Let’s be clear from the beginning. SW Motech’s Blaze luggage system and Tank Bag Pro range are about elegance, light weight and practicality.
They are not aimed at people who feel the need to max out on their carrying capacity (although each saddle bag offers a respectable 20 ltrs.). If you want to stash away a couple of changes of clothes, some extra riding gear, and an ipad or similar, the Blaze gear fits the bill. They also cope well with extreme conditions: on my very first ride with the Blaze in situ, a storm of biblical proportions was unleashed on the upper regions of the A35. I got wet: the luggage stayed dry, courtesy of the waterpoof liner bags, which can be properly sealed and rolled up when not in use. Even without those in place, the bags don’t allow ingress, although dampness can be detected given the kind of challenging weather I experienced. The system’s structural minimalism and light weight means it is well suited to smaller machines, street bikes and sportsbikes, whose lines they tend not to disrupt: the aesthetics work. Even in the traditionally bloated adventure sector, there have been signs of a move towards smaller, mid capacity bikes, to which the Blaze system is well suited.
First up: pictures of everything in situ, followed by Andy’s instructional video and our detailed pix of fitment. Tank Bag Pro then gets similar treatment.
- MOUNTING THE SADDLEBAGS
- TANK BAG PRO VIDEO
- TANK BAG PRO PICS
The tank bag fitment starts with the addition of the magnetic ring, which screws onto your OE filler cap ring. You simply remove the original screws, and add spacers which come with the tank bag, before fitting the ring and re-fitting the screws. Once the ring is in the place, the tank bag can simply be slotted in via an an adjustable screw in base plate. The magnetic attachment is strong enough to ensure the bag’s retention. To release it, you pull on the red tab at the front of the bag (see the final picture in the sequence above).
- IN PRACTICE: Conclusions…
The Blaze system has been around for a while, not least because it actually works well in the field. It’s probably the best lightweight, medium capacity pannier system I’ve used, and certainly the best looking. Sportsbikes in particular have a low tolerance threshold for ugly, heavy luggage and the Blaze saddlebags are particularly well suited to machines where more obtrusive, butch looking panniers would just look out of place. The avoidance of adding what amounts to an additional sub frame to each side of the bike is a welcome relief. Recommended.
The Tank Bag Pro (which comes in different sizes, the one in the pictures being the smallest) is a great concept – slide on, quick release off sounds like win win. However, it’s important to make sure the base plate position is optimised to take into account things like sat nav holders, because you’ll need space in front of the bag in order to remove it. You may also need to adjust the amount of play in the release tab – this is easily done by simply opening the bag and feeding more of the tab out. Once you’ve optimised these parameters to suit your bike, the concept works perfectly, but it is important to get the set up right, otherwise removal can be problematic. SW Motec offer an optional locking system which secures both bag and contents, and the bag comes with a rain cover. If you want a tank bag without the hassle (and look) of straps, you should check out SW’s Pro range.