Carbonado Drift Hybrid Hardshell Tank Bag Review: Tested

Gallery Introduction How much can it carry?Is it easy to install?How easy is it to carry?What’s next?

Introduction

In our previous report, we told you about the Carbonado Drift Hybrid Hardshell tank bag’s construction, its utility features, the ways in which it can be mounted on a bike, and last but not the least, its pricing.

But, how is the Carbonado tank bang to use in the real world? Is it easy to mount/unmount on the bike? Can it carry enough stuff to use as a daily tank bag? And, should you consider buying it? We will answer all these questions in this report.

How much can it carry?

The Carbonado Drift tank bag has a capacity of 10 litres, and 12 litres when expanded. This may sound less, but it is enough for you to carry utilities like a wireless air compressor, a power bank, a pair of mobile chargers, and even a puncture repair kit. And, you’d still have some space left for a basic toolkit and microfibre cloth.

But, let’s say you want to carry a pair of changeover clothes and some more on a weekend ride. The tank bag can take that as well, provided you are smart with your packing. For instance, you can pack a pair of T-shirts, shorts and a towel, and it can still take the air compressor and the puncture repair kit in the main compartment. However, you’ll have to store the mobile chargers in the side pockets and the power bank in the pocket behind the flap cover.

More importantly, you also get a storage compartment under the hard shell top, which can be used to stow away the bundled straps and rain cover, and even your riding gloves and a microfibre cloth.

Is it easy to install?

This is probably the biggest Achilles heel of the tank bag. The Carbonado Drift Hybrid Hardshell tank bag has two mounting options – magnetic mounts and strap-type mounts – and we found it lacking in both these mechanisms. Let us explain.

Let’s begin with the magnetic mount system first. The tank bag comes with four removable straps that hold the magnets. These straps are easy to install on the bag but a bit tricky to uninstall from the ladder lock buckles. The magnetic straps should have been attached to the bag in the first place, with an option to tuck it away properly as some other tank bags offer.

Although each strap houses two magnets to secure the bag on the tank, the magnets aren’t powerful enough to hold the bag in place. Even at moderate speeds of up to 70-80kmph, the tank bag slides back towards the rider and needs frequent adjustment.

Onto the strap mounting now. You get two straps – a Y-strap and an X-strap. The Y-strap goes around the motorcycle’s fork T, while the X-strap is used to strap the bag under the seat. The mounting mechanism is fairly simple. Route the Y-strap around the fork T, tighten it, and buckle it up to the tank bag. Similarly, loop both straps of the X-strap under the tank, route one strap under the seat and tighten it, and attach the other strap to the tank bag and tighten it.

Simple, right? Well, here’s where the complications begin. For starters, the mounting arm of the Y-strap is a bit longer than you’d want. So, despite adjusting it to its shortest length, the strap is still longer than expected, which doesn’t allow you to tighten the bag from the front. This means the bag keeps on sliding towards the rider, an issue we had with the magnetic mount as well.

Then, every time you remove the bag from the mounts, there’s no way to tuck away the dangling straps anywhere. You either need to keep the straps hanging on the bike or remove them every time you unmount the tank bag. Magnetic loops on the strap buckles would’ve been welcome.

How easy is it to carry?

The Carbonado Drift Hybrid Hardshell tank bag is quite compact, and given its capacity, it is very lightweight to lug around. You can either hold it in your hand with the sturdy grab handle or mount the bundled strap around the two D-rings to use it as a sling bag. The same strap can be looped around the top hook and then attached to the D-rings to use it as a backpack.

What’s next?

With everything out of the way, it’s now time to put the Carbonado tank bag through some rigorous testing on our daily office commutes, and perhaps even some highway trips. We will tell you if the tank bag performs as expected or if it surprises us with new issues. All of that and more in the next report. Till then, stay tuned.