I purchased a new RWB '07 less than 2 weeks ago. Thinking about the bags, how hard are they to install? Are the bag racks ugly if I want to leave the bags off and ride w/o them?:smile:
Installation is relatively simple if you have at least minimal mechanical aptitude. There's a separate frame piece for each side, with mounting points under the grab handles and on the back of the passenger peg mounts. The rear of each side frame wraps around the back of the bike and ties into a metal plate which bolts into the license plate mount. The hardest part I found on the install was getting that plate and both side pieces all lined up to get all the bolts in. Not all that hard really, but it did take a little tugging and pulling to get it right. Once done though the mount is extremely solid. The factory mounts and cases tuck in really tightly with the lines of the bike. The mounts do not stand out or look out of place when you're riding without the cases installed.
The bags are very easy to install. If you have the stock exhaust they look ok on the back of the bike. If you have after market exhaust, depending on the size of the mufflers, it can look a bit unappealing. I take mine on/off all the time. It takes 5-10 minutes to switch it around.
The storage the cases provide is excellent, they look good on the bike and the stays blend in well when the cases are removed. As for installing the kit yourself, here's a narrative of my hard bag install, done back in 07 (copied from my original post but hey, I'm still in anger management therapy): 1217: drilled holes to 12mm 1247: pulled all stock components 1305: installed brackets A, B and C 1312: rear plastic in place 1407: right stay positioned, all bolts loosely in place 1441: left stay positioned, all bolts loosely in place 1450: having problems getting bracket A to line up with bracket B 1509: Still having problems, having flashbacks to the 85 Interceptor Luggage Rack Installation Incident 1532: Still having problems, have decided to memorize Chapter 7 of the Lord of Nightmare's book "Things to Do to Beings who Tick Me Off" then visit the Honda engineer who designed the kit 1546: Having used the "Easy to Follow" instruction sheet to ignite the Honda engineer's effergy with my eye beams of rage, I removed all bolts except for A's to the stays and the 8mm allens as a red haze slowly crept in on my vision and my skin tone began to turn green 1601: Lined up the license plate bracket (LPB), brackets A and B, LPB bolts inserted facing out. YES I tried to insert them facing in, the damned short collars kept popping out, along with that @*&^#%*!^@!$% LPB spacer! Anyway the bolts and nuts are hidden by the License plate and I don't give a flying damn, if you don't like it, you can put them in the other way YOURSELF! 1702: after finally getting the grab rail bolts lined up (with language so fowl a nearby Marine Drill Instructor was taking notes), everything torqued (about as tight as when were taken off) and blue lock-tighted, I noticed the left top forward bend rubbed against the bodywork a bit and put a piece of Pro-Grip tank protector in place as insurance until I could get a 30inch crowbar to bent it out a bit. Then, my facial expression a study of Pure Death for any foolish enough to wish me a good day, I levitated to my room, took a LONG shower, got dressed and took a LONG ride.
