I'm on my third FJR. Been riding them for a long time. Love them! I've been over 172 mph With cases on. I've never had an issue with them falling apart or coming off. Double check, and you're good to go.
I have solved the issue quite cheaply. Or a friend did. Based on my idea. The issue is the tongue coming out of the pannier is too short to engage fully on the bike due to the jumped tooth issue described. On mine, the faulty pannier tongue was 6mm shorter than on the known good. My friend drilled 3 holes down into the tongue and fitted 3 stainless steel screws in. He cut off the heads leaving about 5 mm showing. He then built up a mould around the tongue and filled it with 2 part epoxy. A quick spot of dressing and even a squirt of paint and the pannier now locks in perfectly as it did originally. I am well impressed, a simple solution to a potentially expensive problem.
I believe what you said is absolutely correct abt user error with the hard luggage. The problem is that people don't want to take responsibility for their own mistakes! I thoroughly enjoy your videos and specifically your instructions on FJR1300 maintenance etc. I also have a 2014 so what you teach is greatly appreciated. I didn't get mine until 03-14-18. Yup, just got her and boy is she grand. Worth every penny. Thanks for being so very good and thorough with your instructions.
Great video, and one that supports a discovery I made the other day I noticed that if I load the bag full, like REALLY full, so that you have to work to close the lid, then the locking handle for the side case will actually lift itself a little, and if it is not being pressed firmly down while turning the key, it will result in the case not being served correctly.
Learned a valuable lesson when it comes to these bags. Side bags had no issues at all. If the case has obstruction when closing, that tab will be very hard to snap shut. When locking the side bag, same thing. It should slide very easy into place. What I had happen was I lost my top case. Yep, did not latch it down when I put it on-got distracted, and when going down the road the top case fell off. Scratched up the entire red top. I did not replace the candy red top. I left it there to remind me to check my bags before riding.
Had to come back and revisit this video. You are the absolute answer man in all things FJR. Recently I took possession of a low miles (14k) 06 FJR. The bags seem rigidly locked in place no problem. Took it for about a twenty mile run, came home., unlocked the right side case from bike. (Just to check the operation) when I place it back on., carefully making sure the alignment tab was in place., hooked the tabs into place., and made sure the handle lever was down. No problem. Locked on the bike. But it rattled slightly while the left bag was still rigidly locked on. So I checked the way the previous owner locked it down. It seems he had the bike’s alignment tab positioned OUTSIDE the chassis tab alignment receiver creating pressure to increase rigidity. Checking online some say their bags were rigidly locked in.., others had a little play when you wiggle them. Had to come back to this vid. Whew! It seems at the 6:18 mark when locked in yours wiggled a bit as well. At least I know it’s not me...I seem to have it on correct. Thanks!
Thanks for the helpful videos. Something that has happened to me twice ( 2006 & 2008 ) that may have a bearing on the bags falling off are the two, very small, screws that hold the locking mechanism ( the part you put the key in ) on the bags coming loose or falling out. They are located under the back of the key slot. The first time occurred while on a trip when I went to unlock it. When I bought the 2008 ( used ) I was inspecting it and found both screws loose on one bag and one missing on the other. Used a little blue loctite to secure.
Jeez! Glad I came across your vid! I just purchased a 2006 FJR. Having $1000 worth of bags (not to mention gear) flying down the road without authorization from the control tower is something I don’t want to experience. Chalk this up to “pilot error”. You’ve earned yourself a new subscriber.
I found that exact situation on one of the bags on my 2014 FJR. The bag didn't fall off - I caught the problem on a pre-ride check. Thanks for the video.
Just bought my first FJR ,(2015), two weeks ago…Last few days have been doing alot of maintenance stuff and have had the luggage off & on several times. After watching this video, I went out to garage and did the “tug” test….. no shit ,😮….one of them popped open😮 Probably would have lost that one on my next ride!!!! THANK YOU…THANK YOU for this video🙏🙏🙏
Further more: Decided to check the locking mechanism…. Both screws were loose on one side, and one was loose& one MISSING on the other side😮 Replaced all the screws, added lock washers and Loctite! Thanks again Bryan!
In my experience people usually loose their panniers because the screws that hold the key barrel in the plastic tab come loose and fall out allowing the latch to come undone.
I totally agree with Darren Dasher. Yesterday I was riding home from work on my 2016 FJR, my inner bag with my clothes was locked in the pannier. I always double check to make sure that I properly lock both the full pannier and that the lever/handle to remove the pannier from the bike is properly locked. My ride home fortunately is only 16 miles along country roads. I pulled into my drive way and got off the bike, removed helmet and went around to the right side pannier, where I always carry my clothes bag. I went to unlock the pannier to find the whole silver lock barrel almost completely loose and thus the handle to remove the pannier was no longer locked in place. I was like WTF? I lifted the lock lever and the barrel and silver tab below it almost fell completely out. On further investigation the single screw holding it all in place was so loose I could pull it out by hand without twisting it. I was really pissed that Yamaha has such a piss poor design for such a critical and expensive piece of equipment for a sport touring bike. My bike has 12300 odd miles on it. I'll be buying a bottle of loctite blue tomorrow and reinserting the loose screw and will do the same for the other pannier even though it has not come loose YET. I suggest everyone with an FJR and these poorly designed panniers do the same.
I would agree, I was on a ride and when I went to unlock one of the bags, the lock cyclinder came out and the mechanism fell apart. I laid the bag on my coat and started trying to figure out what happened. I found that the screws that hold the lock cylinder in place had vibrated out. They were still down in there. I put it back together and will be putting some loctite on the screws so that doesn't happen again.
Thank you for this info. After I watched your video I checked my latches and the right side latch was holding on by a prayer. Fortunately, I caught it just in time and tightened the screws. Saved a bag!! Thanks, many thanks!
Thank you for your videos, you helped me decide on an FJR, bought a 2013 w/9.5k on it yesterday. When looking at the bike, I noticed exactly what your describing. The handle was on top of the lock mechanism and would have come off.
Wish I had seen this Video a couple of weeks ago. Lost my RH one somewhere on the road. Only second ride out on it and i think you are right i didn't check it was down tight as I thought it only locked the lid. Lesson learnt now looking for replacement!
Just picked up a classic 2005. I really liked your very informative Center Stand video. I will surely “pre check” every time when the panniers are on. Really appreciate your help.
I owned a '06 FJR and a few other bikes with side cases & I never lost any of the cases. Last Dec I drop my '15 Victory CrossCountry on its left side @50~60kmh & the left case stayed intact ;)
I actually lost one hard side bag, locked with gloves on, but really was not locked, cost me around 600.00 to get another and have it painted professionally, great informative video..
The best idea is to push the lever down and hold it down whilst locking it then pull up on the lever after you lock it and have removed the key to make sure that it did lock, saves havening to do it again if it didn't lock because it should lock properly the first time.
I had these panniers on my Mk1 FJR for 13 years never had an issue with them. I used to check the locks screws once a year as part of the maintenance routine and I never had to tighten them. I have told a few owners that they had not closed the handle. Also if you can see the Red tabs they are not locked correctly. I found your vid was very good however I never knew there was a problem.
I like your theory. Makes sense. How about if we were to put a small magnet in the handle to make sure the handle stays down during the locking process? That would make the handle stick down against the case and not have that propensity to lift away enough to miss the cam lever.
I am on my second FJR and never had any issues. I agree that either when locking the tab did not engage, or the mechanism for the tab has somehow been stripped out, or the tab on the lock did not engage the handle. The handle should snap down with very little effort, if it doesn't something isn't lined up right. In addition, I literally try to rip the bags off the bike once I latch them on just to make sure they are on securely. And always check to make sure that your key latch assembly does not have loose screws, you never know if the guy at the dealership followed instructions.
When I get this motorcycle as an upgrade from my little Suzuki GSX 650f, I will remember this piece of information. Thank you very much. Thumbs up as always
Bmw used to use the same latching system. Problems on the bmw locks start when you first lock te latch and THEN push it down. The small tab gets bent down and after that it gets difficult to lock correctly. It could even be bent so far as that you can push the handle flat and lock it and the tab will still miss the slot and thus will not be secure!
BMW has used a similar mechanism for decades, and the design won’t allow you to remove the the key when mounted on the bike unless the latch is all the way down. On the BMWs, there is no play if you try to move them. The design idea was once you arrived your hotel, you unlocked each pannier for removal, walk to the rear of the bike and lift them both off at the same time to walk away. They worked great, much like the FJR.
The metal tab on the lock cylinder barrel has screws that hold the tab on. I checked mine because of chatter on the FJR forum. Sure enough they were backing out. 5 minutes and some loctite with a screw driver, no problem. That was 10 years ago and their still working great.
Love your videos, new subscriber. Just bought a 2008 fjr1300ae with 38k on the clock. Going through the bike doing all the maintenance and replacing parts as needed. Keep it up, very easily explained helps us do it yourself ers get it done.
Hmmm...interesting. Not a conspiracy enthusiast myself, agree with your investigation and results. My problem was with the lock-plate itself. 2014 FJR...left saddlebag lock-plate (the metal part that rotates with the lock cylinder and engages both the trunk closure and the handle lock-down). One day, after loading some items into the left bag, turned the key in the lock, and (as I ALWAYS do) gave the handle a tug to make sure it was secured. Lo and behold, handle lifted right up. Unlocked the cylinder, opened the bag, lifted the handle...after examination, discovered one of the plate-to-cylinder screws missing (there are two) and the other one loose. Tightened the remaining screw and headed home (a VERY short distance mind you). Long story short, had to research and replace missing screw...used LocTite on ALL the screws on both bags to (hopefully) preclude their ever coming loose. Not a bike "fault" per se...probably human error in manufacture or dealer setup...either way, on reflection, a piss-poor design for such a critical, regularly used/manipulated device. Needs to be hardened for sure...still love my FJR and wouldn't think of trading for some "barca-lounger on wheels"!!!
Actually it is the lock that works loose, in turn releasing the handle from locked positions, and allowing for the panniers to jump off. The locks are fitted by the main dealership so it the apprentice fits it without locktite this can and will happen. So check your locks, but this vid is and has a valid point too, ride safe...
Your explanation is reasonable but the pannier isn’t fail safe. For example the door on a car has a safety second stage latch stopping a door to accidentally open. It can be perceived due to air noise and you can stop the car and give the door a push. You are correct, user error but there is absolutely no room for error which is my grumble. I lost a pannier and accept responsibility but was so glad it was empty and hadn’t lost valuables. Wouldn’t it be nice if there were two steps to ensuring you couldn’t loose your valuable luggage.
Had the problem with the pin mechanism coming loose (2008 FJR). As I was parking the bike in a campground on a ride to Anchorage - the case cover popped open (case loaded with camera equipment). Although the two small screws were gone, I was lucky and found the locking tab mechanism. I purchased a couple replacement hex screws, hex key and locktite from a bolt dealer. I checked the other case, and screws on it were also loose! I'd suggest anyone owning a FJR, check those screws! You'll need a Torx screwdriver to do so. The Garmin Montana 6xx Motorcycle Mount Torx Tool happens to work.
Bingo! The screws retaining the lock cylinder can vibrate down and out thus having a loose lock that does NOT retain the bags. Fortunately I found that this was happening on mine before they fully fell out! JB Weld was peace of mind.
Mine fell off when going around corner hit a big pothole and my bag was Jared off when I hit pit hole. And there was no rider error. My bag was fully locked when I retrieved my bag
Hi, mate, my problem was not the locking mechanism but a faulty tongue plunger. You could push the plunger down with just a little effort so it was allowing retraction when it should have been rigid. The other side was fine you could not move the plunger so it stayed in place. Also, some of the underside slots are not always in perfect alignment, either. So for me it's a quit a drawn out procedure to ensure everything is perfectly locked in up top & underneath plus a push & shove session to triple check. I can see that being a little careless with the normal procedure like you have shown could lead to disaster & is most likely the cause of some of the panniers falling off but many would be because of what I outline above. Yamaha does have a somewhat of problem with supply quality of items as attested to in their multitude of recalls for many models over a lot of years. Unfortunately, the FJR panniers were not one of them. I think for the money paid for the they could have done better
+TwoWheelObsession . My cases were undamaged to start with it was only AFTER one fell off I began to look into why it happened. That case was replaced & was never used again once I got home. It's just that one never seems quite so confident with them after that, though I've never had a problem since. I do enjoy your videos very much. Just wondering if you could send a link for where you brought your Ram mounts. Also, intrigued about your camera & microphone setup for your helmet. Both have extraordinary clarity on the bike. Your windshield might have a little bit of extra protection for the microphone but there would have to be some noise cancelling soft wear helping out I suspect. I'm heading off on a 3 week trip through the Australian high country on the East coast in April & I would mind a similar set up to record some highlights.
+Quentin Rankmore Damage is damage whether it's a factory defect or user created. Again, that's clearly not what this video is about. You can get RAM parts anywhere, I think I used Amazon. The audio setup is nothing special just a SENA 20s and gopro - I have videos on all my stuff. No, nothing special in processing at all.
I know I'm late to the party. There's actually two failure modes. One you described. The other is if you turn the key and then push the handle down, it looks like the handle is all the way down, but it is not locked (because the tab is engaged). The tab is low enough that it will appear the handle in all the way down, when it is not. A higher tab would make it obvious that the handle is not locked. Humans are bad about following the order of operations. Our brains aren't wired that way. The mental checklist says "Push the handle down and turn the key", not necessarily Push the handle down and THEN turn the key". In their head, the handle was pushed down, and the key was locked, so all is good. Things where the order of operations is important will always have a higher failure rate.
I think your "theory" is actually the proof. Is not a design flaw. The pre-ride check and double check is the answer. The mounting mechanism is well thought out. Just a matter of checking that handle. A great tip that I will not forget.
They should have had one lock to secure the case and a separate one to lock the case. That's a very slim margin for error. Agreed that a single check tug would eliminate the issue. Yet had they made the locking slot notched into the handle directly in the center of the handle then a handle that was up a 1/6 of an inch or less could not be locked or allow sudden detachment.
Hey very well explained video. I have just bought my second FJR, 2015 model in this case. However, the previous owner had issues when he ordered the bike and he had to retro order the panniers, consequently I have noticed that he has not been supplied with the rubber mounts on the rear footrests for the lower pannier connection. This has a dramatic effect on the stiffness of the connection to the bike. I seem to be having trouble finding them online so would really appreciate if you had any info on where I could find them. Thankyou in advance.
My wife has a concours 14 and her handles cam over when you press them down. The yamaha cases don't snap down, they tend to pop up as you are trying to lock them. The kawi case handles snap down making locking them shut a whole lot easier.
If and when I get my saddlebags for my 2022 FJR I will give it a try. For now the bikes ship with no bags and an IOU from the dealership. Bags may be in in Nov 22, past prime rising season unfortunately
Mine ALMOST came off. The small screws that hold the lock cylinder on vibrated almost out. Thankfully I felt it being wonky loose when I put in the key to open the bag. Any more driving and the screws would have dropped out completely and THEN the lock assembly is free to rotate with vibration. That means it will AUTO-UNLOCK and that means the bags are free to bounce off... I solved it by putting screws back in with JB Weld. No more lose screws; no way to drop screws now.
Nice video. My issue on my 06' is both bags seem to have failing gear mechanism from handle to inside top tab, handle won't go all the way down easily at all. I have to push hard all way down then lock it, but still not flat. The orange decal is clearly visible from behind. Bought bike used, 16k miles and it's always been this way.
+Stixnfeet Durden That's from damage, most likely someone not having it positioned and forcing it one way or the other. Once the gears have jumped a tooth, there is no way back. It can only be replaced.
Hey, thanks for the feedback. Yep was afraid of that, but they're staying put. The visible bright orange decal just bugs me, may I'll remove em. I subscribed to your page and look forward to it as a valuable resource. Keep up the good work!
My left bag came off on a road trip this weekend. I went over 400 miles and less than 5 miles from home I had to brake hard for a car that stopped in front of me and the bag went past me. I recovered it in a ditch and it was still locked, handle down. I don't know how it came off but, it did. I for one, do not feel comfortable with all of the play when they are in place.
I know that my 2014 left side came off fully locked. Your theory does not address possible internal damage to the mechanism? I can remove my LH bag when it’s fully locked. Rear tab is evidently not fully extending?
After this vid more was discussed and yes, if someone in the past forced the level down from it being mispositioned or overloaded and not closing, it will break and skip an internal tooth. That prevents the bottom tab from fully raising, preventing it from being secured to the bike when locked. 100% human error.
Has anyone found any other solutions for this issue? I have a 2014 that has enough slop in the mechanism where I can wiggle one of the 2 hooks out of the top slots. I dont like the idea of drilling holes to use a cottter pin but it would be worse to lose a case. In my situation, there is a sizable gap between the top of the rubber guide foot and the bottom of the case. I thought I may try to attach a rubber filler of some sort in that space to prevent the case from rocking around (which allows it to wiggle off of one of the top hooks).
Physically broken. What I'm wondering, and since I don't have the FJR yet (I responded to another one of your videoes), I can't say for sure, but is it possible that the handle itself could break? Where the locking mechanism from the lock rotates into the side of the handle, is it possible that the underside of the handle has somehow broken away, allowing the handle to ride up? I thank you for your videos, and if I get the bike I'm looking at, I'll be looking at more of your FJR videos.
After reading a lot of the comments I checked my luggage for loose screws. Except for the strap that keeps the door from flopping open too far, mine is ALL rivets. There are NO screws that might loosen over time. The manufacturers date for this hard luggage is 08-23-2013. My FJR1300ES is a 2014 model. It would seem that the problem of loose screws has been fixed. Yeaaaaa. Now if we could only fix human error. Yikes.
Found this video as a result of issues with the lock. Fortunately I did not loose my saddle back and easily could have as I didn't even know the large handle pushed the pin up to lock the bag in place. Anyway, the two screws that hold the rotating tab onto the cylinder, one is missing and the other one is loose. Can anyone tell me what driver is needed for that/those screws. I tried torx, philips, and allen. then I finally took a picture of the screw head while zooming in, and then blew up the picture to see that I don't recognize the driver required. (yes I wear cheaters and clearly they aren't strong enough! Thanks for the information and I will locktite the screws.
i agree its human error.. i experience it last night, i did lock the case..but it did not secure.. the handle and the lock was able to slide up together! i realise i did not press and twist the lock hard to secure it.. meaning its locked but not anchor its self..
Hi, what you say is correct but you are telling experienced riders to suck eggs. I have a ex demo June 2016 that I bought in May 2017 and I have put a warranty claim in as I noticed my right pannier was loose. I can actually rise it up and one point of three is not connected. Potential of failure, likely to fall off. I am getting a new one in a couple of weeks but it is an internal mechanism failure not necessarily a rider error. I am guessing after a long period of use this could happen more often. Something to consider.
No, I have a 2006. The left bag comes of by it self after a couple of kilometers. Yes I am sure it was locked. I suspect the lockingmechanism inside the bag is faulty.
As I said in the video, this does not apply to damaged cases. Yours is broken due to someone forcing it shut at some point, you have skipped a tooth on the internal gear. User error as they always are.
TwoWheelObsession No, I am very sure it newer was forced locked. I am a developer of products and never force anything because I know it never helps. It's a weak construction that jumps over the teeth by it self. Similar as the top box that cracks by it's self, even with the reinforcement Yamaha supplied. The next step for me us to disassemble the bag.
TwoWheelObsession everything put together is possible to put apart. After the crash for the bag I have no use for it anyway. Better to use it to get some facts instead of speculation.
Dude you have no idea what you are talking about. Once you actually take a look you can come back and admit I was right. It’s not assembled. It’s molded as a single part with the gear and track inside. This is an old issue for users like you that break it. You need a new bag.
+TwoWheelObsession it is not broken, mechanism works and holds it in place until certain amount of force applied to bag (on bumpy road for instance). That exactly what happened on my bike and it happened with others. I fixed it by locking mechanism by screw from inside of the bag. In my opinion lock mechanism has bad design. Locking pin should move horizontally not vertically.
Yes, it is. That's very common and usually caused by someone forcing down the handle. It's one of the internal plastic teeth in the gear rounded off. Unfortunately it requires the bag to be replaced as the parts are set when the case is molded together. That's exactly what I referenced when talking about broken parts. If your gear was not broken, it would not move.
