tire generalities

[Guest]

A few weeks ago I was driving from Houston to Indiana (had to pick up the car, and the KLR wouldn't fit in the trunk), when I passed an army surplus store with ammo boxes for sale. Man, I turned around so fast the tires of the Civic almost came out of the wheels. This guy had a huge collection of ammo boxes and one of them is just exactly the size of those fancy $500 panniers for sale everywhere on the Internet. They are waterproof, open from the top, the locking mechanism is great and the color even matches my green KLR. Now the problem is that I don't know how to fit them to the bike. I don't want to buy a set of $200 brackets. That would just spoil the fun. These boxes match me and the bike perfectly. I'm the kind that dresses from second-hand clothes stores and has never washed a motorcycle. That's just against my principles. Anyway, the boxes cost $15 and to put them on fancy $200 brackets would just spoil it for me. Not that I have $200 to spare, anyway. Any ideas? By the way, the guy also had one aluminum box, about 24" X 24" X 24" that I installed on the stock rack. Just sweet. I'll take a picture and post it later. -Sebastian

[Devon]

velez.7@... wrote:

> Anyway, the boxes cost $15 and >to put them on fancy $200 brackets would just spoil it for me. Not that I have $200 to >spare, anyway. > >Any ideas? > >

As long as you don't care about having them remove quickly, sure. Go to the Home Depot and buy steel bar 1/8"x1" by 4' long, or whatever it is they sell alongside the threaded rod. Drill holes in the ends, bend it etc. so you can 3-point mount the cases to the bike, using the rack mounts, passenger peg mounts, and the seat bolts (you'll need to not use the sidecovers, or you'll need to cut holes in them). You won't have the strength of using tubes, so when you crash or dump the bike you'll need to kick the boxes straight again. Devon

[Steve Hersant]

--- In DSN_klr650@yahoogroups.com, "mavi_frio_frio" wrote:

> A few weeks ago I was driving from Houston to Indiana (had to pick

up the car, and the

> KLR wouldn't fit in the trunk), when I passed an army surplus

store with ammo boxes for

> sale. Man, I turned around so fast the tires of the Civic almost

came out of the wheels.

> This guy had a huge collection of ammo boxes and one of them is

just exactly the size of

> those fancy $500 panniers for sale everywhere on the Internet.

They are waterproof, open

> from the top, the locking mechanism is great and the color even

matches my green KLR.

> Now the problem is that I don't know how to fit them to the bike.

I don't want to buy a set

> of $200 brackets. That would just spoil the fun. These boxes match

me and the bike

> perfectly. I'm the kind that dresses from second-hand clothes

stores and has never

> washed a motorcycle. That's just against my principles. Anyway,

the boxes cost $15 and

> to put them on fancy $200 brackets would just spoil it for me. Not

that I have $200 to

> spare, anyway. > > Any ideas? > > By the way, the guy also had one aluminum box, about 24" X 24" X

24" that I installed on

> the stock rack. Just sweet. I'll take a picture and post it later. > > -Sebastian

Another scrounger ! I like that ! If you have the box on the top rack, I presume it would stick out at least past the turn signals ? If so, I'd probably try supporting the tops of the side cases either directly, or on brackets attached to the top box sides. That would take some of the weight if your lower supports end up slightly weak. I've made brackets to support my soft bags from bicycle rims ! For hard bags I'd use a steel 26" mtn bike wheel. If you cut a length out, and stand on each end, you can gently straigten the curve out. I tapered the last inch of the sides and drilled a hole that uses the footpeg mount and carrier mounting points. I know this all sounds ridiculous, but if done carefully, and painted flat black, it ends up strong and decent looking. If I'd seen those boxes, they'd be hanging on my bike tonight ! I've made most of the usual doo dads from scrap metal and enjoyed the challenge of doing it free. A good source of square tubing is old kitchen chairs with chrome legs. The curves come in handy . Our recycling center has barrels of odd steel stuff that is a free source for a creative mind. $200 for racks..I could nearly buy a welder for that and mass produce ! Steve Steve

[Russell Dyck]

Hey ya Sebastian About a month ago I did the same thing you are triing to do, I found some ammo cans at surplus herbies for 20 bucks apeice, then I went and picked up some 3/16" x 1" flat steel and started to do some cutting and bending and finnaly got them mounted.Now that I've got the boxs mounted to the bike I need to find some lower profile signal lights. Painted mine a rusty colored primer, thinkin I'm gonna do them up in a box liner coating and see about sewing up some bags to fit inside as I don't plan on putting locks on and would like something that I can get stuff in/out quickly. I'll post the picture that I have under Russ's bike and as soon as I can snap more pictures of how I got everything bolted together I'll post'm there to. Chow for now Russell Quesnel, BC, Canada --- In DSN_klr650@yahoogroups.com, "mavi_frio_frio" wrote:

> A few weeks ago I was driving from Houston to Indiana (had to pick

up the car, and the

> KLR wouldn't fit in the trunk), when I passed an army surplus

store with ammo boxes for

> sale. Man, I turned around so fast the tires of the Civic almost

came out of the wheels.

> This guy had a huge collection of ammo boxes and one of them is

just exactly the size of

> those fancy $500 panniers for sale everywhere on the Internet.

They are waterproof, open

> from the top, the locking mechanism is great and the color even

matches my green KLR.

> Now the problem is that I don't know how to fit them to the bike.

I don't want to buy a set

> of $200 brackets. That would just spoil the fun. These boxes match

me and the bike

> perfectly. I'm the kind that dresses from second-hand clothes

stores and has never

> washed a motorcycle. That's just against my principles. Anyway,

the boxes cost $15 and

> to put them on fancy $200 brackets would just spoil it for me. Not

that I have $200 to

> spare, anyway. > > Any ideas? > > By the way, the guy also had one aluminum box, about 24" X 24" X

24" that I installed on

> the stock rack. Just sweet. I'll take a picture and post it later. > > -Sebastian

[Russell Dyck]

Hey ya'll I got some pictures posted in the photos section of how I got my ammo can panniers mounted for any one that's intrested. http://photos.groups.yahoo.com/group/ds ... .dir=/Russ% 27s+bike&.src=gr&.view=t The one thing that I might still do is mount a brace across the back going from box to box just to keep'm from being to floppy, I've done some rough fire roads with the boxs mounted with out a brace across back and they did seem to do just fine. I would recomend that the boxs be mounted more forward than what I've got mine as I've discoverd the lids do have a bit of weight to them, one of these days I'm gonna see how I can make'm lighter as they seem to have been made of a few layers of sheet metal. The one thing that I do like about these boxs is that they are cheap, I payed $20 canadian, so if they get trashed I can just go back to the surplus store and get some more, so far I've spent about $75 on these things. Chow for now Russell Quesnel, BC --- In DSN_klr650@yahoogroups.com, "Russell Dyck" wrote:

> Hey ya Sebastian > About a month ago I did the same thing you are triing to do, I

found

> some ammo cans at surplus herbies for 20 bucks apeice, then I went > and picked up some 3/16" x 1" flat steel and started to do some > cutting and bending and finnaly got them mounted.Now that I've got > the boxs mounted to the bike I need to find some lower profile > signal lights. Painted mine a rusty colored primer, thinkin I'm > gonna do them up in a box liner coating and see about sewing up

some

> bags to fit inside as I don't plan on putting locks on and would > like something that I can get stuff in/out quickly. I'll post the > picture that I have under Russ's bike and as soon as I can snap

more

> pictures of how I got everything bolted together I'll post'm there > to. > > Chow for now > Russell > Quesnel, BC, Canada

[Pat (M)]

Your ammo cans look pretty rugged. I am trying out a lighter but less rugged or roomy alternative using aluminum tool boxes from Lowe's Hardware. Only $27 with a "Lifetime" guarantee (we'll see when I take the first one in after a hard drop - I visualize the worst). They are only 6" wide (14"H X 18"L) but do sport a kid-proof lock, I guess one lock fits all on the planet. They ARE cheaply made so I reinforced the back with 1/4" alum diamondplate. The 'J' hooks work just fine for attaching to the rack and provide relatively quick on/off with a mini-wrench. I also fabed my own rack, loosely modeled after the Happy Trails & Mac-D racks using 1/2" steel rod, cold bent on a vise, and 1/8" X 1" steel for the brackets. I welded it together and bought longer cap screws to replace the OEM ones. Less welding, I figure I have ~$20 in the rack and another $60 or so in the panniers including fastenings. I posted pics in the Photo section under "Cheep Panniers." Pat A14 Puget Sound --- In DSN_klr650@yahoogroups.com, "Russell Dyck" wrote:

> Hey ya'll > I got some pictures posted in the photos section of how I got my > ammo can panniers mounted for any one that's intrested. > > http://photos.groups.yahoo.com/group/ds ... .dir=/Russ% > 27s+bike&.src=gr&.view=t > The one thing that I might still do is mount a brace across the

back

> going from box to box just to keep'm from being to floppy, I've

done

> some rough fire roads with the boxs mounted with out a brace across > back and they did seem to do just fine. I would recomend that the > boxs be mounted more forward than what I've got mine as I've > discoverd the lids do have a bit of weight to them, one of these > days I'm gonna see how I can make'm lighter as they seem to have > been made of a few layers of sheet metal. > The one thing that I do like about these boxs is that they are > cheap, I payed $20 canadian, so if they get trashed I can just go > back to the surplus store and get some more, so far I've spent

about

> $75 on these things. > > Chow for now > Russell > Quesnel, BC > > > > > --- In DSN_klr650@yahoogroups.com, "Russell Dyck"

> wrote: > > Hey ya Sebastian > > About a month ago I did the same thing you are triing to do, I > found > > some ammo cans at surplus herbies for 20 bucks apeice, then I

went

> > and picked up some 3/16" x 1" flat steel and started to do some > > cutting and bending and finnaly got them mounted.Now that I've

got

> > the boxs mounted to the bike I need to find some lower profile > > signal lights. Painted mine a rusty colored primer, thinkin I'm > > gonna do them up in a box liner coating and see about sewing up > some > > bags to fit inside as I don't plan on putting locks on and would > > like something that I can get stuff in/out quickly. I'll post the > > picture that I have under Russ's bike and as soon as I can snap > more > > pictures of how I got everything bolted together I'll post'm

there

> > to. > > > > Chow for now > > Russell > > Quesnel, BC, Canada

[Steve Hersant]

>> > pictures of how I got everything bolted together I'll post'm

there

> > to. > > > > Chow for now > > Russell > > Quesnel, BC, Canada

Hi Russ. Thanks for posting the pictures. Very inventive ! I didn't expect the boxes to be so big. I guess that our army doesn't need ammo boxes, as the ###$%$%% Liberals don't see military spending as important.How heavy are the boxes and have you found the flat steel brackets flex too much ? The colour has to go...how about at least flat black or drab green ? Steve Harrison Hot Springs BC (Western separation..or bust !)

[Sebastián Vélez]

Thanks for the photos! Absolutely nice installation. I agree that it might be better to mount them more towards the front. I've been browsing through the local hardware store getting ideas. I'm a little timid on dumpster diving these days since the police gave me rough time for being behind a KMart getting materials for a book rack. I'll be reporting on how my installation goes! Thanks for the help. Sebastian.

On Jul 29, 2004, at 1:05 AM, Russell Dyck wrote: > Hey ya'll > I got some pictures posted in the photos section of how I got my > ammo can panniers mounted for any one that's intrested. > > http://photos.groups.yahoo.com/group/ds ... .dir=/Russ% > 27s+bike&.src=gr&.view=t > The one thing that I might still do is mount a brace across the back > going from box to box just to keep'm from being to floppy, I've done > some rough fire roads with the boxs mounted with out a brace across > back and they did seem to do just fine. I would recomend that the > boxs be mounted more forward than what I've got mine as I've > discoverd the lids do have a bit of weight to them, one of these > days I'm gonna see how I can make'm lighter as they seem to have > been made of a few layers of sheet metal. > The one thing that I do like about these boxs is that they are > cheap, I payed $20 canadian, so if they get trashed I can just go > back to the surplus store and get some more, so far I've spent about > $75 on these things. > > Chow for now > Russell > Quesnel, BC > > > > > --- In DSN_klr650@yahoogroups.com, "Russell Dyck" > wrote: >> Hey ya Sebastian >> About a month ago I did the same thing you are triing to do, I > found >> some ammo cans at surplus herbies for 20 bucks apeice, then I went >> and picked up some 3/16" x 1" flat steel and started to do some >> cutting and bending and finnaly got them mounted.Now that I've got >> the boxs mounted to the bike I need to find some lower profile >> signal lights. Painted mine a rusty colored primer, thinkin I'm >> gonna do them up in a box liner coating and see about sewing up > some >> bags to fit inside as I don't plan on putting locks on and would >> like something that I can get stuff in/out quickly. I'll post the >> picture that I have under Russ's bike and as soon as I can snap > more >> pictures of how I got everything bolted together I'll post'm there >> to. >> >> Chow for now >> Russell >> Quesnel, BC, Canada > > > > > List sponsored by Dual Sport News at www.dualsportnews.com. List FAQ > courtesy of Chris Krok at: www.bigcee.com/klr650faq.html > Unsubscribe by sending a blank message to: > DSN_klr650-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com . > > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > > > -- Sebasti n V lez Dept. of Biological Sciences 107 Galvin Life Sciences University of Notre Dame Notre Dame IN 46556 PLEASE NOTE MAIL AND EMAIL ADDRESS CHANGE AFTER AUG 1st 2004: Sebasti n V lez Museum of Comparative Zoology Harvard University 26 Oxford St. Cambridge MA 02138 svelez@...

[Steve Hersant]

> > I also fabed my own rack, loosely modeled after the Happy Trails & > Mac-D racks using 1/2" steel rod, cold bent on a vise, and 1/8" X

1"

> steel for the brackets. I welded it together and bought longer cap > screws to replace the OEM ones. Less welding, I figure I have ~$20

in

> the rack and another $60 or so in the panniers including

fastenings.

> > I posted pics in the Photo section under "Cheep Panniers." > > Pat > A14 > Puget Sound

Pat...that's a very tidy and professional looking job ! I admire your evident skill. I don't think we have a Lowe's in Canada, but I wonder if Home Depot, or similar, carries the tool boxes ? Thanks for posting the pictures, as it sure makes it easier to see how you did things. Steve B.C.

[Matt]

Thanks for the info and pictures Russ. I've been toying with getting aluminum panniers but the cost has held me back. I found your same boxes here: http://www.armygear.net/ag/store/0001.html for $13 each. I figure that even though they are pretty heavy, it's only a $40 ($13 each plus $14 shipping) experiment and if I really like them and really thing they are too heavy then I can look into some aluminum ones. The store lists their shipping weight at 22lbs each. I would definitely put a bar connecting them across the back, it's easy to do and should prevent them from waggling in and out. I think I'll also use angle iron or maybe even tube for my brackets to try to add some strength (I'll have to miter cut and weld them). Any way you do it, I don't see how you can go wrong at this price. Good luck, Matt --- In DSN_klr650@yahoogroups.com, "mavi_frio_frio" wrote:

> A few weeks ago I was driving from Houston to Indiana (had to pick

up the car, and the

> KLR wouldn't fit in the trunk), when I passed an army surplus

store with ammo boxes for

> sale. Man, I turned around so fast the tires of the Civic almost

came out of the wheels.

> This guy had a huge collection of ammo boxes and one of them is

just exactly the size of

> those fancy $500 panniers for sale everywhere on the Internet.

They are waterproof, open

> from the top, the locking mechanism is great and the color even

matches my green KLR.

> Now the problem is that I don't know how to fit them to the bike.

I don't want to buy a set

> of $200 brackets. That would just spoil the fun. These boxes match

me and the bike

> perfectly. I'm the kind that dresses from second-hand clothes

stores and has never

> washed a motorcycle. That's just against my principles. Anyway,

the boxes cost $15 and

> to put them on fancy $200 brackets would just spoil it for me. Not

that I have $200 to

> spare, anyway. > > Any ideas? > > By the way, the guy also had one aluminum box, about 24" X 24" X

24" that I installed on

> the stock rack. Just sweet. I'll take a picture and post it later. > > -Sebastian