Pannier cracked

[milkman]

Evening all

Just noticed my original bmw pannier is cracked.
I didn't drop it, not sure why, but it is, a horisontal, 2 inch split mid way down the side wall of teh pannier at teh rear end

I can simply fill the crack with a silastic/putty sealant for water proofing, so I'm not too worried, but was curious as to what others have done, or what I could do to prevent the problem getting worse?

Anyone tried plastic welding like the jappers do to their fairings? The cost probably isn't worth

Lately I've take to carrying a lot less and not useing my panniers much, but the GF wants to go on some longer rides, so they may see service again.....

thanks

[airhead]

By now the Krauser/BMW panniers are getting pretty old and the plastic is getting brittle. My Krauser/BMW set have several small cracks that just appeared after no particular knock. As plastic weld wouldn't be particularly effective with the old plastic, I just used Araldite on the inside (with some plastic backing bridging the crack) and generously applied............seems to work well. Other than that, I've relegated them to storage and show only for the R90, and bought a new set of Hepco Beckers that fit both the R65 and K75. No worries they will disintegrate on a camping run, spewing my personals along the road (as I've seen happen with a friends).
Otherwise, get them off the bike and only put them on when needed, the sun and weather ages them faster than time alone.

Bill..................;-)

[jvwilliams]

I think the old brittle plastic comment is spot on.  If your cases are worth saving long term I would recommend reinforcing the perimeters of both the inner and outer halves with 2 inch wide fiberglass cloth applied to the insides.  It should't take more than $10 worth of cloth and resin to beef up the whole shootin' match.  When finished, a light coat of black rattlecan paint would rended the job nearly invisible.

Just be careful ont to drip the resin on the locks or hinges.

[Ed Miller]

What kind of plastic are those things made from?  If it's ABS like my Windjammer, then you can find some ABS glue at a plumbing supply place that's good for gluing fiberglass cloth to the inside for reinforcement, and for filling in the cracks.  If it's some other plastic, maybe that kind has a glue that's made to work with it.

[milkman]

thanks lads
I'll probably just glue them.
They're a bit buckeld and warped, but still dont let any water in when moving (they do if they're sitting in drizzle for a while)

[Justin B.]

I have had a difficult time getting adhesives to stick to them very well.  I have a small plastic welder and have played with it on some old scraps of stuff with the included "rods".  I have been told, however, that best results (sometimes meaning acceptable) are obtained using scraps of the same materials.  So, if you, or somebody else, had a trashed Krauser bag to sacrifice then you might have some luck.  But, if the cracks are where the sun has baked them then you are pretty much out of luck.  I have seen a lot of cracks on these in "shaded" areas, though, and those might repair fine.

[jvwilliams]

The fiberglass resin will adhere, guaranteed. Plus the glass cloth will absorb the stresses that produced the cracks in the first place.
This fix is really easy and bulletproof. Just brush the resin on like paint.  Roll out the cloth. Brush another coat of resin on top of the cloth, thick enough to saturate the fiberglass.  After 24 hours, a light coat of your favorite black rattlecan paint and you are done. Better than new.

[MrRiden]

Just researching this myself and came across the following article. Think I'll still reinforce with a fiberglass patch as well as drill the end of the split to prevent it from running on.
http://www.webbikeworld.com/Motorcycle-technical-articles/repairing-abs-bags.htm
rich

[Ed Miller]

THAT'S the article I saw that gave me the idea.  I'd never heard of that Oates ABS cement before.  It works pretty good so far; I used it to repair some cracks in my Windjammer, reinforcing it from the inside with fiberglass cloth like you say.

Hey, has da 'Bum forgiven you?  

[MrRiden]

Ed,
Just tried the fix in the article, works a treat! I had some textured tape to apply sticky side up and the match is pretty good! Well see what the long term reveals.
Haven't 'got no' apology from da crumb. No matter, I'm just lurking over there to avoid stirring up an outburst. He apologized to the group for posting a "private" message. Whatever, I stand by my words. Maybe I need to test my touring bags with a quick run out Tahoe way? Thanks for your kind words. Stay tuned.
The socially unacceptable
MrRidden

[Melena]

Great ideas!  I've had a crack in one of the panniers since I bought the bike.  It looks like it might have been from a fall over or hitting something as the reflector is a bit cracked too.  

It hasn't been a  problem yet, but I've been wanting to fix it.  I thought about the fiberglass fix, but this ABS glue sounds even better.  I'm going to go see if they have some at Home Depot tomorrow.  

Thanks for that link!!   [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

The photo in the article shows a Krauser or Hepco & Becker.

Will this work on the BMW Touring Bag, as well, do you think?

[Yikes]

I'm going to give that ABS cement a try on the cracks in my instrument housing while I have it pulled apart this weekend...if it ever stops raining.

[MrRiden]

Rob,
I used the repair on a set of BMW touring bags. The larger ones with the square BMW logos on them. It worked good and so far holding well but only about a week has gone by since the repair,
rich

[Joan]

After some cretin hit and ran from the Blueberry in a parking lot, I filled the cracks with Suncure, a UV activated fiberglass surfboard repair resin. Used some duct tape for backing, looks perfect, very durable.