Sagging Saddle bags

[Keats]

May 30 2008
I just bought an 05 Road King Classic. Great bike but one small problem.
The saddle bags are sagging at the top end. They have tipped out away from the fender and there's a wide gap there. I know that they should really be much closer and after I removed them, I could see that the plastic inner panel of the bag was curved out.
I really do not want to buy new bags but this is not how they should be and I'd like to know how to make some kind of rerpair on them. Has anyone else ever had this problem and if so, how did you fix it.
I know that the mounts are all right where they belong and there's no damage from an accident of any kind. It's just that the plastic has warped or bent out of shape.
Any help would really be appreciated.
Thanks
Keats
Arizona:ARIZONA

 

[Sharky1948]

Can you bend the plastic straight by hand? If so you might want to put a stiffener in the interior of the bad, secured by a few button top chrome bolts with the nut on the interior side.

(Hopefully someone else will have a less kludgy suggestion!)

 

[glider]

Possible a bit of heat to soften them a bit and block them till they cool off? Never did this so proceed at your own risk.

 

[Keats]

I talked to the mechanic at H.D. yesterday and he suggested the same thing. Use a heat gun to soften the plastic up and then weight it down from inside against a solid surface like the garage floor to flatten the curve out. It might work. I'll have to get a heat gun first. I doubt that a hair dryer would have sufficient heat. The plastic is plyable but keeps going back to the wrong shape. Thanks for the tips.
Keats
Arizona