Roxysdad

I didn’t do electrics. Good idea though. I’ll likely end up with weird battery connections and stuff shoved in the bag. It’s been a great bag so far! Holds the essential stuff I need on the tank and I’m happy.

OOHH.. That Kriega bag is way cool. I had an Ortlieb dry duffle years ago, and I can’t find it for the life of me! So I think this is going to replace that in my touring setup. I like the idea of getting the base bag, then looking on eBay for other goodies to add to it. Thank you so much for the pictures. And that Storm Alex - had to google it - looks terrible! Hope you are all OK over there in Europe/UK.

Do you have any pics with that on your bike, and off the bike? Interested in the straps living permanently there. Thank you!

Piece of cake actually. The bag design has the straps going toward the front, an important feature of the bag if you ask me. If they go out at an angle then it doesn’t work with the design of our bike. There’s way too much strap left over if you just go toward the front, down and around the frame. I left the straps long for this week so I can decide where to cut them. In the pics I think you can see how the strap wraps around the frame, through the loop in the strap, then up to the bag. One per each side of the frame.

First ride done! Did it’s job wonderfully and I think the size will work out well. Now the task of finding a solution for the rear of the bike! It got a little chilly along the river tonight, so going to need to pack a sweater somewhere.

I’ve always been a fan of this little company in NorCal. I love to shop local when I can, and these guys have been around for ages now, so I’m happy to send them my money for a nice piece of kit. The Shiloh 13L is a great fit for the shape of the tank, as the pictures show, albeit a somewhat smaller tank bag than I’m used to. But when I sat down to think about it, the main stuff I kept in my old bag fits in here, minus the sweatshirt I used to pack in there to lay on when I was tired (old sport bike days). So the seating position of this bike really works out great, and now I’m packing just the minimal supplies needed. It does expand should I need that someday. Oh, and the “F” style front is the one you want, not the “Y”. The front straps then both go forward instead of to the right/left angle. A nice bonus; I ordered it Tuesday and its here today with included shipping. I had found a couple RKA tank bags on eBay that I almost pulled the trigger on, but the strap direction and size of the bag were going to be terrible on the Tracer, so I’m glad I didn’t go that direction. I’m excited to take it for a ride this evening. Hope you are all well!

I agree on the lighter and sportier. I didn’t know the 950 was such a tank, good to know! I’ll have to look out for a seat. I went for another ride today and it was marginally better, but I need something for these longer trips I have planned. It’s that darn tilt toward the tank! Such a great engine. I agree on the rpm range and pulling ability. It’s smooth, almost electric. Reminds me of an old CBR1100 I rode - that torque on that bike was immense, and it just pulled and pulled. This is somewhat like that, and I find myself shifting a lot less than I thought I would.

Too funny. Good idea on the bags! I didn’t consider that. I will likely get the quick shifter in due time, and am considering the single rear top case for luggage. I’m in the Placerville area, off Hwy 50. Why did you ditch the Multistrada 950? That bike seemed like a great one to buy, but way beyond my budget. Many times I consider this Tracer a Multistrada Lite. Perfect for my needs. Now I have to figure out the seating position and I’m good to go. This stock saddle is uncomfortable!

Excellent point. I too don’t like to criticize choices - there are 31 flavors for a reason (to borrow from baskin robbins ice cream, 31 flavors, reference). The more I look at and fiddle with the bike the more I see what a great piece of kit it is. I too lusted for the cruise control, but it just wasn’t worth the extra dough. I used a wrist rest, cramp buster I think it was called, for many years with the older bikes, so that will be my method of choice going forward. I can’t believe how much tech Yamaha packs into this bike anyway. It’s got plenty to keep me out of trouble, and fiddle with over the years to come. It’s very much like a junior Multistrada, great tech, great looks, great motor, etc. and for such a great price as well. Good times.

Thats what I thought as well. I really leaned toward the GT, I just couldn’t justify the increased prices on the GT since this was such a good deal. All the shops around here weren’t going down much on the GTs, so the price delta was too wide for my budget. I feel I got a great bike for a great price, so thats what counts in my mind anyway. I do like the screen on the base model, find it a little easier to read when I’m riding. This bike is maybe 8/10ths of the GT, and I love the color. So I’m a happy new owner.

Yes, it was from them, and yes brand new zero miles with a full tank of gas. I live in NorCal and their destination fee was going to be around $350, so I just decided to take my truck down and pick it up. Very easy to deal with. They say “no fees” even though there was a freight fee of $400, but no additional markup or assembly fees. It was easily 1K less than similar bikes up here, if not 1500 less. I think I paid 8900 out the door. All in all I was very happy and the sales guy Hugo, as he was very kind, straight forward, and helped me load the bike in my truck. All in all a very fair deal if you ask me.

Hello to the forum. Excited to begin a new chapter in my motorcycle life. Previous history are a few M900 Ducati monsters, an ST2, an FZ1, and a few VFR’s and CBRs before that. I researched a ton for this latest purchase, and settled on the 2019 base model Tracer 900. I think its the most bang for the buck sport touring motorcycle out there, except for perhaps a used FJ-09. It’s a fantastic machine. Was able to pick it up in Southern California for $7500 plus taxes, so all in all a great deal. My goals are to keep it sport touring oriented, and do some fun trips around Northern California and the Pacific Northwest in the coming years.