[BlackBoar]

OK, so I really liked my Honda Ruckus, and I NEVER thought I would miss that little scoot after I got the Ninja. But now I have to admit that I do miss one thing: utility. The storage space on the Ruck made it a real gem for running errands and moving small cargo. I don't like wearing the backpack more than I have to so I've been looking at adding some cargo capacity to the Ninja.

My plan is to use a spare passenger seat to make a base to hold the mounting bracket for a top case. This way, with the turn of a key I'll be able to switch between: A) standard passenger seat, B) solo seat cowl, or C) 26L enclosed secure storage.

Here's where the mod is so far:

Spare rear passenger seat, purchased online from a newninja.com user for $50 shipped (plus US exchange rate, money order fee, PST and GST taxes and Canada Customs handling fee) lets call it $65 (Canadian)

Pulled out all the staples (lots!) and the two bolts that hold the cover on, and found that the foam is securely glued to the seat base.

The foam came off without too much trouble, but it left lots of residue. A good soak in hot water did nothing so I went at it with a bottle of Goo Gone and some shop towels and it cleaned up well.

Next step is to try to clean up the holes left by the staples as clean and smooth as possible and then paint the seat base black. More to follow...

 

[Delta107]

ooooooh this is going to be cool!!!!!!!

And he posted pics lol

 

[spooph]

VERY COOL!

 

[crushedcamber]

you know what, you just gave me an idea for making my own seat cowl... as i cant get one in us for my bike...

 

[hi-tech]

yup it would make everything easier to carry. have some cords and fish net in the storage seat. 8)

simply place your bag on the top tie it down and go

or my favorite pic. take the entire house with you.. lol

 

[Delta107]

hmmmm I like that!

 

[BlackBoar]

Painted the seat base today. I used Krylon Fusion For Plastic. The can says "no prep, superbond paint" and no sanding required, but I did do some sanding on the base first. I had a choice between flat black or a textured satin finish which is what I went with. Unfortunatly the seat base has about 70 tiny holes around the edge from where the staples were and I think the textured paint surface will hide those imperfections far better than the flat black. Only about 25% of the base will show once the fastener plate for the Givi box is bolted on anyway.

I ordered a Givi Monolock E26N top case today. No one had that model in-stock in my area, but I should have it in 4 to 7 days. Coincidently, the Krylon Fusion paint says it is fully chip resistant after 7 days. Perfect. I'll post another pic when the paint is dry.

 

[hi-tech]

lol

 

[BlackBoar]

No, didn't have to pay duty. However, my government added Provincial Sales Tax (PST) Federal Goods and Services Tax (GST) and $5.00 for what they labelled as "Handling Fee"???

I'm afraid the foam is not viable. I tried to get it off in one peice to save, but that wasn't happening and it ended up in several jagged chunks. Vagina knuckle? I'm having trouble typing through my tears of laughter here...

 

[spooph]

I think Joe just coined a new term!

edit: It's been submitted to the urban dictionary, so we'll see what they think, eh?

 

[Delta107]

ROFLMAO!!!!!!!! Vagina knuckle!!!!!

 

[BlackBoar]

Seat base is painted. I'm happy with the result. Next step is to get my hands on the Givi box which has arrived and waiting for pick-up at the shop for Friday.

 

[Delta107]

ooh! I can't wait for the finished product!

 

[BlackBoar]

OK. I got the box today. Very happy with it. The model, E26N, is all black and does not have the big red reflector trim all around the back of it. It also has a functional handle to make it easy to carry, most of the other models just have a lip to pick it up with. It's got a funky lock mechanism that works well but took a few moments to figure out how to open the box. Guess what I found inside? You got it, instructions on how to open the box!!!

Pic, with my helmet for scale:

 

[spooph]

cool! Can't wait to see how this is going to turn out!

 

[hi-tech]

its way better without the red reflector. hey maybe u can put that black reflector u got

 

[hi-tech]

i found this.. just what u are doing with your bike. this guy also made it a street fighter. this bike doesnt look like a 250, it looks bad ass if i ask me. it has the givi cargo like yours (well kinda)

Kawasaki Ninja 250R Street Fighter

 

[BlackBoar]

its way better without the red reflector. hey maybe u can put that black reflector u got

I'm going to pry off the big colourful GIVI logo on the box top. If that leaves a mess (Looks like there will be a small divot under there) I'll use some black refelctor to cover the spot.

That street fighter/tour bike looks great. The cargo set up he has on the rear looks exactly like what I'm doing. I'm working all weekend, so hopefully I'll have a finished project by Tuesday.

 

[Guest]

i found this.. just what u are doing with your bike. this guy also made it a street fighter. this bike doesnt look like a 250, it looks bad ass if i ask me. it has the givi cargo like yours (well kinda)

Kawasaki Ninja 250R Street Fighter

Hey, stop stealing favs from my tube man, haha.

 

[hi-tech]

;D