Unhappy with the cost and complexity of purpose built racks and panniers available for my V-Strom, I found a simple way to mount my bicycle racks and panniers that I already owned. The racks are affordable (~$30 at time of publication), and the panniers can come from any number of manufacturers, as the bicycle pannier mounting is somewhat standardized (two top mount points, and one lower mount point.)
Specifically, I am using a pair of Axiom Journey DLX Lowrider front bicycle pannier racks, and a pair of Axiom Typhoon Aero DLX 45L waterproof panniers.
They are not the largest bags, but they add much needed space to the motorcycle. Combined with a Givi-type trunk, and a tailbag, I had more than enough room for a weeklong motorcycle camping trip along the Blue Ridge Highway.
From the Axiom front rack, I removed the interior positioning system via a pair of M4 bolts. They can be easily re-installed if I wanted to put them back on my bicycle. The racks will be installed onto the motorcycle via two 1/4-20 screws that are drilled and tapped into the existing V-Strom rack.
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| Rough positioning |
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| Marking hold locations (with silver sharpie) |
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| Tapping with a 1/4-20 Tap. Drilled hole with a #7 bit (0.2010") |
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Mounted with (2) 1/4-20 x 1/2" cap head stainless steel machine screws and washers.
Thread locking compound recommended. |
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| Bags mounted for first time. They do not interfere with the passenger. |
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| In use on a beautiful day camping on the James River. |
With only two points of contact holding them on, I was wary about how stable they would be, but with about 10-15 pounds in each bag at highway speeds, there was no wobble or swaying at all. I would still try to keep the heavier gear in the trunk or tailbag, but they are totally trustworthy for carrying raingear, clothes, sleeping bags, and other bulky, but relatively light equipment.
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