Luggage

[Donny2Sugars]

Can anyone tell me weather you can strap extras to the top of vario boxes when touring. I am about to get a R1200 GS and am looking at my options. I see that with the ADV model, the metal boxes have fixing points as to strap to the box but the varios don't. Where do you store things like sleeping bags and tents.

 

[Wapping]

Can anyone tell me weather you can strap extras to the top of vario boxes when touring. I am about to get a R1200 GS and am looking at my options. I see that with the ADV model, the metal boxes have fixing points as to strap to the box but the varios don't. Where do you store things like sleeping bags and tents.

Of course you can.

Strap them on, either on top of the panniers, or on the rear carrier, or on the rear seat, assuming you have no pillion.

A small tent / sleeping bag will fit in a top box or pannier but you may have to carry out some surgery on the poles.

 

[The Bede]

... Wunderlich do a 'strap-on' bag to sit on top of Varios

... Some Tossers have attached tie-down loops to their Varios

... Me , I just remove the pillion pad and bungy my shit onboard with the conveniently placed bungy slots

 

[Narcoda]

I can lash loads of kit to the pillion seat and across the width of the seat and the two side panniers. I wouldnt lash anything to the top of the vario panniers, although saying that you might just get away with it if you used a cargo net on the top box. It is suprising how much kit you can actually get on the back (without the final drive exploding under pressure!)- I have moved house on my GS twice now... Just make sure that whatever it is that you load is firstly essential (couldnt be moved easier by courrier) and secondly very secure... I would be interested in any mods you can make to vario panniers to starp more on, there was a dutch guy on this site that managed to fit metal mule loops to his top box, but it requires drilling and dismantling etc... good luck

 

[Narcoda]

... Wunderlich do a 'strap-on' bag to sit on top of Varios

...

Looks like a bad idea to me, not very secure if you leave your bike unattended for a few seconds...

 

[Donny2Sugars]

Thanks Gents, much appreciated

 

[Jonny_L]

Here's something a bit random, carrying on from Wapping's post.

www.hampton-works.co.uk make custom tent poles, so if you're having trouble squeezing a tent in you can split the poles into more bits.

I did it with my vaude tent as one of the poles was about 5cm too long for my givi topbox. They're cheap too IIRC

 

[Wapping]

Here's something a bit random, carrying on from Wapping's post.

www.hampton-works.co.uk make custom tent poles, so if you're having trouble squeezing a tent in you can split the poles into more bits.

I did it with my vaude tent as one of the poles was about 5cm too long for my givi topbox. They're cheap too IIRC

That's just what I was thinking of...just couldn't find the company.

The author of the thread needs to think, perhaps, 'How did people go touring on motorcycles before fancy panniers, throw overs became available?'

Bikes were smaller but somehow we all managed.

I, for one, have recently been forgetting that more is less, when it comes to touring....Something I will cure myself of, again....

 

[Bub]

Johnny L

Ace find... many thanks for that, Ive saved it, as I need new poles for a tent I have, and new poles will save me fronm having to ebay it.

Again, the amount of info available from this site is excellant.