Utilitarian, To Put It One Way
These boxes are very inexpensive, and while they provide great bang for the buck they definitely show off their (low) price point.
The fit and finish are rather lacking, and I think the design could be considerably improved without affecting the price much. The number one complaint: No hinge on the lids. The lids are held on by both locks, but if only ONE lock is opened or broken you can slip the hook out of the pawl on the other lock and the lid comes off. That means failure of just one lock on the trail or highway means your lid flies off completely. Plus, when you open the thing then you have to figure out what to do with the lid. I think a hinge on one edge and a single lock on the other end would be a considerable improvement. I might drill and add my own in the future. Putting a hinge on the front (windward) edge would prevent the lids from blowing off in failure scenarios like that.
Speaking of drilling, these are "universal" panniers with no mounting holes. You get to drill your own. You don't even get a template if you buy the matching racks. Drilling through one box into the other to get them consistent with each other is very difficult unless you have a compact drill and a short drill bit. Note that when paired with the Tusk pannier racks these are NOT WATERPROOF, since if you want to make a hole for the security knob you have to, well, make a hole that will allow water and mud inside. The lid seals are also not great, and have a considerable gap where the ends of the rubber gasket meet. I can tell you from experience that the hole for the security knobs and the gap in the gasket will keep out rain if the boxes are upright and still, but you WILL get crud in there if you ride through mud, puddles, or are moving in the rain, etc. They're water resistant but not water "proof".
The included hardware certainly matches the price point. None of it is stainless (although the locks themselves appear to be, at least the parts other than the cylinders) and all of the mounting hardware provided with the boxes as well as the matching racks require smoothing before installing if you don't want the cheap sharp edges to tear and puncture soft items stored inside (stuff sacks, sleeping bags, air mattresses)... The mounting bracket for the Tusk racks is not a smooth fit and has a large amount of play that results in squeaks, rattles, and bangs on the trail. Mine have contacted the back sides of the boxes and rubbed off all the paint where the tubes contact the box, and rubbed the paint off of the racks as well. The boxes can't rust but the racks can! The paint is garbage; bare aluminum would have been better (and probably cheaper, too). The paint on the inside also easy wears away from rubbing with items stored inside, and transfers easily even to soft things and textiles. I have black marks on most of my camping stuff from rubbed off paint inside the boxes, and big old scuffed areas on the inside where that paint used to be. Sharp points from painted over welding spatter on the inside will rip and tear soft items stored inside, as well. Definitely stick some self adhesive felt or foam or something to the insides of these to protect your stuff.
Here's something else no one is talking about: The flat fronted and sided design of these boxes is quite possibly the least aerodynamic thing in the universe. Due to the budget price point, these boxes do not include the rounded edges or corners of more expensive adventure/touring luggage. Just strapping these onto my KLR empty takes about 5-10 MPH off of my top speed and affects gas mileage accordingly.
Despite the budget construction these boxes do seem to be fairly durable. The utilitarian looks and feel match cheap off-roaders and the cheapskates who ride them, and you don't feel as bad about banging them up. I ate **** into a rock at about 30 MPH on the trail and went down on the right side pretty hard. A bunch of the paint came off and that box is now slightly bowed (interestingly, mostly on the INSIDE where it bolts up to the mounting bracket) but other than that it held together fine and probably saved my ankle on the way down. Two more incidents also involving that box including sliding about halfway down a hill on my side and power sliding into a fence took a bunch of the finish off of that box but did no other damage. On the bright side, the boxes (and Tusk crash bars) took the complete brunt of all three crashes and there isn't a scratch on my bike itself.
Replacing a pair of these is cheaper than replacing all three fairings on one side of the bike... Though it would be nice if the full set of componentry were separately available. I would buy a new box bottom to replace my dented one, but my lids and locks are fine. That's the only part you can't buy separately.
-m-2015 KAWASAKI KLR650--