Motorcycle Saddlebags
When your out and about riding through town on your Suzuki motorcycle (or any other brand, for that matter) sometimes it's nice to be able to stop at a store and pick up a few things to take home. Other times, like when you decide to take a long trip on your motorcycle, you need to be able to pack some personal effects to take with you. In a car, this is easy of course. On a motorcycle, not so much.
This is where saddlebags come into play.
For those of you who do not know, saddlebags resemble--and get their name from--the bags that the cowboys used to strap over their horses for the long trips. On a motorcycle, the mounting scheme is usually a bit different, but the overall idea remains largely the same.
Motorcycle saddlebags consist of two "bags" connected by a yoke. This whole setup is usually made of leather or a leatherlike material, though there are some manufacturers who use hard material, such as fiberglas or something similar, usually for the purpose of offering solid, waterproof construction. While hard saddlebags for motorcycles are okay in their place, in this post, I won't be delving into the hard saddlebags too much because they don't really fit well with the Suzuki Intruder motorcycle. An exception to this would be the big classic style cruiser of the Intruder LC1500 which works well in hard saddlebag, touring type setup.
Sometimes each of these bags contains pockets in addition to the main compartment, but usually it just one big compartent per side. Generally, a flap closes over the top of each one lengthwise and is secured by a snap on one end where the other end is sewn in. Another, larger, flap closes over this flap and is buckled into place by one, two, or three buckles.
The yoke is used to mount the saddlebags on the motorcycle, usually underneath the rear seat. This is simple enough, but you also need one other piece of equipment unless you want your saddlebags flying all over the place when you ride while getting beat up by the rear wheel. What is this extra piece of equipment? Glad you asked!
Saddlebag Supports
These are metal pieces shaped in a sort of a square "u." Each manufacturer has a specific method of attaching these so I can't go into too much detail. But generally, they either mount under the rear fender or between the fender and the fender rails. Once these are in place and you've got your yoke underneath the seat, all you have to do is tie or otherwise attach the saddlebags to this support. Now they won't sway and bounce all over the place when you ride.
Now that we know a little bit about these things and how to mount them, let's take a look the two main styles they come in.
- Straight Saddlebags
- Slanted Saddlebags
These hang straight down and resemble in profile a square. They offer a lot of usable room and work well on a monoshock style motorcycle or cruisers that have a lot of space between the rear shocks and the end of the fender. On a more compact motorcycle with exposed shocks the bottom front corner of these bags must overlap the shock thereby causing the front of them to pooch out. While functionally this may have little impact, aesthetically it is very tacky.
Slant Saddlebags
If you take the straight saddlebags and slant them backward, this is what you get. Instead of resembling a square they look more like a parallelogram. While they do not offer as much usable room as the straight saddlebags do, they are a great option for those cruisers with a compact back end and exposed shocks. The slanted style means that the saddlebag can actually sit behind the shock instead of on top of it, thus bringing it back into an acceptably aesthetic profile. On a monoshock "soft tail" style motorcycle, however, I think these might look a little out of place.
Which Style of Motorcycle Saddlebags Is Right For Your Intruder?
While I've seen each style used, I can say without a doubt that I think the slant saddlebags fit the bill here. They sit comfortable behind the shocks and help to fill out the thin, almost anemic look of the back end while still keeping with the sleek look of the chopper cruiser. For a quality set, I would look into Willie and Max saddlebags, sissy bar bags, and toolbags. I've always had great luck and pleasant experiences with Willie & Max.
So the next time you're out looking to add something new to your Suzuki Intruder, do yourself a favor and pick up some nice motorcycle saddlebags.
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