The proper care and feeding of a new Yamaha TW200 begins by gently exposing the fledgling to the elements. I took my gorgeous, clean, shiny, fresh from the factory, brand new bike and promptly coated it in frozen slime. At first I was on snow and ice that about froze me to death. (I couldn’t ride for long and keep all my fingers.) This was long before happy trail rides to watch gophers “doing the nasty” in ditches. There was nothing out there yet… and it was stupid risky conditions for a bike in general… especially with a n00b rider. But I lived so there’s that.
A week later I tried again and the roads were a snow mud slurry that was only modestly less treacherous. I got about as far as I could go and took a photo of the sign. I didn’t really need the sign to tell me to quit trying. About 50 yards from there a snow drift blocked things so hard a tank couldn’t get through.
I mentally remembered that sign and vowed to return. And that folks… is called foreshadowing.
I’d tried hard but just couldn’t get far. The only thing I’d really done was to coat everything in a deep layer of filth. The bike will probably never be clean again.
Our cat approves.
The right side has a pry off plastic cover that is pretty cheesy if you ask me. (But it’s also a common design. It’s about the same “pry off plastic” as my Honda Shadow.) This gives you access to the tool kit and the electrical “fuse panel”. There is one fuse and one spare; pure simplicity. I didn’t muck about with the electrical system.
All motorcycle emergency tool kits are crude cheap metal from a Cracker Jack box. This is no exception. That said, it probably has everything I need.
Also, I did some research and the thing that looks like Philips head is a JIS head. It’s almost Philips head but not. If you don’t heed this hint and strip shit out… that’s on you bub.
I decided to get myself better tools. Alas, it wasn’t easy because all the tool shops were closed (and far from me anyway). I ordered stuff in dribs and drabs over a month. I like carrying the basic tools AND ALSO better tools. I’m not sweating weight and don’t care about duplication. It’s all about “get home no matter what”.
The stock tail of a TW200 has room to carry a pop tart and the weight rating to carry a toaster… but only if it’s light. Seriously, it’s pathetic. I needed a rack.
I’m usually a cheapskate but not when it comes to load carrying equipment on outdoors machinery. The rack I bought came from CycleRacks and it cost $200 + shipping. There are cheaper options and there are cooler looking options and there are lighter options but in terms of utility for my plans… this is the way to go.
It’s the biggest baddest rack you can get without making your own. I also like that it sticks out and will (hopefully) take any damage that might otherwise strike the machine. The bike looks less svelte with the new rack but I’m allergic to style anyway.
The CycleRacks people are super nice. I called in the order just as society began its Covid crumble and I talked to an actual human being in Idaho. It came in the mail in great shape. It was stupid simple to install. I don’t get any kickbacks for saying nice things about them, it’s just true.
Notice the anchor points. Two under the seat. One on each side waaaaaaaay down by the passenger footpeg. Why? Because the seat and footpegs are setup to handle hefty loads like a whole human being. Good design.
I used some of my carefully hoarded blogging PayPal donations to pay for the rack. Thank you all!!!! 
It looks a lot better with the seat reinstalled.
I strapped down an old bag full of junk and took a short test drive. Notice the seat got all dirty again. I think the damn cat left footprints on the seat too.
Yes, this damn cat.
Here’s the anchor point. (The silver bolt and the clean tubing connecting with the passenger footpeg bracket.) Waaaaaay down low.
At this point the bike only had one tank of gas through it, the ground was still solid ice, and people were hoping the Covid thing would be over by Easter. So yeah, I’m not good with chronologically posting.
More mods when I find my camera chip.