Saddlebags question

[renier8]

Hi everyone.

I am about to order some tourmaster saddlebags online. You can have a look at them over here Tour Master :: Luggage :: Cruiser II Collection :: Cruiser II Saddlebag

I have a few questions:

1. Does anyone have any experience with them (or that brand) ?
2. How easy is it to fit them ? Do I need special brackets etc ?

Thanks for your time
Renier

[Danr]

You need saddle bag stand off brackets like these,to keep the bags from rubbing on the wheel and tire.

Saddlebag Supports from Suzuki Genuine Accessories

[renier8]

Thanks. I will enquire about that bracket-thing.

Renier

[rathr-b-cruisin]

you need the support brackets, get them on ebay eBay Motors: Suzuki C50 M50 Boulevard Volusia SADDLEBAG SUPPORTS (item 120050851369 end time Nov-15-06 07:48:23 PST)

Or you can get either the easy brackets, or the ghost brackets. These are like 150 or so. but then you dont need the saddlebag supports and if you use easy brackets or ghost brackets you dont need the throwover for the saddlebags. you hard mount them to the bike. I would reccommend doing this it looks really good. a lot better than throwover. I made some brackets to hardmount my bags and really like it a lot.

easy brackets Motorcycle Saddlebags / Saddle bag bolt-on hardware supports easy on/off system

ghost brackets Ghost Brackets - Quick Release Saddle Bag Systems - Home

[Sgt Mike]

I have TourMaster bags, I got mine mounted with Easy Brackets, nice set up. Go for it you'll like them.

[renier8]

Hello.
Thank you very much for your input. Denniskirk also responded to my question. They suggest this bracket from Cobra:

Dennis Kirk | Metric Bikes Main Page

I would like to order everything from the same place. Does that part look similar to the easy bracket thing ?

Thanks
Renier

[Ext1jdh]

Those look just like the stock mounts.

[BigD]

... And don't mount them (the bags) to close to your pipe... and please don't ask me how I know this!

[renier8]

I am still confused. Will those Cobra brackets do, or should I rather try and get the Easy brackets from a separate company.

I understand that with the Easy Brackets, the bags would be detachable, but the bags that I am going to get, are semi-detachable anyway.

Your thoughts please.
Renier

[Sgt Mike]

Get the Easy Brackets here, Motorcycle Saddlebags / Saddle bag bolt-on hardware supports easy on/off system
If you're gonna mount or have a sissy bar request the longer bolts.
I know that the TourMaster bags do unzip from the yoke if you want to take them off but I didn't like the appearance of the yoke sticking out from under the seat. With the Easy Brackets it's easy on and off. The Cobra bag supports will work ok but it you take the bags off the they're gonna show, but if you don't mind them hanging down then go that route. Food for thought.

[rathr-b-cruisin]

I had throwover saddlebags for almost the whole year. After looking at some other bikes with the hard mount brackets I built my own mounting brackets and put them on. It sure looks a lot cleaner than having the leather hanging over the rear tire. If you can afford it, get some hard mount brackets. If not you will definitely need the support brackets.

[renier8]

Thank you so much for your help.

One more question. Can I use a throw-over saddlebag with the Easy bracket, or does it have to be another kind of saddlebag ?

Renier

[TaterDog]

I've got the OEM semi-hard bags. Never take them off. Just too handy for hauling stuff.

[Sgt Mike]

Yes you can use the throw over bags with the Easy Brackets but you'll have to remove/cut off the yoke and reinforce/stiffen the back if it's a soft bag. The TourMaster is the ideal bag in my opinion. Tonker has good prices on 'em, don't get the medium bags, they're to small, can't hardly put anything in them, I have the extra large bags. Hope that helps you.
I got mine here: Tour Master Cruiser II Slant Saddlebag

Originally Posted by renier8

Thank you so much for your help.

One more question. Can I use a throw-over saddlebag with the Easy bracket, or does it have to be another kind of saddlebag ?

Renier

[renier8]

Again, I thank you for your time and input.

I will let you know how I progress with these accessories.
Renier

[4dtvman]

I have these best bag for the money here is the link Saddlemen Slant Saddlebags Extra Extra Jumbo by Saddlemen, Saddlemen Saddlebags at Extragear1.com these are realy big but has them in smaller sizes and took 2 days to get , I installed them with ez brackets from Oneida Suzuki Inc :: Cruisers :: Boulevard C50 - Volusia :: EASY BRACKETS VL800/C50 VL1500/C90 I did alot of reseach and this is the cheapest I found

[Philly Rider]

I had the exact same bags for about a year. Then I got a sissy bar and found that no matter how I placed the bags they would either be too low and hit the pipes or too high and the zipper would hit the sissy bar mount and begin to un-zip themselves while I was riding. After a few months of driving me absolutely crazy I broke down and got a pair of the OEM rigid mount bags.

I did have the easy brackets for the throw-over bags which I was able to use for the rigid mount bags.

[old new biker]

The Easy Braket would be a very good way to go, as they are made specificly for your bike. Ghost brackets are OK, but they are more of a universal fit, so that you have to do a fair amount of adjusting to get them to fit to your bike.

The other good thing about the Easy Bracket is that they can be locked onto your bike. If you can lock your bags shut, you have a semi secure situation.

The last thing is that when you want the bags off your bike, all that is left behing are the mounting points that look like overgrown acorn nuts, very clean.

Hope this helps............