luggage for traveling

[santa]

What kind of travel bags do you use to put on your bike when you travel? CHEAP. HIGH DOLLAR, BRAND, TYPE? There are so many out there its hard to decide. Asking the pros what works.
Santa

[Traveler-MI]

I bought a set that are nylon.  have handles, and are a custom fit for the saddle bags.

http://www.tlcproducts.com/servlet/Detail?no=113

Great stuff -- love mine

[old2soon]

Yup-what old tiger said. On my I/S my dry bag fit across the arm rests and a small cooler i bought.I used 2 1 inch ratchet straps to hold the bag and cooler on together. The S hooks were mounted to the shock bolts and the opening in the saddle bag mounting bracket. Worked fine. Rode like that for 2000 miles. On my  trip to Illinois in july It was dry all the way up. The trip home was wet. My clothes stayed perfectly dry. Dont remember what size it is(size was marked on the cardboard that was on the bag and cardboard is long gone) but it held everything i needed including two extra pairs of tennys. Course when i finally get my trailer hitch most of my crap going in the trailer. If you were ever in the service stuffing that dry bag correctly be a cinch. And that bag i beleive was less than $20.00. Hope this helps. RIDE SAFE.  P S That dry bag is about the size of a Navy sea bag or pehaps an Army barracks bag??

[T-Bird]

Santa, On our way home you were asking about the bag I had. It is from the Aerostich catalog
http://www.aerostich.com/motofizz-camping-seat-bags-large.html
It is the best for traveling, a lot of tie downs, expandable, a smaller quick attaching bag for meds. or first aid items. It is water resistant but not waterproof, it also has a rain cover the comes with it. It was one of the best investments I ever made, no problems in over 10 yrs I've used it. (it's a little pricey...it's made in Germany not Taiwan)

[BonS]

I bought a set that are nylon.  have handles, and are a custom fit for the saddle bags.

http://www.tlcproducts.com/servlet/Detail?no=113

Great stuff -- love mine

I gotta' second Traveler. I love my bags from tlcproducts. I can stuff them and know that they'll fit the hard bags. I can now use every inch of bag space without any hassle. The handles make getting the bags out of the hard bags simple. I could never get used to anything less. 

[TomE]

A cheap alternative is to use a standard duffle bag, line it with a garbage bag, put your stuff in, and then  roll the mouth of the plastic garbage bag up like a lunch sack. Then zip the duffle over the plastic and your gear to hold the roll in place. It will be quite dry, even if in the bilges of a boat! The garbage sack and lunch-sack-roll provides the waterproof part and the duffle provides the physical toughness. Then use one of those bungee net things to hold it all down and take up any slop on the duffle. 

That has worked for me. There are nicer bags out, and I use them often, but it never hurts to know this trick.

[PhredValk]

Duffel/sports bag from Walmart. Has a handle and wheels. Garbage bags inside and out, 2 bungies to the bag rails. $20.00. Loose items in trunk like Spare helmet, gloves, toiletries, coffee, water, booze and computer. Bags full of tools, rain gear, more spare gloves (waterproof and thermal), gas can etc.
Fred

[robin]

Nelson Riggs love the bag i have plenty of room for  Judy and I on a week trip 

[MacDragon]

I've got a couple of T bags for traveling.  Kuryakyn has a good one that I have no complaints with.  Here, it is on the Ace... don't have any pics of it on the Valk.  



It also has a a roll bag for the top that I rarely use.  Around $100

[doubletee]

Nelson Rigg Survivor Series. Only problem is they've discontinued the line. Looks like BikeBandit.com is still selling the one I use, sans the roll on top:

[Ghost Rider 2]

  I have a Tour Master  Cruiser II XL looks  simular to the Nelson Riggs above just in a leather. Mount for sissy bar is quick. If you atre riding solo face it forward it will double as a back rest.

[PAVALKER]

Expandable T-Bag....   it might not be waterproof (zippers do leak), but a black trash bag lining the inside has worked for years.

[Mr Bojangles]

+1 for the TLC liners, like others have stated. Do you have a IS or Tourer? I suppose they would not be much good if you did not have Honda hard bags
                                                   BoJangles

[Daniel Meyer]

T bags. High quality and durable.

[Jess Tolbirt]

i have 2 t-bags now i cant use because i got the interstate,,but on the tourer my t-bag held all bev and i needed on two week trips,,,anything you buy you can ship home,,,

[Willow]

As do others, I use a rather inexpensive duffel I bought from Walmart some ten years ago.  It's probably long overdue for replacement, but I can't seem to let it go.  It's been all over the country and out of the country with me.  I line it inside with a trash bag so that the contents are completely protected from the rain.

When I'm carry just a bit more, such as the InZane trip, I add a compression bag similarly packed.  I hold them onto the pillion with four bungee cords as I'm sort of a belt and suspenders kind of guy.  

[thewoodman]

Both my wife and I plus my brother-in-law have the same Kuryakyn bag like MacDragon uses; have used them for the last 4-5 years and with what we can get in saddle bags can be on the road for a few weeks with no issues. They've gone up in price 30 bucks since we bought ours, but, still not too bad.

[The Anvil]

A cheap alternative is to use a standard duffle bag, line it with a garbage bag, put your stuff in, and then  roll the mouth of the plastic garbage bag up like a lunch sack. Then zip the duffle over the plastic and your gear to hold the roll in place. It will be quite dry, even if in the bilges of a boat! The garbage sack and lunch-sack-roll provides the waterproof part and the duffle provides the physical toughness. Then use one of those bungee net things to hold it all down and take up any slop on the duffle. 

That has worked for me. There are nicer bags out, and I use them often, but it never hurts to know this trick.

That's pretty much what I do. Standard military canvas bag lined with a contractor trash bag and an extra trash bag in case it gets really nasty. Strap it across the saddlebags and good to go.

[Jess from VA]

I use a large leather B4 style duffel on the back (no legs or other scratchers).  I keep a HD lawn and leaf bag in a side pocket, and if it rains, I bag the duffel. 

For saddle bag liners, if I need them, I use tall kitchen garbage bags.

[..]

Duffel/sports bag from Walmart. Has a handle and wheels. Garbage bags inside and out, 2 bungies to the bag rails. $20.00. Loose items in trunk like Spare helmet, gloves, toiletries, coffee, water, booze and computer. Bags full of tools, rain gear, more spare gloves (waterproof and thermal), gas can etc.
Fred

+1

Spend money on gas, motels and tires.

[solo1]

I've used the large Motofizz bag from Aerostitch, it worked great, had lots of gimmicks,  and was waterproof.  Don't travel so don't use it anymore. I just have a small pair of RKA soft saddlebags which held up the Vstrom when I dropped it the other day.

As Carl and others have said, there is cheaper stuff out there which work.

Wayne

[Jess from VA]

Here's some waterproof bags:

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-XPG8482-Waterproof-Compression-Bags/716075.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26fsch%3Dtrue%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3Dwaterproof%2Bbags%26x%3D12%26y%3D12%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts&Ntt=waterproof+bags&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-Boundary-Waters8482-II-Duffel-Bag/735042.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26fsch%3Dtrue%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3Dwaterproof%2Bbags%26x%3D12%26y%3D12%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts&Ntt=waterproof+bags&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-Boundary-Waters8482-II-Roll-Top-Dry-Bags/735040.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26fsch%3Dtrue%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3Dwaterproof%2Bbags%26x%3D12%26y%3D12%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts&Ntt=waterproof+bags&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products

[fiddle mike]

My stuff goes in nylon draw-string bags and rides in the saddlebags.
Missus bought a Nelson-Rigg CTB-600 Tourer that holds all of our camping gear except our sleeping bags.  It has lots of pockets.  Nelson-Rigg is top notch.

http://www.nelsonrigg.com/store/product.aspx?pid=353

[Michael K (Az.)]

Phoenix to Oregon last month. Waterproof black bag holds a cheap middle size soft sided suitcase w/ wheels and telescoping handle. Red one is a cooler. FroggToggs stuff sack with "how quick can I get to the rain gear?" thoughts in mind. Skinny black thing is a steinberger electric guitar. Tuning pegs are on the body instead of the neck which, now that I think about it, explains why most cagers were polite as I traveled down the roads. Thought that I must've been "Carbine ready"! Heh heh.
All tied down with bungees and a cargo net. Guess that makes me a belt, suspenders and super glue kinda guy!!

[KY,Dave (AKA Misunderstood)]

I've got 2 nelson riggs bags. 1 for the sissybar and 1 for the pillion when empty.

[Toledo Mark]

http://www.wolfmanluggage.com/Expedition/11index.html

Is what I use.

[fudgie]

We get the Jeep brand luggage at wal mart. For $40 we got a 24" one with wheels. Works good. We put clothing in compression bags and can get 12 days worth of clothes in it. Lay it on the rack its well below the top of the backrest. Throw the leathers on to and its right at the top of the br. Everything stays dry. Attach it with a rachet strap and it dont move a bit. The roller wheels make it nice to carry into the hotel.
I do have a expandable T-bag but it always moves and you cant stack on top of it. It was a $150 12 yrs ago. Havent used it since 09.

No way would I dump $$ into 'mc' luggage.

[santa]

Fugie
Do you have a picture of the bag mounted on you bike?
Santa

[Michael K (Az.)]

Fudgie, as you can see, I have a Tourer and it looks as though that the jeep bag would hang over the lids making it not too easy to get to. I had a guitar amp in that suitcase which made it REALLY top heavy!! Probably leave the amp home the next time!
  Like to see a pic, too! Also, I see compression bags for sale at Wallys. Are they the ones you used? Thanks.

[fudgie]

Fudgie, as you can see, I have a Tourer and it looks as though that the jeep bag would hang over the lids making it not too easy to get to. I had a guitar amp in that suitcase which made it REALLY top heavy!! Probably leave the amp home the next time!
  Like to see a pic, too! Also, I see compression bags for sale at Wallys. Are they the ones you used? Thanks.

Well, I have I/S hinges on my tourer bags. I know my t-bag would rub the lid when opened with the tourer hinges on.

[fudgie]

Fugie
Do you have a picture of the bag mounted on you bike?
Santa

Will soon, as soon as I upload this years pix. This is last year with a Jeep 21" upright.

[fudgie]

Fudgie, as you can see, I have a Tourer and it looks as though that the jeep bag would hang over the lids making it not too easy to get to. I had a guitar amp in that suitcase which made it REALLY top heavy!! Probably leave the amp home the next time!
  Like to see a pic, too! Also, I see compression bags for sale at Wallys. Are they the ones you used? Thanks.

Well after looking at the pic I just posted, it would not hit the lids.

[santa]

WOW Fudgie that is packing. Havn't you heard of turing your undees inside out?
Santa

[fudgie]

WOW Fudgie that is packing. Havn't you heard of turing your undees inside out?
Santa

Well that was last year.  This year was a lighter. Did have enough old socks not to wash any during the trip.  My partner is getting this year pix uploaded, so it will show the new luggage.

[Linedog]

Has anyone used the DOWCO Iron rider bags.  Linedog

[Al in AK]

I'm sorry, I could'nt help myself................

[Al in AK]

But the water proof bags work great...............

[sandy]

I found these folks at Americade this year. I was impressed that the hubby and wife make all of it and were very nice people. I'll be ordering their Wing luggage later this fall. They will add custom tie down points if you have a special need.

http://www.roadreadybags.com/

[fudgie]

Ok santa, in this pic the jeep is at the botton, with the orange strap. It below the backrest. There is a bag of 2 leather coats on top which is even with the back rest. Bag on top has throw away clothes and her vest in it.

[santa]

Thanks for all the ideas. I like the road ready bags (made in USA). Fudgie thanks for the info. I have been looking at a Saddleman SSR1900 $74. from J.P. cycle. I was looking for a bag to put tools in. I'm one of the suspender and belt guys. I have a 18"W 10"Dx10"H. The bag is just worn out and I could use a little more room for visor and rain suit. The Saddleman is a little big but has a good mounting system and extra room for shopping things. I don't have saddle bags, to much money for them (champion bags). Thanks for taking the time and sharing your experiences.
Santa