Weather is sunny and 80s here in the Carolinas, that means everyone is getting “Ready to Ride”. I wanted to share some of the sparkles I’ve added to my BMW R1200RT to get ready for a long riding season.
For longer trips I added a Bead-Rider for my bum and tail bag with removable backrest for my back. The “Grand Tourer” bag, made by Kuryakyn, is identical to the “Journey Bag” from MustangSeats.com. I bought this brand new on eBay for about $75 with shipping. Similar eBay listings http://tinyurl.com/763yw5g, goes for $160, but shop around if looking for a <$100 deal.
There is tons of storage in this bag. It so stiff it works as a backrest even when empty.
The bag can even be mounted on the backrest as a tail bag. The bag comes with lots of adjustable straps to secure the bag to most any bike.
Notice the bright white back panels of my side bags? These highly reflective stick on panels are black during the day, but glow bright when hit by car lights.
To be seen from the front I added a HID headlight replacement light kit. Wow, what a difference, those HID lights really light up the night. I installed both the Low and High beam HID kit. If I had to do over, I would have just done the Low. The delay in High beams cranking up makes them only practical when you find yourself late at night riding down some back road trying to get home and there are no cars around.
To help me find my way I bought a Garmin NUVI 1450 GPS off eBay for about $100. This GPS has a 5″ display.
From Amazon I purchased a RAM mount in which the GPS snaps right in. Following master travelier Dave Selvig’s advice I covered any openings with black tape to keep out water during misty rides.
For riding in rain I purchased a waterproof case. The case didn’t come with a RAM mount, but couple of screws later and I mounted a RAM mount to the back of the case.
The waterproof case has a clear flexible screen providing limited “touch” capability. The GPS is easy to read and protected from afternoon Carolina showers.
Only thing left is to GAS and GO!
Enjoy the Ride!
Chris Skor (Skorlinski)
Nice Job Chris…. The ‘tail-bag’ looks like a nice piece. What is the brand of it? You may have included it in the write-up but I could not find it… Good Buy for sure.
BlueStrada