My GF isconscidering the *390 Adv as her first bike - I think it could be a great option for her. Her budget is limited, and she needs to get some good quality luggage large enough to go on a long trip.

I've ordered a Tenere 700 rally for myself, complete with the OEM aluminum panniers and racks. I'm conscidering to also get my hands on some soft panniers. My preferences are Mosko Backcountry (35), Kirega OS 32 or Lonerdider MotoBags (38) - and in that order. I might go down one size. I'm also uncertain wether I ought to go, or have to offset bag sizes.

My thought was that she could get a rack for her 390 Adv that would work with my bags and borrow my soft panniers.

However, I have not seen any 390 Adv with any of these bag options, nor found any rack that would work well with any of the bag options mentioned. I also don't know whether the 390 ought to have to have offset luggage or if same bags on both sides would be best. I also wonder if there is enough room to fit any of these bags without making the rider cramped. Lastly, how it would work with the exhaust.

Any pointers, advice and comments would be welcomed, also reccomendations for other panniers than those mentioned, greater than 25L - including budget examples.

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*This bike has short shock travel, low ground clearance, only 19" front wheel (alloy), sub par hand guards, sub par footpegs for offroad, sub par gear shifter pedal and rear break pedal, only 7500 service intervals, small windscreen, little torque, sub par bash plate, sub par ergonomics for riding standing up... but it is a great light weight entry level adventure bike, at a great price... lots of power, light and nimble, low center of gravity, low seat height, good shocks, crash bars, great rider assistant tech for beginners. The bike will take you everywhere, and in some instances with greater ease in the slow technical bits than the larger mid level adv bikes. All it really needs is a better skid plate, better handguards, and some luggage

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check the very active''390 Adventure owner thread'' on advrider.com You will find all the answers you can imagine

If I were you, I would get a set of Lomo soft bags to test out the fit - they're pretty universal, and cheap enough that if it doesn't do exactly what you need, you're not too sad. https://www.lomo.co.uk/acatalog/wate...niers-set.html

The other thing I would say... when shopping for a 390 Adventure, get her to test-ride a Honda CB500X as well.

I wouldn't say the 390 Adventure has a low seat height. Has your GF sat on one? The CB500X is quite a bit lower.

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"For sheer delight there is nothing like altitude; it gives one the thrill of adventure
and enlarges the world in which you live," Irving Mather (1892-1966)

Last week I took the little 390 ADV for a test ride to see if it could be an option to take along on my camper.


I must admit, it was a positive surprise to ride this bike. Seating is comfortable, it goes like hell, the gearing is well spaced. Doesn't feel like a small 1-cyl. machine at all. I'm 6'4" and felt quite comfortable. It is light ( <160 kg) and handles very well.


Negative points were missing brake power, vibrations and low windscreen. I felt the brakes could be more direct, and when I braked really hard the fork twisted slightly.The foot pegs vibrate at all speeds and revvs. As mentioned above, the bash plate would have to be exchanged for a more robust plate if you intend to go off-road.

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@poorbuthappy: advrider.com has no structure. There is no option to create subtopics, and therfor no option for others to drill down. The "390 adeventure owner" thread for instance is allready 158 pages of madness. I am going through it page by page just because I am bored today (currently on p.25). It's an ok forum - if you are not looking for anything particular. It's like being on a discovery ride - you discover a few unexpected things, but never really close to anything that you were keeping your eyes out for. So far I have found a couple of useful bits of info, but nothing really relevant to this thread.

@Tim Cullins: You are right, it's not that low - and it is great you pointed it out so I don't mislead anyone to think that it is a bike for flat footed people. It is lower than some - but in combination with low weight, it sinstills far more confidence in a beginner than for instance the T7. She has sat on the 390. She can't flatfoot, but she can get both feet down, and after having sat on a lot of other taller and heavier bikes - she feels very confident with the height... The CB500X is on our list, but where I live, a used one costs quite a bit more than the 390 adv. I was hoping to find a used CB500x fully kitted for adventure, but no such luck yet. My GF also thinks the KTM looks better - and I agree (form before function?).

@Vaufi. We have not tested the bike yet. We will keep this in mind - in particular the vibrations. I guess people experience and prefer different things. I've heard from others that the seat gets rough after an hour, but that the brakes are best in its class (price/category) - with people able to do stoppies even with the front ABS activated in offroad mode. But you and I are both tall guys, and the bike is set up for people shorter and lighter than us...

@Antyx: those lomo bags seems like a bargain. I will still need a side carrier/rack - to keep the bags clear of the exhaust and to prevent the bags swinging in towards the wheel. I might just get a pair of these even if I get the moskos - that way I have soft bags for both bikes. My son is getting a bike soon also. And you are right, at that price I won't cry. They could be repurposed in so many ways. Great advice!

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How about the Mosko Reckless 40 instead of panniers - no rack required?
Or the Mosko Reckless 80 if that's not enough capacity. I have the Reckless 80 on my DRZ400E and it works really well. Loads of flexibility, I can take much less or load it up to the max and more. The "Ultralight" set up is 50l, and the "RTW" is 98l, so lots of options to make it right for her. And it's easy on-off - I can do mine in about 3 minutes on and under a minute off. The weight is also carried very low.

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Grant Johnson
Seek, and ye shall find.
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Inspiring, Informing and Connecting travellers since 1997!
www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

BTW - both are currently sold out, but a new and updated design is coming.

__________________
Grant Johnson
Seek, and ye shall find.
------------------------
Inspiring, Informing and Connecting travellers since 1997!
www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

And don't forget the similar Giant Loop Coyote, 39 litres, similar to the Reckless 40 but different thinking. The Coyote is "all in one" with a top bag option, and the Reckless series are made up of multiple bits and pieces you mix and match to suit.

__________________
Grant Johnson
Seek, and ye shall find.
------------------------
Inspiring, Informing and Connecting travellers since 1997!
www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

@Grant - thanks for the input. I will check this out. I have been looking at GL for a while, but can't really decide wether or not it is a good solution for me or not. Seems like an inexpensive quick and dirty solution that gets the job done, but also one which is cumbersome to live with on the road for extended travels. Anothert benefit is that when you are not travelling, you have a clean bike. I've allways enjoyed top loading panniers that sit flush with the pillion seat. They are easy to get things in and out of, there is still room for a pillion or you can add a dry bag on top, etc. In addition the side carriers help protect the bike when dropped, and also eases man-handling of the bike - i.e. when having dropped it.

The reckless seems like a better option - though I doubt it would work with a pillion (not a dealbreaker).

One of the things I dislike about panniers and tankbags that don't go on a rack is that they scuff up the bike on all contact points. Some of this can be mitigated by covering the bike with simple cling film you get at the grocery store.

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I sendt a mail to Mosko and got an indepth reply the day after - wow - I'm not used to this kind of service - Bravo! Here is what they wrote:

The OEM Givi racks are definitely not ideal for our bags. They do have some now without the exhaust cut out which would be better. If still possible I would opt for different racks and cases but of course that is up to you.

If you stay with the Givi racks you need to remove the Givi attachments from the rack. There will always be some protrusions on the rack though which makes it a bit harder to slide our bags onto the wedge.

For the exhaust cutout you need our BMW Oil Cooled adapter

https://moskomoto.eu/collections/har...-style-adapter

You will need to add a spacer between the adapter and the rack to make it straight as this adapter has not been made for a givi rack.

Givi does make racks for the 390 as well. There is no exhaust cut out. You can simply order a second bike kit from our website so you already have the wedges installed and all you have to do is move the bags from one bike to the other.

https://moskomoto.eu/collections/har...r-2nd-bike-kit

Bag sizing should depend on intended travels and how much storage space you need. Off set bags are more about aesthetics. It's 4,5 cm wider so not a big deal. Being able to bring everything on your adventures is more important. You can also compress the 35L bag so it only holds 25 Liters


I am not exactly sure what they mean by: If you stay with the Givi racks you need to remove the Givi attachments from the rack. There will always be some protrusions on the rack though which makes it a bit harder to slide our bags onto the wedge. Any ideas?

As I've allready got the Yamaha OEM rack (Givi) with the cutout for the Tenere 700, I was hoping to get a bag that I could use for both this and the KTM 390 Adventure.

I see that Kriega has an adapter for the Yamaha OEM Rack (Givi with exhaust cutout) - which seems like a better way to go about it than the hacks needed for the Moskos. The thing is that I really love the extremely smooth way the Moskos come on and off the bike. Maybe I can use the Kriega adapter in place of the Mosko Adapter for the BMW?

I'm thinking that I might come to regret not going for the SW Motech Evo or Pro rack on the Tenere (they don't offer one for the 390 KTM).

Maybe I will just have to get a cheap compromize while I wait on more community intel and experience, as well as new products coming to market for the 390 (like a suitable adapter to the T7 rack?)... or just go for the Mosko Reckless (seems like a great product).

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