Alternatives to a saddle bag

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Comments

  • pilot_pete
    pilot_pete Posts: 2,120
    socrates wrote:
    I liKe Pilot Petes Cyckit. A pity they are in New Zealand and online only. It is nice to see something in the flesh before buying but think I will go ahead and order one. If it looks crap on the good bike I can always use it on the winter steed.

    Email them with an enquiry. They are very amenable and sent me both versions of the clam shell top to fit various saddles in an attempt to ensure their product would work for me. You do need to pack the shell well, if you try to stuff too much in there you will see a gap around the edge as it is hinged at the back and just has the rubber closure you see at the rear of the saddle, there is no securing method around the sides.

    So far I have found it very good. I carry a couple of extra bits in my jersey pocket (one extra tube and a second inflator bottle wrapped together in cling film) which means I am covered for most eventualities. I have the little Topeak box with patches and a chain link stored in the clam with tube, inflator head and one canister and a small multi tool, together with a couple of plastic tyre levers.

    I understand they are developing a bigger clam to fit more in, but I suspect it won't look quite as sleek as the small size, whilst limiting regarding kit carriage does look aesthetically pleasing...

    PP
  • dennisn
    dennisn Posts: 10,601
    super_davo wrote:
    I've used a bottle for ages rather than a saddlebag, and now I've got one of these:

    http://www.wiggle.co.uk/vittoria-bottle-cage-tool-bag

    Pro team approved? bwaaaahahahahahahahahaha
  • super_davo
    super_davo Posts: 1,229
    Stupid label, great product. You don't see that label when it's in the cage anyway.
  • socrates
    socrates Posts: 453
    No Antfly. Mine is an Aliante
  • dennisn
    dennisn Posts: 10,601
    edited October 2016
    I've tried them all. Back pockets, saddlebags, frame mounted this and that. Never cared for any of them, so now it's back to jersey pockets and done. Not worth obsessing over.
  • bobones
    bobones Posts: 1,215
    Neoprene pencil case in centre pocket for me. I like to carry 2 tubes, 2 CO2 carts, and tools for almost every eventuality, and this has served me well for years. No need to swap between bikes, and it's easy to get stuff in and out of. Cylindrical shape is a bit easier to get in and out of pockets than Lezyne caddy sacks, and the softer material is a bit more comfortable.
  • coops1967
    coops1967 Posts: 99
    I'm not a fan of having bulging pockets either...

    Here's a tool bottle alternative - the cr@ppy photo below shows it with the top section removed (with the top section as in the Amazon pic it can fit most mini pumps)

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00RN48ESG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

    29835163373_2dc814acd0_z.jpg
  • keezx
    keezx Posts: 1,323
    What's the difference with a tool bottle?
  • ZMC888
    ZMC888 Posts: 292
    I know it's heresy.

    But I use a small hydration backpack, but I rode like this for 10 years as an exclusively MTB enduro rider and it's hard to get past the practicality. If I use a saddle bag my thick legs rub on the velcro strap ruins my shorts putting holes in them in a few rides. If you consistently put loads heavy of things in your back-pockets you get horrible saggy back-pocket syndrome. Back-pockets are for fruits, gels and bars IMHO.

    Also I live between the UK and China, and in China there is nothing to eat on a Fondo in a mountain village other than offal-filled dumplings or plastic wrapped junk food. So I need my own food in a small sealable box along with multi-tool, plastic tyre levers, pump and two tubes in the hydration backpack. But I think I'll look into alternatives like a bottle for shorter rides when my next bike has two bottle mounts.
  • dennisn
    dennisn Posts: 10,601
    I'm having trouble understanding something. On this forum it would seem that the masses struggle mightily to imitate the pros. Whatever the pros do, they feel compelled to do. Yet to a man these people can't tolerate the idea of carrying something in a back pocket(just like the pros) and instead resort to what can only be called tacky saddlebags and weird water bottle carriers.
  • mfin
    mfin Posts: 6,729
    Pros don't carry pumps and co2, levers, patches, mutli-tools, a chain breaker, quick link and spare tube though do they Dennis? They have a car following them with everything they need.
  • neil h
    neil h Posts: 499
    dennisn wrote:
    I'm having trouble understanding something. On this forum it would seem that the masses struggle mightily to imitate the pros. Whatever the pros do, they feel compelled to do. Yet to a man these people can't tolerate the idea of carrying something in a back pocket(just like the pros) and instead resort to what can only be called tacky saddlebags and weird water bottle carriers.

    Personally I'd keep jersey pockets for stuff that's either low profile or squidgy, so food/phone/money. Realistically having a crash isn't going to be much fun but having a crash and landing on a pump or a multi-tool is going to suck.
  • dennisn
    dennisn Posts: 10,601
    neil h wrote:
    dennisn wrote:
    I'm having trouble understanding something. On this forum it would seem that the masses struggle mightily to imitate the pros. Whatever the pros do, they feel compelled to do. Yet to a man these people can't tolerate the idea of carrying something in a back pocket(just like the pros) and instead resort to what can only be called tacky saddlebags and weird water bottle carriers.

    Personally I'd keep jersey pockets for stuff that's either low profile or squidgy, so food/phone/money. Realistically having a crash isn't going to be much fun but having a crash and landing on a pump or a multi-tool is going to suck.

    I don't buy it. Buying saddlebags and weird bolt on stuff is not about safety. It's about making yourself look like the pros. Nothing in back pockets and hoping no one really notices your bag or bottle cage carrier. Keep that mini tool, tube, pump, wallet, etc. hidden at all costs. Nothing must mar the lines of your impersonation of a pro cyclist.
  • neil h
    neil h Posts: 499
    And that's why it's my personal reason for not putting tools in my jersey pockets. :lol:
  • rumbataz
    rumbataz Posts: 796
    Having the bits you need in a carrier mounted on the bike is very convenient. It means I can just get on the bike and start riding. There's also less chance of forgetting something. I only carry my small mobile phone in my jersey pocket, and perhaps a £20 note.

    There's no way I'd feel comfortable with all the bits I've got in the tool bottle or saddle bag stuffed into my jersey pockets.

    And, yes, the neat storage solutions mounted on the bike look good too. I like my bike to look nice,
  • Briggo
    Briggo Posts: 3,537
    dennisn wrote:
    I don't buy it. Buying saddlebags and weird bolt on stuff is not about safety. It's about making yourself look like the pros. Nothing in back pockets and hoping no one really notices your bag or bottle cage carrier. Keep that mini tool, tube, pump, wallet, etc. hidden at all costs. Nothing must mar the lines of your impersonation of a pro cyclist.

    What are you blabbering on about, your story makes no sense and has no basis.
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    I struggle to remember to take phone, keys, Garmin, lights and a bottle of drink. So it's great thing that all the tools, spares and a pump are permanently attached to the bike. If I had to load everything separately into jersey pockets there's a 99% chance I'd forget something.
  • Alex99
    Alex99 Posts: 1,407
    dennisn wrote:
    I'm having trouble understanding something. On this forum it would seem that the masses struggle mightily to imitate the pros. Whatever the pros do, they feel compelled to do. Yet to a man these people can't tolerate the idea of carrying something in a back pocket(just like the pros) and instead resort to what can only be called tacky saddlebags and weird water bottle carriers.

    There are quite a few on this thread who say saddle bags are fine. Also, at least some pro's do use saddle bags when they are training. So, if looking 'pro' really is your goal, you can do it with or without a saddle bag. Although, probably the most successful way to look pro is to ride quite a lot faster than any prat that thinks your bike should look a certain way.

    Should add, I have nothing against anyone that wants their bike to look a certain way, just because they do.
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    I tend to cycle relatively slowly so I get overtaken a lot. So nobody could ever mistake me for a pro cyclist, not even a pro on a recovery ride. So I don't worry unduly about how I dress or what my bike looks like, but I am concerned about being self-sufficient, well fed and watered, comfortable and safe. I must admit that I'm becoming increasingly curious about Audax...
  • stevie63
    stevie63 Posts: 481
    keef66 wrote:
    I tend to cycle relatively slowly so I get overtaken a lot. So nobody could ever mistake me for a pro cyclist, not even a pro on a recovery ride. So I don't worry unduly about how I dress or what my bike looks like, but I am concerned about being self-sufficient, well fed and watered, comfortable and safe. I must admit that I'm becoming increasingly curious about Audax...
    You should do it Keith, just to give you an idea last month a 200k ran from just outside Cambridge. The route was past your way to Framlingham and back. At the start was a light breakfast and awaiting the finishers was homemade soup, Bread rolls and cake. The cost for all this: £8.00. Best value in cycling. You have 14 hours to do that in. You can ride by yourself or with others. Basically whatever you prefer.
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    I'm definitely doing it when I retire, my wife will insist. But I think I need to do a few in the intervening 4 or 5 years to get used to the distances first. It does sound just like my kind of event.
  • dj58
    dj58 Posts: 2,224
    keef66 wrote:
    So I don't worry unduly about how I dress or what my bike looks like, but I am concerned about being self-sufficient, well fed and watered, comfortable and safe.

    This is my thinking also.

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