Looking for Giant Loop experience on the T7

[scridercoach]

To those of you with bikes already, in Canada or Europe, are any of you using any Giant Loop rackless systems? I'm trying to figure out if I should go for the Great Basin or the Coyote saddlebags. I would like to know if you have either and how you feel it works size-wise on the T7. Thanks in advance.

[johnnygolucky]

Mosko Moto Reckless 80. Much much much more versatile. No zippers to break. Pull the dry bags out and you have canvas saddle bags to haul groceries or fire wood at a camp. And the beaver tail on top to strap down whatever, fishing poles, jacket, duffel bag, fire wood....... is ingenious. They make the new Revolver version which is more money, but the V2 version that I have and they still sell if amazing. Here's Camel Adventures bike with the new Revolver Reckless 80. Almost the same as the V2 that I have, but has the ability to articulate the angle of the saddle bags. Nice feature but not imperative and not sure it's worth the extra money when the V2 works so well. Here's the V2 on my 690 Enduro which will be put on my Tenere 700 when it arrives. 

Edited May 24, 2020 by johnnygolucky

[scridercoach]

The GL's have no zippers either. Also have the beaver tail and comes with dry bags, they're pretty comparable.  I like the Mosko Moto, but I have ---ahem--- an in with GL.

 

You're photo on the 690 helps.  The GL Great Basin is the comparable size.  Thanks Johnny.

[johnnygolucky]

Thats cool you have an in with GL. No brainer. 

 

I see the Great Basin and Coyote has a dry top closure at the very top. Does that mean you have to pull everything out of the bag just to get something at the bottom of one of the "legs"? Or does the bottom open up as well to alleviate having to yank everything out? 

[Cruizin]

You guys running these bags without side racks?  How do you keep em from getting sucked into a tire? 

[johnnygolucky]

46 minutes ago, Cruizin said:

You guys running these bags without side racks?  How do you keep em from getting sucked into a tire? 

Nope, no side racks for the Mosko. Which is why I went this type of system. WAY less weight. And it takes a minute to unleash the straps, lift your entire system off the bike and go rip. Very stiff plate on the backside of the bags so doesnt get pulled into the rear tire. Got to put some 3M type clear tape just to protect the plastic though. That's what I did and the bike looked new. Otherwise it would rub the finish off the plastics. With the Mosko, there are 3 strap that anchor to the back of the bike, so some top plate rack is nice, but even without you can figure a way to loop it to secure under the fender and such. 

[Cruizin]

4 minutes ago, johnnygolucky said:

Nope, no side racks for the Mosko. Which is why I went this type of system. WAY less weight. And it takes a minute to unleash the straps, lift your entire system off the bike and go rip. Very stiff plate on the backside of the bags so doesnt get pulled into the rear tire. Got to put some 3M type clear tape just to protect the plastic though. That's what I did and the bike looked new. Otherwise it would rub the finish off the plastics. With the Mosko, there are 3 strap that anchor to the back of the bike, so some top plate rack is nice, but even without you can figure a way to loop it to secure under the fender and such. 

Thats freaking awesome . I don't want side racks either so I'll probably go that route myself 

[johnnygolucky]

Yeah man, just wait. You'll thank me later, guaranteed. The Mosko setup far and away exceeds my expectations. The quality in workmanship is amazing. And the engineering and planning int he design is brilliant. There's so many little features that they installed, that clearly come from years of R&D. Check out their blog. They ride. Plain and simple. 

 

I see the appeal with racks and hard cases, but then when you get to camp, you pull off the hard cases and you still have those racks. With this, just unstrap and ride. Or unleash and haul up to the hotel room. And like I said, the ability to pull out the dry bags at camp, then go find firewood and beer, throw in the saddle bags and rally back is genius. It's that which separates it from the Giant Loops bags. Its just so much more versatile. If mine ever burn out, I'll buy another set in a heat beat. Money well spent. 

Edited May 24, 2020 by johnnygolucky

[scridercoach]

On 5/24/2020 at 3:52 PM, johnnygolucky said:

Thats cool you have an in with GL. No brainer. 

 

I see the Great Basin and Coyote has a dry top closure at the very top. Does that mean you have to pull everything out of the bag just to get something at the bottom of one of the "legs"? Or does the bottom open up as well to alleviate having to yank everything out? 

Sorry for the super late reply, for some reason I thought I'd automatically get the "follow" for the thread since I was the author.  I guess not.

 

To answer your question in one word.  No.  You have to go in from the top roll.  Not ideal, but if you pack correctly  you just keep the more commonly needed stuff up top.  My plan, though, is to supplement with a couple of smaller GL bags to attach to the beaver tail or to my crash guards for those kinds of items.

[GiantLoop]

Looks like there's some outdated information and confusion floating around this thread regarding Giant Loop products. We constantly improve and update our designs, because we are life-long riders and we listen to our customers. Best place to get accurate, up-to-date info on Giant Loop is at our website. Or by contacting us directly. Everyone has opinions - but not all opinions are accurate or without their own biases. We have not used zippers on our Coyote and Great Basin Saddlebags for many years now . . . Go light, go fast, go far, Olaf

[GiantLoop]

On 5/24/2020 at 12:11 PM, scridercoach said:

To those of you with bikes already, in Canada or Europe, are any of you using any Giant Loop rackless systems? I'm trying to figure out if I should go for the Great Basin or the Coyote saddlebags. I would like to know if you have either and how you feel it works size-wise on the T7. Thanks in advance.

 

Both options will fit the T7 perfectly, so it pretty much boils down to how much you pack and how you like to ride:

 

Coyote Saddlebag mounts in a diagonal position, anchored behind the seat on the tail rack. This enable the rider to use the entire seat, which is helpful for more aggressive riding on more challenging off-road terrain. It's the more "dirt bike" type set up. Mouting and fit are the same as the MoJavi Saddlebag in this photo:

 

Great Basin Saddlebag mounts in a vertical position, anchored on the passenger seat. The trade off for the larger packing volume is giving up the back of the seat. However, for most "adventure" riding the Great Basin isn't in the way. I'll try to track down a photo!

 

We've had riders cross continents with both of these saddlebag options! 

[Stabilo_Boss]

On 1/27/2021 at 12:38 AM, GiantLoop said:

 

Both options will fit the T7 perfectly, so it pretty much boils down to how much you pack and how you like to ride:

 

Coyote Saddlebag mounts in a diagonal position, anchored behind the seat on the tail rack. This enable the rider to use the entire seat, which is helpful for more aggressive riding on more challenging off-road terrain. It's the more "dirt bike" type set up. Mouting and fit are the same as the MoJavi Saddlebag in this photo:

 

Great Basin Saddlebag mounts in a vertical position, anchored on the passenger seat. The trade off for the larger packing volume is giving up the back of the seat. However, for most "adventure" riding the Great Basin isn't in the way. I'll try to track down a photo!

 

We've had riders cross continents with both of these saddlebag options! 

Did you find that picture of the great basin on the T7? I'm trying to figure out how light a set up it can be with the tail rack or if there is a way of not using a tail rack altogether. It would be amazing to have something like what Kriega offers with the T7 specific OS-BASE.

Edited February 2, 2021 by Stabilo_Boss

[rumrum]

1 hour ago, Stabilo_Boss said:

Did you find that picture of the great basin on the T7? I'm trying to figure out how light a set up it can be with the tail rack or if there is a way of not using a tail rack altogether. It would be amazing to have something like what Kriega offers with the T7 specific OS-BASE.

I have the Great Basin on mine with the B&B small tail rack, fits nicely and very compact.  I'm not sure how you can secure it at the back but sure you can rig something up similar to the above if your creative enough.  

[rumrum]

@GiantLoop. Love your bags but your dry inner bags leave a bit to be desired. If you could change the material so its not so sticky and move the valve further down near the bottom so they don't get in the way when rolling it closed would be a big improvement. On the top dry bag, sew up one end as it takes up allot of space. Also some Mollie straps would be awesome. Cheers

[Stabilo_Boss]

3 hours ago, rumrum said:

I have the Great Basin on mine with the B&B small tail rack, fits nicely and very compact.  I'm not sure how you can secure it at the back but sure you can rig something up similar to the above if your creative enough.  

Do you think it would sit too far forward? Do you have any pics of your set-up you would be willing to share?

[GiantLoop]

13 hours ago, Stabilo_Boss said:

Did you find that picture of the great basin on the T7? I'm trying to figure out how light a set up it can be with the tail rack or if there is a way of not using a tail rack altogether. It would be amazing to have something like what Kriega offers with the T7 specific OS-BASE.

 

Yes, it's Canada's famed Dakar racer Lawrence Hacking no less! He chose to stuff everything into the main compartment, where as I prefer to add a couple of Possibles Pouches as external waterproof pockets instead of packing higher on the bike. We just updated the Great Basin Saddlebag page on our website, so you'll find this and other fit examples there now.

 

 

[GiantLoop]

8 hours ago, Stabilo_Boss said:

Do you think it would sit too far forward? Do you have any pics of your set-up you would be willing to share?

Here a bunch of photos from Lawrence Hacking in Canada (look him up if you don't know who he is). Consider that he raced Dakar, etc. he wouldn't be riding with the Great Basin if it interfered with his body position. 

 

 

[GiantLoop]

12 hours ago, rumrum said:

@GiantLoop. Love your bags but your dry inner bags leave a bit to be desired. If you could change the material so its not so sticky and move the valve further down near the bottom so they don't get in the way when rolling it closed would be a big improvement. On the top dry bag, sew up one end as it takes up allot of space. Also some Mollie straps would be awesome. Cheers

Thanks for the feedback! We constant improve and update our designs, and as riders, we listen to input from other riders. Go light. Go fast. Go far.

[GiantLoop]

13 hours ago, Stabilo_Boss said:

Did you find that picture of the great basin on the T7? I'm trying to figure out how light a set up it can be with the tail rack or if there is a way of not using a tail rack altogether. It would be amazing to have something like what Kriega offers with the T7 specific OS-BASE.

 

A nice,  trim tail rack is handy for many reasons, including providing easy anchor points for the rear of the Great Basin Saddlebag. Although we provide three rear anchor straps, even just one secured around something solid is sufficient to prevent the saddlebag from creeping forward, even in the roughest of terrain. It can be as simple as looping one anchor strap around the entire tail section. Or, it would be very easy to use/make some little webbing tabs like the ones in your photo and secure two anchors with them. 

 

If you're not already familiar, be sure to check out Aussie rider David Darcy (Motorcycle Adventure Dirt Bike TV on YouTube - his videos have millions of views). He's been riding the T700 since it was first released in Oz. He's ridden with the Great Basin Saddlebag since his 2010 London-To-Sydney adventure on KTM 690s, and he's worked with Giant Loop since (even though he can choose to ride with any luggage in the world). 

[rumrum]

10 hours ago, Stabilo_Boss said:

Do you think it would sit too far forward? Do you have any pics of your set-up you would be willing to share?

Sorry I don't have any pics at the moment with it set up. One of the good features about these bags are you can position them as far forward or rearward as you like just a matter of adjusting the strap lengths. I try to position my bags as far forward as possible, a comfortable position for me is having the front of the bag in line with the back of the main seat. With my B&B rack I can also position the bag as far rearward from there about 200mm.

 

One thing with these bags (or any rackless bag) on the tenere is they sit on the rear/ side plastics so need to think about protection from scratches and possible breaking the plastic. I have been considering my options and think will be going with the Adventure Spec guards. 

[GiantLoop]

25 minutes ago, rumrum said:

One thing with these bags (or any rackless bag) on the tenere is they sit on the rear/ side plastics so need to think about protection from scratches and possible breaking the plastic. I have been considering my options and think will be going with the Adventure Spec guards. 

Great point! To prevent scuffing the painted panels on the T700, we recommend installing our Vinyl Protective Film (or something simliar) to protect the contact surfaces beneath where luggage makes contact. 

[Stabilo_Boss]

9 hours ago, GiantLoop said:

Here a bunch of photos from Lawrence Hacking in Canada (look him up if you don't know who he is). Consider that he raced Dakar, etc. he wouldn't be riding with the Great Basin if it interfered with his body position. 

 

 

That is precisely the image I was looking for. I like the set-up. Thank you.

[Totti]

I have the Great Basin without any side racks. In my previous bike I had hard luggage and chose the Great Basin because it's about the same size as two hard side cases.

And it was used so I got it fairly cheap. Been very happy with it. For a longer trips I also have an extra dry sack for camping gear etc. I have Outback Motortek's rear rack so I am able to position the Giant Loop in various positions depending on where I ride and do I need to move on the bike, or do I have extra luggage with me or not. I don't have any side racks, because in my opinion, every one of them makes the bike look ugly. And yes, you will get scratches to your bike with this set up. The sand and dust gets between the bag and the plastics. The protective film will help a bit. But hey, these are adventure bikes and are supposed to have some battle scars. There are different bikes that you can wax and drive to the ice-cream bar to meet girls or guys. 

[GiantLoop]

David Darcy's T7 in Australia

 

[scridercoach]

Finally got off my financial ass and ordered my gear... can't wait to get it and put it to good use!  I'll post up pics, accordingly.