ST1300-Right Saddlebag play/loose?

I did a little searching around the forum and didn't see an answer. So here's a quick question...the right saddlebag has more play than the left one when locked in place. The left bag is good and tight and the right one still has some free play between the bike and the bag...i.e. not front to rear. Is there an adjustment for this? The bag is definitely locked in place, just has some wiggle to it. TIA

Re: Saddlebag

Mine too.

Dig the Phantom II avatar!! I was a J79 tech in another life.. Then we got F/A-18's.... just not the same.

How do you know your getting old?

When the bases you were stationed in are redeveloped into malls, and the aircraft you flew/worked on are in museums and pulling gate-guard duty!!

Re: Saddlebag

Even sadder when they are used as target drones. Dad flew F-4s in 'Nam.

Oh, and to be on topic, I have an 1100, so I have no constructive feedback.

Re: Saddlebag

chuckM said:

I did a little searching around the forum and didn't see an answer. So here's a quick question...the right saddlebag has more play than the left one when locked in place. The left bag is good and tight and the right one still has some free play between the bike and the bag...i.e. not front to rear. Is there an adjustment for this? The bag is definitely locked in place, just has some wiggle to it. TIA

Click to expand...

Have you checked the saddlebag holder (#19) bolts? In the dark recesses of my memory, I think I remember a thread about someone (Jeff Bertrand maybe?) finding them loose.

It's normal... my right one has always been a little looser than the left and even the left has a very small amount of play.

If you want to remove it... I found out when I was putting a trailer hitch on my bike that by adding maybe 1/8 to 1/4 inch of washers on the rearward bolt of the saddlebag holders you can remove all the play.

You only need to add a little and you want to add the washers between the metal bracket and the bike.

Fred D said:

Have you checked the saddlebag holder (#19) bolts? In the dark recesses of my memory, I think I remember a thread about someone (Jeff Bertrand maybe?) finding them loose.

Click to expand...

Good memory! I reported finding 3 of those 4 bolts to be finger loose
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You do want a very small amount of play in them or the bags will put undue stress on the mounting points as they bounce up and down.

--Mark

You can snug things up by adding rubber bumpers to the clamp. Seems to me that after a while the rubber bumpers get squashed and lose their elasticity, so I picked up some self-stick bumpers used for kitchen cabinet doors. Cheap at any hardware store. Also, the bag's bottom-front 'saddle' that sits over the metal support can get spread and become loose.

Basically, if you have the clamp properly clamped and locked, the bag won't come off. Most of us (ahem!) lose bags when we forget to close and lock the lever.

pete

Pry the latch mechanism down a bit.

Put a rag between your tool and the plastic and bend the bracket a bit.

Worked for me.

Maybe we should add this to the list for Bones.

Re: Saddlebag

Thanks for the quick responses...I'll check all of those items. If I find anything different, I'll report it in.

dcxplant said:

Mine too.

Dig the Phantom II avatar!! I was a J79 tech in another life.. Then we got F/A-18's.... just not the same.

How do you know your getting old?

When the bases you were stationed in are redeveloped into malls, and the aircraft you flew/worked on are in museums and pulling gate-guard duty!!

Click to expand...

Now going back to the important stuff...I pretty much touched all the models at one time or another...RF's, C's, D's, E's, and the G's were just coming out when I separated. 99% was on the RF's though. Great airplane!

You know you're getting old when the Military Channel airs a show on the great classic fighters and puts the F-4 right up there with the P-51.

OK...with the speed that only my girlfriends have acknowledged, I ran out into the garage and found a 1/4" X .040" thk fender washer that is the same diameter as the base of the lower bumper. The bag is tight (but not too) and life is good.

Thanks all!

I have a 2009 ST1300A as well and the right side pannier is considerably more loose than the left side pannier. I bought this bike new in December 2012 and I only have 44, 600 KM or 27, 700 miles on it. I can't say that it was like this from new but I did notice it very early on but never bothered about it because all other ST1300's I checked were the same so I thought that it just how they are. Today I decided that this should not be and I decided to have a look to see why this was the case. What I found is that the lower pannier mounting boss (on the aluminium frame that the foot pegs bolt on to) has significantly more wear than does the one for the left side pannier. The wear is caused by the ribs of the lower front pannier female mounts that fit over these aluminium bosses when the panniers are installed. The aluminium boss for the left side pannier has less than 0.005? wear. The loose right side has about 0.020? wear. Honda should have made the female mounts on the panniers smooth rather than ribbed to distribute the force over the whole surface to prevent this. I will fix the aluminium boss by filling in the wear spots and bringing them back flush with the surrounding surface. I may also fill in the ribs of the lower pannier mounts to hopefully prevent this from recurring. I have looked at several ST1300?s and they all have greater wear on the right side and are significantly looser than the left side. What I haven't figured out is why it always seems to be the right side that has more wear and is looser.

So, if you have a loose right side pannier it may not be the latching/locking mechanism- have a look at the lower mounts for wear.

I've noticed the looseness on my 08 as well, with increased wear on the lower mount as well. Have only thought about it at the times I wiggle the bag, but this is great it's been brought up. First off, going to put some silicone lube on the lower brackets. Will adjust the top or put rubber on it to get the bags to fit tighter... Movement is what causes surfaces to wear!

Also check to make sure the rubber bumpers are all in place I think there is 2 one at the rear one at the front. I lost a rear one and the bag had more play than usual.