Panniers and the top box is my ideal. I used all three plus a duffle bag bungeed to the rear seat. Course, that was a two and a half week trip from San Francisco to pemberton, BC via hwy1 and the cascades...
Are you bringing camping gear? Why would you prefer one version over the other? Are you planning on lanesplitting? More info would be helpful.
Being rather practically oriented I had top boxes on all my previous bikes.
I bought the Bonnie with top box fitted, but it was such an eyesore that I removed it after 48 hours. Just couldn't stand the look of it. I had the set of side panniers fitted since and they seem to be working fine. They are expandable, and slim enough to allow for daily lane splitting (not much wider than megaphone exhausts).
I'm hoping to do some touring this spring and I should be able to fit everything in the panniers and the magnetic tank bag.
Top box puts the weight up high and compromises balance. Side cases keep the weight low and (packed correctly) better distributed. I run a top box in addition to saddlebags on long trips, but never on its own if I can avoid it. A full top box is like a passenger who doesn't know how to lean.
I have never tried a tank bag. In light of the scarcity of a luggage rack for my '01 i this will be near the top of my GAS.
On my previous bike I noticed a big difference in removing the top box. the back end felt more slick in a turn. the top box added a lot of drag. but man, that cargo capacity...
I prefer the side cases and a tank bag. For extra long trips I also strap a soft bag on the back long ways covering the back seat and rack. It also acts like a back rest.
I've used the panniers/duffle/tank bag combo for weeks long trips and like KRat, the duffle doubles as some lower back support. I always keep my side bags on around town.
I rented a K1000RT that only had the top box and didn't like the way it rode, passenger that didn't know how to lean was a great description.
On a camping trip I do use both but this trip has no camping and warm weather. Hence I can drop one off. Having read all comments the Top box will be staying home.
the OP doesn't state whether they are camping or using hotels/motels for the duration of their trip.
Camping: I'd pack my tent and other misc camping kit in a toll bag and mount it on the pillion seat so that its readily available as soon as I pull up at the camping pitch. Other items would be split between the side cases.
Hotels: I'd mount the side cases, I'd also pack my clothes in packing (half) cubes such as those from eagle creek, as I find that a half cube will fit neatly in the lid of the side case. So when I pull up at my hotel at night I can pop the case open and swiftly grab that cube with the change of clothes in. Likewise shoes & toiletries I'd keep in the lid of the other half case. Tools and security devices (chains) I'd keep in the available space in the side case to keep the weigh low
If adverse weather is expected during the trip, then I may consider using the top case to keep my rain gear, and if nessesary my heated gear too, as there would be little weight up high.
I just bought an '04 RS on the net from Road, Track & Trail up in Wisconsin. They had a free shipping deal in Jan. Practical me says I shoulda bought an ST for the bags but I really didn't like all the plastic. I've been researching the luggage options. Not much available except the universal soft throw-over type bags. GIVI has quit supporting that bike and even Twisted Throttle no longer has the SW Moteck rear rack any longer.
If I didn't need all my boxes I would go with pannier first. If I needed more space, then the top box goes on. Lane splitting isn't an issue with panniers because they are not that much wider than the bike. The weight is down low and forward where it should be to make the bike handle better. I even have a backrest on my Corbin Seat if I have a passenger. So if I needed more space I would put the top box on and if I needed even more space I would put a bag on the passenger seat and a tank bag as long as I didn't have a passenger of course
357pig, you can still get Hepco & Becker racks and bags, and it shouldn't be a big deal for a welder to add a tab to the top so you can buy some Givi spares to convert them for Givi bags. I plan to do this with my backup bike once it's running again; my primary has Wingracks bolted on with a bunch of random hardware and some homemade bits as well.
I have a Motodry 56 ltr textile bag and bagster tankbag for everyday use. They both work well together. I have some Triumph soft side panniers but not sure if they are meant for insides of a hardcase?
When I need to bring more stuff I bungee a duffle bag to real seat. I once bungeed a vacuum cleaning in its box to the back seat.
I'm going to try and weld up a frame that fits on the back ventura frame that will hold my carbonfibre pushbike.
Triumph soft side panniers would be joined in the middle so they could be thrown over the rear seat. They came with protective panels for the plastics. The bag liners are two separate pieces, and I think they were all green, but I could be wrong. (The panniers were black.)
More than one of our members have rigged up a rack for a push bike. Someone, wish I could remember who, had a photo of his 1050 with a push bike and a Kalashnikov RPK on the rack!
Sounds like you're packing light for the 4-day trip.
I ride most of the time with top case only. My reasons:
1. A single hard top case is almost always lighter-weight than 2 hard panniers. The Givi V46, for example, weighs next to nothing empty, and even when loaded up to the weight limit (typically 20-25 lbs or so), it is a far cry from even the most petite passenger. The OEM panniers on the Sprint GT combine to weight a metric ton. Feel like that anyway. The Trophy SE use the exact same panniers, but the added weight/bulk on that big girl don't feel as bad as on the svelte Sprint. Sprint ST panniers are a bit slimmer and lighter.
2. I find the top-opening top case much easier to load and unload than side-opening panniers. With panniers, I almost always use inner liner bags because I don't like stuff just fall out every time I open one.
3. Top case adds little to no front profile. When I do clip on the panniers for longer trips, I always have to remember I'm towing a fat rear end, so I don't end up like this rider: :surprise:
For a long trip I think side panniers always because of what Kit and others have said, but for short ones/commuting I think the top case trumps all. I can't filter local traffic with the side panniers on and it defeats much of the advantage of commuting, but filtering on the highway with side panniers on is still possible.
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