Best panniers for 990 Adventure

I didn't see any posts on panniers, so I thought I would throw this out.

Here is lots of information about panniers for the 990

I appreciate the help

As a relative KTM 990 noob, I bought a used set of KTM 37 liter aluminum side cases from an inmate back in January. Great cases for on-road touring (slim, the quick mounts make it a snap to get on/off at your motel/hotel/Holiday Inn ). But...

If you plan on any off-roading and like to get gnarly, those convenient quick mounts are pretty fragile...







Just ordered a set of <a href="http://www.wolfmanluggage.com/Expedition/expd_dry_saddle_bags.html" target="_new">Wolfman Expedition Dry Saddle Bags</a> for off-road/camping trips.



Lots of guys have the <a href="http://www.ktmtwins.com/ktm-950-990-adventure-parts/luggage/ktm-950-990-adventure-black-plastic-side-bags" target="_new">Gobi Cases</a> and love 'em.

Touratech sells the <a href="http://www.touratech-usa.com/Store/1201/PN-052-3336/ZegaPro-Pannier-System-31L-Anodized-Black-KTM-990-950-Adventure-LC8" target="_new">Zega Pros</a>

And Jesse Luggage makes the super-beefy (and SPENDY!) <a href="http://www.jesseluggage.com/ktm950-990.html" target="_new">KTM Jesse Cases</a>

Many opt for various Pelican cases as both side and top cases (I'm still deciding which Pelican I'm using for my top case).

It all depends on your budget and what you plan on doing with them.

I travel and work on my 950. When I work I ride. If you ride standing up nothing is better than the giant loop. IMHO
Dave rides a 950 to. His tank bag is the best design I have used. His medium loop the best for a guy who rides that bke like a 540. If your not carrying books and paper kill the cans and be a man.

Did you get the Wolfman side racks as well?

I am a new 990 owner and trying to decide what panniers/luggage/top case/tank bag combination will work for me. I am leaning towards soft saddle bags ... I am focused on Enduristan and Wolfman.

I am thinking about a hard top case ... either Gobi or Pelican.

For a tank bag either Enduristan or Wolfman.

Hearing about pros/cons on these products from those that use them is appreciated. Thanks, Ross

I've been researching the same thing and come to the conclusion that there isn't a single system(without mods) that will cope well with all situations - on road/off road, short trips/long trips, one up or two, close to civilisation and gas or not, security when away from the bike etc.

As my first trip is going to be in europe and largely on road, I've opted to start my foray into the world of motorcycle luggage with a set of KTM black aluminium cases (rebranded SW Motech Trax Evo) on their quicklock rack system. Adaptors are also available for Hepco and Becker, Givi, Shad, Kappa Monokey, Krauser K3, 5 and 7. The cases are lockable to the bike as are the racks themselves. They already have securing loops on the lid for taking either a set of carry handles or a wide range of other waterproof bags including the Kriega US's, the Wolfmann Rolies and the Trax Evo expansion bags... or anything else you care to strap on there with some webbing.

The added advantage of this system is that the whole rack can be removed from the bike in a few minutes, leaving only the inconspicuous mounting bolts and clearing the way possibly for a Giant Loop Great Basin for those one up trips with a more off road bias where less storage is required and security is less of an issue. Or I can go another route and get the Wolfmann Expedition saddle bags, for which there are now specific soft luggage adapter plates available here in the UK:

http://www.windingroads.co.uk/shop/product.php/320/soft-luggage-rotopax-mounting

They are mountable on the quicklock system and with the appropriate bases will also allow me to carry up to 1.75 gallon rotopaxes, secured on the rack beneath the bags.

That's where I've got to.....

Expensive business this adventure biking! :huh

Even though I buggered the mount on my left KTM aluminum case, I'm still planning on using them for my road touring trips, so I ordered the "other racks" kit, which is basically d-ring/velcro straps...

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I saw Geek's set of Wolfman bags in person and was impressed with the quality. The main reason (other than the waterproofness of this stuff) is Geek's point about hard cases off-road: in a fall, even minor, the odds that the hard side case smacking your leg is pretty high. Would suck to have your case break your leg in an otherwise minor get-off! After I experienced my very minor slide/dirt nap, his point was well-taken.

When I would as a camera bike I us hard cases, When I hit The Dez I hit it with Giantloop. Wolf makes a sweet product to. When heading south of the border into Copper or Baja I stay in small family run casitas or hotels and with my hard cases you cant get them through the front door. I can carry everything I need for a trip in the soft luggage from Giant loop and it fits withing the doors. I have the Rotax 1 gallons on the side with Berg from Jacksons rear cage he makes for Wolfman (excellent option for a stand up adventure traveler with little compromise in off road performance. Also big boxes are leg brakers off road. I can hit this trophy truck jumps in baja with Giantloop strapped to the saddle. Good luck and remember the quiver rules!

I had some Gobi's, but they are as wide as a truck and I kept hitting everything with them, boulders, trees, cacti, street signs, cars, newspaper vending machines, pedestrians, you name it. The mounting system is flimsy as well and I promptly destroyed it and resorted to securing the bags with straps.

I switched to the pelicans mounted up to the standard luggage rack and they were quite a bit slimmer. I put a good ratcheting strap around each one so I wouldnt rip the bags off the mounts and that seemed to work pretty well.

However the soft wolfman's and/or the Giant Loop Great Basin is my choice when riding mostly off pavement and off road.

y I use Jesse Odysse hard bags on the street, they are the most areodynamic bags I could find for gas mileage..
I use a Giant Loop Great Basin off road with two Kolpin Jr fule packs for an extra three gallons of fuel.. If I need more cargo room than the GB can provide, I throw on a 80L dry bag on the tail rack..
Works great!!

-H

+1

Wolfman Expedition bags stay on the bike for daily use. I throw a GL Great Basin on if I need more room.

Did you ever consider what might happen if you lay it down on hard dirt or pavement, and that plastic abrades through? That's a really bad place to mount those, IMO...

If you have aftermarket exhaust do you really need racks with the Wolfman Expedition bags, or can you just lay them over the seat and side panels? I'm thinking the Expedition Bags and a duffel on top would be enough for 4-5 days of riding.

I appreciate all the input, but things have changed. I bought a new 2011 KTM 990 Adventure Dakar today at a great discount. Instead of buying the created bike, they had a showroom model with black KTM panniers, and I got them to throw them in for an additional $800. Being a cheap Scotsman, I couldn't pass it up.

I've been using the giantloop when solo. Very niice and carries all i need.For two up I'm going to get the zegas.

Sturdy and gr8 service

If you're talking about the rotopax, mine have proven to be plenty tough as far as abrasion goes, at least as hardy as the aftermarket main tank on my WR250F.. Given the options, I find this to be a fine spot to mount extra gas. 2-1 with an adv tank would be better protected, but that's a bunch of $ that I don't want to spend, and pretty permanent for the majority of days when I ride and don't want to pick up the extra weight. Mine are somewhat protected by the projection of the utility cases behind them, which is weird, but when it's gone down, the larger case and (once) the mount seem to take a bigger hit than the gas container.



If this bothers you, stay away from the "extra fuel" threads, where the leading method of choice seems to be coffee bags...bungeed on...now THOSE give me the heebie jeebies.

JMNSHO,

S

Say... what model/size Pelican are you sporting on the tail?