Gen 2 top box options

[otley]

Hi. I'd like to fit a small (~25litre) top box to my 09 Gen 2 Fazer. Are there any that don't need permanent modifications to the bike to fit? I looked at the Givi mounting instructions and theirs seems to need the rear side panels cutting away slightly to clear the mounting frame.
I also wondered about buying a spare rear seat, cutting off the cover and padding and somehow screwing a top box mount to what remains. Has anyone tried this?
Thanks

[stevierst]

I think the shad top box rails bolt straight on without modding the panels and they're about £66 on evilbay. Some bugger butchered my rear panel to fit a givi rack and made a right arse of it!
I looked for a decent alternative all over but they're mega bucks, but being a tightarse I ended up making my own.
I rarely use it, and just have the small seat bag attached for the usual crap that won't fit under the seat.
As for bolting the box to your pilllion seat, well each to their own, but I'm not a fan of it, I think it looks awful.


Stop polishing it and ride the bloody thing!

[otley]

Thanks for the reply. Your home made rack looks fine for a soft luggage bag. The bag you have atop your pillion seat looks like it would do for me.
 
I've searched a few previous posts and found a fabricated tin box that someone had made that replaced the pillion seat. It seemed to be met with some derision, though I thought it had promise if made from a plastic rather than steel.
 
 

[stevierst]

The rack believe it or not can take some stick. I've loaded it full, and it didn't shift. It was designed to fit a box onoriginally, but decided against it. I designed it alongside the Ventura system which the rack assembly can be removed in about 30 seconds leaving just the mounting rails in place. It works really well!
The seat bag is just a 10 litre tank bag that's had some straps sewn on underneath. It's a bit of a tight fit to lock the seat on, but it aint going anywhere, and theres no ugly straps or bungees rubbing away at your paint either. Might be worth considering.

[bernieeccles]

I have a ventura kit for mine and when not in use, it just has the grab handle in place. I decided that a small topbox would be handy, so bought some mild steel tube and bent it
with a plumbers pipe bender, painted it black. Then bought a very cheap box off ebay and bolted it through the tube. It just slots in place of the grab handle and visa versa.