Happy Trail SU (structurally unique) Rack Reviews

First off, I'll state that these are being used with Happy Trail panniers and review will reflect this.

After I bought my new Tiger I knew I needed some luggage. I had had tail bags and soft panniers on my Honda XR and was really more thinking boxes for security and comfort. Because I had the Honda I was already sensitive to rear sub frames cracking if used to haul any loads so I had made up my mind that I'd like that area a bit reinforced to take the load. The Happy Trail although not aesthetic does have a reinforcing bar across the rear section giving a lot of extra support and sealing my decision.

Upon a fairly standard process of creating an account and ordering I eagerly awaited the arrival which I understood to take a couple of weeks due to lead time. Now here in all fairness I must state that others' have reported problems with their timeliness, I had no such issues. Two weeks later I get a package from Boise with my new rack inside. The packaging was a bit worse for wear but that was UPS and the contents survived.

I had earlier fitted the Leo Vince can and it turns out that Happy Trail had just modified their jig to clear it. I'm not too sure what was necessary to clear it but the install went painlessly requiring the removal of 4 bolts under the seat and the installation of an additional eight to mount the support arms and the crossbar in the rear. It sounds a bit complex but really their stuff is simple and once it is assembled it is easy to remove and re-install if needed.

I now have over 10000 miles with this installed and outside of a bit of chipping in the powder coat due to rocks and gravel they remain in excellent shape and I expect will last me for many more miles. They probably won't win any beauty contests but they are sturdy and well constructed to take a bit of abuse.