B
ballisticexchris
Guest
First off I've been an avid tank bag user for many years. I've now come to realize it's become a hoarding situation on my Super Tenere. When I had my Ninja 650R I used my small tank bag for commuting and large one for touring. I have had my Super Tenere for just about one year now. The Factory Yamaha tank bag has been on my bike since new. At first it was great. A few wipes, some snacks, spare gloves, etc.
Well the "etc." stuff has piled up into a tank bag full of junk. I was at the point of having to expand the zippers the bag. So I went to clean out a years worth of items and was just floored and scratching my head how I could have collected so much crap!! I had a feeling it was also effecting the handling of my bike. Big Ones wipes, cold weather gloves, headlamps (yes more than one) notepad/pen, can of Plexus, lighters/waterproof matches (in huge container), year old expired beef jerky, nuts, molded dry apple slices, energy bars, baggies, trash bags, maps. Well you get the idea. It ended up being over 9 lbs of hoarding!!
No wonder my bike was having issues off road!! I removed the tank bag and will no longer using it unless I'm touring for a specific trip. As soon as I pulled out of the driveway I noticed a big difference. When standing on rough jeep trails it was like a whole new bike. Yes it's still over 600lbs. But just by removing the bag I'm able to move around on this machine when standing and it no longer flops into the corners at slow speeds. This was a simple and cheap modification that really helps with the handling of my machine.
I found a much more manageable solution with a smaller bag. Since I got this bike I've been packing it like a mule. I'm going in a different direction and peeling off some of the "stupid weight" I accumulated. I'm very happy with the versatility of this bike. Yet, I have to remind myself over and over to set it up only for the ride I'm doing.
There was so much weight in the bag I was using extra straps to secure it!! Almost 10 pounds of junk!! Before:
After:
Well the "etc." stuff has piled up into a tank bag full of junk. I was at the point of having to expand the zippers the bag. So I went to clean out a years worth of items and was just floored and scratching my head how I could have collected so much crap!! I had a feeling it was also effecting the handling of my bike. Big Ones wipes, cold weather gloves, headlamps (yes more than one) notepad/pen, can of Plexus, lighters/waterproof matches (in huge container), year old expired beef jerky, nuts, molded dry apple slices, energy bars, baggies, trash bags, maps. Well you get the idea. It ended up being over 9 lbs of hoarding!!
No wonder my bike was having issues off road!! I removed the tank bag and will no longer using it unless I'm touring for a specific trip. As soon as I pulled out of the driveway I noticed a big difference. When standing on rough jeep trails it was like a whole new bike. Yes it's still over 600lbs. But just by removing the bag I'm able to move around on this machine when standing and it no longer flops into the corners at slow speeds. This was a simple and cheap modification that really helps with the handling of my machine.
I found a much more manageable solution with a smaller bag. Since I got this bike I've been packing it like a mule. I'm going in a different direction and peeling off some of the "stupid weight" I accumulated. I'm very happy with the versatility of this bike. Yet, I have to remind myself over and over to set it up only for the ride I'm doing.
There was so much weight in the bag I was using extra straps to secure it!! Almost 10 pounds of junk!! Before:
After: