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...while going about 80mph. When I returned to the place it stopped I was surprised on how good the condition was but was perplexed as to why it came off - I was sure I latched it. After a quick inspection I saw the latching arm was broken off. Somehow the arm that comes out from the case to 'lock' it into place was broken off. I guess it happened after I got to work today and decided to commit suicide on the way home. I was able to recover the case, but it's pretty banged up. I now need a new latch assembly and the out shell at a minimum. The base is scratched up but I can sand/buff most of that out.

Anyone have any case parts they need to part with?

my right case came off too, but I have no idea why because I never found it when I retraced my ride. I didn't even notice that it came off. I'm sure I latched mine too, but maybe the same thing happened to my latch.

John,
This happened to me too on that last long ride around Georgia. Fortunately I had the Bungee Buddies and attached to them was a pretty tight bungee net thing across the back seat. It was my right bag that somehow came loose and was just hanging on by the bungee net. Didn't lose it! The little plastic clips that hook onto the rail don't seem to be damaged on mine. I don't know how it popped up. I'm sure I had it securely seated. The latch was still locked down. Somehow on a big bump or something it popped up.

Guys, watch those!

You might want to do the Cyclerob mod.... ... http://r1150r.smugmug.com/photos/12180861-M.jpg

DJ

Woohoo! I found a cheap outside cover, and since I added the full size left case (and kept my old OEM left case) I have an extra latch assembly. I could be back in [luggage] business soon.

DJ, I thought about the CycleRob mod while on the side of the road trying to figue out how to get it home.

Boxer - I too had a bungee net and was about to put the case on the rear seat, then I remembered I had a bunch of cable ties stashed under the seat and used those to hold the case on while I limped home.

I had to go back for the case - my Gerbings liner and thermostat was in there! I was picturing the case run over by a multitude of buses and commuter vans. Unfortunatley it was in our express lanes which have very limited exits/entrances so I had to wait until the next exit (about 3 miles) then loop back up to the Pentagon (the southernmost entrance to the lanes) and go back about 7 miles. All in all, about a 20 mile round trip from where it fell off. Kind of screwed up my speedy commute. While I was working on reattaching the case a guy on an FJR stopped to see if I needed assistance. Nice guy.

Now, time to look for hardware for the CycleRob mod.

John,

I've still got my original cut-out left hand base as well. If the job gets botc hed on the first try, you can have mine.

I read about this happening before.
The manual suggests not exceeding 130 km/h (80 mph) with the luggage, so I kinda stick to that speed limit when loaded up.

When I use the luggage it's usually on a trip and I take a Marsee 22L tail bag. The Marsee attaches to the rear shelf brackets with nylon straps (not bunggy type) . These nylon straps are quite long. With the excess length, I wrap them through (under and over) the locked system case handles and tie to the case mounting frame - just in case (no pun intended) a latch comes loose. So far I've not had an incident. I glance at the cases via the mirrors every so often while riding.

I like CycleRob's fix, but from previous posts it seems the issues are with the top latches....so I figured I'd tie the handles to the rail.

If you do the CycleRob mod, and the top latch breaks, would the case pivot down and potentially rub against the wheel, or bang the exhaust?

As bad as it is, losing a case might be better than having it contact the wheel. What do you think?

rdsmith3 wrote:If you do the CycleRob mod, and the top latch breaks, would the case pivot down and potentially rub against the wheel, or bang the exhaust?

As bad as it is, losing a case might be better than having it contact the wheel. What do you think?

I don't see a very large potential of this happening. if the latch breaks, you still have the two hangers preventing motion vertically (at least down) and the arm thing where CycleRob's pin would maintain the side to side position.



... but I could be wrong...

rdsmith3 wrote:If you do the CycleRob mod, and the top latch breaks, would the case pivot down and potentially rub against the wheel, or bang the exhaust?

As bad as it is, losing a case might be better than having it contact the wheel. What do you think?

Thats was my line of thinking.
Bungie Buddies may be a good solution as they bolt to the cases and can be secured with a ROK strap, or the like. Make sure you seal/gasket the bungie buddy bolts to keep the cases water tight if you go this route.

ofrogg wrote:

rdsmith3 wrote:If you do the CycleRob mod, and the top latch breaks, would the case pivot down and potentially rub against the wheel, or bang the exhaust?

As bad as it is, losing a case might be better than having it contact the wheel. What do you think?

I don't see a very large potential of this happening. if the latch breaks, you still have the two hangers preventing motion vertically (at least down) and the arm thing where CycleRob's pin would maintain the side to side position.



... but I could be wrong...

I'm not sure. One good New Jersey pot hole, especially next Spring, could bounce the case off the hangers.

I checked in my garage at home and where I park at work - no sign of the broken latch so I guess it broke on the road. Some of the bimps formed on those lanes are the size of small speed bumps. It's like the top layer of asphalt os slowly 'sliding' and it gets lumps in it, like a carpet would.

I was lucky that:
1) nothing fragile was in the case.
2) It didn't land in the lane, but on the shoulder.

I'm thinking of maybe adding a short piece of aircraft cabling as a lanyard to keep the case from a total loss in the event of future failure - imagine loading your cases up for a bash trip and losing one.

The pins hold the cases in place even if the latch mechanism fails or unlatches. The lid may open if the lid closing parts break, but your cases (and possibly flailing open lid) will be solidly attached. I got the pins from Home Depot in the fastener isle hidden in their roll out drawers. A bag of two for under $2 US.

The rest of the pics in the SmugMug album outline the simple but careful installation method needed. try these links:
http://r1150r.smugmug.com/photos/12180864-L.jpg
http://r1150r.smugmug.com/photos/12180869-L.jpg
http://r1150r.smugmug.com/photos/12180867-L.jpg
http://r1150r.smugmug.com/photos/12180861-L.jpg
http://r1150r.smugmug.com/photos/12180866-L.jpg

This modification has since saved two unlocked/unlatched bags on my bike. It is the the most inexpensive, valuable and functional mods on my bike and because of that, the one I am most satisfied with. On the downside, it does require some measure of craftsmanship to obtain good results.

After my experice seeing my unlatched case in my rearview mirror bouncing down the road this summer, I keep planning to do the Cycle Rob mod. I was lucky in that I was in the left lane and lost the left case, which came to rest leaning against the center guard rail on I-476 (the so-called Blue Route in Phila). There was no way to pull over on the shoulder and scramble across the highway - I had to go around and stop on the 24" wide left shoulder to recover the case. Amazingly, it wasn't even too badly banged up but again I was lucky that it get off the pavement before getting hit by car - and maybe causing a bad accident.