| Author | Message | ||
     Prowler |
 Pelican 1500's on stock mounts. Tool tube on rear of right case has a 1L fuel bottle inside. | ||
| F_skinner |
I've got about 3 more mods to do Famous last words! | ||
| Tginnh |
Sure thing, man - I'm gonna run outside to my money tree that's in full bloom and pluck me enough bills to buy a redundant set of bags. I think the 20s are ripe. How many do I need?  | ||
| Court |
>>>The original bags are big and look good, but the latch is so bad that it kills those facets. You were heard. I had the good fortune to bring some stuff to some folks attention that they were not aware of. There will be a new engineering effort to look into the issues. It's a really cool company. | ||
| Tipsymcstagger |
They'd be a really cool company if they had some kind of trade-in program if they do indeed redesign the Journey latches. Tipsy | ||
| Itileman |
They're not the hottest item on ebay. Don't ask me how I know. | ||
| Court |
>>>>They'd be a really cool company if they had some kind of trade-in program if they do indeed redesign the Journey latches. Sounds like the Porsche guys demanding that their Tips be replaced with a PDK.  | ||
| Tipsymcstagger |
What I posted was far from a demand. I've never even formally complained. I've just advised other potential purchasers to consider the alternatives because of the latches on the stock (Journey) bags. Tipsy | ||
| Court |
>>>What I posted was far from a demand. I know, I was just funnin' ya . . . . . I do think it's cool that we are able to consolidate and submit concerns like this and have engineering support to look into possible solutions. Rare stuff these days . . . to see a company that actually pursues continuous improvement. | ||
| Froggy |
Hell Harley replaced a good chunk of the 110" engine in my dads 08 Geezer Glide because of some free upgrade program, and it ran worse after he got it back. Some unobtanium latches aren't much to ask for  | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
The problem was NEVER Buell's. The problem was a bad design from H&B. I think the methodology Buell used in adapting an existing (albeit fairly new) bag design to adapt to the Uly. The problem was the bag not the Buell engineers. Now, If the latches had been aluminum instead of plastic, I doubt ANYONE would have any complaints. | ||
| Tginnh |
Thanks for "unobtanium," Froggy. I had to look that one up. Made me chuckle. Court - thanks for pursuing this matter and forwarding along to the good people at Buell. My only complaint to date with my 06 Buell has been the bags. I disagree with Ft_bstrd's statement that it was never a Buell problem and placing the blame at the feet of Hepco & Becker. The Uly is an amalgamation of the best parts and pieces that the engineers could assemble by outsourcing world wide. The bags are no different from any other part you would expect to perform well, especially in light of the premium price they fetch. Like I posted earlier, I encountered the latch issue early on and dealt directly with Buell to resolve. They were fantastic. If it will help, I can forward along my original correspondence to Buell. They supposedly "upgraded" the latch sometime in 06, but I could not discern any difference between the old and the new. As others have posted, I don't think it's too much to ask for a decent, durable retro-fit of the latches. I wouldn't mind paying for it if they would provide it. An excerpt from my original correspondence to Buell: "Two weeks ago, I was doing a gear change outside the Rochester Fairgrounds here in New Hampshire. I was attending the flat track races held during Bike Week. Anyway, I stuffed my riding jacket and pants into the right-hand saddlebag and when I went to close and lock the bag, the latch snapped. Actually, the fulcrum, which is made of paper-thin plastic snapped. Admittedly, I applied more pressure to the latch than it could bear and I probably over stuffed the bag. However, the pressure applied was not excessive by any stretch of the imagination. I have been wary of the latching mechanism from the day I laid eyes on the sidecases. The latch struck me as good looking and functionally adequate, but cheap and flimsy – easy to break in to, easy to break. So, I made a mental note to don my kid gloves whenever latching the sidecases. Guess, I forgot this one time around. My local dealer is already handling the broken latch as a warranty item. The entire bag is being replaced. Wow! I’m impressed by the service, but feel bad that the entire bag needs to be replaced. My guess is that you are seeing a lot of this problem. If not, I’m certain you will be. I am the second person my local dealer has dealt with regarding this issue. My concern about this latch is that I see it breaking in the future. I plan to keep my Uly for a while and I use the bags often. What happens a year from now when the bike is out of warranty and I break another latch? Do I foot the price tag for replacement of the entire bag? Yikes! Are there any plans in the works for retrofitting the sidecase latch with a durable replacement? If so, can you keep me posted on when it will be available? If not, what are my options?" | ||
| Adamd |
"Rare stuff these days . . . to see a company that actually pursues continuous improvement." My 2000 KLR650, like all KLR650's suffered from the ever famous doohickey failure that destroyed my engine 1 month out of warranty. Kawasaki denied there was a problem with the part in question, but investigation shows that multiple laws suits have been filed and thousands of cases documented on this 10$ part. It's also a saftey issue as it can lock up the rear wheel and clutching does nothing. I know cuz it happened to me. Don't quote me, but the years affected are like 1988-2006.. Now Kawi did pay for parts to rebuild the engine after weeks of fighting (broken cases, cam chain...) but I had to pay labour. I think the new part that they finally changed in 2007 helps, but may not totally solve the issue. Almost 20 years to fix. Great job Kawasaki. | ||
| Court |
No secret to many here that I am a big KLR fan (just got two more as "project bikes") and although I am not sure what "doohickey" you are referring to I do have one motor that was consumed by the failure to do the cam chain tension adjustment. The KLR is, at least in my mind, somewhat of a legend having gone so many years with so few changes. I'd love to see the Blast go through a similar life cycle and become the consummate "welcome to the sport" bike but I'm not sure anyone else shares my enthusiasm. You do make an interesting point about Kawasaki . . . who, when you have a problem like that, do you call? | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
I'd love the Blast to get a face lift. As a bike, it's fugly. | ||
| Court |
>>>As a bike, it's fugly. No doubt about it. It's "beauty" is that it works so well. | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
I would follow function over form if we were talking about a skid loader. I want a bike that not only works great, but LOOKS great. If you design a bike that the rider never has the impulse to look back at while walking away, send it back to the style department. | ||
| Court |
No argument from me . . . in addition . . . I think a thumper has tremendous potential to really look great! | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
I want the Blast to be Buells update to the Ninja 250. I think there is a real opportunity for a Duke 690/RC4 competitor in that slot. I'd love to see a bike with a great motor, great looks, and good suspension in the single cylinder category.   | ||
| Darthane |
Heh...I like the way the Blast looks. ...at least until any normal-sized human being stands next to it to supply scale! | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Moto-suppository. I could ride a Duke 690 and look normal. Then again, I make a Uly look "little".  | ||
| Court |
As much as I like the looks of that Duke (riding partner just bought one) it would destroy the advantage of the Blast. The Blast needs to look small and intimidating. | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Could we have "smallish"? | ||
| Court |
>>>Could we have "smallish"? Good idea . . . a skilled designer can make the bike actually look smaller or larger than it is with lines and colors. I can even see having the same bike "slotted" in a couple markets changing nothing but graphics, lines and colors. | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Ooooh, Oooooh! You could make a pink one! | ||
| Darthane |
 ...the Blast has enough self-esteem issues already. Back on topic, I'm still lusting after replacing my top case with the Outdoorsman version. You can buy just the topcase directly from HB, right? I know Buell doesn't sell it solo. | ||
| Froggy |
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| Froggy |
They don't seem to have a buy page on their site. Adventureworkshop has just about every case, latch, and accessory ever. | ||
| Ratbuell |
If you have a friendly parts department, they can look up "service parts" for the top and sidecase kit. That list has the numbers for individual cases, brackets, etc. in case an owner needs to replace just one component. You'll have to be sure to order it with a key code, though, if you want it keyed the same as your existing cases. | ||
| Hangontight |
Has anyone put Givi E45N cases as side cases or are they too wide? I know the E36N models are popular for side cases but I think they're a little small. If you have mounted E45N's would you care to post a couple of pictures? Thanks. |
