Motorbikes & carrying ... stuff?

B0bbyEwing

I don't have a bike licence but I'm interested in getting one.

I only really use my car to get to work & back these days which is also all I'd be using the bike for pretty much I imagine & it's this that's put me off over the years but also something I've never properly looked in to - 

I know you get bike boxes where you can store stuff but I take a fair bit of space consuming stuff with me daily & I'm not sure whether it'd be doable on a bike.

I've a backpack & a sandwich bag. I suppose I could get a bigger backpack which would then house the sandwich bag.
But I also have a 1ltr thermos flask which I wonder whether it'd fit in anything. I have to take this as the water at work is absolute rank!

I also take my work boots. I could maybe work around this & leave these at work. I just prefer not to leave anything behind as things can go missing.

I have a spare jacket in the boot of my car for wet days but then I suppose I probably wouldn't be biking if the weather was looking to be THAT wet, unless say the car was at the garage & I had no choice.

But yeah, backpack, sandwich/cooler bag & 1ltr flask is a must.

Just not sure on the capacity of these things on bikes as I've never looked in to it before so I don't realistically know what I could carry.

And while I'm on the topic of it all - how do you even go about it all?

I remember when driving you'd give a guy some cash, he'd take you out for a bit each week & then when he felt you were ready it'd be test-time & job done.

I'm certainly not going to be allowed any time off work just to take some bike lessons.

sheramber

The size of panniers that fit on your bike will depend on the size of the bike.
 Why not visit a motorcycle sales place and have a look around. I am sure the salesman will be able to answer your  questions 

facade

Depends on why you want to commute by 'bike.

The disadvantages

You have to secure your bike to solid ground with heavy chains & locks, preferably inside a garage or it will be stolen within a couple of days.

So to go to work on the 'bike

First you have to put on your 'bike gear- jacket, trousers, boots, helmet (you put your gloves on when you have the 'bike out) this takes a while.

Then you have to get the 'bike out, opening the garage, undoing the many locks, unwrapping the heavy chans from round the wheels & frame.

Then you wheel the 'bike out, lock the garage, start it up, put your gloves on, and finally you are off! (about 20 minutes later than if you went by car)

When you get there, you have to park it where it might not be stolen, and lock it up, then remove all that 'bike gear, and change into work clothes. 

You have to store your helmet & gear somewhere, and sometimes it is soaking wet and dripping water.

Going home is the reverse.

The advantages:

You can sing "Born to be Wild" or similar as you trundle along.

You can filter through traffic jams, so you can cut your actual journey time.

Going by car, you throw your bag on the seat, start the car and drive off. (takes under a minute)

The extra time & effort getting the 'bike out, the misery of never being able to see anything in the wet, the costs of all the gear, 'bike, tax, insurance, getting a licence etc. honestly make it a non starter unless you really want to ride a 'bike, or you can save at least half an hour each way.

I have a 'bike in the garage (well I think I do, I haven't looked for a while.....) and I never use it because the effort of getting ready to ride it completely outweighs the experience.

I have an electrically assisted pedal cycle that I use far more often!

Car_54

Motorcyclists are known in medical circles as “organ donors” and in the legal profession as proof that Darwin was right. 

Don’t let that put you off, you might be one of the exceptions. On the other hand …

user1977

They can carry a reasonable quantity of pizzas, so I'm sure you can manage your lunch.

Barkin

What a bizarre thread!

shinytop

A big motorcycle top box is about the same capacity as the bag that goes in the overhead compartment with Ryanair.  A small one is about the same capacity as the bag you cram under the seat. 

If you're commuting regularly in all weathers, using a rucksack will quickly become tiresome and everything you are carrying will get wet.      

B0bbyEwing

facade said:

Depends on why you want to commute by 'bike.

The disadvantages

You have to secure your bike to solid ground with heavy chains & locks, preferably inside a garage or it will be stolen within a couple of days.

So to go to work on the 'bike

First you have to put on your 'bike gear- jacket, trousers, boots, helmet (you put your gloves on when you have the 'bike out) this takes a while.

Then you have to get the 'bike out, opening the garage, undoing the many locks, unwrapping the heavy chans from round the wheels & frame.

Then you wheel the 'bike out, lock the garage, start it up, put your gloves on, and finally you are off! (about 20 minutes later than if you went by car)

When you get there, you have to park it where it might not be stolen, and lock it up, then remove all that 'bike gear, and change into work clothes. 

You have to store your helmet & gear somewhere, and sometimes it is soaking wet and dripping water.

Going home is the reverse.

The advantages:

You can sing "Born to be Wild" or similar as you trundle along.

You can filter through traffic jams, so you can cut your actual journey time.

Going by car, you throw your bag on the seat, start the car and drive off. (takes under a minute)

The extra time & effort getting the 'bike out, the misery of never being able to see anything in the wet, the costs of all the gear, 'bike, tax, insurance, getting a licence etc. honestly make it a non starter unless you really want to ride a 'bike, or you can save at least half an hour each way.

I have a 'bike in the garage (well I think I do, I haven't looked for a while.....) and I never use it because the effort of getting ready to ride it completely outweighs the experience.

I have an electrically assisted pedal cycle that I use far more often!

Thanks for the helpful response.

Not sure whether I could get it down the side of the house or not. If so then it'd be just parked at the back where it can't be seen, well, other than by neighbouring houses looking out their back. If it wouldn't fit down the side of the house then it'd have to go out front & be on view with easy access. There'd be no anchor point as such because we've only got paviours down & it'd be easy enough to lift one of them out & so the only real anchor points would be pavement (doubt the legality of that one) or house itself (not ideal).

For reasons - speed (no not riding fast but taking heavy traffic out of the equation), running cost (am told by other bikers it's much cheaper than a car overall but obviously against your initial outlay it would take a long while to recoup) & also 1) I'm finding it difficult to buy a suitable car plus 2) I don't like the way that cars are going. I'm really not interested in any of these modern cars at all plus older cars are heavily overpriced now.

Barkin said:

What a bizarre thread!

Bizarre threads.
Unhelpful responses.

MSE has them all.

Linus2864

B0bbyEwing said:

And while I'm on the topic of it all - how do you even go about it all?

Hi B0bbyEwing,

As you already have a driving licence, you will need to undertake Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) before learning to ride, and then take your test.   Full details are below, but it may also be worth contacting local riding schools:

https://www.gov.uk/motorcycle-cbt

Hope this helps

L

Goudy

You can get all sorts of luggage for motorbikes.
Hard and soft top boxes and bags, side panniers, expanding tank bags and the likes. 

Your average side pannier is something like 20 - 30 litres per side. Top boxes go anywhere up to 50 litres and you can get a tank bags that expands up to around 40 litres or more.
That's getting on for the same sort of boot space you find in a Fiat 500.

With a bit of thought, you shouldn't have much problem carrying what you need and more if needed, but it will depend on the bike.

Even some of the bigger commuter 300-400cc Scooters have a space under the seat of around 40 litres and can take a fairly large top box as well.

We've toured two up around Europe a few times, even as far as Greece and it's amazing what you can carry.
I actually took very little, pants, socks, shorts and t shirts but the other half packed almost everything even her GHD's.
I've also rode to Spain with mates on a sports bike with nothing more than a toothbrush and a credit card.

I wouldn't ever wear a rucksack though.
First off you wouldn't want it to snag on anything and if you did come off, you don't want a bulky weight strapped to your back.

QrizB

I've been a good-weather commuter on a 125 for eight years now.

It's cheap transport, quicker in heavy traffic than a car and yes you do get to sing "Born to be Wild" AND " Bat out of Hell"

You do need protective clothing and somewhere to change and store it at work. You do get wet and cold if there's an unexpected downpour.

I've got a 30-litre backpack that I can stuff into my top box. When I arrived at work I take the backpack out then use the same top box for my helmet.

If I stop at the supermarket on the way to or from work, the groceries go in the top box and I wear the backpack on my back for the rest of the trip. Don't buy too many groceries or you'll end up bungey-ing your bread to the pillion seat ...