All Terrain Gear - The Lockdown Review

Lockdown. Day, who knows anymore. What I do know is that it has been far too long, with nothing to review or write about. 
But there is a silver lining to the cloud hanging over our nation as online stores begin to open up again, and delivery services start up fully again. Once again we can order items for our motorcycles and get them fitted before we can do some serious riding once more. 
So online we went and searched for gear that we’ve been looking at to kit a BMW GS 1200 Adventure with. It is truly remarkable how many aftermarket items are available for the GS in South Africa. Nevertheless however, the items I was looking for are universal, as long as you can either find or get brackets fabricated/machined specifically for your own motorcycle. 
Online I hunted, until I found a brand that caught my attention. In this case, I was looking for something specifically South African. Not just designed here, but fully manufactured here as well. 
A few simple clicks later, and my order was in process for delivery. Online shopping is soooo much easier than going from store to store looking for things. Other than my jacket, helmet and gloves, I’ll choose online shopping any day of the week. 
The next morning, the dogs are charging the main gate and my phone rings.
“I’m on my way”
Damn that was fast! The courier van is standing outside with a masked delivery guy standing with a big box in arms. There’s a nice big label on my box, ATG. 

Now the first question is obvious, what is ATG. I’m not just going to tell you what it stands for, but also a little bit of the info I’ve managed to get about them.
So ATG stands for All Terrain Gear. The locally designed and manufactured range of saddle bags, tool pouches, motorcycle camping equipment, back packs etc. Turns out that there are actually quite a few brands under this one banner, and I got a little something from the top ones to check out and share a soft review on, seeing that I can’t actually go riding properly as yet with lockdown.

What has been ordered for the GS, as rides are planned all over the nation when lockdown finally allows us to hit the road?
Well let’s start on the left of the pic and work through.
Item 1 is a OSAH DryPak 60l duffel bag that’s going to get strapped onto the top box while riding.
Item 2 is a ATG Tool Roll, for carrying all my emergency tools while on the road.
Under the Tool Roll, is an extra 30lt Liner Bag with IP66 dust and waterproof ratings too insert into the existing top box.
And lastly, the crown jewels of the box, the ATG Overlander Motorcycle Saddlebags in 30lt + 30lt configuration and also kitted with the interior IP66 Liner bag as just mentioned for the top box.
In a state of sheer excitement however, I couldn’t wait to see what this amazingly solid gear would look like on the bike, and so I just had to test fit it in place.

This however might have been a slightly bad idea, considering that it just makes a person more depressed at the fact that hardcore riding is still currently off the cards, but damn it looks good on the bike!
Back to the topic on hand however, when you start looking at the finer details of these bags, you notice that they are built African tough and ruggered. You can feel that this is not some cheap knockoff that is going to tear or wear out easily. These bags are made to outlast a rider!
HUGE thumbs up to ATG for the quality control and design on these bags.
Additionally, also supplied by ATG, I got a set of Alpine Earplugs. Another useful product from them as the distributor for Alpine here in the RSA.

A few of you may be wondering why you would want earplugs while riding your motorcycle, and there are a ton of reasons why you should actually own a set. I won’t spoil that surprise as yet for you, but if you are someone that uses earplugs, these are top class! 
Special note on the earplugs: although I haven’t had a chance to test them while riding as yet, they work wonderfully for when the wife nags you during lockdown 🤣 
So as I sign off on this review, I seriously encourage you to check www.atgear.co.za or www.osah.co.za to order some epic items for your motorcycle ride as soon as lockdown ends! 

P.s. Keep an eye out for the next podcast episide when we get into more details about ATG!  

Airflow Seat Covers

The Airflow seat cover – the name kind of says it all, but there’s more to this simple pull over cover then what first meets the eye.
Over a 2 week period, we gave it hell too put the product to the ultimate test against riding conditions in our beautiful South Africa.

First impressions:
The first thing we noticed was how low the price for these covers are, considering the costs of other odds and ends that are available in the motorcycle industry. At only R 650 per a unit direct from the importer, regardless of the size of your seat, that’s not actually a bad price.
Add to that includes next day delivery as well! Even the service that you get when ordering your new Airflow is exceptional, with constant follow ups and tracking details throughout the delivery stage.
As for the packaging, it’s nothing too fancy, but then it’s also not the worst thing in town. In other words, it is the typical type of packaging you’d come to expect in the motorcycle industry 🤣

Fitment:
The Airflow seat cover is surprisingly easy too install on any motorcycle you buy one for, as long as you know how too remove your seat.
Simply pull it over the seat you want to cover and reinstall it. Just like that the Airflow seat cover is installed. So at least you won’t need a master motorcycle mechanic PhD to get it done 😉

Looks:
Surprisingly, the Airflow seat cover design, in terms of looks, is very well thought out. This is a product that you can see was developed by bikers for bikers. The simple plain black design will work with any motorcycle graphics or custom paint job that you might have.
Damn we who live the bikerlife are easy to please - https://southafricamotorcyclist.blogspot.com/2020/01/wearing-black-and-skulls-again.html?m=1

First ride:
It honestly takes a slight touch of getting used to the first time you swing your leg over the Airflow. The extra cushioning it provides, combined with the added slippery surfaces of the advanced plastic structure the product is made of, makes for a very interesting first ride.
After the first few hundred meters however, you start to really enjoy the feeling of the slide across the seat you get.

Does it live up to the manufacturers claims?
Well we’ve tested it beyond what Airflow claims it does, and surprisingly to us, it stood up to the challenge on every turn.
So in short on that question, we can give them serious credit on keeping their claims lower then what the product actually does.

Pros:
• Well priced
• Brilliant delivery
• All round brilliant aftermarket accessory
Cons:
• Plastic feel
• Sliding takes a bit of getting used too
• Make sure you get the right size for your motorcycle