Making Motorbike Tank Panniers From Backpacks

There are many tank bags and tank panniers on the market, and some really good ones at that. Personally, I like quality purpose-built motorbike luggage, however if you are the creative type, or you are on a slim budget, then perhaps the homemade tank bag panniers made from backpacks may be of interest to you.

I initially made a set of these for my first adventure bike, many moons ago, and to be fair they worked a treat. Aside from the fact they cost under $30 to make, they secured to the bike well, were durable, and waterproof. These pannier bags are large enough to carry my sleeping gear which includes a one man tent, sleeping mat and rain shelter. Here is how they are made…

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Start off with 2 British Army Day Packs. These are cheap and chips, common all over the world, and available from most army surplus stores.
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The numerous straps make them very suitable candidates for tank pannier bags.
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Firstly, unbuckle the main shoulder straps.
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Place the two bags like so, to form a hole about 1/2 an inch bigger than your fuel tank filler hole.

IMPORTANT NOTE: if you want the bags to kick forward or sit in a certain position you may need to offset the straps. To establish the perfect offset this is best done by lying the bags over the tank where you would like them to sit and then marking the position on the straps with a permanent marker.
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Using the lines from the permanent marker, cut excess off the straps.
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Sew the two bags together with an industrial sewing machine. If you don't have access to one, any saddler or canvas maker will do this up for next to nothing.
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Using a piece of heavy grade PVC or canvas, cut a hole the EXACT same size as the fuel tank filler hole to create a snug fit when you slip it over. Sew this in place like so.
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Slipping the tanks bags over the fuel tank filler hole. In this case the PVC does a great job of holding the bags in perfect position.
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Screwing the cap down which also secures the tank pannier bags from lifting/shifting.

IMPORTANT NOTE: heavy duty PVC or canvas is used for the low profile. Using thick material may stop the fuel cap from screwing in all the way and may stop the cap from sealing correctly.
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The pannier bags have lots of straps in just the right places to securely strap up the bottoms.
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At the front of the pannier bags, you can use two of the straps to connect the two tank pannier bags together across the front of the bike.
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Tank pannier bags fitted and ready for action!
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Author of this article: RMOTO