• Required reading for all forum users!!!

    Welcome!
    Register to access the full functionality of the GSResources forum. Until you register and activate your account you will not have full forum access, nor will you be able to post or reply to messages.

    A note to new registrants...
    All new forum registrations must be activated via email before you have full access to the forum.

    A Special Note about Email accounts!
    DO NOT SIGN UP USING hotmail, outlook, gmx, sbcglobal, att, bellsouth or email.com. They delete our forum signup emails.

    A note to old forum members...
    I receive numerous requests from people who can no longer log in because their accounts were deleted. As mentioned in the forum FAQ, user accounts are deleted if you haven't logged in for the past 6 months. If you can't log in, then create a new forum account. If you don't get an error message, then check your email account for an activation message. If you get a message stating that the email address is already in use, then your account still exists so follow the instructions in the forum FAQ for resetting your password.

    Have you forgotten your password or have a new email address? Then read the forum FAQ for details on how to reset it.

    Any email requests for "can't log in anymore" problems or "lost my password" problems will be deleted. Read the forum FAQ and follow the instructions there - that's what we have one for...

  • Returning Visitors

    If you are a returning visitor who never received your confirmation email, then odds are your email provider is blockinig emails from our server. The only thing that can be done to get around this is you will have to try creating another forum account using an email address from another domain.

    If you are a returning visitor to the forum and can't log in using your old forum name and password but used to be able to then chances are your account is deleted. Purges of the databases are done regularly. You will have to create a new forum account and you should be all set.

installing rear luggage rack/sissy bar

  • Thread starter Thread starter ShirleySerious
  • Start date Start date
S

ShirleySerious

Guest
I got a combination luggage rack/sissy bar for my bike, and although it hasn't come yet, I still have some concerns. The seller (from eBay) said it attaches to the suspension bolts, but I'm a little uneasy about undoing them. I've never undone the bolts before, so I'm concerned the shocks will spring up and it'll be a bitch to put them back on. Are my concerns unfounded?
 
ShirleySerious said:
I got a combination luggage rack/sissy bar for my bike, and although it hasn't come yet, I still have some concerns. The seller (from eBay) said it attaches to the suspension bolts, but I'm a little uneasy about undoing them. I've never undone the bolts before, so I'm concerned the shocks will spring up and it'll be a bitch to put them back on. Are my concerns unfounded?
Click to expand...

Probably! The rear shocks are on posts. You remove a cap nut and the add the rack and reinstall the nut. Ths shack never comes off. The BIG QUESTION!! Is the shock post long enough to be able to add the rack? Let us know what model you have.
 
Yes, nothing is going to go boing and go flying. Just put the bike on the centerstand. If you have a tubular grabrail it might have to come off to fit your new rack.
 
Well I won the auction for that rack and just got it today. It came with everything except bolts and nuts. I wish the guy had instructions because I'm confused. I got the front parts attached to the suspension bolts no problem. But it's the back part that I'm having trouble with.It comes with 2 curved metal bracket like things, but I'm not sure what they are and where they go. Here's what it looks like, maybe someone else knows how to attach it.

http://img371.imageshack.us/img371/844/4e471kc2.jpg
 
Last edited:
Check out the gallery pictures. Lots of bikes with racks. I dont have one but I bet the wife would like it. I think it has something to do with attaching it back by the turn signals.
 
Do you have a picture of the bracket it came with? If you do not have a plastic tailpiece the rear rack mounts normally tie into either the rear turn signal mounting bolts or the mounting bolts for the fender. All of the luggage racks I have installed have tied into the turn signal bolts with some type of bracket or spacer.
 
I tried looking through the gallery, and though I saw a lot of bikes with racks, they were all too low-res to help me.

I'm really bad at describing things and I didn't have the opportunity to take a picture of it today, so here's a drawing of the bracket, front view. (Apologies for the crudeness):
http://img452.imageshack.us/img452/686/bracketnq4.jpg

Basically, it's a piece of metal (there's two of them) that's straight for the most part, and on one end it's curved 180* and has two notches cut out of it. The other end bends slightly and has two holes in it. If I can, I'll try to get a picture tomorrow. They attach, apparently, to the rear mounts of the rack, right above the turn signals. My turn signals seem to be permanently attached because all attempts to unscrew them have failed.

And if by plastic tailpiece, you mean the place acts as a storage area behind the seat, then yes, I have one.
 
Well I finally managed to get the rack on, albeit kinda loosely. It wasn't easy doing that in the confines of a storage unit with 30* weather. Some of the bolts and nuts had a little rust on them so it was hard to tighten and loosen them by hand. I tell ya, that's probably the hardest spot to get tools on a bike, though I should probably invest in a wrench set. Here's a couple pictures:
bikerack001eg5.jpg


bikerack002vh0.jpg
 
It looks OK, (and I hope the straight steel piece is 1/8 inch thick, or more) but I would remove the slot-head bolts and use hex-head instead. Two reasons for this are a tighter connection and easier to remove when necessary. Use lock-washers.
 
When the weather warms up you'll have to bring it over so we can wire brush off the rust and coat it with either clear or perhaps black paint to protect it from rusting anymore.

We can also compare it to both of my bikes and see if there's a better way to connect it, or if you already have it set up the best way... Right now it doesn't look right, because if you put any significant weight on the rack the two brackets in back look like they'll pivot, causing the rack to drop onto the tailpiece. What you really need is a single piece on each side that mounts to the location of the turn signals...

Regards,
 
Last edited:
argonsagas said:
It looks OK
Click to expand...

Hes being nice. Im gonna come off as mean. Heres my opinion... It looks like hell. Can we see that second picture pulled back a little. I think the rack and pad should be lower to the tail piece. Your cargo is gonna make the bike top heavy. That rear bracket system was engineered by a moron. To make this work on your bike you may need a hacksaw and a welder. I like the rack and backrest idea. I just think this one, on your bike, needs a little more thought process. Right now it detracts from nice lines and it may be unsafe. Lets see what others say.

Take Steve up on his offer. Sounds like hes got some ideas.
 
Shirley,
I'm going to try and land in the demilitarized zone between PlaneCrazy and BonanzaDave \\:D/ I also think that it CAN look nice, but it doesn't quite yet. One thing to consider is that the flat part of the luggage rack should be as close to parallel to the ground as possible... when the bike is on it's tires, not necessarily on the center stand... check that with a carpenter's level or measuring tape from the ground to the front AND rear of the rack. Should be the same measurement.
If it isn't level to the ground, then get some replacement standoff brackets (in place of those two-piece units) and change the distance between bolt holes as much as is necessary to hold the rack level. It appears that the rear brackets need to be a bit shorter.
When you've accomplished that, I think you'll have a result that you'll be more pleased with.
 
Well when I bought it, it said it was meant for a bike like mine. There seems to be two holes on the bracket, one to make it higher and one to make it lower. This is all I could do today, as I didn't have a lot of time and the rack came with the rack, seat, and two brackets. No instructions or bolts or anything.

I know it fits to the suspension bolts fine, but the bracket connections are what I'm worrying about. I didn't have the proper tools and the bolts are all rusty, so I'm gonna have to make a visit to the Do It Best tomorrow. The bolts I'm using are hex head.

I agree that it looks like hell, but that's the best I can do, considering the tools I'm working with, the limited space and time, the temperature and no instructions. Hell, I was even thinking about going for the "you know you're a redneck if..." look.
 
It looks like ****e! :-D

No offense! But something's wrong there, either with the design or with the installation. Try again!

If it still doesn't work! Do you have an angle grinder? If not, it's time to get one! :-D
 
None taken. It looks fine to me, though, but that says a lot about me.

And I don't know what an angle grinder is, but whatever it is, it's not coming in my house any time soon.
 
So I went and tried to fix what I did last time. I changed the angle on some of the bolts, got new bolts, washers and nuts, and lowered the rack. The lower tube is now parallel with the ground. It still doesn't look as good as some of yous guys' bikes, but it's better than before. I'll let you be the judge.

bikerack005mb8.jpg

bikerack004sh4.jpg

bikerack003sg8.jpg

bikerack006pr1.jpg
 
The position of the rack looks better now, but the problem I mentioned before still exists. If you put any substantial weight on the rack the first thing that's going to happen is that the two rear brackets on each side are going to pivot under the load, and the rack will land on the tailpiece (most likely causing damage.

Unless you change those brackets over to a single bracket design, you'll at least need to drill a second hole through both pieces and add a second bolt (on each side, of course). That will prevent the pivoting problem you're going to have otherwise. The other thing we can do is to weld those two pieces together so that they'll never move again. If we do that we can lose the bolt in the middle too (and fill the hole with a weld).

Ideally though I'd think about fabricating a completely new bracket for each side. The ones you're using clearly weren't made for your bike, and while we can make them functional they'll never really look "right."

Regards,
 
For about $5 you can get a piece of 1/2" aluminum rod at Home Depot. Hammer the ends flat and bend it to fit. It polishes up almost as shiny as chrome.
 
Hmm, I'm not sure where the rod would go, plus I don't have any experience with metal cutting or welding.

I can see where you're going with the whole pivoting thing, but I tightened those suckers real good and tested it and it seems sturdier than before. The bottoms of the brackets are attached to the bolts that hold the turn signals. I'm gonna have to talk to the seller about him giving me brackets for the wrong bike.

I don't want to have to spend too much money on making this work, since it was hard enough even finding a rack that would fit my bike.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top