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Author Topic: Topcase on the cheap  (Read 939 times)

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Online Vulcanbill

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Topcase on the cheap
« on: May 03, 2016, 12:19:01 PM »
Just ordered a couple of these for the XTs.  At 84 for the rack and 54 for the topcase, that's a pretty cheap luggage solution.  Considering these bikes have been known to be victimized by gravity, I don't want a thousand dollars worth of Givi stuffs to get tossed into a pile of rocks.  Hope it doesn't suck. 

http://www.immixracing.com/yamaha-xt250-cargo-rack.html#product-tabs

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http://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/oxford-topcase

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Online Vulcanbill

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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #1 on: June 02, 2016, 03:12:04 PM »
Update:  Got everything mounted and took it to WV for testing.  Turns out my mounting was woefully inadequate as I didn't take into account the metal brackets they sent bending.  Live and learn.  More nuts and bolts for the universal mount and all seems to be well.  I've had to tighten a few things here and there but I knew that going in so I had the tools with.  I keep checking on them and so far, no worries after the initial strengthening.  It's quite handy to have a bag along on the trails.  We do get some looks from the serious mx bike crowd.  I think they're just jealous as we pull trail mix, mt dew and sammiches out of the boxes.  Not sure how they'll hold up over time but they're plastic.  How bad can it be?  And for the nominal investment, I couldn't be happier.   
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Online DNA

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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #2 on: June 02, 2016, 05:09:18 PM »
Looks interesting.

We had a guy on a quad following us with a mounted cooler of stuff on it for us to munch on.

He actually got around pretty good and we never dropped him.

This solution looks less expensive - but I think I may buy the wife a quad and let her follow along?
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Online Vulcanbill

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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #3 on: June 03, 2016, 03:35:23 PM »
Quote from: DNA on June 02, 2016, 05:09:18 PM
Looks interesting.

We had a guy on a quad following us with a mounted cooler of stuff on it for us to munch on.

He actually got around pretty good and we never dropped him.

This solution looks less expensive - but I think I may buy the wife a quad and let her follow along?

Clearly you're talking about your wife cuz you know better than to suggest that about mine... 

Our quad guy isn't quite so skilled.  When we get a bug, we end up waiting for them at the next intersection for quite a while.  Having the bags is really nice if you can figure out a way to keep your tools from smashing your food and busting your water bottles.  :0)
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Online Virginian

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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #4 on: August 03, 2016, 06:59:37 PM »
I ordered a Bestem 929 off of Amazon, they make two variations. One with no lights for like $80 and one prewired for LED running lights and a brake light for $125. It comes with a back rest pad, universal mounting plate. I just got it installed on one of my scooters. So far two thumbs up.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0094E0FGM/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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I ordered a strip of LED on fleabay and I'll redo the LEDs that came with the box and post up that when I get the project done. I would say this box is just about the size of a V46.

I installed a OEM Honda rear rack.
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Which came with bar end weights as well.
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Brackets and hardware.
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Installed.
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Backrest.
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« Last Edit: August 03, 2016, 08:09:39 PM by Virginian »
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Online SLK50

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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #5 on: August 03, 2016, 07:44:52 PM »
I've purchased about 5 or 6 Bestem cases over the years.
Currently using two as top cases and two as saddlebags.
The only problem I've ever had with any of them is a
split hinge on one of the top cases. Hasn't completely
failed and sees daily use.
A lot of case for the money.
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Online Virginian

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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #6 on: August 03, 2016, 08:08:21 PM »
Nice! Thanks for adding long term review. I'll see how it goes on the scoot.

Eric
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Online Virginian

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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #7 on: August 08, 2016, 03:07:25 PM »
I got my Bestem 929 wired up today. I have a quick disconnect coming in the mail and a roll of LEDs and jumper cables coming from fleabay. When they get here I'll enhance the LED bar on the topbox. As it stands now I have a two rows of LEDS in the lower section for running lights and brake lights. You can't really tell in these pics but the bar does get considerably brighter when the brake is applied. I also have a dedicated brake light on the top of the box as well. Overall, I'm super pleased with this purchase.

Eric
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Online Doug Just Doug

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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #8 on: August 09, 2016, 10:34:32 AM »
I ran a cheapie top box from JC Whitney for years on a prior bike.  It wasn't as pretty, but it was a waterproof and durable as the Givi boxes I've had.
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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #9 on: August 09, 2016, 01:16:55 PM »
Yeah, I think the cases are secondary to good mounting, and holy crap, I wish I was set up for winder production. I could make a killing doing brackets for bikes that Givi / SWMotech doesn't cover, or as lower-cost alternatives to those. The top case TINY LITTLE BRACKET for the GS500 from SWMotech is $144. The ZRX, $160. The Magna... just, nonexistent.

A. Killing.

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Online Virginian

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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #10 on: August 16, 2016, 09:00:59 PM »
This will be kind of a long post so my apologies up front.

I finished added LED's to the topbox and it came out nice. This is an easy mod to any topbox for any topcase/topbox for roughly $13 dollars and some of my time.

Here's the parts that I ordered off of fleabay:
Jumper cables $3.40 U.S. TMD and waterproof flexible LED strip $9.21 U.S. TMD

http://www.ebay.com/itm/181846678573?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
http://www.ebay.com/itm/321145960519?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

I first disassembled the topbox to get at the lenses. Note: There's only Scotch tape holding in the existing LED strip that came with the Bestem 929. There's 3 grooves in this lens and made it quite nice to have 3 rows of LED's.
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I used some Gorilla tape (kind of HD duct tape) and cut a strip to secure the exiting LED strip.
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Measure and cut the LED strip at the indicated cut lines. It's super flexible and had adhesive on the back which wouldn't be a help in this case. Pro-tip: These are tiny solder points and to inspect if you have a smart phone, go to camera mode and just zoom in to get a magnified view of your work. I used the jumper wires and just carved them up in the colors that I need to be consistent with the OEM colors.
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Solder on two leads after you strip the silicone away from the end with a razor blade.
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Hook it up to any 12V power source to check your connections.
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I laid in the LED strips in all 3 of the grooves and taped them in with the Gorilla Tape.
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I also ran a short LED strip to the dedicated brake light on the top of the topcase and just patched it to the existing wires for those LED's.
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Wire it up to the pre-existing wiring that came with the case and you're good to go. Please note that LED's are polarity sensitive so double check your pluses + and minuses -.

Running lights
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Brake applied. Note: I now have three tiered lighting for brakes; Honda brake, center row on top box, and a row at the top of the box.
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One last thought, I ran the LED strips all the way around the lens and have 180* visibility now.
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I hope this post inspires someone to add some decent lighting to their existing topcase.

Again sorry for the long post.

Mea Culpa



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Offline CLAY

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Re: Topcase on the cheap
« Reply #11 on: August 17, 2016, 04:25:42 PM »
That's pretty slick.  I might add them to my Givi.
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