I just picked up a new to me 98 this fall, when I was getting it ready for winter storage I noticed 1/8 to 1/4 in movement in the rear mount of the side bag stay is this normal? All the bolts seem tight.
ST1100 - Movement in Side Bag stays normal?
- Thread starter old450
- Start date
Not normal.........but from pics, you tightened up the annoying culprit
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.The bolts are tight, the photos are sample of the movement, pushed in - photo 1, pulled out - photo 2. Both sides are the same.
John OoSTerhuis
Life Is Good!
That's normal. Mother Honda engineers, for whatever reason designed in a bit of play in the saddlebag supports. And yes, they will 'flop' a bit while underway.
Regards, John
Regards, John
Uncle Phil
Site Supporter
Yes, mine flop on all three of ST1100s but none have fallen off. ;-) As John said, they are designed that way, I presume to give some flex instead of cracking. Some folks have went to the trouble of using the 'mirror prongs' to secure them, others have used a bungy cord connection. But I'm never back there watching them so it doesn't bother me ... BTW, the original Hondaline trunk does the same thing - it's mounting allows the trunk to move around a bit.
BTW, the original Hondaline trunk does the same thing - it's mounting allows the trunk to move around a bit.
ST1100Y
Site Supporter
IIRC intended design to absorb buffeting...
BTW, What I did to stabilize the saddlebags ( they tend to bounce around a bit , side to side ) was to drill a horizontal hole in each bags rear inner feet and attach a bungee cord of just the correct length, guiding it across the bottom of the rear fender.
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Thanks everyone - I won't worry about it.
One of the previous owners drilled through the rear fender and has a bolt running through the rubber bumper on the bag and through the fender, I suspect to reduce the bags from bouncing around. It works OK but makes removing the bags a bit of a hassle. The bungee idea sounds like a little more user friendly option I may look into in the spring.
Thanks again.
One of the previous owners drilled through the rear fender and has a bolt running through the rubber bumper on the bag and through the fender, I suspect to reduce the bags from bouncing around. It works OK but makes removing the bags a bit of a hassle. The bungee idea sounds like a little more user friendly option I may look into in the spring.
Thanks again.
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Andrew Shadow
Site Supporter
Why not just ignore it, go ride and let them move around the way that Honda designed them to? I have had two ST1100's and never bothered a minute about the bag movement on either and never suffered any ill effects.
The PO put bungee buddy's on the top of my side cases and they are handy for tieing down a bag but the side cases really flop around if I get the straps too tight. The PO also put a pair on the inside lower back side of each bag so I made a shrt bungee to tie the two together, kinda like Jim Van.
+1. Don't create a problem that doesn't even exist.
Well, they must bounce around quit a bit because I had a cage driver that pulled in behind me at a gas stop tell me he thought that the bags were loose and may fall off !! The bungee cord is a quick & an easy fix - Why would I want to let the bags bounce around, if I can easily stabilize them ??
BTW, I think the degree of "bounce" may also depend on what is loaded in each bag.
Andrew Shadow
Site Supporter
Why not- that is what they are designed to do. What is the benefit to restricting them? It won't keep the contents of your bags in place any better. I guess it depends on your opinion of why they were designed that way. If you believe like many that Honda designed them to move to absorb impact forces then restricting they're movement may cause damage. If you believe like many others that it was a failed engineering concept on Honda's behalf and that restricting them is beneficial then go ahead. I restricted them on my first ST1100 and saw absolutely no benefit to doing so. I also saw no ill effects to letting them float around as Honda designed them to do so I removed the restriction and let them be and never had a problem.
CYYJ
Michael
Hi Andrew:
I noticed the rather considerable movement of the panniers on my ST 1100 back in 2002 when I purchased the moto. I assumed that the freedom of movement was there for a reason (although I could not figure out what that reason was), but at the same time, I was concerned about accelerated wear of the components as a result of the movement. By 'wear', I mean fretting of the hook portion of the pannier and of the rail that the hook sits on.
So, I developed a small modification that would minimize the movement of the panniers during normal operations, but still leave the two panniers free to move (as originally designed) if a force was exerted on them. The modification consisted of two interventions, as follows:
First, I took note of where the round rubber bumper on the pannier rested against the rear mudguard. I then drilled a hole in the mudguard, and fitted a bolt into the hole, choosing the head size of the bolt so that it would be the same size as the inside diameter of the round rubber bumper on the pannier. The result was that when the pannier was installed, the round rubber bumper encircled the bolt head, and this stopped movement along the vertical and fore/aft axes of the motorcycle, while still permitting lateral (inboard-outboard) movement if that was necessary.
A unplanned but significant benefit of this bolt installation is that it made it very unlikely that the pannier would come off the motorcycle if I failed to close up the locking mechanism at the lower front of the pannier. The photos below illustrate this modification:
Bolt Size Selection
Bolt Installed in Mudguard
Pannier Rubber Bumper fitted over the bolt
The second modification was addition of a rubber bungee cord (connected to a 'Bungee Buddy' installed on each pannier) that ran behind the licence plate. This bungee cord minimized inboard/outboard movement of the panniers, but still left them free to move if a force was applied to them. The picture below shows that installation.
Bungee Cord Connecting the Two Panniers
(it runs behind the licence plate - you can see the bungee cord hooks on either side of the licence plate)
Since embodying these two modifications, I have travelled over 100,000 miles on the motorcycle, and there is no evidence of wear at any of the pannier attachment points, or at the rubber bumpers. This particular motorcycle has spent the bulk of its life based in Switzerland, and I often cruise at very high speeds (about 180 km/h) in Germany. I have never noticed the saddlebags flopping around, regardless of speed or wind conditions.
Michael
My solution was quick release pins found at the local Army Surplus shop at the flea market. One washer is bent to fit inside the bag at a contour.
Nice fixes, Guys !!
Gee, Looks like I'm not the only one who feels there is a benefit to securing the bags ........... BTW, I seriously doubt the Honda engineers designed the bags to flop around. Rather it was just an oversight, IMHO.
Gee, Looks like I'm not the only one who feels there is a benefit to securing the bags ........... BTW, I seriously doubt the Honda engineers designed the bags to flop around. Rather it was just an oversight, IMHO.
CYYJ...that set up looks terrific. I've personally not seen any real sloppiness with my bags, but your solution(s) are smart! Thanks!