Konvoi Panniers Review

[teizms]

The details of the order:

I ordered two side cases, one top case and all the required racks and mounting equipment for a 2005 R1200GS. The total cost with shipping was roughly 950 Euros.

The panniers were to have locks on both sides, making the lids completely removable.

The top box was to have loops installed so that I could easily mount items on top of the top box as well.

I wanted the panniers to be powder coated

I NEEDED delivery before a certain date as my motorcycle was to be shipped to Europe.



The order process:

The order process was simple and straightforward. We discussed requirements over email and I sent the payment via PayPal once Istvan confirmed that he understood details of my order.

Istvan openly admits that he is not very fluent in English and relies heavily on Google Translate. When I asked him to let me know “what” he understood regarding the details of my order, he simply replied that he had understood “everything”.

The build time was supposed to be roughly 40 days.


The wait:

I stayed in touch with Istvan to make sure there is progress on my order. A few weeks later, I was informed that there would be a delay due to the weather that prevented him from accessing his workshop.

After a few weeks delay, I was informed that the order was almost ready. I asked for pictures to confirm everything was fine. The panniers were not made with removable lids, the top case did not have mounting loops and the panniers were clearly plain aluminum without powder coating. Due to the time restrictions, I asked him to make sure that the lids were removable and that the top box had mounting loops.

When the production was finished, it was too late to ship the panniers in time so I asked him to ship them directly to Germany where I would pick up the motorcycle.

This was done but I was never refunded the difference of the shipping, which was roughly half of shipping it to U.S.A. So essentially around 115 Euros were not returned to me.

But the package did make it to Germany so I was only mildly pissed off. Even with the 115 Euros not refunded, I had bought new panniers at a significant saving. Regardless, if you are reading this Istvan, I still want my money back ☺

Installation:

This was the most frustrating bit.

There were no instructions and literally every part had to be bent, twisted and compromised. No screw, mount or rack fit “just right”. Was that too much to expect?

I don’t have experience with other types of adventure panniers, but if $2000 panniers come with racks that need to be bent to fit, I would be seriously pissed off. But since I paid half of that, I was only half as pissed off. Still, for around $1300 – I wanted this stuff to just go on bike without any issues.

The racks for the side cases were almost impossible to install. If I did not have all the heavy metals of the Knopf Tour garage at my disposal, it would have been literally impossible to install this stuff. At the end, the installation wasn’t perfect, but was good enough that we could start our trip.

Now the icing on the cake: the mounting plate and other parts were missing for the top case. Thanks to Stefan, we were able to fabricate the missing parts for the top case. I called Istvan and let him know what was missing, he said he would send me the missing parts but I obviously could not wait for that to start my trip.

For the R1200GS, I would rate the fitment at 1/10. Yes it did work at the end, but I spending around 15/20 hours to somehow make it work.


Usage Report:

The panniers have worked pretty well. The right one is starting to bend a little so the lid does not go on as perfectly as before. This could be due to the overloading the panniers (heheh).

The locking hardware could be a little better. One of the plastics corners broke during installation. Generally I am satisfied because I know I saved some money on this. Overall, I think there is a lot of room for improvement in the customer service and product quality (especially fitment).

Pannier Rating: 7/10 (panniers mostly work well)

Installation Rating: 1/10 (total hack job)

Customer Service Rating: 4/10 (points for sending me pictures which saved the day – serious negative points for not refunding my partial shipping)



Summary:

• I want my shipping refund: p
• Don’t order on a deadline
• Install at home – not when you are in a new country where tool availability might be limited
• Confirm everything via pictures
• Ask him for a delivery time of less than whatever is the deadline for a refund from your payment provider (e.g. PayPal). This way you will be able to claim your money back if the product is not sent in time or is incorrect or missing parts.

One important note: one full size helmet fits on the top case. the large pannier can not fit an helmet.

Boxes arrive in Germany:



mounted


stuff strapped on



in use


rear profile


more shots






ok how many pics can one post of just the panniers :P :P

[Kaanan]

Sorry to hear about the PITA install. They look way too nice to ever put on my KLR, maybe someday...

[Kaanan]

Almost forgot, thanks for the review!

[cug]

For 900 EUR you could have just bought Touratech Zega Pro panniers in Germany and be done with it. Fitment would have been very likely 10/10, boxes probably better than the Konvoi stuff which for 900 EUR is seriously overpriced.

Check this:

http://www.motorrad-koffer-shop.de/T...Adventure.html

[teizms]

Originally Posted by cug

For 900 EUR you could have just bought Touratech Zega Pro panniers in Germany and be done with it. Fitment would have been very likely 10/10, boxes probably better than the Konvoi stuff which for 900 EUR is seriously overpriced.

Check this:

http://www.motorrad-koffer-shop.de/T...Adventure.html

the touratech system i would need is around 2000 euros.
when you add the top case, rack, mounting plate , locks for all the panniers- the price really adds up.

[cug]

Originally Posted by teizms

the touratech system i would need is around 2000 euros.
when you add the top case, rack, mounting plate , locks for all the panniers- the price really adds up.

The top case carrier is 119 EUR, the topcase EUR 329, 5 locks are EUR 50. Okay, so it would have been EUR 1400. True, that would have been more, I didn't calculate the topcase.

Nevertheless, it comes down again to: you get what you pay for. For all I read about the Konvoi panniers, I'd rather stay away. You have seen this as you responded there, too:

http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=823887

I'm normally overthinking everything, but very often in the end just go with a local, reputable vendor that might be more expensive, but where I can hope for service and pay with my credit card as they care much more for fraud than PayPal. PayPal is great for mini transactions and with people you know and trust, not so much for anything else.

It's good that things worked out for you in the end, but I think I would have gone a different route. From the beginning, even without knowing the issues you and the other guy had.

[teizms]

Originally Posted by cug

The top case carrier is 119 EUR, the topcase EUR 329, 5 locks are EUR 50. Okay, so it would have been EUR 1400. True, that would have been more, I didn't calculate the topcase.

Nevertheless, it comes down again to: you get what you pay for. For all I read about the Konvoi panniers, I'd rather stay away. You have seen this as you responded there, too:

http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=823887

I'm normally overthinking everything, but very often in the end just go with a local, reputable vendor that might be more expensive, but where I can hope for service and pay with my credit card as they care much more for fraud than PayPal. PayPal is great for mini transactions and with people you know and trust, not so much for anything else.

It's good that things worked out for you in the end, but I think I would have gone a different route. From the beginning, even without knowing the issues you and the other guy had.

i guess based on my experience i could partially agree with you - but at the time i ordered, the reports were very positive. I couldn't have guessed the racks would have so many issues. Considering that the panniers were for rough use, i think i ended up ok (but frustrated). 1500-2000 euros is too much for panniers

Also, i do not mind giving the small guy a chance . Even at your estimate (which is without shipping), i would have spent 50% more. the touratech stuff was simply not in my budget. also note i was originlly ordering in the usa so the total price was near $2500.

i think this could have been played smarted by setting transaction times in stone and then filing with paypal right away to protect the money. i have had more of less ok experience with paypal as well.

there are many smaller companies (like mine) providing great products at good price so this experience can not be generalized.

[cug]

Originally Posted by teizms

there are many smaller companies (like mine) providing great products at good price so this experience can not be generalized.

I'm all for going with small companies and do that all the time - though I try to keep this within the same jurisdiction. I also order from overseas quite a bit (being German, I get a lot of stuff from Germany), but there I will stay with proven providers that I can properly reach (personally, legally, ...) if the monetary risk is high - which it is / was for some people here.

[teizms]

Originally Posted by cug

I'm all for going with small companies and do that all the time - though I try to keep this within the same jurisdiction. I also order from overseas quite a bit (being German, I get a lot of stuff from Germany), but there I will stay with proven providers that I can properly reach (personally, legally, ...) if the monetary risk is high - which it is / was for some people here.

agreed

[Nailhead]

They look pretty damn trick, but factor in the hassles you put up with I'd say not worth the trouble.

[teizms]

Originally Posted by Nailhead

They look pretty damn trick, but factor in the hassles you put up with I'd say not worth the trouble.

gotta admit - as far as looks go - they do look quittteee niceee