After my trip to New York I noticed these repeat scratches in behind the logo, where the rear left magnetic paw of my Nelson Rigg tank bag sit. Either the paw damaged it (inspected it, nothing out of the ordinary) or someone very cleverly keyed the bike. Either way it looks pretty awful once you know it's there. No buffing will save this.
What the hell? Anyone else had this experience or heard of this? Maybe I should switch to a tank bag that doesn't use magnetic arms?
Sucks to see a gigantic scratch on your beautiful tank paint. :shake:
Yeah, mine's been a bit scratched too. � It happened to me on a really windy day. �I think it was from sand that got blown in. I try and wipe off the bottom of the tankbag, and the top of the tank before I put it on.
I also have the Nelson Rigg bag but haven't seen any scratches. I've had it on for 1 yr now but only take it off when gassing up or washing the bike. I never set it down anywhere the magnets could pick anything up.
I have an older Marsee magnetic tankbag and it has worked very well for more than 5 years without scratching my tank after thousands of miles. The trick for me was to make sure the tank is 100% free of dust or dirt particles when I install the bag. Another thing that kept my tank from scratching is the bottom of the bag is lined with real suede material. I think the later bags now use a rubber / neoprene type pad under the bag. I think the rubber material is a little harsher on the paint in the long run than leather suede material that I have on my bag. I have been thinking of replacing the bag already, but I haven't been able to find the same small size magnetic tank bag with leather suede material anywhere. They dont make them like they used to. Even the Marsee bags are now lined with the now typical rubber pad on it's bottom. sad.gif � sad.gif
Mine did that, magnetic tank bags pick up iron filings or iron bits from dirt and from around your garage, you really have to get into the material and dig them out or it just keeps on scratching away. Pull away the material from the magnet and rub the little pieces of metal out. Damn things scratched the hell out of my tank. Not that my bike is a thing of beauty anymore, needs paint bad.
Both my viffer and my SV have some tank scratches from my magnetic tank bag. Like Slammer said, they come from little bits of metal that get stuck to the bag and those can come from anywhere. I always take a look and brush at the bottom now before putting it down. From the direction of yours, it kind of looks like they happened when you removed the bag, maybe dragging the wings up a little. I try to always pull the magnets straight off.
But like I said, both my tanks have some scars. Its the price I have paid for the convenience of the magnetic bag. Its worth it to me.
I use a magnetic tank bag in addition to my tank cover. I also use transparent contact paper on the areas where the magnets contact the tank. The sheet is always removed if the bike will sit in direct sunlight when it's parked. I keep a few spare sheets handy and reapply if I need to remount the bag.
Can't tell from the photo - is the scratch through the clearcoat? If not, it should polish out fairly well. Even if it's into the paint and not through to the primer, it should be fixable.
As others said - I never put the bag magnets-side-down, unless it's on a spotless clean surface ('Get that bag off my kitchen table.' 'Sorry.'). :D Also, I periodically brush off the bottom of the bag before putting it on the tank.
I still have some slight scratches in the clearcoat on top of the tank, but they buff out pretty well. There's also the 3M clear protective film, which I've used in other places on the bike that get rubbed by soft luggage or the like.
Jim
End of thread · 9 posts recoveredWayback Machine snapshot 17 May 2005