Hope this post is useful to someone :-)

During the rebuild of my bike the Panniers were dis-assembled to facilitate the painting of the suitcase outer shells. What was found was RUST on the hinges and screws . . err . . YUCK



Whilst this might seem a small non- event in the life of a motorcyclist i can assure you rust never sleeps and is responsible for things fall apart / falling off as you are travelling down the highway

A simple job to remove, re-lube, refit and re-protect Hinges is what follows. I know this may be super basic stuff for some people others may find value in it so here it is:

NB: Mine did not have retaining straps on the insides which prevent the cases from opening out too far and hitting the ground. Your ones may well have them. If they do you don'tneed to remove them as the whole operation can be performed with the outer lids in place

1/ Remove the 12 retaining screws from the hinges on the base of the pannier

2/ GENTLY Pry the hinge free

3/ Clean the surfaces where the hinge lays and the sides / edges of the rail the hinge screws in to with a solvent such as isopropyl alcohol or similar

4/ De-rust the hinge using SOLVENT, NOT a wire wheel or brush. These hinges are CHROME and so are the screws. The rust is emanating from the pin inside the hinge :-)

5/ Take the hinge and apply WHITE LITHIUM GREASE to each moving part on the hinge LIBERALLY on both sides



6/ Degrease the excess grease on teh hinge by rubbibg with a damp solvent cloth

6A/ Re attach the hinge to the case. do NOT over-tighten any of the screws. hand tighten until JUST FIRM. If you strip the plastic rail that screw will be defunct, null and void unless you like rebuilding screw holes as well :-)

7/ Source some CLOTH TAPE. This is fibre tape and is Hard wearing for when you remove the panniers from teh bike and put them on surfaces like concrete. It is also waterproof and has a strong self adhesive backing



8/ Carefully apply the tape as though you were masking the hing to paint it. Do not forget to do the ends. The roll I got was not quite wide enough to cover the width of the hinge entirely so I did a double mask, from one side and then the other side. Tht tape should go from the bottom edge of the rail where the hinge screws in to to the othe bottom edge of the rail and over each end.






Wollah . . done

Are those metallic hinges original? I have always known the panniers to have the black plastic hinges which eventually split.

Nice idea though, adding a bit more structural integrity.

As far as I know, yes the hinges are original though I bought the bike december 2012. Its and 89 model so who knows . . . they may well have been replaced at some point. The tape idea is not mine. The same type of tape was on them when I got the bike so I have simply replaced it

They are not original. All the K bike paniers came with the slide off plastic hinge
http://www.motobins.co.uk/bmw-parts.php?model=K%20Series Motobins Part No.69820
[color:d5a2=#888]BMW Part No. 46 54 2 300 039

The hinges are as cheap as chips and a piece of cake to attach. I always carry a couple spare, if not for me, then for someone else.

A brass piano hinge would save the worry of the steals rust issues

Ok, Thanks for the info's :-) The plastic slide off rails are still there and the hinge screws in to that, Yes brass is a good fix it for rust. Thanks for that :-)

K75cster wrote:A brass piano hinge would save the worry of the steals rust issues

I agree with this but one needs to check, some cheaper piano hinges use steel pins.