Tank bag or backpack?

Message

Sev · #21 Unread post by **Sev** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 12:49 pm

I'm not talking about getting the magnets on the tank.

What happens is small amounts of dust, bugs and flung pieces of sand/gravel end up being blown under your tank bag throughout the course of your ride. The tank then vibrates constantly (even if it's only a little bit) for extended periods of time and that accumulated crap works itself around and slowly wears away at/scratches your paint.

Unless what you're putting on the tank is actually a sticker or something similar that creates a water proof seal against the paint you'll always get something in between, and given enough time it'll scratch your paint.

scan · #22 Unread post by **scan** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 1:17 pm

Sevulturus wrote:I'm not talking about getting the magnets on the tank.

What happens is small amounts of dust, bugs and flung pieces of sand/gravel end up being blown under your tank bag throughout the course of your ride. The tank then vibrates constantly (even if it's only a little bit) for extended periods of time and that accumulated "crumb" works itself around and slowly wears away at/scratches your paint.

Unless what you're putting on the tank is actually a sticker or something similar that creates a water proof seal against the paint you'll always get something in between, and given enough time it'll scratch your paint.

Yeah, well I'm not the average rider. I don't worry about micro-scratches, or even big ones over a long period of time. This bike will be worn to the bone when I turn it back in for a refill. I think for most people your point is legit. For me, I've seen no noticable wear and used it on many trips. I love it and don't know how I got by without a magnetic tank bag. I was a fool to think it was a bad idea - which I did before.

Sev · #23 Unread post by **Sev** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 1:20 pm

I'm not saying it's a bad thing to use one, just that if you want to keep your bike in perfect condtion, this ain't gonna help. That and I'm a little annoyed to what my tank pbag has done to my tank. One of the magnets fell out while I was putting it back on and stuck there for a while, put a couple of nice holes in the paint.

I fully expect to never sell this bike, but I still take a lot of pride in it's appearance.

-Holiday · #24 Unread post by **-Holiday** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 3:28 pm

tank bag, but not one so tall it impedes on your leaning. the magents will hold. If they didnt, where do you think the bag would go? In your lap?

I went cross country with a heavy, tall tank bag held on with magnets and it never fell off.

scratches? Yea i guess thats valid. On my new bandit i dont need to use a tank bag because im using my givi hard bags instead, but if I was i would probably be worried about scratching. Not so much i wouldnt do it though. Motorcycles are meant to be used and "poo poo" happens.

Sev · #25 Unread post by **Sev** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 3:38 pm

I still use mine

-Holiday · #26 Unread post by **-Holiday** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 3:49 pm

Sevulturus wrote:I still use mine

wow, i had no idea they still used cable operated clutches on newer bikes.

Sev · #27 Unread post by **Sev** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 3:58 pm

Most bikes still have a cable operated clutch. Probably because some people claim, "it reduces the feel." Or ability to feel the friction point. I've never ridden a hyd clutch though, so I couldn't be sure.

-Holiday · #28 Unread post by **-Holiday** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 4:08 pm

Sevulturus wrote:Most bikes still have a cable operated clutch. Probably because some people claim, "it reduces the feel." Or ability to feel the friction point. I've never ridden a hyd clutch though, so I couldn't be sure.

ive ridden both, my 360 is cable, my old cb750 cable, nighthawk hydro, fj hrdro, and bandit hydro

i dont know if i can say anything about the friction zone, but the hydro clutches to me feel smoother, as well as easier to pull, which is nice for lots of traffic.

next time im at the dealer i go to im going to see which bikes are hydro and which are cable.

Cable probably makes for a faster roadside fix should it fail, i'll give it that. Although I have been pretty well versed in rebuilding slave cylinders in the past year...

gitarjunky · Sun Aug 27, 2006 1:55 pm

Cool thanks for the input guys. If you go to rideicon.com and click on bags, the first bag to the left is the one I'm considering. It can be a backpack or a tank bag. It has a microfiber layer that actually touches the tank in tank bag mode. Seems like a pretty good deal for about 100 bucks. I don't plan on taking more than 1 day (of travel time) road trips in the immediate future, so I think something like this would work well for me. I'll let you know what I decide on and how it works out.

DieMonkeys · Sun Aug 27, 2006 3:00 pm

I've got both, though I have yet to travel with them. I got the backpack for school and the tankbag so I have a place to stick my mapquest directions when I come back home with my bike (2 weeks I should be home on my new bike!). The backpack has a nifty helmet holder so I can keep tabs on my helmet rather than leaving it with the bike or holding it like a chump. Plus it has a spot just for a camelbak.

The backpack is Cortech, the tank bag is Rapid Transit. Bought them both from newenough.com (them's good peoples!).