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The Ultimate Top Box

gregsfc

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Thank you forum members for all the ideas and help you've given me. I'm still fairly new to all of this; only a sophomore rider, and I've got no one in my community that is a fellow rider to converse with, so forums like this is about all the support I've got.

I've got the CTX700 and have posted the following pics over on the CTX forum, but I'm pretty active on this forum as well, because many more riders over here, unlike over on the CTX site, are daily riders and commuters like me, whereas most of the folks over there are simply recreational riders only. So I can learn alot more over here for non-technical information from more experienced riders who ride for the same reason I ride and that is primarily for fun transportation.

I needed a very large top box, and I needed it for cheap. I commute 30 miles one-way; rain or shine; hot or cold (well, within limits). As such, I needed a really big top box. My previous Bestem 2012 was cheap but matched my bike exactly, and so to some people, it didn't look too bad mounted the way I had it on the bike. It is 42 liters but is just barely tall enough for a helmet, so everything else that goes in there when something the height of a helmet is in there, has to go around it, which is very limiting. I don't ever go two up and could use a back rest, so I simply strapped the Bestem mount to the passenger's part of the seat (wouldn't work for an NC due to the obstruction to the fuel tank) and then latched the case on.

As winter wore on, however, I discovered that I needed more luggage space. Some mornings were very cold requiring my winter riding suit, but then the afternoon forecast was warm; meaning, if I had the room, I could wear my suit and carry my lunch and summer jacket (fits in the Bestem case), and on the commute back home, a could store my suit and lunch box and wear only the summer jacket (would not fit in the case). The bestem box really limited my space, especially vertically.

I searched and searched for an alternative. Saddle bags would give me more space but would still limit me for large items, and I'd have to buy or build stays and if they were big, there would be lots of extra drag, so I preferred just to stick with a top box. But what! The largest motorcycle-specific case I could find was a Givi 55Liter. That would be good, but it was $350, which was unacceptable. I found that some other folks had done the same sort of search I had and came up with a tote called a Rubbermaid Action Packer. I almost decided to go with that but then I started looking at regular tool boxes, but they were almost all just a little too narrow; and most weren't tall enough either. A second problem with tool boxes, because they usually have slots for trays, they have handles on the outside, and they're built rugged with no impedance for having lots of interior space relative to exterior size, one loses alot of interior space compared to the external dimensions.

I finally came across something that might work...A Dewalt ToughSytem 08204. External dimensions were approx. 21.5" Wide X 14.5 Long X 16" High. I was going to turn it width ways on my bike, so I would be reversing the width and length. I figured I'd lose approximately 1" each direction from the external dimensions, and that this box would give me about 65 liters of space, much more than my 42L, plus it would give me much more of the needed height that I was after. I was disappointed after receiving the box however. I actually lost about 2" each direction, because of the indentions from the exterior ends; the oversized top; and the slots inside, which I cut out all that I could. I knew in advance that this box was going to be ugly, so I was undeterred when I saw what it did to the looks of the bike. I've come away with approximately 54-57 liters, and it holds alot more than my old case. This box works even better as a backrest, because it comes in contact with my back at a higher point. It is much much more sturdy; yet it is still very light, and the water tight latching lid is a much better and easier to use system than my cheap knock-off Bestem case, which required that the case be locked just to latch it, and it was hard to get it to latch and unlatch. With the Bestem case, I usually just left the latch loose and unlocked, so there was some rattling while riding. The tool box is much easier with the option of using a simple pad lock that I can choose to use or not use at my own convenience.

Instead of using a mount like I did with the Bestem case, I simply cut four slots in the bottom of the box and strapped it directly to my seat very tightly; caulked both the inside and outside around the straps once I ran the straps through and around the seat. I cut to fit a bath mat that I already had on hand around the house. For the back 1/3 of the box, I took off the back pad from the Bestem case and used it as a cushion/support between the underside of the case and the area just front of the tail light, and tied it down snugly to the pad with high-strenght cord. $53 for the box; $2 for the high-strength thin cord. I already had the lashing straps with the other box. They had cost me $7, so for $62, I've got all the luggage space I need for my commute year around. I know its ugly, but sometimes one can be proud of ugly if he or she has achieved a fantastic value and achieved a practical solution that had taken alot of fore thought. This box makes me proud of the ugliness.
 

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That's HUGE. I'd be concerned about the straps and seat cushion allowing it to wobble at speed. I'd be concerned about it damaging your seat as well.

It sounds like you're mostly using it for storage of your gear while parked. That's probably OK, but I'd be wary of loading that thing down and temptation could easily get the best of you with that much available space. There's a lot of potential for your cargo to shift around which can upset your balance. That's also directly over the back wheel or even further back.

Still, A+ for thinking outside the box (hah). I'm curious how that thing looks with you on it. Is it as wide as your torso?
 
storage when I'm parked... I've told this story before, so I'll compress it for this telling...

I had to park at Disneyland and change from riding suit+boots to presentable street clothes. No storage bags at all. What to do?
I took the motorcycle cover and put the boots and Centurion Tourmaster riding suit on the seat then put the cover on.
Lastly, I put on the front disc-brake lock/motion sensitive alarm.

From the outside, it just looked like a motorcycle with a cover.

Secure? No... but then, what is? If folks can't see it, they won't want to steal it.

Now that I commute to work and ride from site to site, I use the Nelson Rigg CL-855 saddlebags.
The article discussing that is HERE.
 
I'm really not a fan of having a box sticking out behind the bike and I rather like the look of having the box close behind me on the back seat. I'm with others though, I'd be worried about it flying off, not because of the straps, they look pretty secure, but more because of the flimsy seat pan and the way its attached to the bike.
With other bikes, I've thought of going to a fabrication/welding shop and working with them to build a custom rack to place a top box over the back seat. But, I can't really do that with the NCX because of the gas tank. I'm not sure if its an option for you, but I feel like the material would be cheap enough and you could have a rack made, material/labor and all for $40-$50.
 
storage when I'm parked... I've told this story before, so I'll compress it for this telling...

I had to park at Disneyland and change from riding suit+boots to presentable street clothes. No storage bags at all. What to do?
I took the motorcycle cover and put the boots and Centurion Tourmaster riding suit on the seat then put the cover on.
Lastly, I put on the front disc-brake lock/motion sensitive alarm.

From the outside, it just looked like a motorcycle with a cover.

Secure? No... but then, what is? If folks can't see it, they won't want to steal it.

Now that I commute to work and ride from site to site, I use the Nelson Rigg CL-855 saddlebags.
The article discussing that is HERE.
At Horizons Unlimited meeting the world travelers said the most effective security is a bike cover. People don't bother what they don't see.
 
Hey Greg,
You found someone that thinks like you.
I still think its fugly.

Actually, "Mr. forum predator/stalker", I'm not looking for support or congratulations from others by posting what I've done on here or over on the CTX forum. Making the point that you don't like the looks of something I've got on two threads, on two different forums, when I can easily understand your point the first time, regarding something that I've already prefaced that appearance was not a major consideration in finding a solution, can have no other motive than that of stalking another member.

One of the purposes, however, for posting my setup is to give others who need lots of luggage space ideas for another contender for a box, even if they don't set it up in my weird way. When shopping for this bike, I saw lots of setup ideas with large coolers and different totes; usually set up going the other direction, behind the pillion seat on a rack. In my research, I found no one who had stumbled across this particular box, and I find it superior to those coolers and totes due to it's strength and lid system, and the fact that it has all of these good features and is still light weight. Like I stated in the OP, the only bad thing about this box, as compared to those other ugly choices, is that it does not make efficient use of space. A box this big should give about 65 liters instead of 55.

The main purpose of posting the pics of my set up was to get some good critiques for ideas about what the possible weaknesses are and how (maybe) it could be better. Thanks everyone for posting your thoughts.

A couple of things I should make clear though: It does not hang suspended behind the seat, and it does not extend beyond the tail piece where the tail light is housed. The box is not the most rearward point on the bike.

After strapping it tightly to the seat in two points, I installed the seat and box back on. At this point, there was about a 2" gap between the bike tail area and the box vertically. I then pulled up on the box and squeezed a rubber-covered, foam pad in that space. The pad is about 3 1/2 inches thick so this cocked the box upward slightly and took pressure off the seat and seat latch. I then set a concrete block on top of the box and simultaneously pushed down hard on the rear of the box compressing the rubber-covered pad and tied the cord. This put some pressure back on the seat but limits it and gravity and bouncing while riding does not cause extra pressure on the seat latch. When I wiggle the box back and forth while on the side stand, the whole bike rocks back and forth and there is very little wiggle in the box and seat beyond the wiggle of the bike. Now don't get me wrong, it is not super sturdy like it would be if it were strapped to the frame, but it is more sturdy than what some of you are thinking. If the cord came loose or the pad fell out (not likely because it's wedged in there pretty good with some notches on the bottom of the box really digging in to it), the suspended weight would put pressure upward on the seat and it would remain tight for the rest of the trip, so that would not cause the box to become loose while riding.

I may consider making it super sturdy, but I'm not convinced at this point that I need it to be super sturdy. If I were to stop for groceries or ever load heavy items in the box, I would load the heaviest items in the bottom and just behind me towards the front. The lighter items would go high and to the rear. The only problem that I could have is if I loaded only one or two heavy items and there were lots of extra space left over. A slide and a shift in the weight could be a problem, and that's a good point that I hadn't thought of. Another problem would be if I laid here down or crashed, but probably the box and the cargo would be the least of my worries at that point, but I guess, just like with having loose, heavy items in the cabin of a car, the box and contents could hit me and injure me, so I will take that into consideration.

As for storage while parked, that's not the real issue. I keep an extra pair of shoes at work and I have no security concerns while at work, so I can keep my riding gear secured around the bike or in a locker while their and don't need the luggage to store while there. The real issue is that I can't haul enough large items back and forth to and from work that I need in both places. For instance, I can take my summer jacket with me while wearing the winter suit, but I can't haul my winter suit back home if I have other items. Additionally, I can't get much when shopping on the way home with my lunch box and other items. This box is much much better and it suffices for both alot of large items and many small items like saddle bags or boxes would do, and because I've tied it down in the rear, it is much more sturdy than the smaller case I had on there.

For how I look on it, my wife passed me while I was on it. She said that all she could see was the box, but of course she was just kidding. She said it looks less obtrusive than those adventure bikes one sees with those big boxes facing side to side, but it does look different than anything I've seen personally. I'll try to take more pics.
 
but more because of the flimsy seat pan and the way its attached to the bike.
With other bikes, I've thought of going to a fabrication/welding shop and working with them to build a custom rack to place a top box over the back seat. But, I can't really do that with the NCX because of the gas tank.

The seat pan can't fly off, because the pillion part is just part of the one-piece seat. I'm sitting on the front 2/3rds. If not for the way it is tied tightly in the back, it could wear or damage the latch/locking mechanism in the back part of the seat. But the way I'm testing it out and looking at it, even though it's tightly secured the way it is, it is not putting a bunch of pressure on the latch. The old case was putting more because it was not tied down in the rear and it would bounce while riding.

Someone at the CTX forum bought an extra seat drilled holes in it and mounted with bolts, but in that scenario, it was for a rider's backrest, and that still puts the strength at the mercy of the seat pan. My only weakness, compared to that, is that the tight straps do put some upward stress on the lock/latch and the seat cover does get squished, but it doesn't seem to be harming it. I had the other case on there for several months, and I can see no wear or damage on the seat cushion itself nor am I seeing that it's putting wear on the plastic seat pan being tightly strapped around it.
 
Thank you forum members for all the ideas and help you've given me. I'm still fairly new to all of this; only a sophomore rider, and I've got no one in my community that is a fellow rider to converse with, so forums like this is about all the support I've got.

I've got the CTX700 and have posted the following pics over on the CTX forum, but I'm pretty active on this forum as well, because many more riders over here, unlike over on the CTX site, are daily riders and commuters like me, whereas most of the folks over there are simply recreational riders only. So I can learn alot more over here for non-technical information from more experienced riders who ride for the same reason I ride and that is primarily for fun transportation.

I needed a very large top box, and I needed it for cheap. I commute 30 miles one-way; rain or shine; hot or cold (well, within limits). As such, I needed a really big top box. My previous Bestem 2012 was cheap but matched my bike exactly, and so to some people, it didn't look too bad mounted the way I had it on the bike. It is 42 liters but is just barely tall enough for a helmet, so everything else that goes in there when something the height of a helmet is in there, has to go around it, which is very limiting. I don't ever go two up and could use a back rest, so I simply strapped the Bestem mount to the passenger's part of the seat (wouldn't work for an NC due to the obstruction to the fuel tank) and then latched the case on.

As winter wore on, however, I discovered that I needed more luggage space. Some mornings were very cold requiring my winter riding suit, but then the afternoon forecast was warm; meaning, if I had the room, I could wear my suit and carry my lunch and summer jacket (fits in the Bestem case), and on the commute back home, a could store my suit and lunch box and wear only the summer jacket (would not fit in the case). The bestem box really limited my space, especially vertically.

I searched and searched for an alternative. Saddle bags would give me more space but would still limit me for large items, and I'd have to buy or build stays and if they were big, there would be lots of extra drag, so I preferred just to stick with a top box. But what! The largest motorcycle-specific case I could find was a Givi 55Liter. That would be good, but it was $350, which was unacceptable. I found that some other folks had done the same sort of search I had and came up with a tote called a Rubbermaid Action Packer. I almost decided to go with that but then I started looking at regular tool boxes, but they were almost all just a little too narrow; and most weren't tall enough either. A second problem with tool boxes, because they usually have slots for trays, they have handles on the outside, and they're built rugged with no impedance for having lots of interior space relative to exterior size, one loses alot of interior space compared to the external dimensions.

I finally came across something that might work...A Dewalt ToughSytem 08204. External dimensions were approx. 21.5" Wide X 14.5 Long X 16" High. I was going to turn it width ways on my bike, so I would be reversing the width and length. I figured I'd lose approximately 1" each direction from the external dimensions, and that this box would give me about 65 liters of space, much more than my 42L, plus it would give me much more of the needed height that I was after. I was disappointed after receiving the box however. I actually lost about 2" each direction, because of the indentions from the exterior ends; the oversized top; and the slots inside, which I cut out all that I could. I knew in advance that this box was going to be ugly, so I was undeterred when I saw what it did to the looks of the bike. I've come away with approximately 54-57 liters, and it holds alot more than my old case. This box works even better as a backrest, because it comes in contact with my back at a higher point. It is much much more sturdy; yet it is still very light, and the water tight latching lid is a much better and easier to use system than my cheap knock-off Bestem case, which required that the case be locked just to latch it, and it was hard to get it to latch and unlatch. With the Bestem case, I usually just left the latch loose and unlocked, so there was some rattling while riding. The tool box is much easier with the option of using a simple pad lock that I can choose to use or not use at my own convenience.

Instead of using a mount like I did with the Bestem case, I simply cut four slots in the bottom of the box and strapped it directly to my seat very tightly; caulked both the inside and outside around the straps once I ran the straps through and around the seat. I cut to fit a bath mat that I already had on hand around the house. For the back 1/3 of the box, I took off the back pad from the Bestem case and used it as a cushion/support between the underside of the case and the area just front of the tail light, and tied it down snugly to the pad with high-strenght cord. $53 for the box; $2 for the high-strength thin cord. I already had the lashing straps with the other box. They had cost me $7, so for $62, I've got all the luggage space I need for my commute year around. I know its ugly, but sometimes one can be proud of ugly if he or she has achieved a fantastic value and achieved a practical solution that had taken alot of fore thought. This box makes me proud of the ugliness.

That is awesome!
 
I went with a "project tote box" from home Depot. see [HERE] The first attempt in the photos was with the 30 Gal. container. It was too big!
The 20 Gal. works much better !!

When I camp, everything goes in to the top box. It works very nicely.
The box is supported by the Givi Monorack Side arms made just for the NC.
photo (30 gal!)
22387d1422742385-todays-goofy-project-box2-jpg.jpg

Like this
camptopbox.jpg

Particularly proud of this photo.... when you google the "Tahoe Gear Willow 2" tent, the manufacturer uses that photo as one of its selling points.
see [HERE] (no affiliation with the company)
camsite.jpg
 
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strats you must have good wife unless she's glad to see the back of you.
my wife won't go camping at all.
 
When it's the two of us, we camp out of the back of a Honda "Fit" ("Jazz" for you British folk).
We eat a good dinner in town before retiring to the camp site.... no cooking there.
We use a good air mattress. (I power the air pump with the NC700s electricty).

"Happy wife, happy life."

oh...and she's not glad to see the back of me, but it's been a life long privilege to see the back of her! (hope that's not too off color)
 
Wasn’t really sure where to put this, so I decided to piggyback onto this thread. I wanted a top box that was fairly affordable and not too overwhelming in size for the bike. I went for the Bestem 2012. I got the red box knowing that it would not be a match for the OEM color, but figuring it might be the best underlying color if I decide to repaint in the future. I was curious though as to just how the two colors would look together. Here are a couple of shots as to how it turned out.

20151016_124754.jpg

20151016_124805.jpg
 
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