Installing Harley-Davidson® Rigid Leather Locking Saddlebags on a Sportster
The bags I installed on my 2009 Harley-Davidson® Sportster 1200C were the Harley-Davidson® Rigid, Leather, Locking Sportster Saddlebag kit # 53050-10A, part number 90201321
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After years of hesitation I finally installed the Harley-Davidson® Rigid Leather Locking Saddlebags on my Sporty. I never wanted my bike to be cluttered up with accessories. However, we travel alot and the little leather saddlebags I had were not all that functional. I also have added a luggage rack that I never wanted, but necessary for road trips.
I am so glad I purchased these bags! I love how they look, I was surprised! The functionality is life changing! I can secure my jacket and other riding gear and actually LOCK it! With my previous bags, I could barely stuff my jacket in. The only downside to these bags was the expense. They are very expensive and on the Sportster you also have to move the rear turn signals, adding more expense! But in the end, worth it!!
The installation was fairly easy and did not take a lot of time. In comparison, relocating the rear turn signals was a pain and time consuming.
The biggest obstacle that I think most people struggle with is the process of getting the very large bolts through the fender. We watched several videos before attempting ourselves and witnessed some pretty crazy approaches to this.
The easiest way to gain clearance is to jack the fender up above the rear tire. We used a standard floor jack, secured the bike in an upright position, and removed the top bolt from the shock.
After inserting the bolts, we lowered the bike, replaced the bolt, torqued to 45-50 ft. lbs. and then continued with the install.
The kit comes with the bolts, spacers, bushings, nuts, and rubber covers. After the bolts are in place, reinstalled the fender cover support, reinstall the shocks, slide the spacers onto the bolts. Add the bushings, short bushing onto the front bolt with short end toward the saddlebag and long bushing onto the back bolt with short end toward the saddlebag. Slide the saddlebag on, thread the flange locknuts to the bolts, tighten to 24-27 ft-lbs. Install the rubber thread protector caps to each bolt.
That completes the installation! The saddlebag kit came with a leather conditioner which I applied and let set overnight. The next day I buffed off any excess and was ready to roll! Very easy install.
Check out this YouTube video for installation steps.