Odd, or unidentified saddle bags

by Duane Ausherman

Arthur Fulmer Bags

Duane,

Here are the bags I picked up today. I don’t see them on your site, so it might be good to add them. “Reid Dammann,” Some of the members said they were Craven. They pretty beat up, but I’ll get them looking good. If you want a different angle, let me know.

I am sure that these are not Craven.   I have an idea but am not sure.   Does anybody know??

Some small production runs of aluminum bags were done by individuals.  A few were offered for sale.  This one is unknown.

Dementor says that the fairing, tank, and bags are all Heinrich.  The top box looks like a Samsonite.

The contributor says that these are BMW, but I don’t think so.  There is no shot of the full bags, but they look like Wixom to me in the way that the right bag folds down to get it out of the way of the seat.  What are they?

I can’t tell if this is a bag in a saddlebag or just what.  What is it?

The silver fabric “what is it” under the Misc page looks like the advanced first aid kits that some of the Rettungsdeinst volunteers used at various festivals in Germany.  They were the equivalent of a small ambulance worth of equipment in a 20-kilo package.  They could be attached to bike racks, carried like a backpack, or slung over a shoulder to move through dense, often uncooperative, crowds.

I saw a lot of them at Octoberfest in Munich, and one of my good friends carried one at a big soccer game (Dortmunder Union v. Istanbul.  The after-party got ugly with over 100K “hometown” Turks living in Dortmund).  A number of the guys that opted for civil service instead of military service got trained as EMT types.

The outside usually had a large percentage of the area covered with safety green or orange tape stripe, and they had a hard-sided inner liner.

Onkel Udo

Dan Brown saddlebags

By Brent Scharpansky

Comanche Products bags

Hi Duane

Comanche Products, Clearview Rd made the traditional bags in Cottontown, Tenn.  These were bought in 1973. The tape stripes are not original, nor are the various holes that held lights. The top mounts bolt to the shock bolt and the top hole on the license plate bracket. The bottom mount goes from the bottom of the bag to what? I put it on the reflector tab.

They measure 17″ long, 7″ wide, and 9″ high w/o a lid

Leon

Olympic

Olympic made these Krauser wannabes. Cheaper in price and quality but held up ok.  They attach to Krauser mounts.  Bought these in the late ’70s, Leon

Garhawk Saddlebags

By Dave Langlois

This bag is shown on a /2 US model.  I have never seen this one before.

Aldo saddlebags and trunk or top box

By Bob Zinda in Wis.

Here is a picture of the business card Al & Dolores glassed inside every saddlebag cover and trunk cover.  The glass is somewhat discolored from age.  They were local residents here in the Milwaukee area and were great friends of ours for many years.  I also have pics of their matching R90 BMWs in the early ’70s.  They belonged to our WIS BMW Motorcycle club, and quite a few members bought them.

Bob tells me that the aluminum luggage rack was made by Reynolds of Salt Lake City, Utah.

Fibre-Mold Bags

Duane:

The pics are attached.  I can’t tell you much about them.  There are no hinges on the lid, and there are two pins on the lid that slide into a metal receiver in the bag and a locking latch facing aft.  They have no lights like the Enduro bags.  They attach to a bracket that extends from the seat frame and originally attached to a clamp around the muffler via a spring-loaded pin
clips’.

The lids were attached to the bags with a ball chain.  There was a remnant of a label on the inside of the lid that I lost.  The print was in German.

I love the bags and am contemplating fabricating a new lid out of fiberglass.  But I am keeping an eye open for other options.  The bags seem easy enough to come by.  It’s the hardware compatible with the bike that I find confusing.  I work wood, not metal.

Robert D. Allshouse

Sorry Robert, but I don’t remember ever seeing them.  Maybe one of our readers can identify them.  Duane

These are the Enduro bags made for the /5

BMW (Butler and Smith) leather bags

This is a collection of photos and information from BMW riders and collectors.  I include photos of similar perspectives in case one shows some aspect that another does not.  Please feel free to add information and photos.  As I remember, these did not come with mounting instructions.  Most were made by Denfeld.

BMW bag photos supplied by Jim Nassetta

These bags were supplied by Butler and Smith for both the /2 and /5 series.  Only the mounts were different.  The leather was very thick and stiff.  The mounts were well known to break, but that was mostly because they were overloaded.  They were not highly waterproof, and users would wrap the contents in plastic bags.  They were probably the least expensive bags one could buy for a BMW.  The 1971 parts book shows two sizes of leather bags and no Krauser bags.

These bags came in slightly different shapes and got distorted by use.  I think that over time, different contractors made them for motorcycles, and they were imported by Butler and Smith.

/2 photos provided by Bob Fee, thanks

Leather bags on a very tasty /2 conversion

By Craig McClure

Hi Duane, as promised, here are the pix. I got the bag mounts from Bob’s BMW. He had 1 more mount-set than bag-set or would not have sold it without the bags.  I conjured these bags up for much less $$$. They are leatherette, & have Austrian crest markings…I prefer to ride without bags myself, but they are so convenient & go on easily when you need to carry things.  In fact, I have 3 identical German army rubberized/leather trim backpacks, to which I will add hardware that will fit my pannier mounts & rear rack.  I will send photos when I get it completed.  I hope these photos help(& are good enough).  You are doing a heroic service for the community of vintage BMW fans.  I, for one, certainly appreciate it.  Thanks & very best wishes to you, Craig

Updated 30 March 2023