hard bags on ebay
 

Has anybody laid hands on these scooter bags from Ride Hard Saddlebags?
http://stores.shop.ebay.com/RIDE-HAR...&submit=Search
They look to be tidy, and small enough at 18 x 11 x 6.
Wondering how cheesy the build quality is, and how close to the pipe they'd hang.

http://img34.imageshack.us/img34/5955/38342234.jpg

http://img16.imageshack.us/img16/1350/17253909.jpg

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

You have to buy a mount or bracket for those too (they recommend a removable system - Ghost Brackets, which cost $155) or you have to fashion something to mount it to the bike, probably to the fender trim or sissy bar bolts.
They actually look pretty nice, but they might be a little big, I think they have a smaller size on the seller's website.
You have to measure on the bike how close they'd come to the pipe, and the right one may need a heat shield on the bottom so it doesn't melt, even if mounted high, equal to the passenger seat height.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

From the pictures, it looks like there might be some (intentional?) deception going on with the name. The lower part appears to be some kind of cloth, even though the name would imply "Hard Saddlebags".

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

It sure looks like that in the pictures, even on the website, but is says they are made of "Durable ABS Construction", ie., plastic (?).
They might be a good find, somebody (not me) want to order a set and fit them to the bike or to bag supports? And then report back to the rest of us?

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

I think that's the reflection of what was around them.

This is the smallest size of what they list.
Guy there claims these've gone on lots of 125s and 250s.
I have the Suzuki saddlebag supports (got them free off one of the bikes at the MSF course)
which should give me a leg up mounting them.

Guess I'll just have to go for it.
Time to take one for the team.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

You might want to check out one of my much earlier posts on here on how I mounted SAW cans to the bag supports with J bolts through the cans for a permanent mount. You also might need some sort of a backup plate inside those ABS boxes depending on how thick and strong they are, regardless if you mount them to the supports or to the fender bolts directly.

Be sure to get back on here how you like them, how you mounted them.
I might want to get a set for my S50 if they're any good.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Well, I got 'em. First impressions, kinda cheesy and remarkably small.

Here's what showed up.
http://www.postimage.org/gx2LgCS.jpg

This is the included mounting hardware. No nuts.
http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/8595/16701396.jpg

Hinge retaining straps.
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/3586/88125645.th.jpg

Lock catch.
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/9186/51646403.th.jpg

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

One of the locks wouldn't latch. I ended up shimming the bag's latch piece up a little by putting a washer underneath it.

A buddy of mine welded flanges onto my saddlebag supports.
I still owe him a beer. Thanks, Mike!
http://www.postimage.org/Pq1GBr19.jpg

Here's the mounted result.
http://www.postimage.org/gx2MHq0.jpg

Hope that's enough exhaust clearance.
http://img162.imageshack.us/img162/8838/59753632.jpg

Rear view.
http://img25.imageshack.us/img25/2447/62473519.th.jpg

The top box actually holds more than either saddlebag.
It's a case I bolted to the passenger seat pan after de-upholstering it.

The saddlebags technically lock, but they'd yield to a good yank.
They're tidy, they look nice, don't really affect the lines of the bike.
There's a layer of foam in the bottom, and drain holes underneath, which is nice.
If I put a wet cover in the top box, the water stays until I mop it out.
My cover completely fills a saddlebag, but it should be OK in there.

So there you have it. We'll see how useful they are.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

They look excellent. Too bad they're so skinny/small. However, I wouldn't worry as much about the wimpy locks. The mere presence of one on a hardbag will probably discourage most would-be burglars.

EDIT: You should add a badass chrome badge of some sort. The sides of those things are begging for some ornamentation!

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

How about some reflective tape for better visibility. White on front, amber on sides and red on the back. Yah, you can call me paranoid but it does help in the grand scheme of things. Wall Mart sells 3M stuff that works well and won't break the bank.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Or you can get the best of both worlds with some retro-reflective decals. :)

Quick google search turned up these. Some are a little cheesy, but I bet if you looked around some you could find something that suited your style.
http://www.streetglo.net/
http://www.reflectivedecals.com/moto.htm

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Has anyone seen these?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NEW-MOTO ... ccessories

The dimensions seem right, and since they have built-in turn signals, you can just remove the stock ones. I'm thinking about trying them out when I get paid. Does anybody see anything that I might have missed that would suggest they won't work?

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Haven't tried them, but they look very nice & the price is great! Let us know how you like them & post picts. too!!! :2tup:

M

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Are hard bags a priority ? You can get soft bags with more capacity for about the same $$.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Mine were from the same seller, and they're pretty flimsy.
They work, though, and the price is right.
I like that they include mounting hardware.
Might even work on the GZ250.
I haven't looked at the dimensions.
Will they clear the muffler?

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Water Warrior:
I've got the Suzuki soft bags; I've had them for about two years now, and I'm really not too impressed with them. I just figured that as much camping/day-tripping as I do, the hard bags would be a little more durable and just look cooler in general (I've also put on driver and passenger floorboards and I'm putting on an engine guard as soon as I buy one). I'm basically beefing it up like it's a fully-dressed cruiser.

Dubwise:
I think these are pretty much the same dimensions as the ones you got, but a little longer and deeper (they're 19 3/8" long x 11" high x 7 1/2" wide, including the chrome); the height is still the same, though. How flimsy are these things? Would they be sturdy enough to hold camping supplies (clothes, food, and maybe a flashlight and survival kit) and maybe have a tent or sleeping bag bungeed to them? I have the Suzuki luggage rack, which is where I usually store most of the big stuff, but I'd like to be able to fit some of my supplies in there, as well as be able to use them to take my books/laptop, etc. to work.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Sure. However, drop the bike on them and they wouldn't even slow it down. They'd just vaporize.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Well, I'll just try to be sure that I don't drop it then... :tongue:

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Something to consider when packing bags. Soft flexible bags have a bit of give to them and a lot more will fit into them. My Vstrom has hard bags while Lynda's bike has soft bags. Guess who can haul the most ? Hard bags will hold less and any corners are not user friendly. Hard bags are just one container while soft bags will generally have a variety of pockets for odds and ends plus the main interior. Lynda put Nelson Rigg bags on her bike and they are very good quality with a very good warranty to fall back on if necessary. Check out N R. you might be surprised at the features and user friendly mounting straps/method which are a real bonus when loading/unloading. For the price the bags were an exceptional value IMHO.
http://s1.postimage.org/1TZ4Pr.jpg

This pic also has the top bag which is expandable and will hold a ton of stuff with lots of extra interior exterior pockets.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Yeah. One thing I definitely have to think about is that this is my only form of transportation for the moment, and I don't want to have to take a backpack every time I go to buy groceries (although I do have a leather tail bag that I could put on). Probably couldn't even fit a six-pack in one of them. They sure do look nice, though. I'll post some pictures and a review if I do decide to buy them.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

The whole luggage thing would be a lot easier if the GZ250 pipe didn't rake up.
The Hensim , that Chinese Marauder/Rebel clone, has a pipe that goes back level.
Looks great. I wonder if we could get something like that?

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Funny, I was just looking around the forums for some of the muffler mods that people have done around here. I'm looking for something more in the way of improving the aesthetics and getting more clearance for bags, rather than the usual "loud" or "faster" mods, but I can't really find exactly what I'm looking for here.

Since this is my daily driver, I also don't want to do anything that's going to damage the engine or make it run much hotter (my ride to work is about 1/2 hour each way on the highway in Phoenix). I guess I'll keep looking.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Yah, loud and faster aren't really words I can pair with my GZ.

Looks to me like you could just cut it right behind where the merge is,
weld it back at the level angle, and bolt a bit of strap onto the bracket.
I'm neither a welder nor a muffler engineer, of course. Someone is, though.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

This thread: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=2303&hilit=exhaust
shows how one of the posters here did an exhaust mod for the same reasons that we're talking about. Just sent a PM to him. His most recent post was from November, so I don't know if he's still around.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

The way I'm reading that post, and Dupo's excellent muffler-swapping tutorial at viewtopic.php?f=8&t=566&view=next
if you swap the muffler you have to rejet. Should be OK just altering this muffler.
Burkbuilds was looking for more sound, and later recanted on his claim of increased mileage.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

[quote="dubwise"]Yah, loud and faster aren't really words I can pair with my GZ.

Cut off the muffler, find a tailwind and ride downhill. The GZ is what it is. What it does it does well.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

I eventually had mixed feelings about my exhaust mod. I did like the louder sound, for a while, then I started wishing it wasn't so loud when I cranked it up in my neighborhood at 6 AM. My neighbor's houses are all close together and I know I'd be ticked off if someone was waking me up with a loud bike at 6 in the morning. I also decided that my mileage increase was simply due to a different driving scenario for about two weeks after I installed the new exhaust as WW pointed out. Once I went back to my old routine, the mileage pretty much went back to how it was before. I did notice an increase in power when climbing hills at about 55 mph. I was able to hold my speed on some hills that previously I lost about 5 mph going over. I was glad that the new pipes kept the exhaust away from my saddle bags, which was my original goal anyway, but I had already resolved the problem with some checker plate aluminum I riveted to the bag above the exhaust pipe so it wasn't really necessary.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Thanks for checking in with your update.
We should be able to use the same cuts and welding to just re-angle the existing muffler, right?

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

These are the main two reasons that this sounds attractive to me.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

"We should be able to use the same cuts and welding to just re-angle the existing muffler, right?"

dubwise, I think that may be a good solution. I wish I had thought of it before I went to all the expense and trouble of buying a different exhaust.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Does this have anything to do with it breaking the other day? :2tup:

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

its nice store but i wana ask about some. :2tup:



ziplock plastic bags

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Two years on and the bags are holding up fine.
They're too small to be really useful,
but they're fine for tools, bungees, raingear, and suchlike.
The swiveling lock covers came off.
No heat damage from the stock exhaust.

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Re: hard bags on ebay
 

Gone. There's a few more I have to get.