I want to protect the tops of my bags and I like the looks or the airwing rails.

I could use some advice as to whether to get them or not.

1. I want to add the LED lights. Is the routing of the wiring stupid and ugly or well planned? Can I set the LED's up to run as brake/turn only? (Run is ok, but I think without run would be more noticeable.). Since they are LED's and the regular bulbs on a 2014 RK are not, what happens then?

2. Does anyone use these rails to hold sleeping bags, tents, or whatever? Any good ideas on hold downs for bedrolls or pad rolls or tent rolls?

3. How hard are they to mount straight?

Thanks in advance.

C#

 

you asked for comments so mine is, not a fan of those rails one bit. They make a bike look like a bike out of the 60-70s. Or a bike belonging to a guy that will stick anything he can buy in his bike. I'd look into Hogskins I think they're called. 3m plastic that can be put over the kids. But hey, we're all different so if you like them, have at it.

 

I am interested in some protection but more importantly I think the location of the lights as turn and stop signals is very good. I also could use, from time to time, a place to strap on a tent and bedroll. I don't think that the plastic sheet is any better or worse looking... it just serves only a single purpose.

 

I agree with cdestuck, they look like ****. Riding around Bike Week 2 weeks ago I saw people with lid bras. WTF are you people doing that you need to "protect" the top of your saddlebags? I've ridden Harley baggers for 14 years without ever getting a single scratch on the top of my bags.

 

I don't mind the looks, but I never mount anything that requires drilling through visible body panels. If you decide you don't like the looks and want to take them off, you'll have a hefty lid repair or replacement bill. Also, they may be a deal breaker at sell time--since they can't just be removed if a potential buyer doesn't like them, it could easily kill a sale.

 

Just put the clear paint protector film on top of your bags. That stuff is hard to detect, yet you can drag your boot across your lids with no risk of damage. When you get tired of them or need to replace with a fresh film, just peel it off. Obviously, this doesnt address the abilty to use for more storage

 

You talking about these?

 

I just threw up in my mouth a little

 

They look like a pain to open saddlebag to me, and in the above pic, the pigtail for charger seems like it would flap around in the wind, and wear paint

 

Yes, with the LED lights.

I am going to replace my turn/run lights that are on the horiz. light bar with RTS fillerz from lighting dynamics. These are sort of hidden between the rear fender and the bags... so if I don't think they are visible enough then I am going to add the airwing rails with the LED light kits. I >think< I can hook the airwing lights into the controller for the fillerz and they will be RTS also. I like that they are up higher but that I don't have to have a tour pack on to get higher lights. They will not affect how easy it is to open the bags on a Rushmore... the new design makes it simple to open the bags.

I can easily see the plastic film protectors... I agree that they work in the best bang for the buck and protect the original HD look but they don't make riding in front of texters and drunks any safer... which more lights may not do either... sigh. I may use both the film and the rails so that the sleeping roll and tent also don't mar up the bag tops. When I am solo I won't need the tour pack to still be able to go camping.