On test, the Fly Anodised cage’s open design allowed for simple bottle access. The mouth of the cage is sloped inwards which increases the surface area slightly for easier bottle replacement. My bottles are not held firmly and they slide in and out very easily. Great for road riding, mayve not ideal for gravel or behind the saddle installation. Not a problem but a charactetistic to be aware of. The Barnacle by Drj0n Bagworks provides a low-profile mounting option for bottle and cargo cages on the fork, downtube, or other locations on a bike frame. The Barnacle clamp is 3D-printed from durable plastic and comes in nine diameters ranging from 25.4mm to 47mm, designed to fit commonly available downtubes in steel, aluminum, and titanium, and also rigid steel and suspension forks. You can also use rubber strips to help accommodate varied tubes. For example, 45mm with a 1mm rubber strip fits a Fox 34 or a Fox 36 without. While they’re not cheap, Tailfin has created a product with a high level of design, engineering, durability, and finish, and until you actually handle them and fit the SFMs, it’s hard to convey how well made they actually are. We think the SFM is perhaps one of the better and more elegantly designed options we’ve tried for use with a suspension fork. Logan and Virginia recently put nearly 2,000 miles on four pairs in Baja and Oaxaca, with no issues to speak of.

The Silca Sicuro Cerakote Titanium Bottle Cage is absurdly expensive, but it is a thing of beauty. If you can afford it, or you're mad, or both, then you'll be pleased to hear that you probably won't need another; this gorgeous piece will look like new forever thanks to the highly abrasion-resistant Cerakote ceramic coating. On our scales, the Fly Anodised cage weighed in at 21g, just 2g over the manufacturer’s stated weight, much lighter than similar cages on the market.What's more, bottle retention, particularly in rougher races like Paris-Roubaix, is going to be a greater determining factor than weight. Are carbon bottle cages worth it? In the same way, all of us, as consumers, make trade-offs every single day in the products we buy and the services we use – and it seems clear that for many people, in the months and years to come, the actual financial cost will become an increasingly important part of the equation. My only gripe is that the holder is sold with screws with a short head to allow good clearance of the bottle. The fancy screws from my frame stamped with the brand do rub against the bottles when I try to use them so I have to use the Supacaz screws... and they are incredibly soft. You can round the head without using any leverage if you are not careful. It's hard to beat the Topeak Feza, in either the 10g road or 12g gravel version. Despite being crazy light, and looking rather flimsy, I've found the G12 model to be dependable, and grip more tightly than far cheaper models. There are lighter ones on the market, just, but you're going to be shopping with boutique brands and spending big dollar to save around four grams. Do bottle cages fit all bottles? While it’s possible to have a carbon expert drill and glue bottle mounts in a carbon frame, and there’s likely a way to weld in bosses on an aluminum frame, both of those scenarios get pretty complicated. We won’t even get into it. However, if you have a steel frame, it’s pretty straightforward. We had bosses added to the underside of two v1 Surly Trolls’ downtubes (before they became a standard feature). It works like a charm and doesn’t cost too much. However, framebuilders are a busy lot, so you might have to wait. In addition, when deciding where the bosses are going to go, consider tire clearance when your suspension fork is compressed, if you run one. And, realize that brazing will damage the finish on your bike, which might require a repaint, or at least a partial respray. Rivnut Bottle Bosses

Cycle Centre Congleton Limited 2021. Cyclestore is a trading name of Cycle Centre Congleton Limited. All Rights Reserved Company No. 05107467 | VAT No: 593 733 507 Now, as we’ve said previously, price is only one of the things that is taken into account when our reviewers come up with a judgment on whether or not something provides good value – and if you read the review above you’ll see that in reaching the final score a trade-off has been made between what are seen as the product’s plus points, and the cost. The top of the cage is stiff, designed to maintain the overall structural integrity, whilst the lower half is more malleable so that the cage can be bent to fit different bottles.

That being said, as ever there are always some questions that need answering, so having tried a tonne of cages out I'll try my best to answer them below. What bottle cage do pros use? Once inserted, your bottle is gripped firmly and whether full or empty it isn't going anywhere. I've used it on both road and gravel rides and the bottle has stayed put up against the stop at the bottom of the cage. In my experience, having compiled a fair few pro bike galleries in my time, is that the Elite Custom Race Plus seems to be the most common, though pro riders' choices are often determined by sponsorship than by free will. Finance is subject to application, financial circumstances and borrowing history. Performance Cycling Limited FRN: 720557 trading as Tredz are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. We are a credit broker not a lender – credit is subject to status and affordability and is provided by Mitsubishi HC Capital UK PLC. Terms & Conditions Apply. The holder in itself is very light, gorgeous, and the finish looks durable (to be confirmed along the kilometers of course).

If you aren’t up for clamping, strapping, or taping mounts to your frame, there are two ways to permanently add bottle bosses to your frame or fork. Hire a Framebuilder Silca also says the cage should prevent scratching to your bottle, but I'm not totally sold on that – surely if you have some grit in between cage and bottles it'll mark the plastic when it goes in and out of the cage, Cerakote or not? After one particularly wet and muddy ride this winter, both my bottles were scratched from grit. So, there you go. Over the past decade, we’ve reviewed 72 bottle cages here on road.cc and this is far and away the most expensive, costing almost 30 per cent more than the next dearest one we’ve featured. Indeed, all but four cost at most half as much as this one does, and in many cases significantly less.

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The cage has a similar price tag to its competitors, however it is worth noting that the standard colour options are significantly cheaper. In all, the Supacaz Fly Anodised bottle cage would add a nice aesthetic touch to a bike. It provides decent retention but the overall product feels a little flimsy. The best bottle cages? How much difference can they make? Well, there's more to them than meets the eye, though I will admit they are all relatively similar in terms of functionality. Below I've rounded up 24 very good options, including plastic, carbon, and metal options, as well as some more specialist ones for smaller frames, odd-shaped bottles, and high capacity units. Even the weight weenies will be happy, as I've weighed them all too. Well, first of all the Sicuro cage is made from high-quality 3Al/2.5V titanium, and is hand-bent and laser welded in the USA. It's pretty light (33g on the road.cc scales, just over the claimed weight of 30g) and being titanium it's also pretty tough.

The arms held the bottles snugly and adapted well around a variety of different bottles. The lower section of the cage feels quite thin and, though this did not occur whilst testing, feels like it could be easily over-stretched.The open front allows for unencumbered installation, though the mounting eyelets are relatively short so have limited height adjustability on the frame. It's an interesting demonstration of the effectiveness of the Cerakote coating. I tried to replicate the test myself with a not-entirely-sharp Stanley blade, and indeed, it did the same thing. After inserting and removing a bottle through a couple of months' worth of grimy weather, I've not noticed a single mark on the cage. While we haven’t tested the Barnacle specifically, we have put some miles on the DeWidget G-Funk Clamps, which are the same design and we have no problem vouching for their performance and reliability. As previous, I'm surprised at people who think they get to tell others how they can and can't spend their money. The Monkii Clip has two round cleats that fit their Monkii cage, Monkii frame bag, or Monkii wedge tool bag. It secures via a hinged clamp to any 25mm-38mm tube, such as frame tube, down tube, handlebar stem or fork leg. It has a maximum Load: 1.5 kg / 3.3 lb. Kit includes one adapter, one M5 25mm screw, one M5 50mm screw, and a rubber shim.