Hi, all,

After a long dusty ride, including rain and a lot of vibration over several days, I could not retract my Vario cases. I washed them from outside, but it did not help. I could force them a bit, but was afraid of breaking the gears.

Helpfully, the inmates here kindly pointed me to some info on cleaning the expanding sleves of my Vario cases:
[URL="http://www.r1200gs.info/howto/saddlebagmaint.html"]http://www.r1200gs.info/howto/saddlebagmaint.html[/URL]

For the benefit of others in this predicament, here are some pictures of what needs to be done.

First, you need to get the cases apart. The expansion/retraction mechanism is held by 6 screws along the vertical edges of the case, accessible from the back. One of my cases had Torx screws, the other Philips – be prepared for both.

Remove these 6 stainless-steel screws (and nothing else) and then gently wiggle everything to pull the expansion sleeve from the case body.

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[IMG]http://rdwalker.com/teamcattwo/Tech/Vario_Case_Repair/1_screws.jpg[/IMG]

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The jamming occurs in the sleeve, grit and dust prevents it from moving smoothly. My finger points at the channel in the sleeve that gets dirty.

By the way, make sure to have something clean and smooth (like a towel) laid under the case cover. Otherwise, when you press on it during cleaning or reassembly, you will scratch it!

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[IMG]http://rdwalker.com/teamcattwo/Tech/Vario_Case_Repair/2_sleeve.jpg[/IMG]


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I sprayed the channel with water hose and then pushed a piece of cloth through, to make sure everything is out.

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[IMG]http://rdwalker.com/teamcattwo/Tech/Vario_Case_Repair/3_clean_sleeve.jpg[/IMG]

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The corresponding part on the case body is also full of junk - clean it off. I used diluted Armor-All and paid particular attention to the foam seal on the edge.

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[IMG]http://rdwalker.com/teamcattwo/Tech/Vario_Case_Repair/4_body_seal.jpg[/IMG]

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