The new JFC Bracketz design is available from Grille Technologies

[BobWitte]

As posted today on the other Forum, I'm happy to announce the final design details and source availability for the new JFC Bracketz project we've been talking about doing recently. My meeting with the Grille Technologies owner, Ryan Walsh yesterday was far more fruitful than I ever expected! (But Ryan, being Ryan, I really shouldn't have been surprised).

Ryan was moved by the circumstances surrounding this project and instead of the $170-200 per set price I was talking about last month, he is offering a set of the new brackets for the same price as when John was having them made -- $130.00! That price includes USPS flat rate delivery to wherever the medium box Flat Rate Service can be sent. Our folks overseas in places like Oz, the UK and Europe will have to make other shipping arrangements, but you would expect that of course.

Once all is said and done, the bracketz will be offered via Grill Tech's eBay store. Watch this space for further ordering details. If you want to be one of the first in line to get a set, PM me for the email contact to use. (for privacy, I won't show an email address in an open forum posting)

Sans any photos, here is what the new design will look like. Physically, they are very similar to JFC's original with 3/16" plate construction remaining, but with some obvious physical differences. The side plate is about the same size @9 5/32" wide by 7" high.

Instead of two holes for the mounting, the trailing mount will be a small slot to allow some minor side-to-side alignment adjustments. The big hole on the vertical plate has been removed and the fold over distance from the body tupperware been cut back to pull the bags in about 1" closer. We will pre-drill 3/8" holes near the four corners inasmuch as hand drilling steel plate is quite a chore. The big hole was removed to provide more mounting options to the end user, as well as reduce the cost of production. The big hole's cutout of a few ounces of weight saving proved to be insignificant,

Grill Technologies minimum run will be 20 sets at a time, so buyers will usually be getting shipment from shelf stock rather than weeks of delay to build to order (as was the case in the past).

Those of you who purchased my heel shifter arms in the past can attest to the high quality fit & finish of the Grill Technologies mat black powder coating. Black powder is their forte what with 100's of products they make every week that are baked in their garage sized walk-in ovens!

As each of you can tell, I'm delighted that Grill Technologies will be making these bracketz for our CTX700 forum families. JSYK, I don't need nor use this style bracket since my CTX is a trike and has the Yelvington OEM style bag supports.

Also, be advised that neither [MENTION=41554]Daddy Dave[/MENTION] nor myself profits from this project. And I'd be hard pressed to believe that Grill Technologies is covering all their real costs to make them available at the $130 price as well!

 

[BobWitte]

As posted today on the other Forum, I'm happy to announce the final design details and source availability for the new JFC Bracketz project we've been talking about doing recently. My meeting with the Grille Technologies owner, Ryan Walsh yesterday was far more fruitful than I ever expected! (But Ryan, being Ryan, I really shouldn't have been surprised).

Ryan was moved by the circumstances surrounding this project and instead of the $170-200 per set price I was talking about last month, he is offering a set of the new brackets for the same price as when John was having them made -- $130.00! That price includes USPS flat rate delivery to wherever the medium box Flat Rate Service can be sent. Our folks overseas in places like Oz, the UK and Europe will have to make other shipping arrangements, but you would expect that of course.

Once all is said and done, the bracketz will be offered via Grill Tech's eBay store. Watch this space for further ordering details. If you want to be one of the first in line to get a set, PM me for the email contact to use. (for privacy, I won't show an email address in an open forum posting)

Sans any photos, here is what the new design will look like. Physically, they are very similar to JFC's original with 3/16" plate construction remaining, but with some obvious physical differences. The side plate is about the same size @9 5/32" wide by 7" high.

Instead of two holes for the mounting, the trailing mount will be a small slot to allow some minor side-to-side alignment adjustments. The big hole on the vertical plate has been removed and the fold over distance from the body tupperware been cut back to pull the bags in about 1" closer. We will pre-drill 3/8" holes near the four corners inasmuch as hand drilling steel plate is quite a chore. The big hole was removed to provide more mounting options to the end user, as well as reduce the cost of production. The big hole's cutout of a few ounces of weight saving proved to be insignificant,

Grill Technologies minimum run will be 20 sets at a time, so buyers will usually be getting shipment from shelf stock rather than weeks of delay to build to order (as was the case in the past).

Those of you who purchased my heel shifter arms in the past can attest to the high quality fit & finish of the Grill Technologies mat black powder coating. Black powder is their forte what with 100's of products they make every week that are baked in their garage sized walk-in ovens!

As each of you can tell, I'm delighted that Grill Technologies will be making these bracketz for our CTX700 forum families. JSYK, I don't need nor use this style bracket since my CTX is a trike and has the Yelvington OEM style bag supports.

Also, be advised that neither [MENTION=41554]Daddy Dave[/MENTION] nor myself profits from this project. And I'd be hard pressed to believe that Grill Technologies is covering all their real costs to make them available at the $130 price as well!

I forgot to mention in my first post above that Ryan at Grille Technologies is trying to build up a presence on Instagram. I just signed up myself for the first time so I could tag some of his photos with "likes" and "follows" to help him along with that.

If any of our forum folks are Instagram users, feel free to stop in on Ryan's page so you can like/follow anything that appeals to you. Just search for "Grille_Tech" and it will pop right up. If nothing else, you should get a kick out of his monster pick-up and his wife's tank like soccer-mom van. Both of these feature several Grille Technologies products.

Even if you have no interest in the new JFC Bracketz product, Ryan has other cool stuff for Instagram fans, so enjoy -- and give a pal a boost!

 

[Woodswoman]

It's a very, very nice thing you're doing here, Bob! Thank you for stepping in to assist your fellow CTX700 owners who didn't have an opportunity to buy a set of the original JFC brackets.

 

[BobWitte]

Went down to Grille Tech today to drop off the defective prototypes and spoke to Ryan. He'll be water jetting the stock in the next day or so and will make at least 25 sets (his minimum with the CNC bending vendor). He expects to be able to start shipping early next week.

If you want a set, you can order direct from Grille Technologies by sending request to [email protected] asking for a set of JFC Bracketz. Just let them know you want to order when they are ready to ship.

Payment is normally via a PayPal account. However, Grille Tech can likely take payment via credit card over the phone.

 

[BobWitte]

Okay, I installed today the Bracketz I just bought from Grille Tech. Ryan offered me the set of bare metal Bracketz prototypes we made early on, gratis, which I thought about at first. However, I liked the final changes so much, that I decided in favor of a powder coated production set instead. And those I decided to pay regular price for. Well, actually I did get them a bit cheaper since there was no shipping involved. I did get my set for $150 vs. the normal price of $165 which would have included flat rate shipping.

The JFC Bracketz work so much better than the Yelvington fender brackets I've been using since the beginning. The Bracketz mountings are quite solid and the constant rattles from the lids is a thing of the past now that the bags are "floating" with the suspension. All-in-all that alone was worth the price of admission!

Because of the construction of the Matazu bags that I have, I needed to install the bags to the Bracketz using 0.50"x1" spacer disks as shown below:

Here are close ups of each bag installation:

I had no trouble installing each side by myself. They just dropped into place without difficulty. Actual installation time was about an hour and 10 minutes. Easy, peasy!!

 

[Woodswoman]

This is swell. CTX owners are going to be obliged to you, Bob, for picking up the torch from John.

These brackets give us *so* many more options. Thank you!

 

[BobWitte]

This is swell. CTX owners are going to be obliged to you, Bob, for picking up the torch from John.

These brackets give us *so* many more options. Thank you!

The improvements Daddy Dave & I came up with really make these Bracketz work great. Pre-drilling mounting holes for 5/16" bolts and/or user tapping for 3/16" bolts really helps user installations. Drilling thru 3/16" plate steel is no mean task unless one has a full sized floor model drill press. Even with my bags, I was able to use all four holes. So does having slots on the top allowing for the best positioning and bringing in the vertical plate almost an inch closer to the tupperware.

It was worth the money to me, that's for sure.

 

[Woodswoman]

The improvements Daddy Dave & I came up with really make these Bracketz work great. Pre-drilling mounting holes for 5/16" bolts and/or user tapping for 3/16" bolts really helps user installations. Drilling thru 3/16" plate steel is no mean task unless one has a full sized floor model drill press. Even with my bags, I was able to use all four holes.

It sure will help! I took my original JFC brackets to a welding shop and paid them to drill holes for me. I didn't stand a prayer of doing so myself.

 

[BobWitte]

It sure will help! I took my original JFC brackets to a welding shop and paid them to drill holes for me. I didn't stand a prayer of doing so myself.

Look, I do have a drill press and wouldn't want to have to drill 3/16" plate steel. I pity the person with an 18 volt hand drill, which is why I wanted them there from the get go.

 

[BobWitte]

I re-installed my full sized HD style touring trunk yesterday, which then exaggeraged the slight tilt from vertical for the right side bag. One or two thick washers at the most, installed on the lower mounting bolts should do the trick. It is a rare rainy morning around here, so I'll see about posting some new pictures when it clears this afternoon.

Here's what I'm talking about:

It isn't as obvious until you add the touring trunk as a horizontal reference (yeah, I know, I need to increase the dose for my medication).

Speaking of the JFC Bracketz, I spoke with Ryan @Grille Tech yesterday about the armrest project. In the course of the conversation, I asked about the Bracketz. Since I jumped to the front of the line when I bought my set recently, there's only one set of the original run left on the shelf, ready to go right now. He said they were cutting a new batch early next week and should have a shelf stock of 10 more new sets around this time next week.

The website still isn't ready yet (apparently, this item isn't their only change and, of course, not everyone writes software as fast as I do!!). But you can call in your orders directly to (727) 233-9976. Don't forget to "tell 'em Bob sent you!" (and no, I don't get a commission!) Remember, I bought my own set like anybody else.

5.740

 

[BobWitte]

Ahoy Bob,

First of all, THANK YOU GREATLY for all the effort and dedication you've selflessly given to make this resource available to fellow riders! It's a terrific and tangible way to honor JFC and the ethic of helping others he exemplified.

I've been eager to add a pair of saddlebags to my CTX since I got it in the spring and thought I would have to endure a sizable headache to do so myself until you put the production of the saddlebag mounts in motion yourself. So thanks again!

I've got my fingers crossed hoping the wait is worth it. (I'll have to test them out on some trip other than the Canadian Rockies/Icefield Parkway since it's a bit frigid for a road trip up there this time of year).

CLARIFICATION: 1. Does the current batch, or the upcoming batch of saddlebag mounts result in a tilt of saddlebags? (2. Is there a difference between the batches?) 3. Is the tilt you are experiencing unique to your bags / setup?

MY INSTALL - I have a set of Viking slanted Lamellar saddle bags (no exhaust cut) ready to install and will be using the OEM Honda rear carrier rack and stay (w/o a backrest or handles). I'm hoping they can be mounted with the Grille TECH brackets so they are approximately vertically plumb. 4. Do you anticipate any challenges with achieving the vertically plumb install of saddlebags with the JFC Bracketz from Grille Technologies?

Thanks again compadre!

Now that we've refined the design, every set Grille Tech produces, will be the same. I assure you that the JFC Bracketz are as perfect as they can be, and actually sport much better overall quality than the originals that JFC's local shop ever produced. The adjustable slots we added to allow horizontal adjustment, computer precision bends, as well as pre-drilling mounting holes that can also be tapped by the user to receive 3/8" bolts top the list of improvements. And don't forget we now have a professional quality powder coating to top everything off.

The tilt in my particular case is the fault of the imperfections of the Matazu Chinese junk copy of the design of the OEM rear brackets I used. Those junk copy brackets are the last entry in a stack that the JFC Bracketz have to rest upon. Having installed our JFC Bracketz on more than one bike and that have different configurations back there, in no way do I blame the Bracketz themselves. Keep in mind that the left side unit needed no adjustment whatsoever.

In any case, having to use spacers & washers does not mean the supporting Bracketz have any build defects. All bikes come loaded with both washers & spacers fresh off the assembly lines. What I was working with demanded what I wound up doing. I used 1.5" or 2" fender washers for all mounting bolts. The CheapAss plastic contruction from China required I do that, lest the plastic attachment areas might crack. I had to use the 1/2" thick spacers to push the bag sidewalls out because of their shape, not because of the Bracketz themselves. This all makes me remember my construction days, "Putty & paint, makes a Carpenter what he ain't!!"

I have an un-used set of National hard bags very similar to what you have in your Viking slanted Lamellar saddle bags. I have no doubt they would install just fine, should I ever decide to finish them up as an alternate set of luggage. Go for it!

 

[BobWitte]

The weather lifted enough yesterday for me to insert rubber washers on my rightside bag to make it more vertical. I used two thick ones on the lower rear hole and one thick washer on the lower front hole.

The "putty & paint" proverb has now been satisfied.

 

[BobWitte]

I would like to say thanks to you for all of the effort you put into this project. You had nothing to gain and you always seem to be more than capable to come up with your own solutions to your own problems and you went out of your way to provide a solution that everyone can access and provide a solution to those not so mechanically inclined. The reason I had my own brackets made was the original ones stuck out to far out and by the looks of your pictures the brackets are as close to the side cowlings as possible. I cant imagine how you could improve on the quality and design. How you got someone to produce these with the quality and price shipped for this bike is a monumental achievement. My upmost respect for you for taking this on and the result you have provided.

Thanks dgall, folks with normal paint jobs will have at least 3/8" clearance from their body work with the Bracketz. Yes, "sticks out too far" was the main reason I passed on using the original brackets I got from John in 2015, and sold the set I bought from him.

The quality & price achievement goes to Ryan and his folks at Grille Tech. As I think I've mentioned before, Ryan was the best vendor I had when manufacturing The Tinity Trike kits a decade ago. Also, he was the man I sought out when I wanted to make a heel shift lever for the CTX. He'll also be the one I'll use should I decide that the passenger armrest project is viable (my record in manufacturing success isn't all that great however).

Digression Warning!!:

Speaking of failures, I'm going to Hijack my own thread to mention that the never poplular heel shifter remaining count is down to just 3 units left. When gone, they are gone, so act soon or forever hold your peace!
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