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BAGS OF ROOM
The panniers (hard or throwovers), Gearsack, Venture bag/s, seat bag and whatever other bike luggage you have should be where you pack your gear for a real trip. The tank bag serves a different function and should go with you even on a short trip. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a tank bag. If you travel by yourself on a sports bike you may wish to use a seat bag instead. If you’re two-up on a cruiser you might have a discreet luggage roll strapped to the rack, or you might even give your pillion a small rucksack. The tank bag should not serve as the overflow for the other luggage as it often does. It has a specific job to do, and that job is compromised if it’s holding the tyre repair kit and spare set of tent pegs and whatever else.
The job of the tank bag is to make life easier and more comfortable for you on the road, and to eliminate, or at least reduce your suffering, because you weren’t better prepared.
You will need several types of storage on your motorcycle.
- Secure
- Convenient
- Cool
- Protective
- Bulk
- Available
Secure storage is a major issue when you are touring. You should have at least one lock up pannier. A spiral cable lock is also useful for items like your helmet and jacket. By threading the cable through the arms of your jacket and helmet visor you can take a walk or do some shopping without having to worry too much.
Convenient storage should be used for things that must be readily available like money, maps, camera, drink and rain gear.
Cool storage is important for things like medication, batteries, camera film etc
Protective storage is obviously an area to provide protection. Motorcycles vibrate all the time, even on good roads. Ride on gravel or dust or rain and then think about why you need to protect some items. Think about your camera and your video camera. You do not want to have that opportunity for a “special" picture or video and find that your camera is stuck because it has vibrated too much or is just too dusty or wet.
Bulk storage will be where you store your tent, mattress, clothes etc. Make sure this area is waterproof. Believe me you do not want to arrive somewhere for the night and find all your clothes wet.
Available is similar to convenient but even more accessible. This will be your tank bag.
You have four areas of storage for your motorcycle bags and luggage bags:
- Behind the pillion seat
- On top of the pillion seat
- On either side
- On the tank
Behind the pillion seat offers a number of options:
Hard topbox.
This has the advantage of security because you can lock them. The lid locks and the whole box locks to the frame. They are also reasonably waterproof. They can be expensive but are also convenient because they can detach from the mounting plate very quickly and easily.
Soft tog or roll bag.
You will need a flat surface behind the pillion seat because they are longer in length than the width of your bike and will move around and obscure your indicator lights. While security is a problem with soft luggage carriers, they have reasonable storage capacity.
Rucksacks.
These are very convenient and easy to carry. One problem with them is that your load is very high which can be dangerous in cross winds and if going fast.
On top of the pillion seat:
Pillion saddle bags sit astride the pillion seat and are neat and convenient.
On either side of the motorbike:
Hard Pannier luggage bags.
The best material for touring is aluminium. They offer security and are easily repaired if need by. Plastic looks good but if you drop your bike plastic breaks easily. Avoid panniers that are too wide. Sure they offer more storage room but are not ideal for long distance country riding. Make sure they are securely attached to your motorcycle - use screws, rivets etc
Soft Pannier motorcycle bags.
These throw over your bike behind the rider. If you go with soft panniers be careful not to position them near your hot exhaust pipe. Some soft panniers can attach to a frame otherwise they also could move around.
Whatever your choice, ensure they are waterproof.
Tank Bag.
In order to do the job, the tank bag must hold some things; but must not hold too many more things. If it contains too much it becomes too heavy and unwieldy, and you end up not taking it or leaving it on the bike and having it stolen, or worrying about it. You also lose track of its contents and therefore find that the thing you really need isn’t there.
There is another job for a tank bag, and that is on really long trips. These may, or not, include camping but they will definitely require extra, carefully-chosen gear. They will also require quite a different tank bag, specifically one of those big, expanding jobs.
The best bag for the kind of use I’ve been describing is a small, easily detachable one, possibly with a base that stays on the bike. That way you can just unclip it when you leave the bike to go into the pub, café or museum, and you don’t have to worry about it. A magnetic bag can be useful for this as well, but beware of scratching the tank. The bag doesn’t need many pockets, although a small one, accessible from the outside, is handy for lunch money and a “stick" of sunscreen. If you pack it properly, the single inside pocket is all that’s required. It’s a bonus if the bag is an expanding one, because then you can compress it to hold everything firmly.
The things you may want in your tank bag are:
- Mobile phone
- Map
- Small notebook with a pen
- Postcards
- Swiss army knife
- Paperback book
- Disposable camera
- Barley sugar
- Roll-on container of sunscreen
- Sunglass
- Change
Plus for your longer trips:
- One litre thermos
- Torch
- Spare pair of spectacles
A couple of things to remember with your motorcycle bags:
Pack low. Whatever system you use, make sure that the heaviest gear is packed directly over the rear wheel and as low as possible
Can you pack and unpack your luggage bags quickly?
Can you find each and every item when you need it?
Can you do a roadside repair on the luggage chosen?
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