Any tips to stop BMW top boxes from rattling? I have tried that self adhesive foam you can buy from Clarks Rubber and applied it to the base of the box so it sits between the top box and the original BMW rack and that has cut it down a bit. With the third world roads in the Hunter Valley it gets a fair old shaking!

hi steve ...the catch arm (inside the box) ...can be manipulated to hold tighter as well .... but dont go trying to make it so tight that it is hard to press the button in ....carefully is the best way

also its sometimes a good idea to actually put something in the box ...old cloths, hockey straps or something , kinda stops some of the resonances

hope that helps

Hi Charlie, you really have to push the lid down to get it to click shut, it doesn't look as though someone has played with the lock in the past but maybe they have. It seems secure enough when shut. I normally carry some gloves and a pair of rain pants and a cap in it all sitting on top of a old towel. The foam rubber under and between the top box where it mounts to the rack has quietened it a lot but not completely. It looks like being a on going thing all I can do is to keep trying solutions. Thanks for the suggestions.

Simple solution, Steve,..........Ear-plugs

i put some along the frame also steve ...which has quietened it up a lot ....i should post a pic eh ?



not trimmed up yet ...but you get the idea huh ....is this something like what you have done ?

Under the head of the male part of the dzus fastener it should be a U shaped tension washer.

If that is broken, or lost its tension.........it could be the reason to the problem.

i think the problem is that the plastic along the base of the top box is flexing inge ...i have that washer in place ....its possibly just inertia bouncing the box around on our rough roads out here ..(potholes etc )

i had thought to make another aluminium plate inside the box (although its curved ) to make the flexing less at the centre of the box mount fixing thingy (caption bolt )

No problem on mine............maybe should stop complaining about the Norwegian road maintance?

whilst on the "big" highway ...its all good inge ...just most secondary roads

The cupped washer is in place and it pulls down securely against it. It appears to be the topbox hitting against the rack as the cushion rubber as in Charlies photo shows has eased the noise a bit. They were obviously designed for Autobahns rather than the goat tracks we call roads in the Hunter.

Been out and checked my top box, and it`s not possible to make it rattle unless I`m loosening the fastener.

But I`ll guess that it can make a difference if the top box is permanent on the bike or not.

I using mine only now and then, when the extra space is needed (so it mostly of the bike).

I could see when tightening the fastener that the whole middle section of the bottom of the top box was flexing down.
And if the box is permanent on the bike, I`ll guess the plastic being shaped after a long period with this pressure and looses this ability to tension the box against the carrier.

i guess your right inge .....we have high heat here ...(well for more than a few months a year )...the plastic does take on stress bends and stays there as it cools down at night .

Well, heat isn`t any problem here, close to the north pole....

That reminds me, winter is coming closer now......time to measure the door openings, and see if I can carrie the firewood inside with the wheelbarrow...........hope you get healed soon, Rick.

thanks inge. i think the wheelbarrow would be more dangerous considering the steps

I got one with square wheels.

Inge K. wrote:I got one with square wheels.

you vikings do do it different up there inge .....!!!!

Prolly wouldn't rattle if it were used for what it were intended; a slab of VB and some ice.

I'll drink to that!

Steve I used a sheet of the sleeping mat (the light blue stuff) to stop mine from rattling also reinforced the piano hinge for the lid to ensure neither would cause harm. Had the clarke rubber c channel solution for the lid to close on also. If you have no luck i can drop abit of the blue stuff in on friday as i'll be in thornton all day waiting to do the charter at lunch time so free from 09:15 onwards till then

Hi Keith, thanks for the offer of the foam. The stuff I have used seems to be on the right track, it may just need a little more in the right places. Will let you know how it goes and if I need it you can bring some to the next coffee morning. Have you made anymore progress on the K75?

Yes about to do a dummy run and fuel the tank to soak everything might let that sit for a week and focus on the paint then drain and check out the pump and injectors

[quote="charlie99"]i put some along the frame also steve ...which has quietened it up a lot ....i should post a pic eh ?


Using this great photo. I just received my ordered mounting bracket plate, and I have been searching for info about that bracket will better stay on the luggage rack, and I can't quite fathom how this plate gets and stays in this position. I have read that sometimes they fall off, and noticed there are more missing all the time. Does anyone have intimate knowledge of how to install this plate in the most secure way?

I couldn't find tips on making this better.

UJ

Steve,

Don't know if this is the exact problem you have but on my K75 rack base plate I had the grey foam on the lower surface literally disentegrate away. I collected some reasonably thin blue foam rubber form the afore mentioned Clark Rubber. Using the old Bear contact cement I glued it on the lower surface. It made for a tight squeeze getting the base plate back in but definitely locked the plate solidly. If the top bock locks in solidly should not be a concern.

I will try and get some photies up later. Don't want to go back down into the garage as it is sticking hot here at the moment and my nakedness might scare the neighbours cat.

Cheers, Dave.

With these racks it is quite fiddly to slide the baseplate in and down to enable you to slide it up and under the top to latch it in position. Looking at the parts list a year or so ago I saw that they supply a proper clear sheet which sticks onto the tail fibreglass to help avoid scratches when putting the plate in. The rack needs to be off to put it on and it is fiddly to get it down without wrinkles. I saw after I had done it that the trick is to use some detailing spray under the sticky whilst positioning it and smoothing wrinkles and then let is sit so the glue then bonds over 24 hours. As mentioned earlier by one of the team the foam under the plate on mine has also disintegrated away. For extra security I used Loctite on the nuts that hold the rack in place so as to avoid the nuts coming loose.
Regards,
K-BIKE

tio Jaimito wrote:[I have been searching for info about that bracket will better stay on the luggage rack, and I can't quite fathom how this plate gets and stays in this position. I have read that sometimes they fall off, and noticed there are more missing all the time. Does anyone have intimate knowledge of how to install this plate in the most secure way?

The bracket isn't meant to be permanent on the luggage rack, only when the top box
is in use.

When the top box is in use, the bracket is fixed and can't move in any direction.

Inge K. wrote:

tio Jaimito wrote:[I have been searching for info about that bracket will better stay on the luggage rack, and I can't quite fathom how this plate gets and stays in this position. I have read that sometimes they fall off, and noticed there are more missing all the time. Does anyone have intimate knowledge of how to install this plate in the most secure way?

The bracket isn't meant to be permanent on the luggage rack, only when the top box
is in use.

When the top box is in use, the bracket is fixed and can't move in any direction.

I agree I always remove the plate when the top box is not in use. Fitting the plate on mine always works like this: locate the plate in the lower/rear slots first slide in backwards as far as possible then the front tabs should clear the rack enough to drop the plate down and line up the front tabs and finally slide it up/forward to locate them. always works on mine.

88KE