The Review:
For those with short attention spans:
Great bag. Good price. Lots of room inside and nice feel for a backrest.
For the more in-depth:
I saw one of these bags about a year ago on a friend's bike and inquired about it. I've been riding around with a sleeping bag on the pillion seat as a backrest and although it's effecient and cheap, it's getting old having folks ask me "you just passing through town?" when I stop for gas on the way to work.
I got a little ahead on my cash flow a couple of weeks ago and although the price on the bag ($185 with free shipping) is very affordable, I'm an EBay whore and found one on there for a good price. It came from a rider in Abilene Texas (nice guy by the way) and was exactly as he described it. I thought I'd received a bonus when I found a toolbag inside but it turns out he'd forgotten to check the bag before shipping. The tools are for his bike and I'll be mailing them back to him today.
With the purchase of the bag, I went from Hillbilly chic to RUB authentic:
The bag attachment is very easy and straightforward. There are 4 D-rings (two on each side, naturally) for the included bunjie cords. The cords have normal snap rings on the ends, not hooks. This helps ease my mind with the safety of the attachment and elimates the chances of tearing the simulated leather cover.
The backrest is composed of two seperate parts. The pad that velcros to the bag and the lumbar roll which snaps to the pad. The lumbar roll has a zipper so you can replace the foam insert if it ever loses it form. With this arrangement, you can move the pad and lumbar support up or down as you need to put it where you need it most or remove the whole contraption.
The sides of the bags used to be secured with zippers but after some of them failed (with time, zippers tend to do that), he replaced the zippers and now uses turnbuckle type fasteners. They seem to function well and keep the endcaps secure. (Sorry for the over-exposure on the picture. Shooting in the garage).
On each end of the bag is a nice, deep pocket that is kept closed with firm snaps. These pockets can hold a multitude of items but the one on the left end of the bag will be used to carry a water bottle for me.
The interior of the bag is very roomy. The core of the bag is a pvc pipe that has grooves all the way around (inside and out but you can't see them on the outside due to the material). The grooves provide "bite" so things don't shift around inside. This pic shows the bag with my rainsuit consisting of pants, jacket and boot covers. You can see there is
plenty of room for a lot more.
And there you have it. I haven't had a chance to put many miles on the bike since I got the bag (friggin rain) but from what little I've used it, I can feel the relief in my back from the lumbar pad and the stability of the bag itself. I hope to put 100 or so miles on the bike today to give it a good shakedown and see if it supports better than the sleeping bag (which shouldn't be hard).
The bags are available in a 12" or 10". The one on my bike is the 12". I was worried that it would be too large and would push me too far forward but with my riding position, it seems to fit just perfect.
Go to
www.lazyrider.com and check them out. He also sells leggins if that's your style. In the pictures the bags have a blue hue to them due to the flash. They're a very nice, deep black and you can't tell that they're not leather unless you're really a leather fanatic. My leatherlyke saddlebags are nowhere near leather but look good all the same. Keep in mind, the bags were born and bread right here in Texas and are still made by Texans in Lubbock.