached more permanently even though they are a "throw-over-the-pillion-seat" design, I placed the saddle bag crossover under the seat making them more a permanent fixture.

ADLO are a better than average Chinese topbox brand and the model I have use a special high quality plastic with robust construction and are virtually indestructible.

[andre555]

Hi Fred,

on my Shineray I used that bag:





http://shop.sw-motech.com/cgi-bin/co...typid=49465533

It is big enough for me on a trip and you can fix other stuff outside. It sits rather high and was no issue with the high muffler.
Easy to put on or take off, it is fixed with 4 straps, commes off in two minutes.
I didnt try it with pillion.

I bought it in Beijing, at the shop in the 798 art district near Lido (recommended by chinabiker). Price was reasonable. Europe would still be chaeper.

[marcomagica]

Hi Fred,

I too dream about long trip in China and have a YBR250, so far I've bought these:
- support
- trunk quite big, easy to detach, very practical to store the helmet in everyday use.

I haven't quite figured out what to put on the sides, but I'm thinking aluminum panniers. The problem of our bike is the big exhaust, I need to consider carefully what I can put on the sides.

Ah, not related to luggage I also bought this as I think a little wind protection is good in long trips, and this for extra visibility at night (not to mention the cool angel eye effect).

[Fred]

Awesome replies by all, thanks a lot !

Marco, because you too have a YBR 250, your reply has extra value for me ! Thanks for all the link, but now you've opened yourself for more questions ! Would you be kind enough to take the time to reply ?
1. the support : as far as I can see on the pictures in the Taobao link, there are only 4 bolts (2 on each side) to support the whole thing.
- Is it enough for heavy saddlebags (they don't rest completely on the support but are still pushing against it) and a heavy top case/trunk ?
- I didn't check yet : under the saddle, are there already the 2 holes and "support plate" for this part, or do you need to make some modifications to the YBR ?
- can you easily attach the trunk to this support or do you need something else "in between" ?

2. Trunk :
- what about the quality ? Do you think it could withstand a round-China trip ?
- what about the maximum weight you could safely put inside ?
- is there some rubber thingy to rest your back against it for the pillion ?

3. "Givi" windshield :
- is it easy to install on your own ?
- at speed (80 to 120 km/h), is the wind deflected to your chest, or helmet, or above ? I read that for some people it was worse than nothing due to the air turbulence hitting just your helmet, any comments on that ?
- How tall are you ?

Thanks a lot in advance for your replies !

Cheers,

Fred