The Reckless

May 30, 2014

We’ve been getting lots of questions about the Rackless pannier/duffle (aka the “Reckless”).

A quick history.  We’re designing a bag for riders who don’t have or want a pannier rack.    Something to occupy the same market space as the Kriega Overlander 30, the Giant Loop Great Basin/Coyote, and the Wolfman Boulder/Beta type bags.  We want it to have the same features as our other bags (100% waterproof, bomber construction, easy on/off, easy access to gear without unstrapping, MOLLE expansion panels, exterior pockets, beavertails, impact-abrasion surface armor, etc).   Our concept is basically a harness system that holds three removable drybags to the bike.

This is where we started, a bag strapped to a bike.

Then we went through several generations of concept sketches

Then we cut and sewed a quick & dirty proto, which we re-cut and re-sewed several times until it was a frankenstein bag.  We took some pics, layered computer specs over the top, and sent the cut up proto with the specs to our factory.

With me in Vietnam and Andrew in Hood River, we worked with Anton and David at the factory to translate the original sewn prototype into a working prototype that we could use for testing.

The working prototype arrived in the nick of time, right before we took off for Moab.

I wanted to personally ride with and live out of this bag for the entire week in Moab because I’ve never used a rackless system before.  I’ve considered them for my trips to other parts of the world, where I drop in for a month to beg/borrow/steal a bike which may or may not have racks on it.  But I never actually bought one, for a variety of reasons which we plan to address in our design.

This was a perfect trip for testing this bag because we were riding/camping/eating, and that’s about it.  No going out to bars at night, no spending a few days exploring a city, no trying to keep up with work from the road.  Those types of activities require extra gear (shoes, laptop, clean clothes, etc) which takes up space and adds a lot of weight.  In Moab I took a pair of jeans, a shirt, an ultralight backpacking kit, food/water/booze, and tools/tubes.  Food takes up some space, since I don’t do the freeze-dried thing anymore.

The Reckless has three bags: two on the side and one on top.  All three are removable roll-tops with 22oz PVC and welded seam construction, just like a kayak drybag, so they’re 100% waterproof.  It’s similar to the 3-bag packing/organization system I’m accustomed to from riding bikes with racks: i.e. two side panniers and a rear duffle.  So it was easy to adjust.

The Reckless attaches to the bike with three rear straps.

The legs connect to the passenger footpegs or the frame with two cam lock straps on each side.

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The rear duffle (which is way too big in our proto, it will be revised to something smaller) is held in place by two overlapping beavertails, similar to our Backcountry 40 Duffle.

There are two external pockets, one on each leg, which can each fit 2 MSR/Primus style 1L fuel bottles so the rider can carry up to 1 gallon of extra gas.  I don’t need the extra fuel so I use the pockets for tools and tubes, because I hate fishing through my bags for tools every time I need to adjust something.

The front of the legs have one MOLLE panel each where you can attach our small MOLLE Storage Pouch (or any other MOLLE accessories you already own) which is good for fuel bottles and/or tools and tubes.  You can see the MOLLE pouch in the pic below.

I use it for my 750ml flask, which fits perfectly.

Sometimes it’s nice to have a flask on quick-draw.

I tried storing my water dromedaries in the bottom of the leg outside the drybag, but this interfered with the stiffeners in the back of the drybag, so I moved the dromedaries inside.  Either way would work.

There’s a mesh pocket in the rear beavertail which is handy for a toothbrush.  We’re revising this pocket to make it longer, because it barely fits a brush.

The beavertail is great for all the same things we already use it for on the Backcountry 40 Duffle and Backcountry 35 Panniers.  I used it every day to carry my jacket when it got hot, and also for campsite/cooking garbage after packing up camp.  It would also work great for a wet rainfly or rain shell, though we didn’t have much rain when we were there.

We came back with a huge list of revisions.  First and foremost: the exhaust heat issue needs to be addressed.  My 950 super enduro is the perfect bike to highlight that problem, since it rides hot as hell and the exhaust is very exposed.  I’ve destroyed at least 5 drybags (and some of their contents) on those pipes.  Giant Loop and Enduristan both sell a heat shield but we didn’t have time to order one so we made our own from aluminum angle.  That first version was totally inadequate, as you can see in the pic below.

Instead I made a better version out of aluminum cans and hoseclamps to get me through the rest of the trip.

The new heat shields worked fine.  Next time I’ll take a store-bought version though.  We’re looking at some heat resistant fabric options for the bottom of the bag as well.  Vinyl isn’t exactly prized for its heat resistance.

I tore one of the straps connecting the leg to the footpeg in a crash.  On our prototype the straps were sewn not bartacked, so we knew this might be an issue.  It highlights the amount of stress on this part of the bag, especially since there’s a desire to want to crank these straps down tight.  We’re beefing up this part of the bag significantly.

The leg straps seem too exposed in general, so we’re exploring ways to protect them in a crash or slide.  If both straps on one side of the bike were to break it would be be a total pain in the ass for the rest of the trip.  These straps, and their connection to the bag, are a critical part of the design.

The top beavertail MOLLE panel doesn’t work the way we intended (foreground in pic below).  When the bag is stuffed-out, the MOLLE panel is positioned too far forward so anything I put on there hits my back or the bottom of my hydration pack.  Which is really annoying.  We’re going to either relocate this panel or replace it with a low-profile pocket.

The full revision list is much bigger but those are the main points.  One thing I really love about this bag is how easy it is to get gear and food in/out throughout the day.  I dig having three separate bags instead of one, because it helps keep me organized.   Everything has a home.

Here’s what it looks like with all the drybags removed.  It takes about 10 seconds to get them out at the end of the day.

It was fun to ride with less weight on the rear suspension and a load that’s tightly cinched to the bike.  I love this bag.  I’ll be riding with this one a lot, for sure.

The first – and so far only – Reckless customer was stoked!

The proto is around 60L.  We may reduce that a bit in the revision.  We’re currently brainstorming a smaller version in the 30-40L range for smaller enduro bikes, to be developed in parallel with the Reckless.  Best guess is that both bags will be available this Fall.  We’ll offer discounted pre-orders (and a special incentive for mailing list subscribers) once we have final factory costs.

In case you missed the link before, we’re offering discounted pre-orders for the Backcountry 35 Panniers, Backcountry 40 Duffle, Scout 25 Panniers, and Scout 30 Duffle.

Here’s the pre-order link: Pre-Order Information.

If you’ve been patiently waiting for your Free P-38 and starving to death because you had no way to open your canned food… don’t worry, it’s coming.  A big mailing went out today.  So big that we had to enlist help.  Thanks Ava & Rio!!

Thanks for the Orders!

May 23, 2014

We have orders.  Real, actual, legit orders.  So cool.  Thanks!

Just getting back online after three weeks on the road.  From Moab, we drove to Flagstaff to prep for Overland Expo.  We picked up the lovely and talented Amarett at the Flagstaff airport, and then promptly headed south in search of warmer weather.  We had only a few days to put together photography, prices, sell sheets, order forms, a way to process payments, a trade show booth… pretty much everything.  So we found a little campground near Cottonwood, AZ and set up shop.

First we needed some decent pics for the website and sell sheets.  Here’s the makeshift studio we setup under the RV awning.

This shot:

Became this image:

And this shot (that’s the RV awning retraction handle he’s using):

Became this image:

Final factory costs arrived while we were camped in Moab, so we finally had a chance to dig into that.   We googled it, and there seem to be two schools of thought on pricing.  Option 1 is to start high, and then lower prices later on if competitors force you to.  Option 2 is to start low, sacrificing margin but making up for it by selling more bags in the long term.  We decided on Option 2.  Selling direct means we can set MSRP at 30-35% less than we’d charge if we sold through dealers, which is a pretty significant selling point.  Also, selling more bags will be good for our factory, because they need some base level of volume for efficient manufacturing.  There is a risk that a product might be perceived as lower quality if it’s priced lower than its alternatives, but we think the quality will speak for itself.  The motorcycle industry is one of the few places where a $400-$500 bag could be considered an “economical” option.

With prices and pics, the RV turned into a mobile office for a couple of days.  We created and printed everything we needed for the show, got the website and blog updated, and sent our first email out to the mailing list with prices and preorder info.

Our first orders came in within minutes.  To say we were stoked would be an understatement.

After a few days of work at the campground, we returned to Flagstaff to build a makeshift booth and get ready for Overland Expo.  From the minute we pulled into OE we knew it was going to be a blast.  The first people we met were Roel & Azure on their Africa Twin & Transalp in the midst of a RTW trip (Facebook: My Ticket To Ride).  They were right at the gate, parking their fully-loaded bikes when we pulled in.  Good people, and two iconic bikes (this pic is from their website).  Love those Africa Twins.

After a quick chat with Roel and Azure, we checked in for the show and started building the booth.  Andrew and I have done plenty of trade shows in the past but this was our first one in the motorcycle business.  Klim & Wolfman were on one side, Clearwater lights was on the other, and Twisted Throttle was directly across the way.  Good neighbors.

Overland Expo is a blast.  6,000 like-minded folks meeting up to exchange stories, geek-out on gear, and check out training/seminars.  It would have been cool to wander around but we were busy at the booth all day, so the only “event” we attended was happy hour.  Still, we met lots of cool riders at the booth, including some who’ve been following our thread on  advrider.com.  And we wrote lots of orders.

We were anxious to see how the new pricing would be received.  Everyone seemed pleasantly surprised.  In fact the most common question we got was “is that price for one bag, or for the pair?” (Answer: the pair)

One rider brought a Pacsafe 35L mesh security system so we could see how it fits over our pannier/duffle.  Pretty well, it turns out.

Next year we’ll hook a bike trailer to the motos.  It took 5 trips every morning to shuttle gear back and forth to the booth.

We met Ed Surman.   Very cool guy.  Here’s his advrider.com thread.  He’s traveling through the states and Canada and then down to Central/South America on his DR650 with a set of Andy Strapz panniers that have seen some serious miles.  Those are some tough little bags.  Hoping to get him some Mosko gear a little further down the road.

Of course we wanted to see what a Backcountry 35 would look like on that badass bike.

Expedition Portal posted this nice mention of Mosko from the show:

http://expeditionportal.com/overland-expo-2014-final-day/

We got lots of pre-orders and subscriptions.  It was a good show for Mosko, no doubt about it.  THANK YOU for all your support!!!

We’re still catching up on P-38 shipments because we’ve been out of the office for a few weeks.  They’re all going out next week.  Thanks for signing up for the mailing list!  We handed out a bunch of Free P-38s in Flagstaff, and the offer is still up on our website.

Here’s a pic I really like from Moab.

If you haven’t placed your pre-order yet, here’s the link: Pre-Order Info

Moab Crash Testing

May 11, 2014

We finally crash-tested the bags.  Many times.  Turns out all we had to do was go to Moab.

Phil broke his foot on this one.  He rode out, but had to end the trip early.

There were no pop-offs, broken latches, or damaged wedges.   We observed a problem on one pannier where the internal frame tore through the PVC after a crash (pics below).  On this particular pannier, the internal frame was too short and did not line up with the webbing reinforcements we designed to prevent that.  This will be solved before the bags go to production.

It’s been a really fun week.  We had an informal focus group in the RV on the drive from Hood River to Moab.  It was our first time showing the production samples, demonstrating features, explaining how the MOLLE system works, and getting some direct feedback from our riding buddies.

On the 16 hour drive, Andrew setup a mini production line to get all the mounting plates and hardware installed.

It was cool to watch everyone interact with the bags, especially during installation and packing.  We tried really hard not to jump in and give advice.  The mounting system is pretty simple, everyone seemed to figure it out without difficulty.

Phil had to remove the corner of a bolt with a grinder on the Andy Strapz rack.  Just the corner of the hex, maybe 1/8th of an inch, so the wedge could slide into place.

The rest of the racks went on without issue.

We’re saving some clean bags for Overland Expo and photography, so we rigged the original orange prototypes from Central America on Brad’s 950.

Here are some pics of the bikes all set up.

KTM 990 Adventure with Backcountry Pannier & Duffle

KTM 690 Enduro R with Scout Pannier & Duffle

KLR 650 with Backcountry Pannier & Duffle

KTM 950 Adventure with Backcountry Pannier, Scout Duffle, & Rotopax

My KTM 950 Super Enduro was rigged with a prototype of the Reckless.  After living and camping out of that bag for a week I am really stoked on it.  We have a big list of design revisions.  Much more on that in a future post.

It was interesting to see the different ways people used the beavertail.  Everyone used it for their jacket at some point.  We were changing altitude a lot, plus the temps varied considerably throughout the day, so jackets were coming on/off frequently.   Here are some other uses:

Machete (for zombie-killing, and firewood)

Campsite garbage (we all used it for this)

Collecting firewood.  Not easy to find firewood out there.

Having easy access to the double-ended roll-top and side panniers came in handy throughout the day, for example to get food or grab a water filter.

The easy on/off system was used by everyone at night.  Everyone removed the panniers to have access to camping gear and food near the fire and/or tent instead of on the bike.

I was the only person eating from cans (everyone else took freeze-dried), but I personally used my P-38 every single night.  Love that little thing.

It was cool to see our mailing list subscriptions go up 20+% while we were gone.  We’ll send out the next batch of Free P-38’s next week.  We’re on the road until then.  Thanks for signing up!

We now have factory pricing.  It came in two days ago, but we haven’t had time to process it yet.  More on that shortly.

We’re currently camped just outside Flagstaff getting ready for Overland Expo.  If you’re at the show next weekend, please stop by our booth and say hi!

Shape of Things to Come

Our samples were scheduled to arrive 24 hours before today’s departure for Moab.  I’ve never been so happy to see the delivery truck.  Someone at Fedex must be wondering why their webpage views dropped 50% overnight.  My fault.

Samples

We spent the last few days ripping open boxes and seeing what we’ll have to work with.  Everything from panniers, duffles, molle stix, and mounting hardware to t-shirts, banners, stickers, keychains, and business cards.

For the most part, everything looks great.  Only a few small issues so far.

– The revised pannier handle construction interferes with our mounting plate.  We had to cut the handles off to make them fit.  This can be fixed before production.  Not a big deal.

– The rotary draw latches were different from our samples, though the manufacturer’s SKU number was the same.  They changed the design in a small but important way.  The original design had a rubber spring, so the latch had some “give” to it.  We machined our mounting plates to accommodate that feature.  But the new latch has no spring and no give, so our mounting plate holes don’t fit.  We’ll fix this before production, but it’s a bummer because we’re taking these to Overland Expo, where they’ll be scrutinized by potential customers.

On the bright side, it’s good to experience these problems on a sample order of 12 instead of a production order of hundreds.

Rackless Pannier/Duffle

The first-round rackless prototype arrived.  In a lost-in-translation moment, the factory seems to have named this item the “Reckless,” a name which we’re tempted to actually use.  We’re very impressed with their interpretation of our half-sewn, torn, cut, resewn, taped, pinned, frankenstein prototype, which was overnight-shipped to Vietnam while I was there at the factory.  I’m riding with and living out of this proto in Moab next week, so I’m sure we’ll have a long list of revisions after that.

One thing we noted right away is the need for a heat shied on the exhaust.  Giant Loop makes a cool-looking and reasonably priced one (Hot Springs Heat Shield), and Black Dog Cycle Works does too (Eduristan Inferno Heat Shield).  Either one of these would work but we have no time to order, so we made our own version with hose clamps and aluminum channel.

Other initial observations about the “Reckless:”

– Rear drybag is too big

– Bottom webbing allows the back corner to bounce around too much

– Compression straps bump into each other

– Rear pockets seem unnecessary, or at least too big

– Rear webbing connection points should to be longer

– Need some kind of armor/protection over the webbing on the footpegs

Much more to follow.

Forcefield Armor

Our Forcefield samples arrived.  These guys nail it on “out-of-the-box” appeal.  In other words: nice packaging.

I was particularly excited to get my hands on the Adventure Harness.  Initial impression: this is a great piece of gear.  Not cheap, but high quality.  More comfortable than my Acerbis Koerta (which is also a great piece of kit).  I like that it’s a harness not a mesh shirt like a lot of pressure suits, so between the main armor components everything is open to the air.  It fits snug and has lots of adjustment points.  The armor is flexible, comfortable, and feels much burlier than the D30 armor I’ve used in the past.  My prediction: I’m going to like this suit a lot.  We’ll see how it does in Moab.

I’m 6’3″, 190lbs, 40L/42L.  Large was too big, medium fits perfect.

We’ll also try the Pro shirt in Moab and will have more feedback after that.  The armor goes in/out of the pro shirt easily so it can be washed, and it’s extremely comfortable to wear.  It has a tight/spandex feel though, which I’m not crazy about.  I’d be concerned about going for a slide without a jacket over the top, which kind of defeats the point of separating the armor layer from the jacket.  This feels more like a product for downhill mountain biking than offroad moto touring.

Superfabric Test

The Ironskin samples I tested last week are here in the Gorge, and the Superfabric samples are at Galen’s place in Portland, so we haven’t had a chance to do a side-by-side yet.  This week Galen hooked up some Superfabric to the (already warm) exhaust on his Husky.

Galen’s comments:

Started to notice some smoke and burning at almost 4 minutes, shut off the bike at 4 minutes exactly.  The only significant damage is where the wire was holding the fabric with pressure against what’s probably the hottest point on the bike.  No fabric discoloration and no real damage near where the wire was.  I think this fabric would do just fine with incidental contact with pipes, which is what 95% of any contact would be.  I’m much more impressed with this than I was with other “heat resistant” fabrics that I’ve tested before.  Those lasted about 1/4 the time and discolored badly.  We should do the same test that Iron Skin stuff as well.

Overland Expo (Flagstaff, AZ May 16-18)

We’re so stoked for Overland Expo.  Can’t wait.  Leaving for Moab today, then we’re going from Moab to Flagstaff on the 10th.  We’ll use that week to cobble together some kind of show display and figure out pricing, order forms, etc before OE starts on the 16th.  If you’ve been following our advrider.com thread and/or the wordpress blog, please stop by and say hi.  We would seriously love to meet you, and I’m sure we’ll be serving beer, whiskey, or something good like that.  Plus we’ll have stickers, P-38s, etc.  And of course, some pre-order incentives.

Normally for a trip like this I’d take a duffle, some tools, and a bike.  But with the “business” part of this trip mixed in, it adds a whole new element.  So-much-stuff.

Free P-38

A reminder: if you haven’t signed up yet, we’re still doing the free P-38 offer for people who sign up for our mailing list.  We’ll ship them anywhere in the world.  The email list will be the first place we send out info on prices, availability, discounts, and gear testing opportunities.

The latest from the factory is that we’ll have a production schedule and pricing early next week.

We’re on the road in a few hours.  Communications could be spotty over the next few weeks.  We’ll do our best to keep the blog and advrider.com thread up-to-date, and to keep up with website inquiries in the meantime.

Come see us at Overland Expo!