SW Motech quick release EVO racks | GTAMotorcycle.com

SW Motech quick release EVO racks

Rotten_Ronnie

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I got tired of hauling my gear like this:

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When I bought my 2001 Suzuki Bandit 600 it came with the racks and a pair of E41 side cases, and those went onto my 2004 Kawasaki KLR as well.

About to hit Southwood Road
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On my way to Bar Harbor Maine
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They didn't work quite as well as I'd have liked on the KLR so I set them aside and mounted a Packrat rack and some ammo cans for my Labrador Newfoundland run...
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And the Givi cases got set aside when I bought the 2009 Suzuki DR650E as I wanted to go with rough duty racks and pelican cases for the odd 'Oops, I dropped my bike' incidents that I'm prone to while riding off road. BRAPPPPPP! D@&M!!!

The Versys on the other hand, while labelled as an adventure bike, really shouldn't go on any roads that you would hesitate to drive your average Honda civic down. Largely due to suspension, weight, 120/17 front etc.

So those cases that I spent over $700 dollars on have been sitting idle for a few years, and I really missed them this last trip out to Prince Edward Island, and to the racetrack for the weekend. I made do with soft luggage, but you always worry about your fairings getting ruined by vibration and the friction of the straps riding on your fairings, not to mention the canoe bags conveniently right over top the zippers, and you need rain covers, and a third eye to prevent people from pilfering them while parked.

The Givis are waterproof, lockable and will store two full face helmets per side, and I can always acquire a couple of smaller e21s later on to prevent me from stuffing cement blocks or anchors into my side cases. Extra weight in the bags act like out riggers and work fine on straight ahead riding, but require extra effort to counter steer into a left turn, then counter steer and transition into a right hand turn. So the rule of thumb is keep the weight as light as possible and as low as possible. That being said, I dragged a bag on VT 17 one year on my way back from Cromag '08, an ADVRider rally, and when that bag touched down and I realized that I wasn't going to be able to tighten my line in the corner, I got my @ss over the side of the seat and pretended I was Kenny Roberts and cranked that puppy up and off that road for a wee bit more turn in. Well, they never said it was going to be a perfect setup. ;)

Anyhow, I pulled the pin and ordered the racks in for the Versys from Aviciouscycle on Wednesday at 3pm, and came home today to find them sitting on the porch this afternoon!

A couple of choice words and a gallon of loctite later...
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You will no doubt notice that I chose not to relocate the turn signals. I really don't care to chop up oem wiring, and think that the bags won't be on the bike long during the season, so I'm not too worried about it.
I now have to colour match the coloured panels or perhaps rattle can them black to match the rest of the case, then I can stick them on anything.

If you can't tell, I'm a pretty happy camper.
 
I have them on my Blackbird. They're expensive but they're really convenient. I don't want my bike looking like I have a cage around it so the quick release racks are great.
 
I have a couple of friends with the Givi wing racks, and they look fugly.
 
Yep, which is why I didn't mind spending the extra money for something removable.
 
How easy are they to remove? I'm thinking of biting the bullet and swapping out my OEM Tiger "floating" panniers (which are small and fragile but they look alright) for some cheapy aluminum panniers when I find some. I occasionally like stripping the bags off and ripping round a bit faster.
 
I can have them off with a flat tip screwdriver in two minutes.
 
There are 4 mounting points on each side of my bike. Like Ronnie said, a flap trip screwdriver removes the four large screws very quickly. The screws only take one full rotation and they're out.

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There are 4 mounting points on each side of my bike. Like Ronnie said, a flap trip screwdriver removes the four large screws very quickly. The screws only take one full rotation and they're out.

php6IR85u_1.jpg

Now I'm regretting letting the used set go that I saw on the Tiger1050 forum. MSRP on the racks is quite high.
 
By the time I ordered the Givi adapter kit and paid for shipping it was just over $400, but I plan on keeping the bike for a good long while yet, and will sell them separately when it's time to let it go.
 
By the time I ordered the Givi adapter kit and paid for shipping it was just over $400, but I plan on keeping the bike for a good long while yet, and will sell them separately when it's time to let it go.

Yup, and that's only the start. The type of panniers I want seem to be in the $600+ range. There are some on the ADV vendor forum that are $250 US but I need assymetrical ones due to a high mount pipe and they only seem to be sold in one size.
 
The EVO racks are pre drilled, but flat so you could always mount a cheaper option such as pelican cases or even home made aluminum until you find the right deal.

This guy modified his as a workaround for his aftermarket exhaust pipe.
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The EVO racks are pre drilled, but flat so you could always mount a cheaper option such as pelican cases or even home made aluminum until you find the right deal.

This guy modified his as a workaround for his aftermarket exhaust pipe.
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Its really the sizes, I need a larger case on one side to make up for the high mount pipe on the other for a bit of weight balance and to make sure it looks equal from the back. The OEM cases do this by having a cut out on the side where the pipe is meaning that one pannier is ludicrously small.
 
The EVO racks do tend to come out further from the bike to make allowance for exhaust. On the Bandit they stuck out a bit, and I was guilty of ramming a case into posts at gas pumps etc until I got used to them.

What bike do you ride?
 
The EVO racks do tend to come out further from the bike to make allowance for exhaust. On the Bandit they stuck out a bit, and I was guilty of ramming a case into posts at gas pumps etc until I got used to them.

What bike do you ride?

A Tiger 1050. Bit like your versys in that it has limited off road capabilities but it's not too bad. I take it down gravel and packet roads a lot now even though I only have street tires on it.
 
A Tiger 1050. Bit like your versys in that it has limited off road capabilities but it's not too bad. I take it down gravel and packet roads a lot now even though I only have street tires on it.
Brilliant. Eric at Aviciouscycle owned the adventure model and loved it, comparing it to a KLR on steroids with better braking, better suspension and much more power (actually I think he said grin factor). Lol.

Tires are a huge disadvantage for me, as I was used to a 21" knobbie front and now I've a 120/17 that won't accept any decent aggressive tire.

I did concession 7 from Durham to York Region tonight and it was totally dry. The last time I took it in the wet, the front tire washed out and until I got on the throttle to sort that out, my sphincter tightened up for a bit there.

I bought it used with Conti Motion tires on it, and they were confidence inspiring in the wet and dry, so tried Conti Trail Attack2 tires this year, and have 18k on them, and am thinking about Conti Escape or Heidenau K60 Scouts.

I'm really impressed that the Givi box has hung on so long the way I treat it.

The Tiger looks good with the EVO racks:

http://shop.sw-motech.com/cgi-bin/c...rub--brands.triumph.tig1050sp&typid=152659495

You were planning on taking them on and off, right?
 
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Brilliant. Eric at Aviciouscycle owned the adventure model and loved it, comparing it to a KLR on steroids with better braking, better suspension and much more power (actually I think he said grin factor). Lol.

Tires are a huge disadvantage for me, as I was used to a 21" knobbie front and now I've a 120/17 that won't accept any decent aggressive tire.

I did concession 7 from Durham to York Region tonight and it was totally dry. The last time I took it in the wet, the front tire washed out and until I got on the throttle to sort that out, my sphincter tightened up for a bit there.

I bought it used with Conti Motion tires on it, and they were confidence inspiring in the wet and dry, so tried Conti Trail Attack2 tires this year, and have 18k on them, and am thinking about Conti Escape or Heidenau K60 Scouts.

I'm really impressed that the Givi box has hung on so long the way I treat it.

The Tiger looks good with the EVO racks:

http://shop.sw-motech.com/cgi-bin/c...rub--brands.triumph.tig1050sp&typid=152659495

You were planning on taking them on and off, right?

Yep, more on than off but for a quick Sunday blast I like to take the weight off the bike. Some people race these Tigers too. See a blog by Adrian Molloy where he takes it to Brands Hatch.

I was thinking of putting Pirelli scorpion trails on the bike next

Edit: that link you put up is for the sexy one sided swing arm version of my bike. Mines a 2010.
 
I've been looking for a decent set of tires but the good ones like Conti Escape and Heidenau K60 can't be had for my size rim. :(
 
After touring in the Alps last year and mildly damaging a Trax case (plastic corner piece) and after paying for it, I brought it back and bought the remaining QuickLok system from SW Moteck to fit my DL650, and couldn't be happier. You have the option of totally removing everything including racks.

Officially broke-in the cases on an off-road excursion in upstate New York when I slid down a wet and grassy embankment landing in mud on the right side, then righting the bike only to have the sidestand sink in the mud and flip the other way. Amazingly boxes were unscratched and undented! What are these things made of? If anyone needs their cases/panniers tested, let me know, I'm the guy that will find a way to do it.

BTW, RottenRonnie I see your left turn light is wedged uncomfortably against the racks. I solved this problem because I also opted not to use the brackets that reposition the turn signal lights, but instead did a quick shortening of the rubber stem (slightly more than 1/2 inch) and then reassembled the wire, socket and bulb. It looks natural and it's such a small difference that unless you point it out to someone, no one has noticed.
 
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