Recommend cages... I keep losing bottles!

[TronnyJenkins]

Lost my second Podium Chill Saturday, two other times I lost one on a group ride and turned around so it's starting to get old... not to mention a hazard for other racers. I think every time has been on that nasty Texas chip seal, so maybe it's unavoidable. Current cages are traditional aluminum style. I've avoided ones that look too space age, but if they'll keep my stinking bottles in place, I'm for it.
Would prefer black and not stupid expensive...

[woodworker]

King Ti cages are very tight. At first I didn't like them b/c too tight, but after a bit you get used to them. Never lost a bottle and think it very unlikely that I ever would with these. Great cages.

[FlashUNC]

King cages. The steel version holds great.

What's more expensive, spending a bit more for a not terrible cage, or buying bottles all the time?

[weisan]

If it's metal, I would bend/push the cage inwards ever so sightly to make the grip tighter.

[jtbadge]

King Cage stainless. Why bother with anything else?

http://d2ydh70d4b5xgv.cloudfront.net/images/7/2/lot-2-king-cage-stainless-steel-water-bottle-cages-road-mountain-bike-pair-9d0a5773370390a68978add6897f046e.jpg

[kppolich]

Xlab chimp or Xlab gorilla. They come in colors too, you won't lose any bottles.

[David Kirk]

King - full stop.

dave

[TronnyJenkins]

King cages. The steel version holds great.

What's more expensive, spending a bit more for a not terrible cage, or buying bottles all the time?

The economics are starting to become apparent. I just meant I don't necessarily need $80 carbon ones. :)

[54ny77]

king stainless or ti. i'm partial to ti. they grip like crazy, and can be pushed in a little bit to grip even more. just DON'T push them in while mounted on the frame, that's a lotta strain on the waterbottle pop rivets.

:cool:

[parallelfish]

Specialized Rib Cage. Cheap, holds firmly, many colors to choose from.

[JAGI410]

King steel or Elite Cannibal

[johnmdesigner]

https://www.competitivecyclist.com/arundel-dave-o-carbon-bottle-cage?skidn=ARU0001-OILSLI-ONESIZ&ti=UExQIEJyYW5kOkFydW5kZWwgV2F0ZXIgQm90dGxlcyAmIEN hZ2VzOjE6MTI6MTAwMDAxNDE4X2NjQ2F0MTAwMDA3

If you want carbon. Used these on horrible roads and fire trails. Never lost a bottle. You get what you pay for.

[zap]

King Ti or Arundel Mandible.

[ColonelJLloyd]

King Cage stainless. Why bother with anything else?


Black?

I have MSW Up or Down cages on my MTB and I use Podium Chill bottles. Never had one come out.

On other bikes I use Salsa NickLess or some Electra copies of Nitto R cages. Both of those are pretty secure and have never given me issues.

[Gummee]

If you want something that'll HOLD a cage, Velocity cages are awesome.

Inexpensive too

M

[dgauthier]

+1 for King Stainless Steel. What "traditional aluminum style" cage are you using now?

[jwess1234]

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/accessories/rib-cage-ii/104933

http://www.arundelbike.com/product/dave-o/

Both great and I've never had a bottle pop out of either.

[Mark McM]

I'm sure this won't be a popular choice, because these cages aren't made out of some high-tech wonder material, and they don't carry the cache of an exclusive brand name or a high price tag, but ...

The Cateye BC-100 cage is very rugged and reliable, and grips water bottles better than any other cage I've tried.

I ride with water bottles on MTB, and found that many cages wouldn't hold water bottles well, and all the metal cages I tried eventually cracked and broke. Until I tried the nylon Cateye BC-100 cage. I haven't lost a bottle or broken a cage since.


http://tfe.me/image/480_345/TF-WC2510-1.jpg

[biker72]

Arundel Sport. Inexpensive and will hold a Podium Big Chill 25 oz. bottle very securely.

[johnniecakes]

Tacx are the best I have tried. Have them on all the bikes.

[Drmojo]

voting no on king Ti
Came with our Ti Santana tandem
Nearly lost 3 bottles in first 3 rides
Tightened down CRACK
swapped out right away
Zero issues with other alloy cages--not King
Pricey and never saw appeal
So many other choices for less $$$$
just my experiece

[avalonracing]

King Iris cages are even more secure (and look cooler).

[commonguy001]

I've been running King Iris cages on my gravel bike for 4 years and haven't lost a bottle yet. Don't ever expect to either.

[shovelhd]

Arundel Dave-O.

[binxnyrwarrsoul]

King, SS or Ti. Done.

[lexlion]

During the cobbled classics, the pros put some grip tape on their cages to keep bottles from shaking out

[jamesau]

For black, value, and good looking, I've been happy with this house-brand carbon cage from JensonUSA:
http://www.jensonusa.com/Water-Bottle-Cages/JensonUSA-Carbon-Bottle-Cage?cs=Carbon

http://static.jensonusa.com/images/Color-Image/Zoom/0/G0001AEB.jpg

[eippo1]

For carbon, the Blackburn Camber holds very well - even on gravel. For metal, can't beat the King Cages.

For plastic, the Elite Custom Plus has a better hold than any other plastic I've ever used. Plus colors!

https://r2-bike.com/media/image/product/108268/md/elite-bottle-cage-custom-race-plus.jpg

[oldpotatoe]

Lost my second Podium Chill Saturday, two other times I lost one on a group ride and turned around so it's starting to get old... not to mention a hazard for other racers. I think every time has been on that nasty Texas chip seal, so maybe it's unavoidable. Current cages are traditional aluminum style. I've avoided ones that look too space age, but if they'll keep my stinking bottles in place, I'm for it.
Would prefer black and not stupid expensive...

King stainless or titanium. No mark up bottles and ya can bend them to make them tighter if ya need to. Stainless Iris on Merckx, never lost a bottle even on dirt road adventures.

[jmal]

Specialized Rib Cage. Cheap, holds firmly, many colors to choose from.

This^^^. I use them for my MTB too and have never dropped a bottle, including chunky high speed descents in the mountains.

[Cornfed]

Lezyne Power Bottle cage. I have them on my gravel and cyclocross bikes and I've never lost a bottle, even on the rough stuff. (And I use the same bottles.) Almost too tight.

https://www.amazon.com/Lezyne-Power-Bottle-Cage-Black/dp/B0036CG814/

[oldpotatoe]

voting no on king Ti
Came with our Ti Santana tandem
Nearly lost 3 bottles in first 3 rides
Tightened down CRACK
swapped out right away
Zero issues with other alloy cages--not King
Pricey and never saw appeal
So many other choices for less $$$$
just my experiece

Crack? Warranty. Andrews cares about this stuff.

[Tony T]

King Iris:

http://www.kingcage.com/products/iris-cage.jpg

[zennmotion]

King. The Iris holds my big 27oz Polar bottles in place on gravel rides with a death grip, no rattling and no sideways slippage with the big hits, I like the classic shaped stainless model too but the Iris wins for rough roads and MTB. Never used the Ti, steel is real.

[Drmojo]

Crack? Warranty. Andrews cares about this stuff.

they came with the bike
long gone
2nd owner
thx for ifo tho!

[loxx0050]

I've got Ibera alloy/aluminum cages on my road bike. Haven't lost a bottle yet (use Podium chill 25 oz and 21 oz. Sometimes use a Polar 21oz too). Pretty cheap and you can get "carbon" looking ones.

I also have a cheap alloy nashbar cage I've used on my road bike but have since moved to my hardtail MTB. Still haven't lost a cage on that one too even riding on the rocky dirt trails (when I did bring a bottle).

As others have mentioned the beauty of the aluminum (or steel) cages is if they get a little loose you can "adjust" them.

[TronnyJenkins]

+1 for King Stainless Steel. What "traditional aluminum style" cage are you using now?

Thanks all- have a lot of options to comb through, though seems like King is a favorite.

I looked and they are Topeak brand. I think this (https://www.rei.com/product/735868/topeak-shuttle-waterbottle-cage-al?CAWELAID=120217890000877495&CAGPSPN=pla&CAAGID=15877513840&CATCI=aud-54816614184:pla-183700130440&cm_mmc=PLA_Google|404_9036|7358680010|none|46df9a3 4-d9cd-4da7-ba06-787e9f59d63e|aud-54816614184:pla-183700130440&lsft=cm_mmc:PLA_Google_LIA|404_9036|7358680010|non e|46df9a34-d9cd-4da7-ba06-787e9f59d63e|aud-54816614184:pla-183700130440&gclid=Cj0KCQjw_o7NBRDgARIsAKvAgt2JHrlk3Q7unKV_NaBO n2cu7acn26-08e1tncv93ZnybpWLcW6wCskaAiHkEALw_wcB) model. Got them as a present a couple of years ago and never thought much about it until racing more this year and the issues mentioned.

[choke]

King Iris are the most secure IME.

I like the normal King stainless as well but I've had bottles ejected from them on really rough dirt roads on two occasions.

[m4rk540]

For plastic, the Elite Custom Plus has a better hold than any other plastic I've ever used. Plus colors!

https://r2-bike.com/media/image/product/108268/md/elite-bottle-cage-custom-race-plus.jpg

+1

And possibly more stylish with 95% the hold, Arundel Sport

https://www.competitivecyclist.com/arundel-sport-bottle-cage?skidn=ARU0005-BK-ONESIZ&ti=UExQIENhdDpXYXRlciBCb3R0bGVzICYgQ2FnZXM6MTo2OmN jQ2F0MTAwMDA3

[Slipstream]

King Iris:

http://www.kingcage.com/products/iris-cage.jpg

King for my vote

[Peter P.]

... Got them as a present a couple of years ago and never thought much about it until racing more this year and the issues mentioned.

Maybe the person that gifted them to you actually hates you...:)

Seriously, you don't need to spend carbon prices or get carbon cages to hold a waterbottle well.

I agree with Mark McM that you can get plastic cages that are cheap and hold bottles well. The bonus is they'll come in the color of your choice. Those King cages well,...

The cages on my road bike are from the '80's! When I was a quasi-weightweenie I bought them because Specialized claimed they were the lightest on the market; I think they were 34g. Plastic. Haven't broken yet and have never lost a bottle. They were ugly colors but when I built my latest road bike in 2013, I spray painted them white to pimp out my bike. Still going strong!

[GregL]

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/accessories/rib-cage-ii/104933

http://www.arundelbike.com/product/dave-o/

Both great and I've never had a bottle pop out of either.
+1 for the Specialized Rib Cage II. Inexpensive, reasonably light weight, lots of colors, available at many LBS and online, AND they hold bottles securely. In a race a few weeks back, several sections of road had been ground down prior to resurfacing. The road was so rough, my hands, feet, and behind were literally numb from the pounding. My bottles stayed put.

Greg

[DRZRM]

+1 On King, I run Iris on two bikes, and ti on another. They hold great.

[William]

Legend Wings...





William

[oldpotatoe]

they came with the bike
long gone
2nd owner
thx for ifo tho!

I'd still contact him..he does care about HIS defective products. He's a really good guy.

[seanile]

Lezyne Power Bottle cage. I have them on my gravel and cyclocross bikes and I've never lost a bottle, even on the rough stuff. (And I use the same bottles.) Almost too tight.

https://www.amazon.com/Lezyne-Power-Bottle-Cage-Black/dp/B0036CG814/

these are amazing. very sturdy and highly recommended for bikepacking which means they get shook. also, much better price than king..i can't figure why you'd get one of those when the lezyne are available. i mean hell, the review below begins with, "The Lezyne Power Bottle cage is by far the best and most burly cage I’ve used. At 66 grams, that’s impressive. A lot of folks say the King Cage is tops, but I would argue."

http://www.bikepacking.com/gear/bottle-cages-for-touring-bikepacking/

[Bonesbrigade]

Another vote for King Iris - I've done lots of rough gravel and trail rides with these and there's been no hint of having a dropped bottle. I have the stainless steel version.