Silca eolo ride wallet review



CAMPYBOB

Well-Known Member
Sep 12, 2005
11,945
2,090
113
My Sticky Pod ride wallet had been working OK, but I got a larger phone and needed to upsize my ride wallet to match. The only down side to the Sticky Pod is the cheap zipper. The up side is that Sticky Pod makes an otherwise decent product and they are reasonably priced at under $20 and offer good protection for the contents. They are also reasonably thin and the Small size rides nicely in a jersey pocket even on long rides. One surface of the Sticky Pod wallet has raised dots that act like a sticker 'gripper'. This keeps the wallet secure in the jersey pocket. I never managed to bounce it out over many thousands of miles of training.

Small size Sticky Pod: https://www.biketiresdirect.com/pro...MIxsKAndyp1QIVijuBCh3dUQhSEAQYASABEgJmZPD_BwE


utsma2-4.jpg


Large size Sticky Pod: https://www.biketiresdirect.com/pro...MIxsKAndyp1QIVijuBCh3dUQhSEAQYAiABEgKPYPD_BwE
utlar2-3.jpg


My first one broke and I replaced it with the same Small size wallet. Rather than upsize to Sticky Pod's Large size, I decided to try the Silca product. Despite swapping brands I still consider the Sticky Pod product to be a very good value.

Anyway, on to the Silca EOLO ride wallet.

I know Silca makes a dedicated phone wallet, but I also wanted to stash a few other things in the wallet and the Silca EOLO wallet looked like it would do a better job of that than the Silca Phone Wallet. Both are priced around $40.

The Silca EOLO Wallet: https://silca.cc/collections/packs/products/eolo-wallet

DSC_4224_Modified_1960_1024x1024.jpg



DSC_4253_1960_1024x1024.jpg


The Silca Phone Wallet:

DSC_4218_1960_1024x1024.jpg


DSC_4239-1960_1024x1024.jpg



The Silca EOLO is made in China, as is the Sticky Pod wallets. It appears to be well made. It may reek of quality, but it will soon reek of sweat. It's a bit thicker than the Sticky Pod when unloaded, but only a bit thicker when I loaded it up. The magnetic latch reflective strap is a sales gimmick IMO, but others might find it a useful feature. You can leave it draped outside the jersey pocket for a little warning for after dark riding. I will probably end up cutting it off the wallet.

Mine EOLO currently holds a smart phone, Park Tool IB-2 Multi-Tool, one Park Tool TB-2 Tire Boot, a Barbieri Nana Micro Pump, some paper currency of the realm and a small nylon aero bladed spoke holder. The EOLO still has room inside for a tube and / or other items when packed as described.

Just for reference, my small saddle bag holds my primary tube, Lezyne Twin Speed or Genuine Innovations G2673 Air Chuck CO2 Inflator and one 16 Gram CO2 Cartridge, Spoke Wrench, two Park Tool TL-1.2 Tire Levers and Park Tool GP-2 Patch Kit. (Manufacturers and model numbers included for size reference.)

The EOLO is advertised as water resistant waxed canvas construction, but anyone expecting to be out riding in long deluges would be smart to stash their electronic devices inside the truty plastic sandwich baggie prior to packing it a standard ride wallet. Ride wallets with dedicated 'Dry Bags' such as the Silca Phone Wallet would probably eliminate the need for that precaution as would a waterproof cell phone case.

The zipper on the Silca wallet is a larger size that the one on my Sticky Pod. Hopefully it is more sturdy and hold up better.

The first ride with the EOLO wallet will be this afternoon if the predicted rain holds off. I'll add a post detailing how it feels in the jersey pocket and how it rides.
 
The iPotato6 is a snug fit, lengthwise. A wider phone would fit, but not a longer one. In addition to the above listed tool and sundries I slid my truck key into the Silca EOLO wallet and it zipped up easily.

Fully loaded it is maybe 1/4" thicker than the Sticky Pod wallet with my smaller phone in it and identical tools and sundry items.

Whereas the Sticky Pod Small size wallet inserts fully into my jersey pocket, The EOLO sticks out above the pocket maybe 3/4" or so...and it is about 3/4" taller than the Sticky Pod so that makes sense.

You don't notice it so much when riding, but the EOLO is noticeably heavier than the Sticky Pod. It 'feels' a little bulkier in a tight racing jersey, but not to the point I would ditch it over that. Others may not like the increased bulk. I'll give the 'waxed canvas' time to get sweat soaked, crushed and broken in for more flexibility and see how it grows on me.

It did not bounce or slide around any. Despite the lack of 'sticky' on the exterior it stayed put in my pocket. I think the increase girth may have been what kept it snug and secure. I did a couple of hard jumps in the drops and one climb I was going 181 BPM and had lost all form as I powered a wobbly 39 x 25 up the last ramp of a painful climb that I had definitely started out to hard on. No movement in my jersey pocket.

The Silca EOLO appears to be a high quality component and for the $40 they get for them it certainly should be. We'll see how it goes down the road with me. If some some beautiful Italian girl pats me on the ass and compliments my great taste for the Wilier, the Campagnolo gear and the high zoot Silca ride wallet...I'll feel justified in blowing the extra coin.
 
Did 104 miles with the Silca EOLO Wallet in my center jersey pocket yesterday. It rode well. With the two other pockets stuffed full of gels, Bloks, etc. I forgot the EOLO was there. Barely felt it. So far, so good.

A little of the red dye used on the interior lining rubbed off on my cell phone's gray colored silicone rubber protective case (Pelican Case), but no biggee.
 
I see there's several long winded posts where it's just like you're talking to yourself. I see nothing changed in my absence.

:D

Is the empty space between your ears getting bigger than Alf's hirth gap? Personally, whilst I've been out on the S1000RR, I've been getting more attention from plenty of ladies with some nice thigh gap ;) hubba hubba...
 
  • Like
Reactions: CAMPYBOB
You're only getting fatter, riding that damned piece of over-engineered Churman junk! Hope you're having a fun Summer on it carving up the canyon roads.

I'm not surprised cyclists show little interest in high end stuff. Most are extraordinarily cheap. They spend their lives on cheap bikes with cheap components, wearing cheap clothing and stashing stuff in plastic lunch baggies. Not that there's anything wrong with any of that.
 
I'm down with stashing stuff in ziplock baggies but screw wearing cheap clothing, especially bike shorts. I haven't spotted a bike bag or similar that I like that fits the bigger Plus sized iBones.

I'm getting fatter because of the beer. The Beelzebub Missileunshatzen Warschlanger sportsbike is more of a therapy session on each ride than just a ride itself and probably decreases my need for beer substantially. The bigger issue is that my license becomes oh so fragile and jail time becomes a definite possibility each time I ride, especially on freeway on ramps are nailed in 2nd gear. Despite being so refined, well planted and smooth, the acceleration is addictively savage - as is the braking. It'll be interesting to see if the reawakened cornering skills will migrate well back to the ol' push iron when I get back on that jallopy.
 
I didn't fear a speeding ticket on the GSXR, just the Grim Reaper. That saying about life beginning at 150 MPH? Well, it ends a Hellova sight faster. And we both know these bikes don't even ride unless you're doing 80. Minimum.

2nd gear rev limiter kicked in at 99 MPH on the GSXR. I only had three more to go. Assume your BMW has four more clicks to Heaven.

Try dragging a knee on the bike...better have the Dainese on!

I hear ya on Ziploc's. The Sticky Pod ride wallet added some bulk to the jersey pocket, but the phone and stuff rode better and was less noticeable bouncing against my spine. On long rides it was an improvement and I rearely notice it even being there.

The Silca EOLO is almost like putting a small brick in your pocket. It is made with what is probably thin plastic stiffener panels sewn into the front and back sides. Yeah, it will hold its shape well, but that also makes the wallet harder and a bit more noticeable as I ride. It doesn't 'hurt' or anything, but it hasn't completely disappeared yet either.

I think a happy medium would be a slightly larger (but not as large as the existing Large size Sticky Pod currently offered) Sticky Pod. Something made from a heavy fabric, but with no padding would be ideal. Just sew in a few simple pockets that don't add much in the way of stiffness or thickness. Don't worry about stiffeners or reflective straps or unneeded details. More sack-like or bag-like and less of a dress wallet.

Sure, we can use the heavy duty plastic baggies and such, but they are neither durable or protective, other than keeping water out of electronic devices. They're just a dry bag. While that's all some folks want and need, I like a like some added protection and just the little pit of padding against my spine that a heavy fabric covering the multi-tool, micro pump, phone and car key provides.

Lezyne makes a thinner (25 MM / 1" thick) Phone wallet. At 100MM x 145MM (4" x 5.7") it would fit some smart phones, but the Plus models are not going to fit.
http://www.lezyne.com/product-orgnzrs-phonewallet.php#.WYxatFWGOM8
Product-or-phonewallet-y11-zoom2.jpg


Lezyne makes a simple bag in two sizes, Small and Medium (could be a Large, but not listed on their website)...the Caddy Sack series. The larger size is 130MM x 180MM (5.12" x 7.09") so a Plus model cell phone might be a 'go' in one of those bags.
http://www.lezyne.com/product-orgnzrs-caddysack.php#.WYxZ2FWGOM8
Product-or-caddysack-y11-zoom2.jpg


No matter what we use, from a Ziploc to the Lezyne Caddy Sacks, it makes for a large wet spot on the back. And the more water proof the bag or wallet material the less sweat on your back is going to evaporate on those hot, sunny rides. The Sticky Pod was better than the Silca EOLO in this respect, being smaller in contact patch size against the back and also being less 'plasticky' and waterproof than the EOLO.
 
I carry my phone, that has a bit of paper towel "padding" wrapped around it in ziplock bag in the saddle bag. Needless to say it's a bit larger than the mini me bag that most have but I like having basic tools as well, plus as you said the damp spot sucks, so I carry as little as possible in my pocket. Normally just a bit of food.

The Beemer tops out at 93 in first and around 115 in 2nd. Traction/anti-wheelie/numpty control all helps to keep the bike pointing in the right direction as it enters hyperspace. Acceleration to 130+ in 3rd seems as savage as getting to 90 in 1st, such is the fun of 185 to 190hp at the rear wheels (which is what a lot of the 2016's are seeing on the dyno.) It does have a 6 speed box with clutchless shifting. No fancy double clutch systems like on cars, just an actuator that detects movement of the gear lever that tells the ECU to cut spark to the engine for a few hundredths of a second to take the load off the gearbox while the gear snicks into place. Downshifts also have an auto blip feature to accurately rev match every time. Sure, I should relearn all this stuff manually but why?

As for the grim reaper, the WSB sized brembos and active suspension make for stupidly rapid yet uneventful stops - and it's this that amazes me the most about the bike.
 
Meh...my fading memory. It was 101 MPH when the rev limiter took two cylinders out of the equation...not 99 MPH. I had to look it up. The first time spark was cut to those two cylinders I damned near went over the wind shield before I hauled in the clutch and banged third gear. And I was passing a car at the time, so in the oncoming lane of a two-lane with a vehicle doing 60 MPH towards me as I was doing a ton headed towards it. Yanked the bars and dove back into my lane still winding it up in third. Good times.

The Suzi had no electronic assists, no ABS. Only 128 HP and it was, for the most part, controllable. My only ***** was the 498 pound weight. 6-piston pots up front, typical drag slick width tires front and rear so it hauled down OK depending on brave you wanted to get or how light you liked the rear end to be.

I probably should have traded down to or just bought a stoopid fast 600 for those days when the moron came out to play. Much more accurate and tossable and these days a lot of the 600's make more ponies than the liter bike did in 1993 when I bought the 1100.

Stashed the dumb phone in the Silca EOLO wallet this afternoon. It's smaller than the iPotato, but the EOLO is the same size regardless of what's stashed in it.

Paper towel padding comes in handy for that bird **** splatter you ran over and smeared up your brake or underside of the down tube. Nice for wiping hands after dropping the chain (Pro Tip: K-Edge chain catchers are da bomb and every bike needs a chain stay protector and down tube/seat tube guard glued on. Plastic sheet or stainless steel sheet metal.) or such.

Only a gel and chapstick in another pocket because this was just a short ride. For the long cruises it's 4 gels, a package of Bloks, a few hard candy pieces maybe and a third throwaway bottle of water in the other two pockets.
 
My 93 Yahama FZR1000 EXUP made 145 ponies and weighed a bit over 500lb wet and was silly quick but very well mannered. I often wondered how they could make a bike much faster and even now the Beemer with its 199hp and 445lb wet still only does 0 to 60 0.3 of a second faster that the old EXUP. That said, once you get past 100, there's no longer a comparison in acceleration and the Beemer in general is just stupid easy to ride and almost as comfortable as the EXUP, which was not a full on race rep like the YZR line that followed it. To be fair, 2.9ish to 60 on the Yahama was a massive effort and involved on the bike yoga to transfer weight over the front whereas the Beemer just lets you lean forward a bit and relax (in comparison) while the ECU keeps everything sane as you approach the jump to light speed.

Once you put the BMW in Rain mode, you can ride around town on it and it's like riding a regular 600cc non-sports bike. You could get someone, who had a bit of common sense and self control, that just passed their test on this bike and they'd feel OK. Keep the gears high and the revs under 6,000rpm (torque ramps up around 9,000) and let rain Mode do it's stuff and let the newbie snick through the gears without faffing around with the clutch and having to roll the throttle on and off. Stuff it in Race or Slick Mode and it's like being around Kim Jong-un when he's playing with nukes. Ride Modes are ace things.

The naked S1000R, as opposed to the RR that I have, has much more midrange torque and could make the world spin backwards at 6,000 which oddly makes is super dangerous for a n00b despite being a more street orientated bike or so the sales guys say. The bars are higher but it's a damned fine hooligan bike but where I live the lack of fairing means I'd have to shot blast the Dainese's free of bug splatter after each ride. Screw that.

All that said, you carry chapstick so I'm going to stop talking to you before I lose my man card.
 
Chapstick: Cold weather habit that never goes away. It's either that or bleed. Ohio weather sucks.

The older I get the bigger the windshield I want.
 
Retirement is coming soon. I'll keep the farm and travel down to live with JH from December through March. We've had a wet and cool Summer, but I'm still getting lots of miles in. Ohio is a really good state to ride in for nine months out of the year. Winters can be brutal though.

Those Winters have kept me hard and young, but there's only so many more I want to train through.

I've got two friends that ride motorcycles all year. One rides KTM's and the other a BMW boxer and a BMW trike (4-holer K series, I think) Both have heated suits, heated helmets, heated gloves, heated boots, heated seats and heated grips. Might as well give up and climb into a car or truck and enjoy a cup of coffee on the way to wherever.

Commiefornia is too libtarded for me. Colorado went tits up with socialists. The SouthEast is all that's left and a lot of it is infiltrated with liberal Yankee scum. Guess I'll motor home it in Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia and the Carolina's.
 
I bought some land about an hour SE of Reno in Nevada. That's likely to be where I retire in ~15 years. Taxes are great, you can own and shoot whatever gun you choose on the free range in town. The only stipulation is you leave the range as it was (or better) when you leave and locals do just that. Terrain for the bike is so so but our property backs up to BLM land and has some great trails for mountain biking. If I drive an hour and get the bike out of the car I have several bike alpine style climbs that top out over 8,000ft. Winters are cold but not overly long and there's a good 9 months of "no thermal gear" riding.

At the very latest, I'll leave Commiefornia about 18 months before I retire, even if that means "moving"
to Nevada then and renting in CA so they don't rape my pension hard in the ass...

I was happy to see that Nevada reversed its decision on solar power and net metering and reinstated that program. I'll have to put a few panels on the land and get on that to get the preferential rate when the program restarts and use the power to irrigate my kids place next door. She has a couple of acres too but has a bunch on animals and grows a bunch of stuff too.
 
Down near Hawthorne? I last went through Reno about 40 years ago. yeah, great gun laws in Nevada. Good to hear they reverse their idiotic law on solar. Morons want to tax and penalize everybody for everything these days. Hopefully you found an area NOT infiltrated with libtard Commiefornians fleeing taxes.

Colorado is just simply ruined. I started going there in the 1970's and by the late 1990's it was a disaster...chock full of California liberals in much the same way the SE is chock full of liberal Yankee scum.

Yeah, the desert gets damned cold at night and in the Winter months out there. Hell, the first Summer I went to Flagstaff, Arizona they were still skiing Snowbowl in JUNE!

I could probably live in Norther Cali, but it would have to be a very careful pick of area. Beautiful up there. Like I said, Ohio is a fantastic state for riding and nine months out of the year the weather I can abide. But seriously, November through March can be nasty and I'll do vacation rentals, campgrounds in a class A motor home, hotels, condos, whatever it takes to get to warmer states that have a well developed secondary and tertiary road system.

For that matter, I like to fly to where I'm going and buy a bike as a bring home souvenir. Mallorca and Tenerife sound good to me.
 
Our place is out in the boonies several miles outside of Yerington, NV - several miles outside of town because the town with ~3,000 people was just too big! Lol. It's mainly a farming town and the folks down there seem very friendly and down to earth and land is cheap. Tahoe and Reno are only an hour away.

Tenerife. I always liked to stay at Puerto de Santiago on the west coast. I prefer the climb up that side of the island and there just happens to be a handy shop half way up for water! If you're really sadistic, the steep hairpin climb (and descent from hell) to Masca is not too far away either. On the big descent off Tiede, if you get a strong wind blowing from Africa, you can get 70+mph on the ol' velocipede. I've hit 74 on that descent. I used to have a chuckle to myself when you get about 1/3 of the way up near Chio and you see a sign proclaiming its another 30km to the top of the lip of the old crater (where the main part of the climb ends) and a total of about 40km to the cable car station. Only the climbs around Masca (I'm sure that's where the word massacre is derived from) are, from what I've seen, really steep. If you're fit then you can get a nice gear rolling over on Tiede. That said, I was 143lbs and still racing the last time I was there. If you want to get your perv on, Los Crisianos and Playa de las Americas is the place to be...

Majorca/Mallorca: For me, I'd much rather stay at Tenerife and the better roads and less traffic. It's a nice place but if I wanted to climb hills on roads filled with English folk that can't figure out which side of the very narrow road to drive on, I could think of better places to die...
 
Thanks for the travel tips. Tenerife first and maybe a side bet to Mallorca.

Yeah, I've seen many videos. Roads on both are suicidal, but I've lived life on the edge for 64 years and air freighting a corpse back might be costly, but I won't concern myself at that point.

Almost a buck fiddy tree this morning so I'm still climbing OK despite the dwindling power of old age. Still on a 39 x 25 and I've got that 27 Chorus cassette and a bunch of Ultegra 28's stashed for retirement. Altitude's a *****, but give me three days and I'll be breathing like the broken down steam locomotive that I am.

Only 22 miles in today. Being a member of the working class sucks.
 
What makes the climb more interesting is that you pretty much start the climb from sea level, give or take 30ft depending where your hotel is in town. Adds a new perspective when saying you're climbing to about 7,500ft or whatever the cable car station is at...

I'd err on the side of caution gearing wise just because of the wind you might get and the fact it is a 25+ mile climb - but that also makes a 25 mile descent that has a restaurant and a store both with great views half way down before you get into the first town. Just be careful if you have some Crapdontslowno or whatever that I-tie company is called, brakes on the bike.

Instead of Mallorca, go to Briancon in the French alps. You have the Lautauret/Galibier and the Izoard both straight out of town. If you want to ride the road that Hinault last wore yellow on, the hardest climb out there is also just up the road - Col du Grannon. Alpe d'huez is just the other side of the Lautaret as is Les Deux Alps where Pantani dismantled Ulrich all those years ago when both where on rocket fuel. The Croix de Fer is on the other side of the Galibier/Telegraph and north up the valley road and you can come back via past base of Alpe dHuez and back up the Lautauret but it makes for a long ride... Just as the descent starts off the Croix de Fer you come to the Glandon, take a detour up for the last few Km and say you've climbed that beast too. Sestrierre is just up the road from Briancon, Col du Vars is just over the Izoard and the I think the monster, the Col Agnel isn't a million miles from there too.

I'm sure I butchered the names of some of the passes ;)
 
I rode me some French Alps. On a steel Holdsworth. With a 14-26 on the back. Carrying 40 pounds of gear. Forget the chainrings combination...maybe 40 x 50? Steel cottered rig with Lyotard pedals and toe clips & straps.

I didn't do any of the massive Tour climbs that I can say with certainty, but I remember climbing for hours at 5 MPH or so.

The iPotato is in a rubber Pelican case. It's a snug fit in the Silca EOLO wallet. And it actually slides into the wallet's mesh net pocket if I first put the phone inside...a baggie. Damn.
 
You should go do some of those climbs - the north side of the Galibier (from the Telegraph) offers spectacular views and a spectacular amount of fatigue too ;) At least Valoire is a nice little town with some nice cafes to get some foodage at after the telegraph.
 

Similar threads