srt8-in-largo
08-10-2014, 11:49 PM
Just thought I'd share pics and thoughts of what I have. Dam my bike is dirty!
Saddlebag Organizer from ChokoDesign sold by Whitehorse Gear
These are actually for the 2001 - 2010 Goldwing and for whatever reason they don't fit the F6B bags; which confused me because I thought the bags were identical. The shape doesn't match F6 bags and location of the screwholes don't match... so I removed the stitched trim from around the perimeter, cut the backerboard shape to fit our bags, glued the trim back onto the perimeter, and installed using 3M industrial strength velcro strips from Home Depot.
The other organizers that are specific to the F6 just weren't what I wanted. These Choko's have multiple small pockets that conveniently hold all of my small crap like sun block, a couple of allen wrenches, a 12V USB adaptor for charging my phone, eye glass case, etc. The owners manual, insurance card, and registration fit perfectly and securely into the other side.
Note that if you get these directly from Choko (as I linked above) the left and right sides have different pocket sizes. Whitehorse Gear, however, sells them with identical but mirrored pockets on the left and right. I could not re-find these on the Whitehorse website otherwise I'd post the link.
Saddlebag Mats from eBay seller themonogrammingqueen
Also shown in these pics (kinda) are the carpet mats I found on eBay. These are half the price of the Honda mats and are well worth the $40. Fitment and craftsmanship are top notch. I initially thought I'd need to coat the bottoms with a non-slip substance but, no, it's fine; the shape of these fit in a way that the bags themselves keep them from sliding around. Now I can throw anything into the bags and not worry about it scratching up the bottoms. IMO these give the bags a nice finished look.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-FHa9DO7nRoc/U-g3TTbKYdI/AAAAAAAACAY/5Ji6N1cEKh4/s800/DSC00596.JPG
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yykDZI5uv_E/U-g3o_RXewI/AAAAAAAACAw/ZqQgOZFTpM0/s800/DSC00597.JPG
Madstad Windshield (http://www.madstad.com/s.nl/sc.7/category.11546/.f)
I have the 11inch version in dark grey tint... and LOVE it. There's a lengthy windshield thread here that discusses the Madstad in detail. I won't repeat those comments but I'll say this shield completely transformed the F6 from a buffeting noisy ride to a smooth one. I wear my ballcap on the interstate at 75 mph and it doesn't blow off.
RiderScan 180 Degree Blindspot Mirror from Hunter Create
This is the curved mirror attached to the Madstad windshield. I was looking for those small stickon blindspot mirrors that you attach to the rearview mirrors when I found this... and I'm glad I did. Guys, if you want a full 180 degreee view of whats going on around you, this is it. I don't even do head checks anymore. I check my rearviews for anything that might be approaching quickly, then I check the riderscan mirror, and then I proceed to make my lane change.
The only thing I don't like, and had to adjust to, is this setup requires more eye movement than if you had a blindspot mirror attached to the rearview mirror. With such a setup, your eyes move very little from the rear view to the blindspot view. However, using the Riderscan is a two step process; check the rearview mirror, focus back on the road ahead, and then check the Riderscan mirror. This usage might bother some people; it bothered me when I first got it. But after getting used to it I think the additional vision it gives you is well worth the usage adjustment.
Muth Mirrors (pronounced Mooth?)
I have the blue tinted mirrors with what they call the 7 LED design. I'm not even sure if you can get the 5 LED design anymore but some people liked those better because they seemed brighter... and those people might have a point. These LED's are quite visible in daylight but they could stand to be a tad brighter in order to catch more attention. However, when you're changing lanes, the location of these LED's are essentially directly in the line of sight of the car behind you and they are definitely more visible than the rear blinkers. At night they are greatly visible. The amber LED version perfectly matches the amber rear blinkers which I appreciated; I think it would look funky having a bunch of different colored lights blinking.
The blue tint is hard to see in these pics but it's very noticeably a different color than the OEM mirrors. The tint greatly reduces glare from headlights at night and there is virtually no viewing degradation. When looking at the bike from a distance now, it just looks different; the mirrors use to match the chrome exhaust pipes but they no longer do. Food for thought if you care about that. I kinda do but I also appreciate less glare at night.
If I had to do it over again I'd get the Muth Mirrors with the integrated tire pressure monitoring system. Oh well, I'll just keep kicking the tires and checking pressures monthly with a gauge.
Garmin Oregon 450 GPS with RAM Mounts
This GPS unit is a hybrid that's meant mainly for hiking but runs City Navigator software and adapts well to road use. I had this before I bought the bike and rather than buy a new road-based GPS I thought I'd give this a shot. It's weather proof and I have it powered through the 12V jack that I installed in the fairing cubbyhole.
I initially had the RAM mount that attached to the bolts of the clutch reservoir but that location placed the GPS too close to my face and required too much refocusing of the eyes and too much eye movement in general. Moving the RAM ball to the handlebars located the GPS in a much better spot. Now looking at the GPS is no more of a distraction than that required to look at your gauges.
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-rVtpNU5f8bY/U-g3odgjJRI/AAAAAAAACAs/l9il_MV6tYo/s800/DSC00598.JPG
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-P9BHOp76Oz4/U-g3oSPElII/AAAAAAAACAo/j2cxBQYl8h8/s800/DSC00599.JPG
Saddlebag Organizer from ChokoDesign sold by Whitehorse Gear
These are actually for the 2001 - 2010 Goldwing and for whatever reason they don't fit the F6B bags; which confused me because I thought the bags were identical. The shape doesn't match F6 bags and location of the screwholes don't match... so I removed the stitched trim from around the perimeter, cut the backerboard shape to fit our bags, glued the trim back onto the perimeter, and installed using 3M industrial strength velcro strips from Home Depot.
The other organizers that are specific to the F6 just weren't what I wanted. These Choko's have multiple small pockets that conveniently hold all of my small crap like sun block, a couple of allen wrenches, a 12V USB adaptor for charging my phone, eye glass case, etc. The owners manual, insurance card, and registration fit perfectly and securely into the other side.
Note that if you get these directly from Choko (as I linked above) the left and right sides have different pocket sizes. Whitehorse Gear, however, sells them with identical but mirrored pockets on the left and right. I could not re-find these on the Whitehorse website otherwise I'd post the link.
Saddlebag Mats from eBay seller themonogrammingqueen
Also shown in these pics (kinda) are the carpet mats I found on eBay. These are half the price of the Honda mats and are well worth the $40. Fitment and craftsmanship are top notch. I initially thought I'd need to coat the bottoms with a non-slip substance but, no, it's fine; the shape of these fit in a way that the bags themselves keep them from sliding around. Now I can throw anything into the bags and not worry about it scratching up the bottoms. IMO these give the bags a nice finished look.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-FHa9DO7nRoc/U-g3TTbKYdI/AAAAAAAACAY/5Ji6N1cEKh4/s800/DSC00596.JPG
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yykDZI5uv_E/U-g3o_RXewI/AAAAAAAACAw/ZqQgOZFTpM0/s800/DSC00597.JPG
Madstad Windshield (http://www.madstad.com/s.nl/sc.7/category.11546/.f)
I have the 11inch version in dark grey tint... and LOVE it. There's a lengthy windshield thread here that discusses the Madstad in detail. I won't repeat those comments but I'll say this shield completely transformed the F6 from a buffeting noisy ride to a smooth one. I wear my ballcap on the interstate at 75 mph and it doesn't blow off.
RiderScan 180 Degree Blindspot Mirror from Hunter Create
This is the curved mirror attached to the Madstad windshield. I was looking for those small stickon blindspot mirrors that you attach to the rearview mirrors when I found this... and I'm glad I did. Guys, if you want a full 180 degreee view of whats going on around you, this is it. I don't even do head checks anymore. I check my rearviews for anything that might be approaching quickly, then I check the riderscan mirror, and then I proceed to make my lane change.
The only thing I don't like, and had to adjust to, is this setup requires more eye movement than if you had a blindspot mirror attached to the rearview mirror. With such a setup, your eyes move very little from the rear view to the blindspot view. However, using the Riderscan is a two step process; check the rearview mirror, focus back on the road ahead, and then check the Riderscan mirror. This usage might bother some people; it bothered me when I first got it. But after getting used to it I think the additional vision it gives you is well worth the usage adjustment.
Muth Mirrors (pronounced Mooth?)
I have the blue tinted mirrors with what they call the 7 LED design. I'm not even sure if you can get the 5 LED design anymore but some people liked those better because they seemed brighter... and those people might have a point. These LED's are quite visible in daylight but they could stand to be a tad brighter in order to catch more attention. However, when you're changing lanes, the location of these LED's are essentially directly in the line of sight of the car behind you and they are definitely more visible than the rear blinkers. At night they are greatly visible. The amber LED version perfectly matches the amber rear blinkers which I appreciated; I think it would look funky having a bunch of different colored lights blinking.
The blue tint is hard to see in these pics but it's very noticeably a different color than the OEM mirrors. The tint greatly reduces glare from headlights at night and there is virtually no viewing degradation. When looking at the bike from a distance now, it just looks different; the mirrors use to match the chrome exhaust pipes but they no longer do. Food for thought if you care about that. I kinda do but I also appreciate less glare at night.
If I had to do it over again I'd get the Muth Mirrors with the integrated tire pressure monitoring system. Oh well, I'll just keep kicking the tires and checking pressures monthly with a gauge.
Garmin Oregon 450 GPS with RAM Mounts
This GPS unit is a hybrid that's meant mainly for hiking but runs City Navigator software and adapts well to road use. I had this before I bought the bike and rather than buy a new road-based GPS I thought I'd give this a shot. It's weather proof and I have it powered through the 12V jack that I installed in the fairing cubbyhole.
I initially had the RAM mount that attached to the bolts of the clutch reservoir but that location placed the GPS too close to my face and required too much refocusing of the eyes and too much eye movement in general. Moving the RAM ball to the handlebars located the GPS in a much better spot. Now looking at the GPS is no more of a distraction than that required to look at your gauges.
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-rVtpNU5f8bY/U-g3odgjJRI/AAAAAAAACAs/l9il_MV6tYo/s800/DSC00598.JPG
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-P9BHOp76Oz4/U-g3oSPElII/AAAAAAAACAo/j2cxBQYl8h8/s800/DSC00599.JPG