I've been a fan of Rev-Pack motorcycle equipment for many years. It is well made, durable, and reasonably priced. Using different Rev-Pack gear for over 200,000 miles without any significant problems occurring speaks well of the product line in general. For the most part, Jim Reveley (Rev-Pack's owner and lord of the high desert) has manufactured goods,which are pretty straight forward in design and application. Imagine my astonishment when I first saw the Excursion Pack ... yikes, ol'Rev has gone high-tech. Closer inspection and a good, long road trip were certainly warranted here. After about 8,000 miles strapped on the back of the RS, here's what we know about Rev's latest offering...
First off, quality of construction and materials are (as always) first rate.Rev-Pack gear is all hand-made in a true "coftage industry" environment; one step at time ... one piece at a time. This manufacturing philosophy helps ensure a consistent high level of quality. The Excursion Pack is just another example of Rev-Pack's commitment to making good stuff.
And the design! Wow!
First off, this bag has more straps and fasteners than a house of bondage
and discipline. But each serves a basic purpose....very pragmatic. The
pack attaches to your motorcycle via nylon straps which run beneath the
seat and hook up to the bottom of the bag with Fastex buckles. Easy on-easy
off, no need for bungees. Even at excessive speeds and fully loaded for
three weeks on the road, the pack never budged. And spacious... boy, you
can put a lot of stuff in that thing. Clothing and gear (including tent,
Therm-a-Rest, rainsuit and much else) gets swallowed up easily. A dual-track
zipper permits quick access to the inside of the bag from either side (or
the top for that matter). Additional strapping and Fastex buckles allow
sleeping bags and other duffels to be lashed on with minimal hassle. There's
room on the outside too. Pouches on the front side of the pack allow water
bottles, snacks, sunglasses and the like to be gotten easily. Nice touch.
An auxiliary zipper bag which is approximately 12"xl2" snaps onto the top
of the pack. I found this to be real handy for storing spare gloves, bandanas,
and other items I wanted to have quick access to. Also, The to have quick
access to. Also, The Excursion comes with two ditty bags (about the same
size as a regular shaving kit bag) which can be used for packing small-ish
items and keeping them organized.
A new wrinkle for Rev-Pack is the addition of a rain cover for the
Excursion Pack. Rain cover2?? Since when does a Rev-Pack product need a
rain cover? well, they are good to have I guess. The Excursion cover is
nicely'made. It even has a strip of highly reflective Scotchlite material
sewn across the back (as does the pack itself, which increases your visibility
at night). But, the coated Cordura fabric used to make Rev-Pack products
is pretty water resistant all by itself, making a cover a tad of overkill
(in my opinion).
I rode through some of the worst rain of my touring career in east
Texas last spring. The only contents of the Excursion Pack that got wet
were those adjacent to one of the small outer pockets. Why? Because the
rain was so severe, I had to pull off the road and parked beneath the overhang
of a gas station. A steady hose-like stream of water coming off the top
of the roof hit the bike for about an hour. The water filled up one of
the external pockets. As a result, about a liter of water stayed inside
the pocket (great for travelling with your pet fish). Even with this severe
soaking, only a t-shirt or 2 got somewhat damp. Pretty impressive. So,
if you are interested in what may be the last piece of motorcycle soft
luggage you will have to buy for the next ten or twenty years?