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[w34p0n2m4n]

You guys might have noticed that the 2013 Zero S is put together pretty tightly. So tightly, in fact, that most of the fasteners are almost entirely hidden. This approach to engineering the bike means that there aren't many options for attaching things without permanently altering the bike.

With that in mind, I wanted some saddlebags, but I didn't want to pay hundreds of dollars for them. I also didn't want to make any permanent changes to my bike.

Here's the final result. one picture is just of the support for the bags and the other is of the bags mounted on the support.

The main costs were: ($100 total)
1/2"x10' EMT Conduit ($2)
1//2"x6' foam pipe insulator ($1)
1/4-20 machine screw w/ nut ($2)
1/4x1 fender washers ($1)
1/2" conduit bender ($24)
Adidas Byrnes backpack x2 ($30)
Velcro one wrap 12' ($10)

Those are the main things I spent money on. There's other stuff like Loctite, scissors and measuring tape. Also if you want to lock the backpacks you need to get ones with double zippers so you can put a little luggage lock through the pulls. Waterproofing could probably be accomplished with some aerosol spray or a trashbag. You could just use a backpack or bag you already have; I found some cheap ones at Big 5 because I wasn't sure ahead of time if I'd be able to mount them without alterations.

The following posts will explain how to make your own if you want. I've tested them at highway speeds both empty and with 5-10lb loads.

[w34p0n2m4n]

Okay, so you've decided to sack up. Here's the process I followed to put together these panniers and supports.

Some important points to keep in mind:
* The supports are just there to keep the bags from interfering with the swing arm and tire. They stop the weight from swinging inwards.
* The weight is actually supported vertically from a part of the frame under the seat. Structurally it's the frame supporting the cargo against gravity, not the support you're going to bend.
* Since these sit right behind your legs they are actually shielded from most of the wind and they're as low as possible for good weight distribution.
* They aren't particularly easy to take on or off, but they aren't particularly hard either. Anyone with the right tool could lift up the seat and remove them, and they could be easily cut open.
* I'm not offering any express or implied warranty or guarantee of any kind. Motorcycles go fast. Electric drills can cut you. If you hurt yourself, or damage your bike, that's what you get for following instructions you found on an internet forum.

STEP 1
Get the raw materials. There's more, but the primary component of the supports is 1/2" EMT conduit. http://www.lowes.com/pd_72711-1792-101543_0__?productId=3129551&Ntt=1%2F2+emt+conduit&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3D1%252F2%2Bemt%2Bconduit&facetInfo=
The primary tool is a 1/2" conduit bender. I used the IDEAL one so the instructions are based on that. http://www.lowes.com/pd_75160-12704-74-046_0__?productId=3129679&Ntt=1%2F2+conduit+bender&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3D1%252F2%2Bconduit%2Bbender&facetInfo=

STEP 2
You're going to make a long "U" shape, like that thing on the front of a trombone. The longest it can be useful is about 2' 6" from the open ends of the conduit to the curve.
Make a mark 2' from one end of the conduit.
Line up the ARROW on the conduit bender with the mark.
Apply pressure until the conduit has a 90 degree bend.

STEP 3
The "U" shape needs to be at least 12" across to provide clearance for the swingarm and tire. You can make it wider if you want by just moving the conduit bender further away from the conduit.
Make a mark 9" from the part of the conduit you just bent.
Line up the STAR on the conduit bender with the mark.
The 2' part of the conduit and the conduit bender will overlap a little because of the angle the conduit bender has to stand at. That's okay. Conduit is forgiving and you can just tweak things later if they aren't perfectly parallel.
Apply pressure until the conduit has bent back so that it's parallel to itself.

STEP 4
Cut off the long part of the conduit so that the ends of your "U" are even.
It's a good idea to file the end you just cut so that it's smooth.
Wear eye and hand protection. Or don't. But saws can cut you as easily as metal. Just sayin'.

[w34p0n2m4n]

STEP 5
Test fit the "U" on the motorcycle. The structural attachment point is the triangular hole in the supports for the passenger footpegs. I suggest wrapping them in something so they don't get scratched up (like electrical tape).
Slide the ends of the conduit into the footpegs until they are jammed in the little hinge recess (it will be obvious when you do it).
If you used the length I used, the curved end of the "U" should just barely rest on top of the license plate bracket.
If you used the width I used, then the conduit should just barely allow the rear brakes to swing up and down without hitting anything.

STEP 6
Make the vertical bends. This will bend the straight "U" so that the supports extend horizontally backwards from the passenger footpegs and then curve up and over the license plate bracket.
Make a mark 12" from the cut off ends of the conduit.
Line up the NOTCH in the conduit bender with the mark. Make sure to orient the conduit bender so that you're lifting the cut ends off of the floor, not lifting the curved end off of the floor.
Apply pressure until you've achieved a 45 degree bend.
Repeat for the other side of the "U".

STEP 7
Test fit the finished support. The lengths specified in these instructions will give you a support that is as narrow and long as practical. At this point you can easily cut off length from the ends of the support to bring the vertical(ish) part closer to the front of the bike (as illustrated in the overlay image).

STEP 8
Test fit a bag of some kind. Pick something that is close to what you want to actually mount on the bike. These instructions will give you something sized correctly for mounting an average backpack. If the bag you want to use has different dimensions you'll have to adjust the support accordingly.

[w34p0n2m4n]

STEP 9
Flatten the ends of the support. This isn't strictly necessary, but if you flatten them it will be easier to drill the mounting hole and it will allow the passenger footpegs to flip up all the way.
Make a mark 3" back from the ends.
There are lots of ways to squish a pipe flat.
I used a small sledge hammer and a short 2x4.
Stand the 2x4 up in a bucket (that's your anvil), put the end of the conduit on the end of the 2x4 and start whacking it with the hammer.
You don't need to fully flatten the whole 3". Just the first inch needs to be flat. The rest can taper.

STEP 10
Drill a hole to mount the support to the passenger footpegs.
Probably a good idea to file the hole smooth.
I used a 1/4" countersunk machine screw. The mounting hardware doesn't need to be particularly strong because it's not taking any real force.

At this point you can bolt the support onto the footpegs. It's a good idea to drip some loctite (I used blue) onto the hardware so that it doesn't back out. That's not as big a concern on an electric bike that doesn't vibrate as it would be on a normal motorcycle, but go ahead and do it anyway. You can also put the foam pipe insulation onto the conduit. That's partly for looks and partly to keep anything from getting scratched up.

[w34p0n2m4n]

THE BAGS

Instructions for this part are little free-form because there's no telling what bag you will want to mount or whether you made your supports the same shape I made mine.

I took an average sized backpack and looped velcro from one shoulder strap to a point on the frame underneath the seat. BTW, to remove the seat unscrew the two hex bolts on the very back pointy tip of the frame.

The velcro I used is called One Wrap. It's got scratchy on one side and fuzzy on the other. 12" of it will just barely hold the backpack in the right spot. Orient the overlapping section so that it's down inside of the frame. With the seat reinstalled nobody will be able to take the bag off, and by putting it on the other side of the angle the velcro won't pull apart no matter how hard you tug on the backpack.

I only used the one shoulder strap. The other is rolled up and stuffed into a little pocket on top of the bag, but you could just attach it to the other strap so it doesn't flap around.

[w34p0n2m4n]

The same strap that the bag is not hanging from can be wrapped around the pannier support and pulled tight using the backpack strap's own hardware. Use 6" of the velcro wrap to secure the end.

This is the strap that's at the back of the bike.

The other shoulder strap isn't being used. But, the piece of nylon belt at the bottom of the bag will be. I don't have a picture of that part, but that nylon belt should be right next to the passenger footpeg. What I did was wrap it tightly around the peg and then wrap another 6" of the velcro around it to secure it to the footpeg's mount (not the actual footpeg itself).

Now the bag is secured in a triangle. The weight in the bag is supported by the frame via the one shoulder strap. The bottom is secured to the frame via the footpeg support and is kept from swinging around by the pannier support.

[w34p0n2m4n]

Now you can repeat on the other side to get two panniers.

The bags I got happen to have a loop at the bottom, so I can wrap them up tightly by securing the bottom loop to the top carrying handle with another 6" strip of velcro wrap. But if your don't have a convenient loop you can just put a strap around them to squeeze the air out or just let them hang the way they want to. It won't matter much since they're right behind your legs in the low pressure zone.

[Le Z Turbo]

VERY Nice work indeed !!!
And thanks for the sharing, looking for a way to take my luggage when I get my DS too.
Laurent