mistercindy
New member
I just installed the Bags Connection Trip tankbag for the SW-Motech gascap conection. I got the bag from Wunderlich at the last Int'l Motorcycle Show, but its the same as the one sold by twistedthrottle.com.
Installation is no big deal once you can see what to do. The German/English instructions do leave a bit to be desired. I made use of a tutorial in PDF the link for which is on twistedthrottle.
One problem was the drill bit. While SW Motech used to send the correct sized drill bit (5.5mm, in this case), they don't anymore. Not to worry, as a trusty 7/32" drill bit works just fine (5.5mm=0.2165", and 7/32"=0.2188"). The screw is 5mm (or 0.1969"), and the washer is 5.3mm (or 0.2087"), so what you need is a drill bit that'll let the screw through, but not swallow the washer, and 7/32 is just 3/1000 bigger than 5.5mm, so it worked like a charm.
One of the cool things about the product is that you can decide how close or far you want it from you. I have mine so that its as far back, or close to me, as possible. I marked my spots to drill by putting a thin nail in each hole of the attachment piece and whacking it with a small hammer to leave enough indentation so I could see it. The directions say to put a piece of wood in the bag as you drill, but a power drill goes through the plastic so quickly that its not necessary. After the holes are drilled it installs easily.
The fit and finish are very clean. At 3.5 ltrs its small (it'll expand to 6 ltrs), but I think I'll like it as I prefer a smaller tankbag. Nothing fancy inside: no pockets or dividers, etc... If I want a larger tank bag for whatever reason, any of the SW Motech bags will fit on the gas cap connector. And, true to the term "Quick-Lock", it snaps on and off with ease. Nothing touches the bike, and unlike the Marsee Corona there's no magnets flying around everytime its removed. It ought to be a good product. Here's a pic that I stole from another website:
See that rectangular "window" in the top of the case? Its for a cell phone so you can look down and "see who is calling." IMHO is a ridiculous idea as my cell phone will be in my pocket so if I'm thrown from the bike I can get to it. In any event, the window doesn't otherwise detract from what seems to be a well made product.
Here're my questions for those of you who know more about this product than I do:
Installation is no big deal once you can see what to do. The German/English instructions do leave a bit to be desired. I made use of a tutorial in PDF the link for which is on twistedthrottle.
One problem was the drill bit. While SW Motech used to send the correct sized drill bit (5.5mm, in this case), they don't anymore. Not to worry, as a trusty 7/32" drill bit works just fine (5.5mm=0.2165", and 7/32"=0.2188"). The screw is 5mm (or 0.1969"), and the washer is 5.3mm (or 0.2087"), so what you need is a drill bit that'll let the screw through, but not swallow the washer, and 7/32 is just 3/1000 bigger than 5.5mm, so it worked like a charm.
One of the cool things about the product is that you can decide how close or far you want it from you. I have mine so that its as far back, or close to me, as possible. I marked my spots to drill by putting a thin nail in each hole of the attachment piece and whacking it with a small hammer to leave enough indentation so I could see it. The directions say to put a piece of wood in the bag as you drill, but a power drill goes through the plastic so quickly that its not necessary. After the holes are drilled it installs easily.
The fit and finish are very clean. At 3.5 ltrs its small (it'll expand to 6 ltrs), but I think I'll like it as I prefer a smaller tankbag. Nothing fancy inside: no pockets or dividers, etc... If I want a larger tank bag for whatever reason, any of the SW Motech bags will fit on the gas cap connector. And, true to the term "Quick-Lock", it snaps on and off with ease. Nothing touches the bike, and unlike the Marsee Corona there's no magnets flying around everytime its removed. It ought to be a good product. Here's a pic that I stole from another website:
See that rectangular "window" in the top of the case? Its for a cell phone so you can look down and "see who is calling." IMHO is a ridiculous idea as my cell phone will be in my pocket so if I'm thrown from the bike I can get to it. In any event, the window doesn't otherwise detract from what seems to be a well made product.
Here're my questions for those of you who know more about this product than I do:
- I notice that on twistedthrottle.com there's a mapholder designed to fit on the bag, but the only pictures I can find don't show how it attaches. I can see on the front of the bag it attaches to two D rings on the bag. But how about the back of the mapholder?
- Why are there two extra snaps on the front of the tank bag? The middle snap is for the loop that releases the tank bag, but why the othes?
- Why the softer "loop" side of a velcro fastener on the back of the tank bag? I'm assuming it has something to do with the mapholder. Anybody know for sure?