Panniers lock removal for recoding. Advice please.

steadysteve

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Can anyone tell me how to get the locks out of the BMW OEM panniers on the S1000XR please?
I’ve undone the 5 fasteners that are visible and the whole assembly containing the lock, pannier release lever and the lever to open the pannier is moving but not coming away completely.
I’m assuming it has a little access hole in there somewhere to release the barrel but it’s not visible with the assembly half in/out.
I’ve recoded these BMW locks before but never on these XR panniers.

Thanks
 
Can anyone tell me how to get the locks out of the BMW OEM panniers on the S1000XR please?
I’ve undone the 5 fasteners that are visible and the whole assembly containing the lock, pannier release lever and the lever to open the pannier is moving but not coming away completely.
I’m assuming it has a little access hole in there somewhere to release the barrel but it’s not visible with the assembly half in/out.
I’ve recoded these BMW locks before but never on these XR panniers.

Thanks

Youtube is your help on this one as you need to make a bent paperclip to push the very last tumbler to release the lock barrel. If you need any tumblers then let me know I have some left over.
 
Youtube is your help on this one as you need to make a bent paperclip to push the very last tumbler to release the lock barrel. If you need any tumblers then let me know I have some left over.

Thanks Bob, I’ll have a look at YouTube. I’ve got spare wafers and a piece of wire used previously but just struggling to access the release wafer. All the gear, no idea:D:nenau
 
XR pannier let go removal/ recode.

Title should say Lock removal , not let go removal. Mods please change if possible, thanks.

After searching t'internet I found a thread saying there's a little access hole, visible by lifting the release lever slightly, which allows the insertion of a thin piece of wire to depress the locking/ retaining water in the lock barrel thereby releasing the barrel. I'm not sure if the design has changed but no such hole was visible on these panniers so Plan B was dusted down....Plan B involves disassembly of the pannier to allow the lock barrel to be removed. It actually wasn't too bad but after doing the same thing on a RT 49 litre topbox a few years ago the prospect wasn't attractive. Those RT boxes are unbelievably complicated inside once you've separated the two skins that make up the bottom half. Disassembly and reassembly is a nightmare.

Anyway, moving on....
Hopefully the pics will follow the order of these steps. No idea how to post a long string of pics with captions, sorry.

First step is to remove the rubber seal. Simple enough, its a simple push fit and just pulls out.

This gives access to the screws holding the two main parts of the pannier together. Note that one is shorter than the others. It fits in the centre and helps to hold the lock mechanism.
 

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Lock mechanism removal.

Separating the two halves reveals all of 8 screws holding the lock mechanism in place.
Remove these and the mechanism comes away in one piece.
I had hoped that the elusive release hole would be visible but no such luck...:blast ...further disassembly is required.

The only way appears to be removal of the steel pin that the pannier release and locking levers pivot around. Luckily it simply taps out. Tap it out carefully keeping a firm hand around the mechanism. There is some spring pressure involved but it's only slight .
 

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Lock removal

Once the steel pin is out, the three sections are free to move around. There's no need to dismantle it any further other than carefully rotating the centre piece ( containing the lock itself) outwards.
This reveals the lock barrel and gives access to the locking wafer.:beerjug: . It's the little shiny bit bottom and centre , sticking out of the side of the grey barrel.

Simply press this inwards and the lock pops out.
 

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Recoding the lock.

At this point it's a good idea to refit the steel pin so that the mechanism doesn't fall apart any further.
It's easy enough to recode the lock...fiddly but easy as long as you do it methodically working from one end to the other.

Insert the key fully. The aim is to have all of the little wafers flush with the barrel when the key is fully inserted.

As can be seen in the pic some of these aren't flush. Now it's simply a case of seeing which wafers protrude and then swapping the wafers around, re- inserting the key until they all sit flush. There are only three different wafer profiles, numbered 1 2 or 3 so it's not a long process to work through them all. Be careful as there is a tiny little spring under each wafer.


Before and after pics show the lock upon removal, with the new key causing the wafers to stick out ( because it's the ' wrong key' ) and then all sitting flush when the key is inserted after resetting the wafers.
The two fingered wafer next to the lock is the locking wafer that holds the lock in place inside the mechanism.
 

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Refitting the lock mechanism.

There's a spring that needs careful positioning when reassembling. The pic shows how it needs to be positioned before refitting the mechanism and also shows the recess it slots into. Obviously its all one piece, so there isn't a deal of flexibility, but getting this spring lined up and in place first before squeezing the other side down ensures it doesn't move around.

Operate the opening lever and check that the metal latches move through their full movement because the lid will be nigh on impossible to open once closed if these latches don't move freely. Don't ask me how I know..
 

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Refitting the lock.

The lock simply clicks into place however it's a good idea to leave the locking wafer out and have a dry run first.
Sometimes the lock and key work perfectly on the bench but snag when refitted making it feel rough or prevent the key being removed.

From experience it's the wafer nearest the key hole and/ or the one next to the locking wafer that cause issues. I have no idea why.
Obviously it's less secure with fewer wafers but at the end of the day it's a plastic housing and isn't particularly strong whether it has a full complement of wafers or not..

It's easy enough to hold the lock in place with your left thumb. Operate the lock and the pannier open/ release levers making sure everything works/moves as it should
Once you've happy with it, take note of the orientation of the key and lock then refit the locking wafer and slot the lock back in the housing.

Job done.
 
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Another useful write up Steve.

This locking mechanism looks identical to the one used on the Sports Panniers for a 2006 K1200S.

I needed to remove the lock on one of these a few months ago and couldn't figure out how to get to the locking wafer from the on-line videos/write-ups.
I ended up taking out the steel pin/bar, as you did, and the whole mechanism fell apart. I had a hell of a job lining up all the relevant parts/spring to get it back together again.
Once re-assembled I found that the locking wafer could be got to, without removing the bar, by poking a paperclip in the gap shown by the red arrow in the picture below (at least I think it was at that point, it was a while ago!).
it is difficult to get to, but it is possible (unless the design has changed since 2006).
 

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Another useful write up Steve.

This locking mechanism looks identical to the one used on the Sports Panniers for a 2006 K1200S.

I needed to remove the lock on one of these a few months ago and couldn't figure out how to get to the locking wafer from the on-line videos/write-ups.
I ended up taking out the steel pin/bar, as you did, and the whole mechanism fell apart. I had a hell of a job lining up all the relevant parts/spring to get it back together again.
Once re-assembled I found that the locking wafer could be got to, without removing the bar, by poking a paperclip in the gap shown by the red arrow in the picture below (at least I think it was at that point, it was a while ago!).
it is difficult to get to, but it is possible (unless the design has changed since 2006).

These panniers have that little hole (it’s actually a slot rather than a hole ) but it didn’t seem to line up with the wafer regardless of whether the lock was in the locked or unlocked position. The lock barrel doesn’t appear to go far enough into the barrel on these.

I’m not totally sure but I think this XR pannier mech is the same as the ones on the RS and R models.

+1 for them being a pain to re-assemble hence the suggestion to do it as soon as the lock barrel is out. Having said that, these are a breeze compared to the mechanism on the 49 litre RT top box.
 
Dredging up an old thread, but the newer panniers on the Gen 2 have a completely different locking mechanism that was a bit of a headache. In the end due to not taking enough care during disassembly (thank goodness there was another pannier with which to compare), I had to take the first pannier apart again to fit everything correctly.

Basically it is easiest to first remove the screws around the top (and the recessed screws on the hinge side have at nut underneath, something which isn't at all obvious). You'll need to remove the rubber lining (watch out for silicon lubricant, it was very copiously applied on one of the panniers) and eventually the lid and frame around the other side will come off.

Then it's 8 screws inside the pannier to remove the lock mechanism. The top slides off (again not at all obvious when you're not sure how it is constructed), watch out for where the little tabs on the top slide into as it's easy to put it back together and miss something out. Then remove any screws you can see, finally pulling the metal bar that holds the handle in place out. Once this is out, then you should be able to see what's in the picture.

The lock and release mechanism is very specifically located, and if you don't line everything up either it won't go back together, or it will, then it will fail to unlock or remove (again ask me how I know!) In particular, the lock section comes out with 4 screws on the back and has several parts that fit together precisely in order to operate both the opening and releasing mechanisms. The lock barrel and the 4 parts must be lined up so the lock can be turned in the correct direction for both locking and releasing the pannier. If you get it wrong you won't be able to remove the key. And don't forget that the last two slots do not take a normal 1/2/3 wafer (the locking wafer goes in the end slot once you're ready to fit). The release has a catch connected to the top of the lock housing by a thin metal bar that has S-shaped ends. Note these must be pushed into the holes then twisted - don't get this the wrong way round or the bar will only just sit there as is guaranteed to fall out after assembly!

The lock has the housing with the writing on it, a sprung black plastic housing and inside that a thinner plastic tube, together with a rocker arm that controls the level for opening the case (that's the black plastic lever that pops up when push the lock in). This connects to the release mechanism with the long plastic part connecting the two metal catches.

When re-assembling, ensure the opening mechanism works (both locking, and opening) before trying to reassemble the cover and handle (the metal bar is fiddly to line up and needs a sharp tap to locate it into the far side, but not too sharp as it can go too far in, making the handle stiff to close). Ensure the cover is slid into the mounting lugs and ensure all the screws are refitted (I missed just one inside, hence having to take it all apart again).

Weirdly, once re-assembled the whole mechanism, including the sliding pannier release bars, was much easier to operate.

So - it is possible to re-key the newer panniers. once you know how it works, then it should take about an hour to do one pannier.
 

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