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Are there any cheaper alternatives to the Pirates Lair or Sargent back rests. They look good but I wince at the price. Never thought I would need one but my wife decided she likes riding with me, which is a good thing.

Rod

I have the Pirate's, and it is really well constructed.

Come on, Rod, you want to put your wife on a cheap back rest?

I don't think there's much else out there. Unless you fabricate one of your own.

For what it's worth that stealth backrest is not only a backrest. The support hardware that fits underneath the BMW rack gives that rack a little stronger support capability...and it is virtually invisible. The backrest slides right in and is tightened with the screw-in knob in a matter of seconds.

Another option would be to install a top box - that will give her the security and comfort of a backrest and a place to put any extra gear.

I really liked the Stealth backrest that they sell. The price was the only thing that shied me away. After some measurements I fabricated my own. Works exactly the same and cost me less than 1/6. Granted the material I used isn't and exact match to the BMW seats, but it’s a small price to pay. There are really very few parts to the whole thing, just a bit of time and creativity is all that is required. I would assume it is as strong as the Stealth as the luggage rack itself starts to flex when you put a lot of weight against it. This is just an alternative to the store bought ones.

Lobo1625 wrote:I really liked the Stealth backrest that they sell. The price was the only thing that shied me away. After some measurements I fabricated my own. Works exactly the same and cost me less than 1/6. Granted the material I used isn't and exact match to the BMW seats, but it’s a small price to pay. There are really very few parts to the whole thing, just a bit of time and creativity is all that is required. I would assume it is as strong as the Stealth as the luggage rack itself starts to flex when you put a lot of weight against it. This is just an alternative to the store bought ones.

Did you build in all that steel structure under the rack? I think the luggage mounts would fail before the Pirate's backrest would flex much.

Yes I built the bracket under the luggage rack, but I didn't use steel, I used aluminum. The only part that I used steel was the backrest bracket that goes from the pad to the bike. I found a knob at a local Ace hardware so I can take the backrest off when I don't need it. My main concern was the bracket flexing when someone leaned against it, but now that I have had it mounted I'm very comfortable with the whole setup. I agree in that I think the luggage mounts would break before the backrest gave way.

Could you please post some info/picures of your design?

Just bought a Stealth Backrest that I found right here on this site for $200 plus shipping--just installed it 3 days ago.

It was in perfect shape with nary a scratch on it.

Could you please post some info/picures of your design?

I'd be more than happy to post what info I have on my backrest. I'll refine the drawings I have for the parts I made and get a small parts list together and post it with some picutres.

You could try these pillion grippers if you don't want to spring for the backrest!

http://www.speednspares.co.uk/acatalog/ ... _suff.html

the stealth backrest has a full steel underframe to hold the backrest that is invisible when the backrest is off. if your plastic rack bends when weight is on the backrest it sounds like a possible point of failure. i would rather spend the money and get a quality part, especially if my wife or child is riding on the back...sometimes it doesn't pay to scrimp.

hope you like the backrest slipstream. i only used it once, but it was worth buying to see if my daughter liked the back of my rock. of course she prefers the back of my vtx1800c, so i never really used it...oh well...

Once again I'll sing the praises of the Hepco-Becker set-up....real steel rack (functional), 40 litre topcase (nice) and backrest pad for less than $300.

Lobo1625 wrote:I'll refine the drawings I have for the parts I made and get a small parts list together and post it with some picutres.

Thanks! Your info would be very valuable!

Arbreacames wrote:

Lobo1625 wrote:I'll refine the drawings I have for the parts I made and get a small parts list together and post it with some picutres.

Thanks! Your info would be very valuable!

I think so too. What does the Pirate get for his back rest these days, $325 ? The material would not cost all that much, and I'm sure a good welding shop would not charge much to weld up the pieces if you had them all cut to size.

Just for the record, the Pirates back rest is bolted to the silver rack. The weak point on either rest will be the side plates between the rack and luggage mounts. But altogether the thing is pretty solid. My boys practically lounge back there. It's that secure feeling.

If the Pirate's back rest is a bit spendy for you right now, and you don't want to build one, try the "Kid's Harness" from Sierra BMW. I used that setup for quite a while and it works very well, It give your passenger 2 nylon handles up high on your shoulders to hang onto. One of the real advantages of this rig is that the passenger won't be making too many lateral movements that upset the balance like they do when they're loose back there. The downside is wearing the harness. It will snug your jacket down and perhaps this time of year make it too warm to wear.
But, it's only about $35, and it works.

Another vote for the Pirate's rack. It is solid, well constructed and powder coated.

The welds are nicely done, fits up snug and the passengers don't feel like they may fall off.

BTW since I live in Canada this thing set me back over 500 bucks CDN with duties and taxes and conversion.

How much is it worth not to have a passenger slip off the back when the throttle gets opened up?

Here are some pictures of my backrest on my '02 R I based this off the Stealth backrest. It mounts in the same way (the 6mm screws that hold the silver plastic tail rack to the bag mounts) I used 6mm Allen head bolts with flat and lock washers to secure the main bracket to the luggage rack. I found some press in 1/4"-20 fasteners to prevent the knob from galling or stripping the aluminum. If you use steel, this won't be an issue. The nuts were PEM CLS-0420-1 if you plan on using them. I used a piece of .188"x1.5"X36" flat steel bar for the back rest support. It works really well but required a vise to bend. It's not perfectly flat so you will want to test fit it before painting or coating to make sure it will slide in and out. The knob was one I found from a local Ace Hardware that was a 1/4"-20 stud and a plastic knob. I had to cut the stud down so it would fit properly. The back rest pad can really be any shape you want to make it. I chose a flat oval and had it upholstered with 1.5" thick foam of varying durometers to make it comfortable on the rider. It was upholstered with a simulated carbon fiber material that matched the seats fairly well. I used 2 elevator bolts thru the back rest pad plate and glued them into place so I could remove the pad if I needed without loosing the studs. The square cutout and shoulder on the elevator bolts also allowed me to tighten the acorn nuts down once everything was assembled. I have all the drawings in .PDF form if anyone would like them that way. My riders seem to like this backrest and I am very comfortable with the strength of all the materials used. The whole setup cost me less than $50 and a little bit of elbow grease. I did have access to a CNC machine for the bottom brace, but I’m sure this could be made with a grinder and drill. If anyone would like more info on this let me know, as I’m happy to share any information about this.

Nice design job Lobo!

Pro-E or Solidworks? I'm a SolidWorks owner myself....

drevil wrote: hope you like the backrest slipstream. i only used it once, but it was worth buying to see if my daughter liked the back of my rock. of course she prefers the back of my vtx1800c, so i never really used it...oh well...

Indeed I do, but more importantly, my wife LOVES it, and she's the reason I went looking for one....

Thanks for making the purchase a pleasurable one!

Nice design job Lobo!

Pro-E or Solidworks? I'm a SolidWorks owner myself....

I used Solidworks