Found some saddlebags - need some instructions.

[marriedman]

I sort of lucked out and found some Hondaline soft nylon saddlebags on craigslist for $20 today! However, they were not taken care of as well as I had hoped. They are filthy inside & out and there no instructions. I assumed they mount under the seat, but The literally touch the exhaust pipes.

I have attached similar saddlebags, mine are out in the garage until I can find safe cleaning instructions! Mine are also badly faded, so I am hoping there is a way to recolor/darken them again.

[Bumblebee]

It's like cleaning crash gear. Put them in a bucket and clean with soap and water hose. Rinse thoroughly with the hose and let it dry outside with all the compartments/pockets open.

When nylon fades, there's not really anything you can do. It's UV damage to nylon which is plastic. Dying/recoloring is really not going to happen.

[marriedman]

BumbleBee - I knew right away you would be the one to answer this post. I had actually considered just PM'ing you. Thanks for the tip.

Any one else that reads this thread - still need to know about some instructions on how to properly mount these things.

[ariwhiteboy]

Probably need to fab up some kind of heat shield to protect them from the pipes.

[drdubb]

I don't have Hondaline, but I put mine over the seat. Keeps em' off the pipes. Some folks do one strap over and one under. I did rig up a clip for one of the straps that works quite well.

[marriedman]

I have tried a few different mounting techniques, and I have to say that the over the seat, looped around the passenger peg, and extra bungie hooked on the tie-down bars seems to work the best. Keeps them off the pipes and keeps them from moving back and forward.

drdubb - I think your method is the way I will go next. There are some burn spots on the straps from the previous owner. From what I can tell, this guy must have hated these bags from the way he treated them!  How did you attach that buckle to the frame?

[k-vette]

As far as the color goes, RIT dye (can be found at walmart, or some grocery stores) will dye nylon.  This is common with Radio controlled car/truck wheels.  They are usually solid white and made out of nylon plastic.  The wheels can be dyed, so I don't see why it wouldn't work on the nylon bag.  And black is readily available.  

[NightHawked]

FWIW they do have spray cans  for car interiors. I used this type of product on my bags, they were a bit faded. I choose satin, they gave it a little bit. I might go with gloss next time.

[marriedman]

Just for anyone who is following this thread or searches at a later date, I couldn't find the spray on stuff Nighthawked mentioned, so I went with the RIT dye like k-vette said.

It was messy, it was wet, but the kids and I had a good time doing it. The look pretty darn good on the outside even after the washing. They have been air drying for a few hours so I am hoping the color sticks. As I mentioned before, the P.O. treated these bad for a long, long time. There is no shape left to them, and the insides were pretty stained with a motley of white and various colors. Well, the inside is now an almost uniform shade of purple!

I will report back on this thread after a few weeks of use to let anyone who is interested know how well the color looks/lasts.

[marriedman]

I forgot about this thread. To close it, I would just like to say that the RIT dye failed to stay. Bumblebee was correct. I am just going to keep them as they are until I can save up for some nice new ones.

[nhman1946]

I will give you back your $20 if you send them to me.

[marriedman]

I believe Option13 (member here) has these saddlebags now. I gifted them over the winter.