Luggage and camping with SV?

Originally Posted by ogden

+1 on the bungies (though never underestimate the ability of a cargo net to hold things steady at 170mph on an Autobahn) but I'd vote strongly for a tailpack over panniers every time. The first time you have to filter with panniers, you'll wish you'd used a tailpack instead.

Oh and I do have a cargo net, tend to always have that and a few bungies under my rear seat anyway, as well as long cable lock.

Have used soft luggage almost exclusively over the years when touring all ovr the UK and Europe and never had any security issues. I feel confident that when you park most areas are where peopl are there for a reason i.e sight seeing, drink, food etc. and not interested in your belongings strapped to your bike. I always make sure the panniers / tail pack are well secured but this is more for when travelling around but obviously makes removeing them quickly very difficult and hence more secure. Hope that helps

[ogden]

Originally Posted by F4LL3N

That's great advice there - thanks! I had the Oxford Tailpack once, tried using it on a CBR600FS1 and had trouble fitting it properly? But that could just have been me.

What about security - obviously if you are using tailpacks and soft panniers isn't there a bit of an issue with security? And what do you do when you go out for the day - just leave all your gear at the tent and take the valuables with you?

Some dumb questions there - but nice to get an idea of how its done !

I've only ever used Oxford's tailpack, but it's a doddle to fit. One strap under the seat, then bungee it down. I've used it on a ZX7R, SV650, GSXR750, GSXR1000 and (of all things) an RGV250 with no problems. The key thing is the strap under the seat - I once had a moment where a mate who hadn't done that bit was riding in front of me on the way out of Calais and his tailpack made a break for freedom. Two of us had to swerve like mad to avoid his shreddies all over the motorway and he never saw any of those clothes again.

For security, I try not to worry about it. First rule of camping is don't take valuables. If you must, then take no more than will fit under the rear seat and carry the rest with you. That logic has got me through riding to Glastonbury, weeks or weekends at foreign races, weekends at pubs, whatever. It is an issue though, hence why I've just bought a bike with full hard luggage, so I can leave stuff on the bike without worrying too much about it.

Golden rule is travel light - if you don't need it, and I mean *need* it, leave it at home.

[garynortheast]

If you are going to take valuables with you then put them all in a tankbag. It takes 30 seconds to take the tankbag off the bike and they all come with a shoulder strap.

[Jayneflakes]

I am a Mountain Leader/Climbing Instructor and have adapted my kit for bike use now. Starting with the Bike, I love Oxford kit so have Oxford panniers and tank bag.



The panniers are expandable and hold 60L of stuff. The Tank bag is also expandable and holds about 40L. I know that some folks prefer hard luggage, but this Oxford stuff does not require fitting kits or racks to bolt the boxes on to. The down side to this is that pillion room is reduced, but this does not bother me because the wife rides her own bike.

With tents, we chose a big one that has a porch big enough to put both bikes into. The reason we chose this is because if the bikes break down, we want somewhere warm and dry to repair them if the weather is bad. However the tent cost us dear at nearly £300 with out BMC discount.

If you do not want to do this, try a little three man or minimum of a large two man tent. Camping on the bike, you will want an area to store wet kit with out it soaking your sleeping bag if it rains and somewhere to dump kit when it is not on the bike. I use a Coleman Tent that I bought for my MLA in 2003 and it has never let me down.

As for stoves, I use both a multi fuel stove again, by Coleman because it can burn Petrol and a small gas stove to cook on.

With the bike you will always have a store of petrol, but you will need to carry a store of gas bottles. Meths stoves are still available, but these are in my opinion slow and not great for modern tents. Meths burns with an invisible flame and if spilt, it can be hard to see where it is burning. The most crude systems are the solid fule stoves, these are similar to Meths in cooking time, but can sometimes be sooty, which makes the rest of your kit dirty when you pack them down. For pans, I use MSR stainless steel. These are a little heavier than Aluminium, but it has been suggested that Alu pots can cause disease. Whether this is true or not, I prefer MSR steel pots, they are easy to clean and beautifully made.



As mentioned here, Scottish midges are mean little gits. DEET can work, but it causes melting of some plastic based clothing, so do not get it on your Bike gear if you wear textiles.

Carrying water is always a good idea too, I use a water bag and a Camelbak so always have lots of fluids is wild camping. As for food, I have to be honest and state that I really hate Wayfarer meals! I carry ingredients so that I can actually make nice camp food, I hate that dried pasta packet stuff, so stocking up with nice food on the way is a good idea.

Hope that this helps, if you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

[NTECUK]

We allways uesed a Givie Wing Rack .Hard panners(Clothes heavey stuff etc) and a tote bag accrose the rear rack.
Stuck the light cooking gear in a magnetic tank bag and the tent accros the front bungied to the mirrors,
Thers some magic triangle to keep the waight in so the bikes stable.

Originally Posted by Jayneflakes

I am a Mountain Leader/Climbing Instructor and have adapted my kit for bike use now. Starting with the Bike, I love Oxford kit so have Oxford panniers and tank bag.



The panniers are expandable and hold 60L of stuff. The Tank bag is also expandable and holds about 40L. I know that some folks prefer hard luggage, but this Oxford stuff does not require fitting kits or racks to bolt the boxes on to. The down side to this is that pillion room is reduced, but this does not bother me because the wife rides her own bike.

With tents, we chose a big one that has a porch big enough to put both bikes into. The reason we chose this is because if the bikes break down, we want somewhere warm and dry to repair them if the weather is bad. However the tent cost us dear at nearly £300 with out BMC discount.

If you do not want to do this, try a little three man or minimum of a large two man tent. Camping on the bike, you will want an area to store wet kit with out it soaking your sleeping bag if it rains and somewhere to dump kit when it is not on the bike. I use a Coleman Tent that I bought for my MLA in 2003 and it has never let me down.

As for stoves, I use both a multi fuel stove again, by Coleman because it can burn Petrol and a small gas stove to cook on.

With the bike you will always have a store of petrol, but you will need to carry a store of gas bottles. Meths stoves are still available, but these are in my opinion slow and not great for modern tents. Meths burns with an invisible flame and if spilt, it can be hard to see where it is burning. The most crude systems are the solid fule stoves, these are similar to Meths in cooking time, but can sometimes be sooty, which makes the rest of your kit dirty when you pack them down. For pans, I use MSR stainless steel. These are a little heavier than Aluminium, but it has been suggested that Alu pots can cause disease. Whether this is true or not, I prefer MSR steel pots, they are easy to clean and beautifully made.



As mentioned here, Scottish midges are mean little gits. DEET can work, but it causes melting of some plastic based clothing, so do not get it on your Bike gear if you wear textiles.

Carrying water is always a good idea too, I use a water bag and a Camelbak so always have lots of fluids is wild camping. As for food, I have to be honest and state that I really hate Wayfarer meals! I carry ingredients so that I can actually make nice camp food, I hate that dried pasta packet stuff, so stocking up with nice food on the way is a good idea.

Hope that this helps, if you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

Thanks for the detailed list. On this trip I will be travelling by myself, but in the future I may have the girlfriend with me on these trips (she doesn't ride her own bike). Would you still then recommend soft luggage, despite the reduced pillion room, or is it then better to go for hard luggage?

Also, I noticed you don't have your tent/sleeping bag/etc. packed in that picture, how do you find the room for that? I am a bit against the mirrors idea!

[NTECUK]

A sensible 3 man tent(your need that for 2 of you)are not that big or heavy.
I'll see if I can dig some pics out and.scan them.we did a fair few runs 2 up on the Katana ,ZZR 600 & RF 900.
Found the extra weigh on the front kept it stable(2 up) .All the valuables locked in hard lungage is pice of mind.

Personally I use Oxford First Time throwover soft panniers, a cheap magnetic tankbag, and bungee net everything else over the top of the pillion seat. Tent is a Lichfield Apache 3 man which was 35 quid.

There are no right or wrong answers here, any panniers will do, any tent will do (Vangos and Tescos both in this thread), any sleeping bag will do (just wear more clothes if it's a cheapie), 12v socket can be installed in your dash or lying loose under the pillion seat.

You are going camping in Scotland in summer on a motorbike, not trekking on foot for a month across the Himalayas. You don't need the lightest this or the warmest that, or this brand name or that brand name.

The only important bit, is getting out there and doing it.

Originally Posted by -Ralph-

Personally I use Oxford First Time throwover soft panniers, a cheap magnetic tankbag, and bungee net everything else over the top of the pillion seat. Tent is a Lichfield Apache 3 man which was 35 quid.

There are no right or wrong answers here, any panniers will do, any tent will do (Vangos and Tescos both in this thread), any sleeping bag will do (just wear more clothes if it's a cheapie), 12v socket can be installed in your dash or lying loose under the pillion seat.

You are going camping in Scotland in summer on a motorbike, not trekking on foot for a month across the Himalayas. You don't need the lightest this or the warmest that, or this brand name or that brand name.

The only important bit, is getting out there and doing it.

Yeah I guess that's the thing, I think the setting it up is the main thing. I don't have many areas on my SV to tie bungees too. Ive had to lock a cargo net under the rear seat usually to secure stuff on the pillion seat.

Noticed you are located in Northampton, I'm studying music here. If you fancy a ride out sometime let me know.