PhatRJ wrote:


I was intrigued at first, but after seeing the execution I'm not a fan. Something about wood and bikes just doesn't jive for me.

I agree somewhat. If I was going through the trouble of making wood saddlebags I would definitely not use pine. I would use an exotic wood, and make the bags look less like a coffin, or cheap brand when I put all that effort into them.

Then the staining and fitments...oy, the ideas are endless. But the woods in my head would be seriously heavy and dense, so not sure how that would work.

If you do it, wrap them in fiber glass sorta like a cedar strip canoe. the wood show threw and gives it a real nice finish.

Made wood backing plates for saddlebags so they would fit my stars brackets. They turned out nice. Painted them black. Dont see why you couldnt make the whole shabang wooden.

Big david wrote:
If you do it, wrap them in fiber glass sorta like a cedar strip canoe. the wood show threw and gives it a real nice finish.

This is an art in itself, and when finished would be absolutely gorgeous. The cedar-strips can be steamed and bent over any form to make even tear-drop shaped bags. They are light, waterproof, strong, (don't require inner structural reinforcing) and when covered in epoxy-soaked glass-mat, wet-sanded and finished with polyurethane you would be able to see yourself in them. The high-end canoes made this way sell for thousands of dollars, but the technique is quite within the range of anyone willing to devote some hours during the off-season... As I said previously, I would just be totally paranoid leaving the bike anywhere that some idiot could 'key' it. I ride 15K miles/ year and frequently park in some shady areas during our trips.

Link to pics of a canoe built this way:
http://www.canoe-suwannee.com/cedar_strip_canoe.htm
John Scribner

OBMF wrote:
[b]
Link to pics of a canoe built this way:
http://www.canoe-suwannee.com/cedar_strip_canoe.htm
John Scribner

Very cool link thanks

Just Dave wrote:
You don't need wood if you are going fiberglass them. You just use Styrofoam carved to the shape you want, cover with glass and then cut the foam out.
Doesn't sound THAT easy. Cutting the foam would be a chore in it itself, getting all the right angles, everything symmetrical.
Then, laying the fiberglas, anyone here actually attempted this?

I've watched it done, and the strips of cedar can be stapled to temporary plywood 'bulkhead' type supports in lieu of foam forms. Each strip is edge-glued to the next with epoxy resin and stapled in place (staples are removed later) When the entire shape is layed up and hardened, the staples are pulled and the plywood forms are removed. A very light glass mat is saturated with special epoxy (not auto-repair poly) resin and layed over the cedar (inside and out). Another coat of resin or two is applied over the mat, and then wet-sanded down. Then the whole thing is given coats of clear marine-grade polyurethane on the outer surface. It sounds more complicated than it really is. And the end results are quite gorgeous, lightweight, waterproof and incredibly strong. The technique has been around for a long time, and the 'West System' of epoxy resins is considered the gold-standard for this type of work. Epoxy is much better in every respect than the standard auto-repair poly products most of us are familiar with. Anyone with some basic wood-working skills could make some bitchin' bags over the winter season.
Link to the West System Epoxy products:
http://www.westsystem.com/ss/
John Scribner

The laminating I was referring to in my first post here is a similar technique OBMF. Gluing strips together and pressing them until set and then shaping after with sanders. I was thinking Teak or Cypress instead of Cedar. When Laminating, your imagination is all that would restrict you as far as patterns, colors, etc. Exotic Woods such as Zebra or Ebony would make them cost prohibitive for the average person.

Blackroadie wrote:
They would match my wooden helmet!


boy oh boy I hope that is just a veneer finish on a DOT helmet.