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Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2016 7:56 pm
by Roberto
:( Hello from Virginia. It's snowing tonight. But, thanks to global warming, it will be 70-degrees F in 3 days. I may be in possession of a new 2016 Honda PCX by this coming Monday if the sale of my Toyota Tacoma truck goes through. I'll miss my truck, but it's time to downsize to just one family car. Of course, the car we keep will be my wife's Honda Odyssey.

I look forward to the posts on this Forum. I have already read most of the entries in the General Forum. Nice contrast to the snarky tone of the Honda Total Ruckus forum. Yes, I am trading in my 2006 Ruckus. I've had some great rides, and camping experiences, on it. I've ridden to Virginia Beach and 250 miles on the Blue Ridge parkway, which begins a few miles from my house. I hope to ride my new PCX to Florida's Panhandle (near Panama City) to go camping with a friend who lives in Naples, FL. My plan is to bike from my house to the end of the Blue Ridge in Tennessee, then down the Natchez Trace to Mississippi, then over to the Florida Panhandle, camping all the way.

My first order of business will be to find a good rear rack for my panniers, and hope I can fit all my gear on the PCX. My Ruckus could swallow all my gear, so I'm hoping that my new PCX can too. Any suggestions on a good rear rack that will fit the PCX will be much appreciated. Unfortunately' I do not like the looks of the hard storage case hanging off the rear of the bike. All my luggage gear is soft-sided. I added a sissy bar to the rear seat of my Ruckus, and hung a nice upright bag to that. Do any of you know if I could attach a sissy bar to the PCX seat without doing too much jury-rigging?

Thank you for the great Forum. I look forward to your comments.

Re: Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2016 9:04 pm
by homie
Welcome Roberto, you know its officially SPRING so stop with the snow. I saw it on the news booooooooo
But Congratulations on the new Honda.... BIG FUN!!!!

Re: Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2016 9:11 pm
by Roberto
Thanks for the welcome. Yeah, Spring!

Re: Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2016 9:27 pm
by homie
I find the tankbag to be the perfect accessory to the underseat luggage box because like you I don't care for the rear cases. I can store rain gear and other non-valuables in a TB and you only lose the step through feature. Be sure to post a picture of your bike Monday.

btw I have too many tank bags so if you can't find one let me know.

Re: Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2016 2:20 am
by kramnala58
Roberto wrote:.......... Do any of you know if I could attach a sissy bar to the PCX seat without doing too much jury-rigging? .....
I don't know of a sissy that would do the trick, bus if you had one, there may be the possibility of getting a bracket welded on the bottom of it that would be able to be bolted to fit the mounting spot where the rear cases are fastened. There are four bolt mount holes under the plastic, right behind the seat. So instead of having a typical setup where the mounting plate goes to the rear, you could possibly put the sissy bar running straight up at a 90 degree angle from the mounting plate.

Re: Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2016 8:05 am
by Roberto
That is good to know, since I have not had a chance to examine the PCX closely. Thank you for the information! I was thinking that I could somehow mount the sissy bar to the rear rack that I will install.

Re: Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2016 8:12 am
by Roberto
homie wrote:I find the tankbag to be the perfect accessory to the underseat luggage box because like you I don't care for the rear cases. I can store rain gear and other non-valuables in a TB and you only lose the step through feature. Be sure to post a picture of your bike Monday.

btw I have too many tank bags so if you can't find one let me know.
Thanks for the offer, homie. Since I am only 5 feet six inches tall, I need all the step-through that I can get.

Re: Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2016 8:24 am
by Mel46
Honda has a rear plate on which a hard case can be mounted. However, the plate itself works well as a base to carry additional stuff and to do other things with. Ask the Honda dealer about it. You may be able to modify it for your needs. It is a bolt on that goes in those 4 mounting holes previously mentioned, and it comes with the bolts needed to mount it. You could also make your own setup, using those 4 bolt holes. You will have to find the exact bolt sizing in order to do that though. They are metric. Just remember that you have to be able to open the seat in order to get under it where all sorts of storage is.

Re: Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2016 8:34 am
by Roberto
Thanks for the great info, Mel46. I'll check it out on Monday.

Re: Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2016 9:49 am
by db22
Welcome, Roberto, from the still-frigid bluffland of Western Wisconsin. Western Virginia is a beautiful place to have a good bike. If you enjoyed your Ruckus, you'll love the extra power of your PCX. My dad lived in Roanoke for some years, not far from you, and I used to have relatives there. It would be nice to see some photos of you and your bike in the spring landscape once you start getting around there.

Re: Hello from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2016 10:42 am
by Roberto
db22 wrote:Welcome, Roberto, from the still-frigid bluffland of Western Wisconsin. Western Virginia is a beautiful place to have a good bike. If you enjoyed your Ruckus, you'll love the extra power of your PCX. My dad lived in Roanoke for some years, not far from you, and I used to have relatives there. It would be nice to see some photos of you and your bike in the spring landscape once you start getting around there.
Thank you db22. I'll post images when I get my new PCX. I'll take the photos up on the Blue Ridge Parkway so you can reminisce about this beautiful area.