Thoughts on Top Box and tires for an NT?

Tanksmon

Tanksmon

Joined
Jul 24, 2020
Messages
20
Location
south carolina
Hey NTers, I'm looking at different top boxes and want to get your thoughts. I want something to hold a helmet and camera gear. Also need something sturdy and easy to install. I also am going to invest in some new treads in the Spring. Any thoughts on the best tires for an NT? I am not an aggressive rider and want something that will last. Thanks for your help!
 
Hey, Tanksmon, I've put 141,000 miles on my two '10 NT's. I started with a Shad topbox when I bought #1 in March of 2010. The first one broke the bottom from the mounting points at about 35K miles. Twisted Throttle replaced it and then it broke when I was on my '13 "Epic Post-Retirement Ride to Alaska, the Four Corners of the US, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador" when I was at around 76K miles on the bike. I was at Bay St. Lawrence on Cabot Island (the northernmost point in Nova Scotia. The campground owner gave me a bunch of bungees and they held until I got to Twisted Throttle's store in Rhode Island. TT told me that I had overloaded the box and wouldn't give me any credit toward a new one. I didn't hold that against them, but I sure wasn't going to buy another Shad. I had had a Givi on my two '99 Kawasaki Concours and it had survived a crash that totaled my first Connie. So I replaced the Shad with a Givi Maxia and it's still on that old NT. When I bought my 2nd NT in July of '20, it already had a Givi V46 and I'm confident it will last me as long as I have the bike. Since I'm 78, that might not be any longer than another 10-20 years. :cool:

As far as tires go, I've tried quite a few and when I bought my current bike, I got the dealer to throw in new tires. I had a fairly new set of Michelin Pilot 5s on Dudley (the old bike) and I got Michelin PR4s on Horse (the new bike). I think that they have lasted a little better than the Pilot 5s. I may try the new Dunlop Road Smarts (or their successor) when I wear these PR4s out.
 
Another vote for the Givi V47. It’s a 47 Liter capacity top box. It will fit my Shoei Neotec and will probably the Shoei Neotec II too that I bought recently. I also carry a small gym bag filled with all my riding gear.

I am a Bridgestone tire user for many years. Currently, I am running T30 Evos and will be moving to the T31 that replaces them. I have a T31 on the rear of my NT, DIVA and it has about 8,000 miles on it. I should get another 2,000 miles out of it before looking to replace it. They are more economical than Michelin PR4 and PR5s. However, others will argue they last a lot longer.
 
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I'd recommend the Givi V47 (red lenses). If you've got a Silver NT, order the case with the alloy insert. If it didn't have the Givi logo, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was the factory setup. I have the E135 stop light kit installed on mine.

V47NA 47 LITER TOP CASE - BLACK W/ALLOY INSERT

GIVI leader in Motorcycle Cases, Hardbags, Side Hardbags, Motorcycle bags, motorbike accessories. Tecnology and design "made in Italy".
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It's pretty hard to beat the durability of the Givi large boxes. I've had a V46 that was originally on my PC800 then transferred to my NT700V. It has been to both coasts many times and I've also done more than half of the Canadian Provinces and never had a bit of trouble with it. My guess is that the V47 is an upgrade of my ancient but still fully functional V46.

I did buy a smaller Givi top box for my NC700X and it has a different latching mechanism so I'll see how it holds up.
 
ST1100Y said:
I wouldn't go too big as you'll tend to stuff it and having mass that high and that far aft will impact handling... (its also impacting lifetime of head-bearings and fork bushings...)
Click to expand...

The 47 isn't "too big". The Honda factory box is 45L. The Givi 56L Maxi is overkill.
 
Having tried a number of different options I would suggest the Givi mount and pick the box you like.
 
ST1100Y said:
Wasn't aimed at you per-se, more meant "in general" 😉
(I'm shocked what folks sometimes haul in their top-cases... :oops:)
Click to expand...

My brother-in-law back in the late 1980s and early 1990s had a top box big enough for a single helmet. He mounted a CB antenna to it and carried about 50 lbs of tools in that box. This box was both on his Yamaha XS650 and then his Honda CX500. I had to barrow his CX500 once. All that weight made the bike handle and steer like a 747 with the space shuttle on its back.

638768main_EC05-0166-37.jpg
 
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