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SW Motech tank bag for Breva, Norge & Sport

Mike.C

Mike.C

High Miler
Joined
Oct 27, 2008
Messages
982
Location
Brisbane
Since starting to kit the Breva out for touring, one of my last problems has been a suitable tank bag that fitted all my criteria - easy on and off being the most important, followed closely by a good mounting system that would protect the paint-work. Initial searches revealed not much of a choice - genuine (too expensive and IMHO crap design), and a few others which I didn’t like for one reason or another. Some further searching also turned up what I thought was a very neat idea for a tank bag mounting system from SW Motech Germany - but they don’t make one for the Breva.
  • SW MOTECH LINK HERE


I subsequently found several incarnations of this concept on the net from different manufacturers, and they all use the visible fuel cap assembly mounting bolts common on Jap bikes which of course the Breva doesn’t have, or does it?

I liked the idea a lot and wanted to be absolutely sure before buying something else that I thought wasn’t very good but would have to do. Some investigation revealed that there are indeed five similar mounting screws under the aluminium housing around the fuel cap, and some additional hexagonal holes molded into the plastic assembly which is under this cast aluminium hinged fuel cap and ring assembly that are not used in standard form, but will fit a 5mm nylock nut perfectly and therefore allow some re-engineering of the way the assembly is held together. I got a sample of the mounting system from the Aussie importer with a promise that if it didn’t work I could return it and after a few hours tinkering and a lot of head scratching, decided I might be able to make it work with some modifications to the fuel cap and the supplied mounts.

Now don’t blame me - doing this is not for the faint hearted, you have to drill holes and modify bits that can’t be repaired, and it’s a one-way conversion. If you get it wrong your up for a replacement fuel cap assembly - you have been warned!

Having said that, in the end it was relatively straight forward and I thought I should post a bit of an explanation of what I did for those inclined to tinker and also because I think it’s the pick of the tank bag mounting systems that I could find. After a lot of heart in mouth drilling, grinding, head scratching and swearing it eventually bolted back together and went back on the bike to perform as Mr Guzzi intended - as a fuel cap, but with the added bonus of being a tank bag mount. So here it is; step by step procedures are at the link (you’ll need the Adobe Pdf reader).
  • Detailed PDF of step by step instructions - Link Here


I did it on my Breva 1100 (hmmm some would say kinky), but as an added bonus I had a look at a Norge and the Sport 1200 and they have the same fuel cap assembly, so the mod will work on them as well. Here’s what the end result looks like:
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

I ended up with their "City" bag.
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

Some questions came up about step 6 of the instructions when I posted this orginally, here is the additional explanation.

The steel ring under the plastic mount is secured to the fuel cap assembly using bolts 2 & 3 (see pic), and also the new bolt 1 that goes under the plastic mount using the additional hole drilled in step 5 that cannot be seen when assembled, it needs a counter sunk head to minimise the intrusion of the head into the plastic mount. It’s position therefore creates the problem of how to tighten it up - hence the small access hole required in the plastic mount (step 6) allowing a ball head hex key to be used.

Bolts 1, 2 & 3 pass through the steel ring, then through the original aluminium surround that you drilled three holes in, then through the plastic moulding (kindly drilled by Guzzi) and finally are held by Nylok nuts which just happen to fit into a recess in the moulding that must have been used on another type of bike. Bolts 4 & 5 at the rear only secure the plastic mount to the steel ring requiring no modification of the fuel cap assembly.
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

Some other questions came up......

I received this PM today and thought that a public answer might help others with the same question.

Quote "You mentioned that the ring that you got for the Breva mod was a 5 screw for a Ducati/Yamaha. Is that the only one that fitted the Breva (Norge) or is that the same as the V11 Guzzi ring or the easiest to fit??? Your input would be appreciated."

As far as I know there is only one ring - the Duc/Yam that will do the job. The V11 had a different tank ring to the Breva with visible screws and so I think Motech has one that will fit without modification.

To find one that fitted the Breva, I sent drawings and dimensions to the Aus importer and he tried em all to see which one had some holes that lined up reasonably to the Breva tank ring. There was a bit of to and fro with different rings and ideas before we found the Duc/Yam one, and I came up with a modification that might work, at which point I decided to bite the bullet and have a go.

I had a look at a Norge in the shop one day and the one I looked at had the same fuel cap hardware as the Breva so the fitting process should be identical.
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

I have now had this system on the bike for about a year or so (as at November 2008), and it is just the bee's knees - works as advertised, easy on, easy off, bags are pretty good quality - all in all a good mod.

I have also had correspondence with several Breva and Norge pilots and one Sport 1200 jockey who have taken the plunge and made the mod - all with good success.

Have a go - it's not hard, and makes for an enjoyable day in "The Shed".

And Now I am going to back all this up so if the Board goes down for a 4th time it will just be a cut and paste :unsure:
 
If you have a couple of bikes and really want to protect the tank, I recommend the bagster system. I have bagster tank covers for my SS and Breva, the quick release tank bag fits both of them and they have different sizes and styles... made in france, but quick delivery and so far, good quality
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

As insinuated by Jon above — how does the Motech system help in protecting the tank, Mike?
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

The Bags Connection tank bags are stiff enough that they won't touch the paint at all, unless you put bricks in them or something. Of course this may vary somewhat from model to model.
Also with magnetic tank bags one tends to sooner or later accidentally push or pull it and the paint job probably gets scratched that instant.
And the "snap on - pull cord to detach" locking system is extremely quick and easy to use. Also as the tank bag is actually locked in place with metal bits it feels at least to me more reassuring than magnets.

I have the Quick-Lock tank ring for my current Suzuki and the small "Trip" tank bag. I've been very happy with the system.

There are also satnav and map holders that attach to the tank bags, and a version of the tank ring that has power throughput for a satnav.

I only browsed through the earlier messages as I just noticed this thread but I didn't notice it being mentioned that the brand for the tank bags and the locking system is Bags Connection. Yes, SW Motech actually makes the connecting bits but they are not sold under their name (at least here in Europe).
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

RJVB wrote:
how does the Motech system help in protecting the tank, Mike?
Click to expand...
As Some Fin says the base of the bags are quite stiff and some of them don't touch the tank at all. Since this mod ages ago, I now also have one of their smaller bags which I use for day trips, and as you can see in the pic it is held completely clear of the tank by the mount. It's a nice size bag for putting wallet, camera, and all the unecessary crap that seems to be necessary for a day trip :S, and has a neat little shower proof zipper and a zipped expander section.
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

Sorry I can't remember what they call it. BUT how stupid are the designers or perhaps the marketing people! See the nice little red embroidered bull logo on the top of the external pocket, the one on top with the round zip pull tag; well the material the pocket is made from is nicely water proof thank you very much, but of course the embroidery needle has put a couple of hundred perfect little holes through it which quite usefully lets water in from even the smallest shower, very efficiently wetting whatever is in there..... :angry:

They did however supply a plastic waterproof cover with the bag - how thoughtful. Problem is EVERY time I have ridden into a shower of rain the cover has been carefully folded up in the bike bits storage cupboard at home... :eek:hmy:
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

However, their other bags do touch the tank. So I suppose the system doesn't protect the tank in that case.
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

We also have another bag - Shhhhh don't tell The Minister I have it out, it is hers' that she uses on the Nevada!
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

This one also doesn't touch the tank, and is a bit bigger than my day tripper. As you can see in this pic
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

Mike.C wrote:
Sorry I can't remember what they call it. BUT how stupid are the designers or perhaps the marketing people! See the nice little red embroidered bull logo on the top of the external pocket, the one on top with the round zip pull tag; well the material the pocket is made from is nicely water proof thank you very much, but of course the embroidery needle has put a couple of hundred perfect little holes through it which quite usefully lets water in from even the smallest shower, very efficiently wetting whatever is in there..... :angry:
Click to expand...

Try sealant? Not sure what would be best, I'd start with Scotchgard and if that didn't work go underneath with windscreen sealant.

Zebee
 
Re:SW Motech Tank Bag for Breva Norge & Sport

zebee wrote:
Mike.C wrote:
Sorry I can't remember what they call it. BUT how stupid are the designers or perhaps the marketing people! See the nice little red embroidered bull logo on the top of the external pocket, the one on top with the round zip pull tag; well the material the pocket is made from is nicely water proof thank you very much, but of course the embroidery needle has put a couple of hundred perfect little holes through it which quite usefully lets water in from even the smallest shower, very efficiently wetting whatever is in there..... :angry:
Click to expand...

Try sealant? Not sure what would be best, I'd start with Scotchgard and if that didn't work go underneath with windscreen sealant.

Zebee
Click to expand...

Camping stores are a great source for thread hole sealants. Tents often use a polyurethane based seam sealant... if your coating is PVC, I've had good luck with the liquid sealants sold for air mattresses. Both coatings should be applied to the underside of the fabric so it bonds with the existing waterproofing. Just be sure the surface is clean for best adhesion (alcohol swab from the 1st aid kit will do for cleaning) Once dry, a spray of Scotchgard or a similar treatment to the outside stacks the odds in your favor.

All this means you can ride an extra few minutes before your gear is wet:laugh:
 
I put mine together today.

The only problem I had was that the metal ring that came with it did not *quite* fit over the bits in the plastic where you fit the nylock nuts and so drilled the holes in the fuel cap surround. The holes in the ring were a bit under half a hole out with the ring being too small a diameter. I don't know why, maybe I didn't get quite the right kit?

However I was at my mate Bruce's place, he of the Serious Tool Habit and the many skills. He took a look at it, grabbed an MGH (Mucking Great Hammer), walked outside to the anvil, put the ring on the horn, gave it one blow and handed it back. It fit perfectly.

Once that was done, then drilling holes and removing the bit of plastic to get to the forward countersunk bolt was easy. (Bruce had the countersink drill, so that was easy. Don't do it without, borrow or buy a countersink bit.)

The plastic ring had to be spread a bit to fit on the ring, once it was it didn't interfere with the tank cap at all, didn't need to remove any more plastic.

I used 2 cap bolts and 1 countersink bolt from the kit that came with the tank ring, had to cut off around 8mm or so from them. I had to buy 3 5mm nylok nuts to put on the cap and countersink bolts. (It is sortof obvious that you need to when you have the bits in front of you.)

As the plastic tank ring had to be spread I was worried that the bag ring might not fit, but it does quite happily. Easy one handed on and off. So I['m happy!

I bought a daypackII which is a small bag. It will take what I wanted it for, which is the few things I need on a long tour that I don't want to have to keep hauling out of the topbox. Wallet, book, map, phone, camera. Bonus is it fits my handbag and my lunch when I go to work, so don't need to pull the topbox key out of the keyring pouch it lives in (that stops it bashing the paint.) ( I have the Breval topbox, separate key. Anyone know if you can put the Norge box lock on a Breva box?)


Zebee
 
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