Kawasaki Concours Forum
The C-14, aka Kawasaki Concours-14, the new one :) => Accessories and modifications - C14/GTR 1400 => Topic started by: nlastovi on September 26, 2014, 01:17:23 PM
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I'm considering a phil's rack to mount a monokey trunk on a '14 C14. My concern is that with the trunk location fore-aft location fixed, will the back rest end up being in a good location for a passenger? Has anyone mounted a monokey trunck (which one?) on a phil's rack and then had a pleased passenger provide feedback?
thanks!
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I'm considering a phil's rack to mount a monokey trunk on a '14 C14. My concern is that with the trunk location fore-aft location fixed, will the back rest end up being in a good location for a passenger? Has anyone mounted a monokey trunck (which one?) on a phil's rack and then had a pleased passenger provide feedback?
thanks!
I have Phil's rack on my 2010 C14, and had the same rack on my 08 C14 before that. I use the Givi E55 Maxia Monokey topcase with Givi backrest pad installed, and my wife loves it. We've ridden coast to coast and a couple thousand miles north/south as well, and she wouldn't go without it. Not sure if it matters or not, but she is quite small...5'4" @ 110 lbs.
HTH,
Rem :o
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I put a Givi 55 on my C-14 and found it pushed my wife forward quite a bit. Ended up making a custom mounting plate to move the box back 2 inches as well as provide an additional pair of mounting points for strength.
This is the prototype with Kirby getting the first ride, of course.
(http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f82/BDF08012008/Kirbyonrack.jpg) (http://s45.photobucket.com/user/BDF08012008/media/Kirbyonrack.jpg.html)
Just a thought but the Givi 55 is a pretty big top box, I have the aux. rack mounted on mine, it is pushed farther rearward on the bike and it is really easy to load it far beyond the bike's stated 22 lb. limit. I often overload it and travel at highway speeds (and a bit beyond) but anyone doing this should be aware that it probably won't cause any good changes in handling or stability and may well cause negative ones.
Brian
I'm considering a phil's rack to mount a monokey trunk on a '14 C14. My concern is that with the trunk location fore-aft location fixed, will the back rest end up being in a good location for a passenger? Has anyone mounted a monokey trunck (which one?) on a phil's rack and then had a pleased passenger provide feedback?
thanks!
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I put a Givi 55 on my C-14 and found it pushed my wife forward quite a bit. Ended up making a custom mounting plate to move the box back 2 inches as well as provide an additional pair of mounting points for strength.
This is the prototype with Kirby getting the first ride, of course.
Just a thought but the Givi 55 is a pretty big top box, I have the aux. rack mounted on mine, it is pushed farther rearward on the bike and it is really easy to load it far beyond the bike's stated 22 lb. limit. I often overload it and travel at highway speeds (and a bit beyond) but anyone doing this should be aware that it probably won't cause any good changes in handling or stability and may well cause negative ones.
Brian
I heard that if you squeeze the front brake lever then bounce the forks twice it cures the handling problems. ::)
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I've got a C10 so I can't help much. Just wanted to chime in with a welcome to the forum. :banana :banana :banana
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I heard that if you squeeze the front brake lever then bounce the forks twice it cures the handling problems. ::)
lol...did you try this yourself? :o
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I'm considering a phil's rack to mount a monokey trunk on a '14 C14. My concern is that with the trunk location fore-aft location fixed, will the back rest end up being in a good location for a passenger? Has anyone mounted a monokey trunck (which one?) on a phil's rack and then had a pleased passenger provide feedback?
thanks!
Which backrest do you have?
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Which backrest do you have?
As yet I have no trunk nor backrest. before I invested I wanted to make certain that others had installed a givi trunk on phil's rack with a happy passenger and so I was hoping for insight as to which trunk worked best.
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As yet I have no trunk nor backrest. before I invested I wanted to make certain that others had installed a givi trunk on phil's rack with a happy passenger and so I was hoping for insight as to which trunk worked best.
I have the Kawi 47 trunk on Phils rack, works great with the Corbin backrest. :thumbs: :thumbs:
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb336/jaywilcox/zggreen3_zpsf0b9a1b1.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/jaywilcox/media/zggreen3_zpsf0b9a1b1.jpg.html)
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I have the Kawi 47 trunk on Phils rack, works great with the Corbin backrest. :thumbs: :thumbs:
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb336/jaywilcox/zggreen3_zpsf0b9a1b1.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/jaywilcox/media/zggreen3_zpsf0b9a1b1.jpg.html)
Did you go back to green?
http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/jaywilcox/media/724146_zps07e2d036.jpg.html (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/jaywilcox/media/724146_zps07e2d036.jpg.html)
Or are you still in the black.
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Did you go back to green?
http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/jaywilcox/media/724146_zps07e2d036.jpg.html (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/jaywilcox/media/724146_zps07e2d036.jpg.html)
Or are you still in the black.
Today I'm still wearing the black, but that might be changing in October... ;) ;D
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The original question specifies the MonoKEY trunks. The Kawa. trunk is a MonoLOCK variety as are nearly all other brands.
Can those who have a monoKEY trunk, E55, V46 etc. give him some feedback on how comfortable your passenger finds the trunk position??
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I have a Givi Monokey 460L. It is adjustable on the PhilsFarkels rack thru (IIRC) 3 positions. On my trip to Newfoundland (with my 16yo son as pax), I put a Motofizz bag on the rack and my pax still had lots of room.
Here is a pic (from a different trip) from when the Givi was in the most forward position
(http://dolomoto.smugmug.com/Motorcycles/Makers-Mark-Tour-2012/i-HJdx3tQ/0/M/IMG_1435-M.jpg)
Here is a pic with a 5'6' pax and a 460L in the forward position.
(http://dolomoto.smugmug.com/Motorcycles/2011-Daytona-Bike-Week/i-dnBkVGt/0/M/IMG_6260-M.jpg)
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(http://dolomoto.smugmug.com/Motorcycles/2011-Daytona-Bike-Week/i-dnBkVGt/0/M/IMG_6260-M.jpg)
Now that looks like a well used Stich DM! :thumbs: :thumbs: :chugbeer:
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I have Phil's rack on my 08, with a Monokey V46. All is good, GF very happy with the provided support.
Just for reference, she has experience traveling on BMW F800GS, K1600GT/L, R1200RT, and some more, all with top case. She likes the rear of the Kawi the best, R1200RT a good second for seating/support comfort, but hated the gearbox. K1600 third because the rear seat is too high for her (she's 5 feet 9 inches tall) but the top case position is fine.
F800 means "sorry, tonight I have a migraine" :o top case or not.
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awesome. thanks for the feedback everyone. with confidence I've ordered a V47 (I like the looks a bit better than the 46).
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The V47 arrived and snapped right on to the rack. From what I can tell, it is in the perfect location.
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The V47 arrived and snapped right on to the rack. From what I can tell, it is in the perfect location.
no pics, didn't happen :stirpot:
and yes, imo the V47 is the best looking topcase out there, specially in the NNT flavor.
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Phil didnt mention it but he makes custom rails that will give you fore and aft adjustments for the perfect location.
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The V47 arrived and snapped right on to the rack. From what I can tell, it is in the perfect location.
Ok, I'm a bit confused. (yes, I know I'm easily confused)
Phil sez the Givi/Kawasaki 47 Monolock doesn't fit his rack/holes/mounting hardware, and you said it snapped right on the rack.
If I order a Kawsaki 47 Monolock and Phils Rack,,, what mounting hardware do I need to order?, and from whom
Ride safe, Ted
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Ok, I'm a bit confused. (yes, I know I'm easily confused)
Phil sez the Givi/Kawasaki 47 Monolock doesn't fit his rack/holes/mounting hardware, and you said it snapped right on the rack.
If I order a Kawsaki 47 Monolock and Phils Rack,,, what mounting hardware do I need to order?, and from whom
Ride safe, Ted
The Kawi 47 (Monolock) comes with a mounting plate that mounts to Phils rack quite nice, that's what I did and like the adjustability front/back that the combo provides to clear my wife's Corbin backrest or my Corbin smuggler trunk. :)
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb336/jaywilcox/zggreen3_zpsf0b9a1b1.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/jaywilcox/media/zggreen3_zpsf0b9a1b1.jpg.html)
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb336/jaywilcox/efkjewlkrw_zpsec1324ce.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/jaywilcox/media/efkjewlkrw_zpsec1324ce.jpg.html)
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Ok, thank you!
Guess it's time to spend money... (Don't tell my wife!!!)
Ride safe, Ted
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Jay, is that the oem box? It looks bigger than the one collecting dust on my shelf. May be just perspective.
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Jay, is that the oem box? It looks bigger than the one collecting dust on my shelf. May be just perspective.
Yep, the Kawi 47 liter GP. :chugbeer:
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Jay, are you using the rails or a rack Phil made to allow the Corbin gear to fit at the same time?
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Jay, are you using the rails or a rack Phil made to allow the Corbin gear to fit at the same time?
Nope, I don't think Phil was making the adjustment rails yet back when I got my rack, he made me a custom one-off rack to accommodate my Corbin smuggler trunk.
Phil is da'man, and has mad skills! :thumbs: :thumbs:
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Phil is "the Man"! I'm using the rails, his rack, and the E55 to accommodate the smuggler and Corbin backrest. Top notch quality and a pleasure to work with.
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Ok, ya'll are costing me money (again).
I told my wife it was ZG's fault!
47 Liter Kawasaki Bag ordered.
Will get a Phil's rack after it arrives...
Ride safe, Ted
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I told my wife it was ZG's fault!
;D :chugbeer:
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fyi... the one that I installed on mine on the Phil's rack is the givi V47 MonoKey (not the MonoLock one that you can get from Kawasaki). This is the one I got:
http://www.givi.it/cases/Monokey/V47 (http://www.givi.it/cases/Monokey/V47)
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My trunk arrived and I installed it on the stock rack.
Don't like the mount as it's too shaky.
Guess, Phils Rack will happen sooner than I thought....
But, it sure looks good on the bike with matching color!
Ride safe, Ted
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I put a Givi 55 on my C-14 and found it pushed my wife forward quite a bit. Ended up making a custom mounting plate to move the box back 2 inches as well as provide an additional pair of mounting points for strength.
Brian,
I think I need a rack like that, without kirby off course...
Can you make another one?
Thanks
Tony
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Brian,
I think I need a rack like that, without kirby off course...
Can you make another one?
Thanks
Tony
Can you make two?
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Well, I am just going to pretend you did not say anything bad about Kirby.... It was his idea in the first place (I know the voices in my head are not real but man, do they have some cool ideas). ;D
Sorry gents but that plate cost me a small fortune; it was custom milled. I did the design and provided both the CAD and CAM files but machine time alone was exorbitant. I do not have the CAM file but <may> still have a copy of the original model, I will take a look and let you know I can find it. It also requires another pair of holes be drilled into the lifting rails on the bike- that rack is bolted on with six bolts rather than the original four. It makes a nice mount (Easy Boys!) but it is neither practical nor affordable unfortunately.
Brian
Brian,
I think I need a rack like that, without kirby off course...
Can you make another one?
Thanks
Tony
Can you make two?
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Brian,
How important are the two extra mounting holes? And what are the lifting rails made of? Are they solid or extruded. I am currently using a mounting plate I made out of 5/16" aluminum plate but it was sized for a Maxia 50. I can easily make a longer one to accommodate the 55 but adding two additional attachment bolts would be a challenge.
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The lifting rails on a C-14 are plastic- my guess is a thermoset plastic such as epoxy. Very strong stuff. I did a stress analysis on that plate and the forward holes are really quite substantial, especially since the factory holes are both so close together and so far toward the rear of the plate. Picking up two additional holes at the very front of the plate makes a huge difference in strength.
By the way, the bottom of that plate is not flat; it must be stepped or cut at an angle to lay flat on the forward grab rails. If left flat, it will not seat in the well provided for the luggage rack.
Brian
Brian,
How important are the two extra mounting holes? And what are the lifting rails made of? Are they solid or extruded. I am currently using a mounting plate I made out of 5/16" aluminum plate but it was sized for a Maxia 50. I can easily make a longer one to accommodate the 55 but adding two additional attachment bolts would be a challenge.
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Thanks for the info!
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So on my 08, I have a E52 case and when traveling, I load it up and put another bag on top of it. I have an aluminum rack with a backrest attached to it.
It's not until I purchased my new 2013 that I hear the grab rails are made out of plastic and need to be careful not to overload them. On my quest for a new rack to use with my new V56 case and the backrest, I'm now not getting confident this is the right thing to do and have my wife use the backrest while the case is also loaded. Did I risk her life all of this 38,000 miles we put on that bike?
What to do what to do???
Brian, the extra bolts you put on your rack, did you tap into the center mount of the grab rails?
Thanks
Tony
The lifting rails on a C-14 are plastic- my guess is a thermoset plastic such as epoxy. Very strong stuff. I did a stress analysis on that plate and the forward holes are really quite substantial, especially since the factory holes are both so close together and so far toward the rear of the plate. Picking up two additional holes at the very front of the plate makes a huge difference in strength.
By the way, the bottom of that plate is not flat; it must be stepped or cut at an angle to lay flat on the forward grab rails. If left flat, it will not seat in the well provided for the luggage rack.
Brian
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I agree. Brian can you give some insight on the holes you added?
Also in previous note you said; By the way, the bottom of that plate is not flat; it must be stepped or cut at an angle to lay flat on the forward grab rails. If left flat, it will not seat in the well provided for the luggage rack.
Are you saying the flat bottomed Aluminum plates (that are comercially available) are not correct as they are flat bottomed?
Ride safe, Ted
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I noticed while mounting the plate, it didn't sit flat on the rails... bu I didn't think anything of it... Just taught the rails are a little bit out of place on my bike. Is this by design?
Tony
I agree. Brian can you give some insight on the holes you added?
Also in previous note you said; By the way, the bottom of that plate is not flat; it must be stepped or cut at an angle to lay flat on the forward grab rails. If left flat, it will not seat in the well provided for the luggage rack.
Are you saying the flat bottomed Aluminum plates (that are comercially available) are not correct as they are flat bottomed?
Ride safe, Ted
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Here's mine,I made my own rack since I have the givi 55 it would cause the Corbin seat with backrest to be angled forward.so with the rack I made I moved the e55 back 2 inches and now my wife loves it.i used black bedliner spray to make it match.
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I can give it a shot but the photo is lousy:
(http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f82/BDF08012008/New%20rack%20front%20showing%20add%20screws%20and%20undercut%203.jpg) (http://s45.photobucket.com/user/BDF08012008/media/New%20rack%20front%20showing%20add%20screws%20and%20undercut%203.jpg.html)
The first thing is that my rack is considerably longer than stock, so it not only projects more at the back of the bike but it projects forward toward the saddle also. It is in the front projection where I added two more screws by drilling holes right through the grab bars and using screws and nuts (technically I guess they were bolts and nuts but I digress....).
There is a well where the rack is supposed to mount to the bike (Easy Ted!). In front of that well, the grab rails get thicker so where my rack projects, it must be thinned on the bottom to fit. You might be able to (barely) see the milled areas under the rack where I relieved it to fit all the way down into the original rack wells. This is no doubt why Givi chose to use external 'outriggers' to provide additional support to their -55 mount; there is just nothing that can really be done with the stock bike otherwise to really increase the strength of either the rack or the grab rails where the rack mounts.
Again, the thing is that this rack is thicker but also quite a bit longer than a stock rack; the front was lengthened to add those to additional fasteners as the stock screw locations are so close together. A Givi 55 is a big box (Boys!) to begin with, and while I would never do so, I have heard that <some> people overload even those things (I have had trouble carrying that top box into hotel rooms ::) ). Given that, I would just not trust the original four screws to fasten the box, even with the thicker plate. Please bear in mind that the grab rails are not aluminum as they appear to be but are in fact plastic, though a very strong plastic but still.... With the larger rack shown, along with the additional screws, I calculated over 1,000 lbs. of force required to deform it (not actually have it outright fail) although of course I do not know the strength of the grab rails in the first place.
Brian
I agree. Brian can you give some insight on the holes you added?
Also in previous note you said; By the way, the bottom of that plate is not flat; it must be stepped or cut at an angle to lay flat on the forward grab rails. If left flat, it will not seat in the well provided for the luggage rack.
Are you saying the flat bottomed Aluminum plates (that are comercially available) are not correct as they are flat bottomed?
Ride safe, Ted
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The first plate I made for my Maxia 50 was .375 " and it required grinding to fit flush. When I upgraded to the Maxia 55 I made a new, larger plate so I could move it back 1.75" because it was pushing my wife forward uncomfortabley. I actually bought a 9"x12"x.375" plate but when I got it I decided it would be too heavy. I replaced it with one .3125" thick. This plate did not require any modification to fit flat. I think the thinner plate is plenty stiff enough (Whoa broncos!) The givi does move up and down with road bumps considerably as did the smaller givi with the thicker plate but I am convinced the movement is in the slightly flexible plastic rails and compression of the rubber bumpers. The topcase moves only slightly more than the OEM saddlebags.
Here are pictures of both plates. Note that I already had an actual givi mounting plate so the plates I made are just to attach that to the Kawasaki rails. This may not be the best solution but the easiest and least expensive. I also added the two extra mounting points.
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Thanks Brian/Lather. I see where the rack is making contact. Good point!
I tightened and loosened the mounting bolts several times while watching closely.
(When tightening, Either the rack (Phil's Rack) flexes slightly or the rails do).
I think I'm ok, so I'm going to leave mine as is. (no notching or extra bolts)
explanation;
I suspect that most/all commercial racks are flat bottomed;
I don't have the oversized Trunk; (I have the Kawi Trunk)
I moved my trunk back only 1";
I lowered my trunk 3/4".
I do want to bring up a concern/thought though for consideration..
Those of you with the big trunks and long racks are adding load (moment) thru the extra setback.
I suspect that; the additional setback increases the stress on the grab rails.
Any weight you put in the bag, has to be multiplied (by some factor) because of the distance.
That being said, I think a simpler solution would be a brace from below the rack. (at the rear)
We have a smart group here. Please reply to my thought.
Has anyone developed braces to mount from below the rack?
Ride safe, Ted
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givi has
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Thanks Brian/Lather. I see where the rack is making contact. Good point!
I tightened and loosened the mounting bolts several times while watching closely.
(When tightening, Either the rack (Phil's Rack) flexes slightly or the rails do).
I think I'm ok, so I'm going to leave mine as is. (no notching or extra bolts)
explanation;
I suspect that most/all commercial racks are flat bottomed;
I don't have the oversized Trunk; (I have the Kawi Trunk)
I moved my trunk back only 1";
I lowered my trunk 3/4".
I do want to bring up a concern/thought though for consideration..
Those of you with the big trunks and long racks are adding load (moment) thru the extra setback.
I suspect that; the additional setback increases the stress on the grab rails.
Any weight you put in the bag, has to be multiplied (by some factor) because of the distance.
That being said, I think a simpler solution would be a brace from below the rack. (at the rear)
We have a smart group here. Please reply to my thought.
Has anyone developed braces to mount from below the rack?
Ride safe, Ted
I reckon your concerns are justified. I just went out to the garage and had a close look. As I mentioned, my case does move a bit but most is in the rubber bumpers and the rest seems to actually be some play where the rails attached to the frame. I can't see any other play or movement anywhere else. Also I don't see any simple way to install any braces from underneath. I have seen pictures of Givi's solution and it looks far from simple, not to mention hideous.
Anyway, I am concerned about stress on my rails and my solution will be to move some heavy items from my topcase to my side bags and tank bag.
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Yep, as Gary said, Givi has a mounting system that is external to the rack; it is behind and below the rack and mounts to the bike's frame well under the original rack position.
As far as the grab rails, I believe they are more than strong enough to carry 100 lbs. safely, and probably more. The problem with the original mounting system is the distance between the two screws: they are much too close to each other. That, coupled with the fact that the grab rails are much shorter where the rack mounts, create a pretty weak setup. Adding fasteners, and especially spreading them out (increasing the moment), along with bolting the front pair through the entire grab rail, very close to where the grab rails mount to the bike, makes the whole system much, much stronger.
Mounting, screws, 'behind and below', etc...... that whole thing is gonna' need some Easy Boys! to be safe to read. Please insert them (Easy!) where you think they should go. This post is in kit form, some assembly required. This is a list of suggested safeties (example, insert one here(and here)).
Easy Boys!
Easy Boys!
Boys!!
'You cannot put that, there.
Brian
Thanks Brian/Lather. I see where the rack is making contact. Good point!
I tightened and loosened the mounting bolts several times while watching closely.
(When tightening, Either the rack (Phil's Rack) flexes slightly or the rails do).
I think I'm ok, so I'm going to leave mine as is. (no notching or extra bolts)
explanation;
I suspect that most/all commercial racks are flat bottomed;
I don't have the oversized Trunk; (I have the Kawi Trunk)
I moved my trunk back only 1";
I lowered my trunk 3/4".
I do want to bring up a concern/thought though for consideration..
Those of you with the big trunks and long racks are adding load (moment) thru the extra setback.
I suspect that; the additional setback increases the stress on the grab rails.
Any weight you put in the bag, has to be multiplied (by some factor) because of the distance.
That being said, I think a simpler solution would be a brace from below the rack. (at the rear)
We have a smart group here. Please reply to my thought.
Has anyone developed braces to mount from below the rack?
Ride safe, Ted
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I think Givi has some kind of bracket that attaches under to help support the trunk.
Tony
Has anyone developed braces to mount from below the rack?
Ride safe, Ted
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I guess I should have read page 4 before replying to a post on page 3 :(
Tony
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Maybe, maybe not. I usually vote on the second Tuesday of November rather than on the first one like everybody else. I find the lines are much shorter and my voting accuracy approaches 100%....
;)
Brian
I guess I should have read page 4 before replying to a post on page 3 :(
Tony
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I'm just thinking, if he rails are not that strong, and it's not a good idea to over load the trunk and have the significant other use it as a backrest... How does Corbin get away with it with their huge monstrosity of a trunk and backrest?
Isn't that a liability for them?
Tony
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Not if there's no one alive to bring suit.