“Fits two helmets or one helmet / jacket. Easy installation and quickly detached. Did over 600km with this on and loaded and no problems.
Reasonably secure and good enough for most situations and the price is good.
Great value for money and very useful.”
“This is the second time I have bought one of these and I couldn't be happier with it. Thought it would be rubbish for this price but that couldn't be further from the truth.It is a very big box with solid base and over all very good solid material. Dust and water tied, easy to install and remove I highly recommend this Box. Thank you very much, will shop again for my next bike :)))”
“Needed an affordable top box for taking my stuff to uni everyday - bought this on sale at $44.95 + shipping. Arrived in perfect condition in 3 days. Really good practical top box for its price. Plastic is a little thin but the box is plenty rigid when closed and I have had no problems with it. The mounting system and latch is fairly sturdy, but I bolted mine down to the rack seeing as I sometimes carry my laptop in there.”
“I purchased this top box as a direct replacement for my 39L Kappa box which, while perfectly functional, was too small to hold both my helmet and jacket. This became a nuisance when riding to work, as I then had to lug the jacket around everywhere; a pain in hot Queensland weather.
My original thought was to buy another Kappa box. made by Givi as their "budget" range, it wasn't as solid as a Givi box, but then again was markedly cheaper, starting around $250+, where you didn't buy a 48L Givi under $400+.
Then I thought I'd look into cheaper boxes, mainly on eBay. However, I was put off by the poor reviews of many, sold by clearance shopping outlets. At least, until I came across this Third Gear box, which intrigued me.
So, I took the plunge, bought it, and can say, for the price, couldn't be happier.
But what's the positives and negatives?
The Kappa box was obviously cheaper than a Givi or Shad box. This product is manufactured cheaper again. The rear bows out when the lid is open, as it's very wide across the back and, like many such boxes, hasn't the heavy reinforcing the more expensive boxes have. This has been reported before. However, with little effort, this can be pushed in when lining up the lid lines everything up fine, and once the lid is closed, the structure is perfectly secure.
The clip is similar in design to the Givi/Kappa Monokey system, and functions in a similar manner. However, it doesn't have the substance the Kappa system has. Does this mean it's weak? Not really. But I don't think I'd heavily load this case when riding. However, as my purchase was for storage when parking, it's perfect for my needs, fitting my overly large flip front helmet and my riding jacket, with a little room to spare.
The key doesn't have the smoothness that the Kappa case has, but I'd imagine a little graphite lubricant would help with this. It works fine.
The seals are very similar to the Kappa system, being interlocked plastic without rubber. Not sure how they'd handle heavy rain, but couldn't imagine they'd be any worse than the Kappa.
The base plate is a similar design to the Givi/Kappa system and I'd hoped they'd be interchangeable so I could use both my old and new case on the base plate. Unfortunately, there's enough difference that this cannot occur, which is a shame, but wouldn't affect most people.
Some have reported the case sits loose on the base plate. I didn't experience this, although it is a BIG box, and again I don't think I'd be keen to load it up heavily in case it came off during riding.
The plate also doesn't have the screw cover my Kappa has, which is a little less attractive with the box off. Not by any means a deal breaker, but a cost cutting exercise for the price. Some mightn't like the look, but personally I don't care.
It's not as stylish as my Kappa case, and certainly doesn't have the bells and whistles of some Givi cases. Then again, they start at $500+, near twn times the price. That's a lot of $$$ to spend on what is, really, a big bulky black box on the back of your bike, no matter what brand you buy.
The real breaking point is price. It's no different in price to a lot of the crappy Chinese cases being sold on eBay, around the $50 mark. However, in comparison to these, it's markedly more substantial. I see a few people whinging it's not up to Givi standards, which is a rather stupid statement. If you want to drive a BMW, you don't buy a Great Wall. For the price, however? It's 1/5th the price of the Kappa, and at least 1/7th that of a Shad or Givi of equivalent size. That's a HUGE difference! It's functional, cheap and does what it needs to do, without being overly expensive.
It was delivered fast, well packaged and the courier didn't seem to knock it about much. It arrived in good condition, and was as easy to fit as my Kappa box (Basically an identical fitting system)
Would I recommend this box? Hell yes. For around $50, it's great buying, and perfect for my needs. You'd be hard pressed buying anything better elsewhere. If you want a perfect, solid box, buy a Shad or Givi and spend 7+ times the price. If you want a good, solid box which functions very well, this is the one to buy.
5 stars, without hesitation.”
“Purchased a Large Top Case for my Bike. Prompt delivery and the item is as described. Very happy with the purchase and will definitely purchase from Third Gear again.”
“Best value top box I could find, well made (for the price). The lock is simple to use and the handle make it easy to carry my gear when off the bike. When my mate saw it he got rid of his old box and brought one of these. A+++”
