Silly newb saddle bag questions

[Chris Cole]

Greetings from Oklahoma!

I just bought a 2004 GZ250 and I am taking my rider class at the end of the month.

I removed the back seat because I just don't like the way it looks and I don't plan on having passengers.

A friend of mine offered to sell me a spare set of bags on the cheap and I was wondering if there is a good way to mount them without the back seat.

[Water Warrior 2]

Welcome newbie. 1 thing we need to know is can you post a pic of the bags. That way we see exactly what you will be working with and secondly you will probably need bag brackets to keep the bags away from the rear wheel as it goes around. You can buy brackets or make some real cheap and just as effective. You can't have really gigantic bags because they will interfere with the rear signals. Try to get a pic of the bags on the bike to give us a better idea of dimensions and what not.

[alanmcorcoran]

The seat provides some holding power, but it mainly covers up the laced connectors. The bags basically hold eachother on by being connected to eachother and gravity. (If it was me, though, I'd just put the seat back on.) Look for shallow bags - and I'd recommend the non-leather variey, and you may find some that will mount directly to the saddle supports rather than to a connecting piece. (I have leather bags and effing with the buckles, the useless shape and the non-waterproofness of them makes them not such a great idea.)

Look for other posts about installing the saddle bag mounts. It's doable, even if you are mechanically challenged (like me) but it's kind of a pain in the ass. You'll need small hands and something to keep the nuts from spinning inside the fender. Suspending the rear wheel (via a shop or homemade jack) can give you a little more clearance - and I think someone mentioned screwing with the shock absorber offset can also help.

Above all, measure carefully the drop between the trim on the rear fender and the exhaust pipe. Subtract two inches and that's your max bag height, unless you want to weld/tack aluminum or something else to the bottoms.

[alantf]

Originally Posted by alanmcorcoran

I have leather bags and effing with the buckles, the useless shape and the non-waterproofness of them makes them not such a great idea.

:plus1: