I have a Hog Deluxe swing arm bag and the Dimensions are 10 inch long X 11 1/2 inch tall then tapering to 8 inch and 4 1/2 deep. It was the only bag I found that works and looks good with my Samson Fishtails! The only part I didn't like was how bad the bag sagged (especially with some weight inside) using the leather straps that came with it to secure it to the swing arm.

Here is a picture of it strapped on (note the relation to the axle bolt cover)...


I spoke with Al at Dead Creek Cycles and he told me about his swing arm mounting system. I was extremely impressed with his level of customer service. I have purchased several items from several of the "cottage" companies that support this forum! A few measurements later, I ordered one.

Here is the kit laid out on the work bench...


A couple of 1/2" cap nuts and the upper belt guard is off. These two pictures are of the "T-nut" described in the instructions...



The lower belt guard is a bit tricky, especially when running duel exhausts. the front portion of the guard is held in place with a 1/2" bolt that you only need to loosen (not remove as it is a pain in the *** to fit a wrench on it). The rear is held on with a pressed in nut that uses a headless bolt. You can actually remove the headless bolt using a 5/32" allen wrench since the MoCo was thoughtful enough to put an allen head in it.

Following the instructions, I installed the upper headless bolts (note the lower belt guard bolt loosened from the frame on the far left of the picture)...


I used red Loctite on the ends and the nuts that held the belt guards on the swing arm. The only variation from the instructions at this point was that I had to screw the bottom headless bolt from the backside and did NOT make it flush with the upper two. This was because it would have hit the pipe. So, I allowed enough room to fit the backing plate on and use a standard nut...




The next step was to mock up the bag and figure out where to drill another hole that will end up inside the shorter bag. There was absolutely NO science in picking this spot...


I drilled the hole through the second plate and then eyeballed where to cut off the excess the inner plate had. This is necessary as the inner plate will not fit inside the bag unless you cut some of it off. I debated over several methods on how to cut it, but after Al telling me that the aluminum used was rather soft, I decided to (carefully & slowly) use a chop saw...


Other than the mess (you really NEED safety glasses for this), it worked beautifully! One of the things I did not want to do was to cut the headless bolts down any, and with several test fittings, I was able to mount it all without needing to cut anything other than the one plate. I also was able to use one of the original MoCo bolts for the extra mounting hole I drilled, but other than that only used the supplied hardware!

Here is the inner plate bolted up...


Overall, I am extremely pleased with how well thought out the Dead Creek Cycles kit is and the overall results! My only problem is that my measurements were off by 1/2" on the left side and the bag doesn't sit exactly parallel to the exhaust pipe.


I will pull it off and redrill the holes in the leather to straighten it out when it is a bit warmer. I did the work today in my shed/shop and it was 35* with NO HEAT or insulation. At least the sun was out and I was able to wrench!

So here are the finished pics...






I enjoy figuring out problems like this and really liked how this turned out. It is too bad that I sold my full sized Leatherworks bag as I am going to pull these Samsons off soon in favor of the V&H Longshots I had on before. Why you ask? Because I am giving up this bike to the warden for her to ride this next season. Cheers!

 

You just have to get all of your tinkering with the bike in before you give her up don't you. Nice job on the mount.

 

Nice job. Way to think outside the box.

 

What about rear swing arm suspension travel? You are only 3/8 clear with no load on the suspension?

 

The angle of the pictures makes it look like there is only 3/8ths, but it actually is over an inch. I'm at 250 and didn't feel it hit while bouncing up and down on it. But, it will need a good shake down ride to verify.

 

Nice job to bad when they sell this stuff they cant have it fit right. Seems like every time you get something that is supposed to bolt right on it turns out to be a project when I got my ride wright 21 inch wheel that was supposed to bolt right on well that's another story you were able to figure a way out of the mess some can't and they buy these things with the notion it will go right on when that happens it seems to good to be true

 

Good solution, though I've just opted to sporting a sling-bag when I need to carry stuff. Just can't bring myself to bolt any kind of bag to the bike.

 

Awesome DIY. I've been looking at swing arm bags. This is motivating me to want one more.

 

Well, after scientific studies and further research, the bottom bolt set-up does in fact make contact with the Samson pipe support strut. I have two options... first would be to gather up shorter headless bolts and try and snug up the mounting system as close to the swing arm as possible, which should put the entire assembly inside of the support strut elevating the contact. Or, the second would be to swap out the Samsons for the V&H Longshots I have. I plan on doing both, but I will try and fix the lower bolt problem prior to pulling the Samsons in an effort to put closure to this. When I set out to solve the problem of having a swing arm bag WITH Samson duels, it was with the intention of keeping the bike set-up how it is. But since I am now going to set it up for the warden, plans change. To be continued...

 

Or leave the swing arm purse off lol ,, those fishtails look good on that bike !!