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Integral Bag Repair

Repairing Integral Bag Latches

by Steven Huber <shuber@terracom.net>

The subject of re-attaching Integral bag latches occasionally comes up on the list. Repairing the latches is a simple procedure; here’s a summary of how I’ve repaired the latches.

TOOLS:

  • Pop rivet gun. There are many types for sale. I bought a rather simple one that handles the smaller rivet sizes.
  • Needle nose pliers.

MATERIALS:

  • Multi-size, aluminum pop rivets. These work for a length (grip) range of .251″ to .437″. Width (hole size) is .129″ to .156″
  • 1/8″ aluminum pop rivet washers.

Both steel and aluminum pop rivets are available. It looks like the OEM ones are aluminum. My guess is the Al ones will shear more easily, perhaps causing less damage to the bags in a crash. I use the Al ones.

PROCEDURE:

  1. Use the needle-nose pliers to remove what remain of the pop rivets in the latch mechanism and on/in the bag. If not all of the rivets sheared off you will have to drill them out.
  2. Place pop rivet in gun and place a washer on the rivet.
  3. Position the latch on the outside of the bag. You want the “hook” part of the latch to face inwards to the bag mounting bracket; however, the hole location in the latch makes this a no-brainer to position. There is no chance of getting the latch backwards (famous last words).
  4. Insert rivet from inside the bag out through the latch.
  5. Squeeze the rivet gun handles and your rivet should be installed. You might have to reposition the gun on the tang and repeat the squeeze to snug down the rivet. Follow the instructions for your gun to snip off the remaining tang.
  6. Repeat for the remaining rivets.

That’s it!

Steve Huber ’93 K11LT, ’88 R100RX

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