I tipped over the aprilia on hwy 6 in the snow. Latch on side case busted on impact and case flopped open (empty to annoying but not a big deal). Both latches now have a diamond plate reinforcement to prevent that failure.I had side-loading hard cases for the longest time. Biggest complaint is that when the bike is on the side-stand, the contents of the left case tends to fall out when opened. Fine if you've got everything in an inner liner, but if you've got a bunch of loose stuff in there, this happens:
Top-loading cases are easier to manage, but side-loading crashes better - the seal on the lid stays intact.
DAMHIK.