Hi All:
BMW 1200 GS Case’s continued…
From attached to dismounted and carrying them to your tent, hotel, garage or basement for storage off the bike.
Case attached, secured and key locked on the bike. With the case locked, pushing the yellow button on the carrying handle does nothing.
Unlock w/ the bikes key, push Yellow Button on carrying handle to lift out of the way and Push Yellow Tab inside the recess to Open Case for access to interior for loading or unloading of clothes, gear, whatever.
Lift Red Tab in recess to allow case to be unlocked (but not yet removed) from the bike.
Not shown is a small black plastic closing hasp in the front of the case that has to be opened for the Case to be removed as well.
Lift Red Locking Handle in back to completely unlock Case from bike.
Lift Case off bike.
Carry case(s) away…
These have to be the most ingenious set of cases I have ever seen attached to a bike. They are waterproof (I would not want to submerse them of course) and were tested during some heavy rain while crossing parts of VA and PA with no water making its way into the interior of the cases. They are tough as they protected the bike during its lay down at 0 mph while trying to get it up on the center stand and they are unique with the collapsible and expandable volume and locking/access/removal arrangement.
If you are going to purchase a 1200 GS for long distance Adventure Touring, I would highly recommend spending the estimated $1,500 for these expandable cases. They were worth their weight and made the review and ride that much more enjoyable.
That said, I did ride the bike back to BMW HW from Long Island with all my gear removed from the cases and there was a difference. A slightly more nimble feeling to the bike at a stop then when fully loaded and the top heavy feeling dissipated somewhat. This would be the case with any top cases loaded vs. unloaded but just be aware of the top heavy difference. While riding down the road at 3 mph or more, you will not realize they are even there which is exactly as it should be.
Also, with the cases fully expanded, they do stick out quite a ways as can be seen in some of the earlier photos. There was quite a bit of drag added to the bikes profile which surely affected the Fuel Economy somewhat. Even so, 57 mpg from a bike rated around an unadjusted EPA of ~ 45 mpg shows the bike even with the cases fully extended and packed cannot hold the mighty 1200 GS back.
Did I mention that these cases were fantastic!
Wayne