lowered my bags because they look so good on the OP's Spyder.
Decided to add additional bracing as I mentioned before.
A member here, als, gave me some good advice so I gave it a shot.
Here are pics. The front brace goes to the outermost bolt under the seat. The rear brace goes to the one I already installed connecting the bags together at the rear.
The whole thing is pretty solid. Paint used on the additional braces was Rustoleum Bedliner. Have used it many times, very hard finish with texture. thumbnail_0315181706b.jpgthumbnail_0315181709.jpgthumbnail_0315181711.jpgthumbnail_0315181708.jpg
I wanted to modify the standard Mutazu mount but I didn't want to lower the bags as much as Trevor did. I used the forward most mounting hole on the bracket, then I used one of the brackets that came with my Matazu bags to lower the rear a bit.
I also modified the bracing bar. I ended up buying a metal bar at the local Home Depot to use as the bracing bar. I mounted one of the elbows to the bracket, (had to drill a hole for the height I wanted), then added the bracing bar which is positiong about 1/4" under the taillight. The bracing bar also required drilling to match the mounting holes on the elbow and a bit of black paint.
My aim was to use the brackets supplied. I don't have a vise, but I do have a drill and an angle grinder, so everything had to be achieved with just those tools.
The bags are braced at the rear. Because the frame mounting system supplied is so strong there is no chance of the brackets twisting or bending unless, maybe, you sat on one of the bags!
The bag frame is stabilised at the front, to stop it bending inwards under the weight of the bags, by using a third hanger. The top of this sits directly under the grab rail boss - as the bags try to bend inwards the top of this hanger contacts the boss and prevents further movement.
This additional hanger also allows the bags to be mounted at the correct height, so that they don't come too close to any fixtures such as the front hanger/grab rail mounting bolt.
When ordering Mutazu bags for your Spyder make sure you get the Can Am Spyder version from Ebay. This will ensure that you get side opening bags (top opening will not clear the grab rails) and the brackets supplied exactly fit the mounting points.
You will also need to buy some additional components, which are available in the US from Ace Hardware stores.
4 x 8mm (or 5/16") mudguard washers
4 x Steel bushes 5/16" ID, 3/8" Long, 5/8" OD
2 x Steel bushes 5/16" ID, 3/4" Long, 5/8" OD
2 x Button head 8mmx50mm bolts
2 x 8mm T nuts
If you have no other accessories fitted to the grab rails then you will use the 4 x 40mm long 8mm round head bolts which are supplied in the mounting kit, to mount the hangers off the grab rails. In that case you will then need:
4 x 8mmx30mm round head bolts.
I had originally thought to use heat shrink tubing on the hangers to cover the many bolt holes, but that has certain issues. Instead, we found 5/16 nylon caps at Ace which fill the holes nicely.
You will need the following tools:
Big hammer (just joking)
Electric drill with 8mm or 5/16" bit.
Small bit to drill pilot holes
Angle grinder with cutoff and finishing discs, or hacksaw (very slow)
Hand file (optional if you are really good with the angle grinder).
1 aerosol can of satin black paint - Ace's paint is great.
@Trevor g
nice job
I like the extra brace mounted to the bike and the addition of the extra bolt through the rear mounting bracket. Much cleaner than my connecting the two bags-may have to revisit my install.
I can see it would be sturdy.
Remove the screws from the grab rails, one side at a time, and pull the grab rail off its mounting.
Inside the mounting on the grab rail is a black mudguard washer - that is, a washer with a much larger outside diameter than normal.
Replace this black washer with a silver one you bought from Ace (or wherever). Note that all of these types of washers (not engineering washers) are stamped out of flat sheet or bar, so that one side is rounded off on the edges and the other side is straight-edged flat.
Install the new washer so that the flat edge is against the mounting stub on the frame and the rounded edge is against the inside of the grab rail.
The black washers will be used on the outside of the rail when mounting the hangers for the bags.
Here is an example of the rounded-off edge of a normal size (not mudguard size) washer, which is normally used on the top or outside of the item you are mounting it on, so that this rounded off edge is visible.
There is an important exception to this rule - when using this type of washer on plastic or a similar, soft surface, the rounded-off edge always goes against the plastic. The sharp edge will actually cut through the plastic - this is important for a later step in the installation.
There are six hangers, about 8" long, with an offset bend on one end, and six holes drilled in the long, straight section. These form the basis of the brackets; three are used on each side.
Before you mount the front one you need to cut off the bottom section, about 3/16" below the bottom hole. This is to allow a mounting bolt to fit just below the end of this hanger. You will understand later, if not now.
De-burr, but there is no need to round off the corners.
Note the orientation of the two hanger brackets - this is the key to the parallel installation of the bags.
The front hanger is mounted so that the 6 holes section is inwards of the top mount.
The rear hanger is mounted so that the 6 holes section is outwards of the top mount.
We have an MBL rack mounted which somewhat obscures the placement of the fixing hardware. I'll show that in another image, but the sequence is:
1) silver washer under grab rail
2) grab rail
3) grab rail spacer
4) black washer removed from inside grab rail
5) hanger
6) washer and 40mm round head bolt from fitting kit
Don't leave off the washer between the hanger and the grab rail spacer. This spacer has a raised edge which the hanger does not fully cover, which means that it would have a lot of flex outwards and produce an unstable mounting.
MOST IMPORTANT: If you have a nice, shiny Akrapovic or similar get a bath towel and fold it over several times and place it on top of the muffler BEFORE you start work. This will prevent damage from the many times you drop something on it.
Pictures
Originally Posted by ofdave
Spyder F3 - Sport & Cruiser Touring
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