Dual Mega Tubes
What do you do when you can’t get enough Tool Tube? Bolt on a couple more!
Sure I could get bigger paniers, but I like the OEM units and have already figured out how to overload the bike. 2-up camping makes that a likely proposition. It’s not all about capacity, there is something to be said for convenience.
It doesn’t look too horrid from this angle, especially with that orange bag vying for attention.
A little closer
You might ask, what do you need to get to in such a hurry that you don’t want to untie, unbuckle, and unstrap your luggage kit for, not to mention putting it all back the way it was? There is something to be said for quickly getting your hands on a rain suit, different gloves, maybe that microwavable burrito from the convenience store? OK, maybe not the burrito. Truth is, I have a pair of these Mega Tubes from http://www.thetooltube.com/ and was dying to put them somewhere. I had one in the traditional hip-holster spot, but it was a little too big in circumference to fit with my side cases mounted, so I replaced it with the standard unit.
Link to my original Mega Tube install article:
http://www.yamahasupertenere.com/index.php?topic=3406
Hanging under the Altrider engine guards looked like a workable spot.
The next question is – how to mount them? Time to fab something up. Thankfully, I’m not above cheesy, makeshift solutions. Besides, it’s a temporary prototype. Since I used Kydex™, engine heat might make this a very temporary solution. I had a sheet of 12”x12” (just the right length for the tube mounts) .125 gauge (the thickest gauge) and it’s easy to cut and drill. I also used some conduit clamps to positively locate the mount and some heater hose as spacers - on the bars just inboard of the mounting bracket. Since I lost a tool tube cap once, I made cap tethers from thin, coated wire rope anchored with an eye bolt and a mini caribiner. A couple of trips to ACE Hardware for metric fasteners and the project is on, quality time in the Man Cave.
Closer look
There is one bolt forward and two aft clamping the bracket to the bars. This alone would allow the tube to slip back and forth, so I used a conduit clamp to fix the bracket plate to the engine guard bar. I used 2 on the left side and 1 on the right since the fairings are a little different, so the fitment is a little different left to right.
Tubes Galore!
They are a little more pronounced in this well lit photo. Neither tube interferes with driver or pillion feet, mounting, dismounting, or in operation.
They are tucked well inboard so as not to compromise aerodynamics or be the first thing to touch down in a tip over.
Pillion’s view (pretend you're looking at the back of my helmet)
We’ll see how the brackets hold up to the heat. Something along the lines of aluminum or heat-resistant plastic may be in order. Now what should I put in there? Hmm, where’s that burrito…
What do you do when you can’t get enough Tool Tube? Bolt on a couple more!
Sure I could get bigger paniers, but I like the OEM units and have already figured out how to overload the bike. 2-up camping makes that a likely proposition. It’s not all about capacity, there is something to be said for convenience.
It doesn’t look too horrid from this angle, especially with that orange bag vying for attention.
A little closer
You might ask, what do you need to get to in such a hurry that you don’t want to untie, unbuckle, and unstrap your luggage kit for, not to mention putting it all back the way it was? There is something to be said for quickly getting your hands on a rain suit, different gloves, maybe that microwavable burrito from the convenience store? OK, maybe not the burrito. Truth is, I have a pair of these Mega Tubes from http://www.thetooltube.com/ and was dying to put them somewhere. I had one in the traditional hip-holster spot, but it was a little too big in circumference to fit with my side cases mounted, so I replaced it with the standard unit.
Link to my original Mega Tube install article:
http://www.yamahasupertenere.com/index.php?topic=3406
Hanging under the Altrider engine guards looked like a workable spot.
The next question is – how to mount them? Time to fab something up. Thankfully, I’m not above cheesy, makeshift solutions. Besides, it’s a temporary prototype. Since I used Kydex™, engine heat might make this a very temporary solution. I had a sheet of 12”x12” (just the right length for the tube mounts) .125 gauge (the thickest gauge) and it’s easy to cut and drill. I also used some conduit clamps to positively locate the mount and some heater hose as spacers - on the bars just inboard of the mounting bracket. Since I lost a tool tube cap once, I made cap tethers from thin, coated wire rope anchored with an eye bolt and a mini caribiner. A couple of trips to ACE Hardware for metric fasteners and the project is on, quality time in the Man Cave.
Closer look
There is one bolt forward and two aft clamping the bracket to the bars. This alone would allow the tube to slip back and forth, so I used a conduit clamp to fix the bracket plate to the engine guard bar. I used 2 on the left side and 1 on the right since the fairings are a little different, so the fitment is a little different left to right.
Tubes Galore!
They are a little more pronounced in this well lit photo. Neither tube interferes with driver or pillion feet, mounting, dismounting, or in operation.
They are tucked well inboard so as not to compromise aerodynamics or be the first thing to touch down in a tip over.
Pillion’s view (pretend you're looking at the back of my helmet)
We’ll see how the brackets hold up to the heat. Something along the lines of aluminum or heat-resistant plastic may be in order. Now what should I put in there? Hmm, where’s that burrito…
