New style of panniers from Happy trails

Johnwesley

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Joined
Aug 2, 2020
Messages
233
Location
Mena, Ar
Got the new Happy-trail Panniers in and mounted on the bike. I really like the new design with the angled panels front and back allowing more room for passenger feet. The top plate is a nice addition as well for tying stuff down and the threaded inserts for a rotopax. The powder coat on them looks nice and thick as well. Looking forward to trying them out but right now its colder than cold here. That global warming is freezing me :D

One addition note is the panniers are welded inside and out, I have been running HT panniers for well over a decade and never had a leak nor a busted bag even though they had been beat on. I have crashed with a pair, hit a bolder with one so hard it spun the bike around, and banged them into trees never had a split seam nor a leak.





Below you can see the keyed lock and the plate for strapping items down to as well as the threaded inserts. I like the pre installed insert for easy mounting of a rotopax or the like.




You can see there is plenty of room to get a bungee cord hook in or to tie a loop like for rok straps. My chili pepper straps work great with the slots.



Nice and tight fit. I modified the spacers to pull the bags in a bit. That’s possible because of the aftermarket muffler giving extra clearance.



34.5 total width is a nice width for me, narrower than the handle bars and helps to keep the frontal area down while still allowing for plenty of luggage space. With out mods it would be 37” wide. For people who need to know details its 34 3/8 vs 36 7/8 ish, of course your results may vary :cool:

 
Last edited:

Johnwesley

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Joined
Aug 2, 2020
Messages
233
Location
Mena, Ar
If you remember we had that warm snap and I washed it then in preparation of doing the tire and oil change. I believe it was in the 60s that day.

In other news those dunlop max tires feel great in the curves and on the hard pack.
 

Sierra1

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Nov 7, 2016
Messages
14,815
Location
Joshua TX
Dry for now. 24F air temp/11 wind chill. They're predicting 3-7" snow for Sunday into Monday. We'll be back into the 50s by this time next week, but people have emptied the W-M shelves. o_O We were grocery shopping, 'cuz we shop on Friday. We saw people with two carts piled with stuff. Apparently they think the sky is falling.
 

Johnwesley

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Joined
Aug 2, 2020
Messages
233
Location
Mena, Ar
Dry for now. 24F air temp/11 wind chill. They're predicting 3-7" snow for Sunday into Monday. We'll be back into the 50s by this time next week, but people have emptied the W-M shelves. o_O We were grocery shopping, 'cuz we shop on Friday. We saw people with two carts piled with stuff. Apparently they think the sky is falling.
that’s nuts, town was slammed here as well. I had to get some bedding for the dog, since Sunday -Tuesday is going to be unreasonable.
 

PhilPhilippines

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Joined
Jun 20, 2020
Messages
952
Location
Philippines
Got the new Happy-trail Panniers in and mounted on the bike. I really like the new design with the angled panels front and back allowing more room for passenger feet. The top plate is a nice addition as well for tying stuff down and the threaded inserts for a rotopax. The powder coat on them looks nice and thick as well. Looking forward to trying them out but right now its colder than cold here. That global warming is freezing me :D

One addition note is the panniers are welded inside and out, I have been running HT panniers for well over a decade and never had a leak nor a busted bag even though they had been beat on. I have crashed with a pair, hit a bolder with one so hard it spun the bike around, and banged them into trees never had a split seam nor a leak.





Below you can see the keyed lock and the plate for strapping items down to as well as the threaded inserts. I like the pre installed insert for easy mounting of a rotopax or the like.




You can see there is plenty of room to get a bungee cord hook in or to tie a loop like for rok straps. My chili pepper straps work great with the slots.



Nice and tight fit. I modified the spacers to pull the bags in a bit. That’s possible because of the aftermarket muffler giving extra clearance.



34.5 total width is a nice width for me, narrower than the handle bars and helps to keep the frontal area down while still allowing for plenty of luggage space. With out mods it would be 37” wide. For people who need to know details its 34 3/8 vs 36 7/8 ish, of course your results may vary :cool:

They look cool. Being narrower than the handlebars is important - well for me!
 

PhilPhilippines

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Joined
Jun 20, 2020
Messages
952
Location
Philippines
If you remember we had that warm snap and I washed it then in preparation of doing the tire and oil change. I believe it was in the 60s that day.

In other news those dunlop max tires feel great in the curves and on the hard pack.
Your bike looks very tidy. I would not have considered the grey but it looks very impressive with the crash bars and pan.
 

Johnwesley

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Joined
Aug 2, 2020
Messages
233
Location
Mena, Ar
Your bike looks very tidy. I would not have considered the grey but it looks very impressive with the crash bars and pan.
Thanks, I didn’t like the color either but it was too good a deal to pass up. So I tried to pull the gray in in hopes of making it work. The piece that really brought it together in my eyes was the tank pads. I had no intention to put pads on it but with a cordura suit on I could grip the tank. so the necessity of pads also help bring the bike together. Glad it’s photogenic :cool:
 

PhilPhilippines

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Joined
Jun 20, 2020
Messages
952
Location
Philippines
Thanks, I didn’t like the color either but it was too good a deal to pass up. So I tried to pull the gray in in hopes of making it work. The piece that really brought it together in my eyes was the tank pads. I had no intention to put pads on it but with a cordura suit on I could grip the tank. so the necessity of pads also help bring the bike together. Glad it’s photogenic :cool:
Yep the tank pads kinda accentuate the lines of the crash bars, but even without them I think the crash bars in the same colour look cool. got a good eye for detail though.
 

VRODE

Easy Does It
Joined
Aug 7, 2014
Messages
940
Location
Northern Vermont
I wasn't a fan of the gray color, but with the wheels, tankpads and crashbar in the same color, it really works! And those Happy Trails are very nice. A real good fit without looking too bulky!
Sorry the weather sucks. It won't cease to suck here till April so......
 

Johnwesley

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 2, 2020
Messages
233
Location
Mena, Ar
I wasn't a fan of the gray color, but with the wheels, tankpads and crashbar in the same color, it really works! And those Happy Trails are very nice. A real good fit without looking too bulky!
Sorry the weather sucks. It won't cease to suck here till April so......
our will be over soon and back to riding in the 30’s and 40’s. It would be hard to contend with no riding for 4 months. I feel for the northerners
 

VRODE

Easy Does It
Joined
Aug 7, 2014
Messages
940
Location
Northern Vermont
our will be over soon and back to riding in the 30’s and 40’s. It would be hard to contend with no riding for 4 months. I feel for the northerners
Well, it gives me time to recharge and get ready. Truthfully, I get bored doing the same ol, same ol. Not having the ability to ride everyday makes it that more special when I can.
Not that I wouldn't mind living in a warmer climate, mind you. We are thinking some large part of winter will be spent in a warmer climate in the future.
Keep the shiny side up!
 
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