water bottle and cage options help

[zamphir66]

Hello fellow forum people,

I bought a bike some time ago that did not come with a water bottle and cage standard. I've been looking on Amazon for an aftermarket solution, but so far have come up empty. The seat post area is occupied by the suspension (below) and a pakrak carrier (above). I have a bike computer on the handlebars that makes the handlebar mounted option I saw impossible. The midframe area--pedals up to the handlbars--is designed in such a way that nothing will really go there, plus I have a wire for cadence going down that part anyway. My only option I guess is the horizontal post straight in front of me. I would have to mount it on top of that bar, and I would have to drill holes.

So my question is this: Is it a good idea to drill holes into the frame? I worry about weakening the metal or maybe water getting in and rusting from the inside out like an old Nissan truck. If it is safe and practical, can you recommend an appropriate drill bit?

Thanks so much for any advice.

Josh

 

[Volnix]

Originally Posted by zamphir66 .

[SIZE= 13px]So my question is this: Is it a good idea to drill holes into the frame?[/SIZE]

No its not...

Why dont you just take one of these bottle cages that kinda wrap around the frame?

 

[CAMPYBOB]

"So my question is this: Is it a good idea to drill holes into the frame?"

Josh,

The answer is..."it depends!".

Most frames have four holes in them for bottle mounts from the factory. Yours may or may not be strong enough to handle the holes. What kind of bike do you have? What is the frame material? Can you post a picture of it?

If it can be altered/drilled you can easily install rivnuts...'if' you have the mechanical skills and possibly a right-angle drill to get into limited clearance areas.

How it's done:

http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/water-bottle-fittings

http://barndoorcycling.wordpress.com/2012/09/12/installing-a-bottle-cage-bosses-using-riv-nuts/

There are also Zip Tie mounts and clamp-on mounts that may work with your preferred bottle location and/or tube shape.

 

[vspa]

some triathlon saddles can hold a bottle in the back

 

[alienator]

some triathlon saddles can hold a bottle in the back

He's got a rack on the back that may interfere with cages behind the seat. OP, you can always try things like this: Velo Orange bottle cage clamps Two Fish bottle cage attachment Or you can go google "water bottle cage clamps" and find a number of different solutions.

 

[maydog]

I use these on my kids' bikes and my lawnmower.

http://bontrager.com/model/04087