Cnell top boxes

[jmesax]

Just wondering if anyone has the cnell top box (large preferrably) and if it is adequate for a Suzuki DL1000. I could get a GIVI but for 4-5x as much $ just wondering if the cnell is adequate. Thanks.

[geoffm]

Just wondering if anyone has the cnell top box (large preferably) and if it is adequate for a Suzuki DL1000. I could get a GIVI but for 4-5x as much $ just wondering if the cnell is adequate. Thanks.

I have been meaning to do a review on these for a while. I have a middle sized one and the 'kin ginormus huge one. You are welcome to come and have a look at them if you want to see one up close. I will see if I can take some photos later.
I bought the middle sized one for a scooter which did commuting duties for several months and when I sold that I put it on the SV1000. It is mounted on the Ventura pack rack brackets with a home made plate adapter.
The large one is on the scooter and hacked daily to work and home and again has a home made adapter to fit to the slightly strange Keyway luggage rack

Pros:
The large one is huge - I have had apartments smaller than this. Takes a full face helmet no worries with space to spare, although 2 helmets might be a squeeze on the width.
They seem waterproof.

Cons:
The middle sized one takes a helmet, but it is a bit low. Another 5- 10mm of height would make all the difference with closing the top without having to push on it, although a smaller head or different helmet might also work.
The mounting plates are stamped sheet metal and are the weakest part of the system – they are around 20ga (1mm) thick with a folded edge to stiffen them up. They are not that rigid so the adapter plate you use to mount it onto the bike really needs to extend to the edges of the top box plate, or have a couple of metal strips to pick up the edges. The glass reinforced plastic of the Givi is better here, as the mounting plate is stiff enough to hang over the edges of the adapter plate on the bike and not flex.
The paint on the metal of the large one when I got it had some dings and paint chips off it with the paint flaking in a couple of spots. A squirt with an aerosol paint can tidied that up and there are no signs of rust a year on.
I don’t know what sort of plastic the Chinese manufacturer uses, but both cases had a very strong plastic smell when you first open them up. It goes away after a few weeks of use but it is very noticeable when you first use them.

Summary - they are good value for money, and I would buy another one - as evidenced by me buying the large one after using the medium one for a year or so. The build quality is ok, but the finish and mounting plate in particular isn’t as good as a Givi, but they are much, much cheaper to buy.
BTW - The mounting plates for both are not interchangeable (the way they fit onto the case is different) as I had hoped to be able to swap easily for touring on the SV. I can of course unbolt the mounting plate and move the assembly from one to another.
Geoff

[pete376403]

I put one of these on my KLR. It worked ok for a while but broke at the side. Was under fairly extreme conditions though - was bouncing the bike around in a river bed and a small compressor/tyre pump was not secured or wrapped so it broke through the side of the box. The plastic is pretty thin. Also the seal between lid and box is only adequate at best so I used to put anything I wanted to keep dry in the box in a bin liner bag. However the price (around $30 IIRC) couldn't be beat