Altrider Hemisphere Soft Panniers

ALTRIDER HEMISPHERE SOFT PANNIERS

IGNITION

EVALUATION

An alternative to expensive (and destructible) OEM hard saddlebags

Blake Conner

If you're an adventure-touring rider, you almost certainly have saddlebags on your machine. Bags come in a few flavors: OEM hard cases, aftermarket hard cases, and aftermarket soft bags. If there is one thing we’ve learned over the past couple of years piling up miles on our long-term ADV bikes, it’s that Mother Earth likes to eat OEM hard bags for lunch.

As a matter of fact, we’ve destroyed a ridiculous number of accessory bags in recent years, so we were looking for an alternative solution. After receiving a set of AltRider’s Hemisphere Soft Panniers for our long-term KTM1190 Adventure R last year, we were impressed. So when BMW didn’t have hard cases for our S1000XR testbike (see page 36), we mounted the Hemisphere bags. The XR's luggage racks meant installation of the bags took minutes, and they fit perfectly using five mounting straps.

Constructed from ballistic nylon, each side bag has two compartments: an open holster-like top section that accommodates a 34-liter waterand dust-proof dry bag that clips in and is then further secured by a strap over the top. Below is a smaller cubby in which another 15-liter dry bag resides. An additional 28-liter dry bag can also be attached up top via metal cam-lock buckles (converts to a backpack), giving the entire system 126 liters of storage.

The beauty of the panniers is that they are very light and narrow. Even when loaded, the bags are barely noticeable to the rider, offering very little aerodynamic drag and not upsetting the chassis balance with too much rear-biased weight.

The tape-sealed seams of the dry bags work as advertised and kept the contents totally dry during a torrential desert thunderstorm.

Of course, this style of bag comes with a few compromises. First, you can’t lock them. And when you need to grab something out of one on the road, it takes an extra step or two to access the contents. That said, pulling out the liner at your destination takes no more time than with any other bag on the market.

They might not be the best solution for everyone, but in our opinion the Hemisphere’s affordable price tag, rugged construction, excellent functionality, and slim and light design make them an excellent choice for ADV exploring.

ALTRIDER HEMISPHERE SOFT PANNIERS

altrider.com (206) 922-3618 PRICE: $569.97

UPS

+ Very lightweight and slim

+ Weather-and dust-proof

+ Functionaland well designed

DOWNS

Can’t lock them

Accessing contents takes a bit longer

No way to lock them to the bike