What carbon bottle cages does everyone like the best?



Dexter49

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Oct 10, 2014
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I'm looking for new bottle cages for my new Emondo SLR build up. What is everyone liking the best these days?
 
What model Emonda SLR did you get? Ridden it yet?

Cages? Elite Pase Custom Carbon for a carbon model. Elite Custom Race if you want bomb proof durability. I like the Custom Race for grip and long life.
 
Carbon cages? none, I can get lower costing, darn close to the same weight, better and longer lasting cages for less money.

The Elite Custom Race is not carbon fiber, it is a polyamide nylon plastic with fiberglass added for strength, they weigh about 40 grams each; you can find these on Amazon for $10 and it appears to be an excellent cage.

Another good low cost cage is the Bontrager RL (plastic as well) cage and weighs 38 grams with a cost of about $20 at Trek dealers (the cost is higher due to cost fixing Trek employs). This cage is offered in a large variety of colors to color coordinate to almost any bike.

There is another cage called the Ibera Extra Lightweight Alloy Bottle Cage which is made of aluminum that weighs just 28 grams each and only cost $12 on Amazon. Not sure of the quality but the reviews are many and high which should mean it's a good cage. They even have an aluminum cage with a design to it that looks like it's a carbon cage!

Also Specialized makes the Rib Cage II for $20 (another price fix company) that weighs just 33 grams, and according to the way it looks a bottle could never get ejected because the cage wraps completely around the bottle, and it comes in a large assortment of colors.

So what about a carbon cage? I don't see the reason to pay more for something that weighs darn near the same if not more than the cages mentioned above! BUT, if you must have a carbon cage Blackburn makes the Camber CF cage for "only" $38 that weighs 26 grams...so is 2 grams per cage worth $25 per cage more?
 
Froze said:
Carbon cages?  none, I can get lower costing, darn close to the same weight, better and longer lasting cages for less money. The Elite Custom Race is not carbon fiber, it is a polyamide nylon plastic with fiberglass added for strength, they weigh about 40 grams each; you can find these on Amazon for $10 and it appears to be an excellent cage. Another good low cost cage is the Bontrager RL (plastic as well) cage and weighs 38 grams with a cost of about $20 at Trek dealers (the cost is higher due to cost fixing Trek employs).  This cage is offered in a large variety of colors to color coordinate to almost any bike. There is another cage called the Ibera Extra Lightweight Alloy Bottle Cage which is made of aluminum that weighs just 28 grams each and only cost $12 on Amazon.  Not sure of the quality but the reviews are many and high which should mean it's a good cage.  They even have an aluminum cage with a design to it that looks like it's a carbon cage! Also Specialized makes the Rib Cage II for $20 (another price fix company) that weighs just 33 grams, and according to the way it looks a bottle could never get ejected because the cage wraps completely around the bottle, and it comes in a large assortment of colors. So what about a carbon cage?  I don't see the reason to pay more for something that weighs darn near the same if not more than the cages mentioned above!  BUT, if you must have a carbon cage Blackburn makes the Camber CF cage for "only" $38 that weighs 26 grams...so is 2 grams per cage worth $25 per cage more?
Agreed. There are things worth spending the extra coin on to get in CF. Bottle cages ain't one of them. I got the Bontragers thrown in for free when I got my Madone. They're great. Now they're on my Synapse, and I've never had a bottle come out on even the worst bumps. I have cheaper plastic ones on my old steel Schwinn and they work just as well.
 
Originally Posted by mpre53


Agreed. There are things worth spending the extra coin on to get in CF. Bottle cages ain't one of them. I got the Bontragers thrown in for free when I got my Madone. They're great. Now they're on my Synapse, and I've never had a bottle come out on even the worst bumps. I have cheaper plastic ones on my old steel Schwinn and they work just as well.
I also have the Bontragers on one of my Miyatas and they easily hold a full 24 ounce Polar Bottle (a Polar Bottle by itself is heavier than other bottles, add liquid and that's quite a bit weight to hold that some cages can't handle) and I never worry about having a loose bottle.
 
Quote by Froze:
"The Elite Custom Race is not carbon fiber, it is a polyamide nylon plastic with fiberglass added for strength, they weigh about 40 grams each; you can find these on Amazon for $10 and it appears to be an excellent cage."

I have a half-dozen of them on three bikes and they re my favorite. They out last many carbon cages by years.

"Another good low cost cage is the Bontrager RL (plastic as well) cage and weighs 38 grams with a cost of about $20 at Trek dealers (the cost is higher due to cost fixing Trek employs). This cage is offered in a large variety of colors to color coordinate to almost any bike."

I bought four of these this fall to go with my new Emonda beater bike. Yeah Bontrager color-coordinates cage colors to match WREK's like two 16-year old school girls coordinating dresses for the prom.




Quote by mre53:
"There are things worth spending the extra coin on to get in CF. Bottle cages ain't one of them."

You're never going to get to hang out with the cool kids! The OP just got himself the Emonda! Probably the SL and maybe the SLR. Saving grams exceeds the need to save dollars. Besides...flying bottles are awesome.
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I'm waiting for Dreck to come out with the Damone, which will be the ultimate in cool, just like Vic, its namesake. :big-smile:
 
I can see it now...the VIC SLRRXXX! Featuring a Coppertone 'vapor mist' paint job that only adds .003 grams to the bare carbon frame weight. And Bontrasher will issue a commemorative Race XXXXXX carbon cage in spectrum-matched colors for only $129 each!

The anagram names I've read on the various boards are hysterical and the ***** slaps handed out to the Emonda are downright brutal. The reviews handed out to the last gen Madone were also unkind and referring to the Domane as a 'comfort bike' was hilarious.

I've only put 70 miles on the Emonda so far and winter is no time to judge a frame, but the H2 front end is so tall I'm getting nose bleeds and the shitmaNO sucks. Slammed the stem and I'm still looking for a hacksaw or a negative rise stem. Seems stiffer than the Wiliers, but that could be in the Bontrasher wheels and/or the Bontrasher Hardcase tires...which are as hard as rocks.

The fork seems nice and stiff and the rear end seems nice and stiff and will catapult me out of the saddle over our craptastic road bumps...just the way I like them! It was cheap though and will make a good road grit and salt beater.

Despite having a 3 MM longer effective top tube and angles that match the Wilier, with the 8 MM setback Bontrasher seatpost it is a bit too short yet. I'll get a 20 MM setback seatpost and it should be done...after I replaced the 100 mm OEM stem with a 120.

Oh...the saddle. We all usually just toss the factory saddles in a box and install our fav, but the Bontrasher Paradigm 1, other than being just a bit too wide for my ass at 138 MM, feels pretty good at the 47-mile mark of a ride that topped the thermometer at 30° on frozen roads. I think the 128 MM wide version would feel as good as my 131 MM Flites. Not bad for an OEM seat.
 
Who said I was going to put anything in them? Gotta look the part. Right now I have Planet Bike carbon cages and they have never let me down. Twice recently on group rides, I've had to swerve to avoid a bottle on the road. Not sure if they slipped/dropped while taking out or they bounced out. The Arundles look good and I have read nothing bad. I just don't recolect any post about the Go to Cage so I thought I'd ask.
 
There is no go to cage, whether carbon, Ti, aluminum, glass reinforced nylon or stainless steel. Most designs work well. A few are prone to bottle launches over rough roads and as stated by many, 'some' carbon cages have a tendency to snap off the bottom tab especially when the cage is mounted in the vertical (seat tube) position.

Mount and use what works. Planet Bike is good, often inexpensive gear. Those eBay cages Jess reference are $10 a pop and probably Chinese junk and yet they got a good review from him. 'nuff said.

Lastly, in the two years since this thread was started, the name brands have improved the durability of their carbon cages and everyone else is following along.
 
CampyBob I tried those bottles because they had good reviews. I've used them for at least a couple of years now and they've held up well, but I only use them on the road. I'm not sure how they would hold up for off road. I wanted the Campy bottles but at close to 100 per cage these are the same design and they look good and work well.
They are made in China but that's probably where the large majority of them are made anyway.
 
I use Wiggles cheapest Lifeline cages on three of my bikes. The other bikes have alloy cages too. They're great - cheap, light and look fine. Agree with what others have said re carbon cages - waste of $.
 
I've used them for at least a couple of years now and they've held up well, but I only use them on the road.

That's cool! I love hearing how the less expensive stuff works out for guys and I trust your judgement calls on stuff like this.

Everyone has their experiences and wallet to vote with.

My favorite non-carbon or carbon reinforced polymer cage is King Titanium.
 
I've only put 70 miles on the Emonda so far and winter is no time to judge a frame, but the H2 front end is so tall I'm getting nose bleeds and the shitmaNO sucks. Slammed the stem and I'm still looking for a hacksaw or a negative rise stem. Seems stiffer than the Wiliers, but that could be in the Bontrasher wheels and/or the Bontrasher Hardcase tires...which are as hard as rocks.
I was whining about H2 head tubes, too, until a buddy gave me his spare 4 mm headset cone. With the low-profile cone, a 2 mm shim, a -10 degree Pro stem and round Pro 7s handlebar (130 mm drop, 80 mm reach, and a full belly curve), I'm in ergonomic heaven. Low-profile cones can be ordered from Cobb Cycling.

As for saddles, both Bontrager's Serano RL and Selle Italia's Flite 1990 edition are most agreeable to my botto.

As for cages, you can't beat Bontrager RLs for price/performance. If I were going to spring for carbon, though, it would probable be an Arundel Mandible.
 
I was whining about H2 head tubes, too, until a buddy gave me his spare 4 mm headset cone.

That's one of the first things I installed. I called up FSA West Coast and had to get the top bearing and lo-pro cap as a package as they had no separate top cap in stock. The gal in customer service treated me right and I basically got it for the cost of shipping.

TREK, on the other hand, was clueless and deaf to my need for a shorter bearing cover. I probably could still use bars with a deeper drop, but for a Winter beater it's working out OK.

I rode the Emonda Saturday and the frame and fork still impresses me. Not the lightest of frames, but it's deliciously stiff (noticeably stiffer in the BB than my Wilier's or Douglas carbons), tracks nicely through fast sweeping turns, carves up the tight stuff well and is just chattery enough on the rough stuff to let me know I'm on a racer's frame. If I ever get around to throwing the race wheels on it (and running the Campy cassette on them) I'm sure it would be a climber's delight.

The Bontrager clones of shimaNO RS10/RS20 wheels are heavy, but other than popping that one front spoke last Spring are doing fine. Slow to accelerate, not the best for climbing, but smooth spinning bearings and true running so far.

Agreed, the Bontrager RL cages are plenty inexpensive and light enough. The offer a secure grip and good looks.
 
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