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    Half frame bag advice

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    13 Comments

    1. BZab_ on

      For me works such config:

      https://preview.redd.it/awurz8yrovjg1.png?width=330&format=png&auto=webp&s=18dfb996d1d851de5229a6cb5a9c0a995dc591fa

      Frame bag also fills the whole frame triangle in MTB. I can fit up to 0.7L (or narrow 1L) bottle under the bag. Spare bottle goes under the downtube. Fork cages were an experiment to try them out, but I didn’t like them. Smaller ones can be put in a stembag-like mesh pockets of the harness when I need to carry more water.

      I’m not a fan of using bladder in a bag – compared to a backpack that sits much higher, drinking from it is harder and the drawback of no idea about amount of water left remains.

    2. millenialismistical on

      I use something like the one on the right for all my rides, but I’m able to fit two bottles. On longer rides I’ll add a handlebar bag and/or a saddle bag.

      Given these options I would prefer the one on the left as there’s more space in the bag.

    3. Practical_Iron_5232 on

      Personal preference suggestion here. Smart water bottle is superior to Nalgene in every way except the ability to put boiling water in the bottle.

    4. blootooth09 on

      I have a bladder from my osprey bag jammed into a half frame bag. So far I haven’t emptied it even on a multi-day ride. Still carried two other water bottles that I’d try to empty first (and refill when I could) and it’s worked pretty well. You can also either buy or rig an existing bottle to function like a bladder which is nice if you have the bottle kinda jammed under a bag. 

    5. alxkc on

      Two considerations I’d recommend:
      1) Alternate bottle mounting options, especially on the fork
      2) frame size, anything smaller than 54-56cm results in awkwardly sized partial frame bags.

      Do you have any idea what you’ll put in the frame bag? The max dimensions of the intended contents could help make the decision for you.

      I really like having a full frame bag + bottle cages on my fork. My tent poles and sleeping pad fit nicely in the dimensions of the top tube (56cm frame). I also use it for jackets or gloves I want access to while riding.

      My wife has a 52cm frame and we ended up with an Oveja Negra wedge pack on her bike that allows for one vertical bottle which is nice because she has the stupid gen 1 Checkpoint fork that doesn’t have bottle cage mounts. Our Tyvek tent footprint sits between the downtube and the pack because it fits poorly within the frame. The wedge pack itself is low volume and really only useful for food or small things like socks. If we had time to get her a custom bag I think it would have been a lot more useful.

    7. whiteryanc on

      Check out multi-bottle mounts like ones from Cyclewerks or Botched Bikes [https://www.instagram.com/botched.bikes/?hl=en](https://www.instagram.com/botched.bikes/?hl=en) if you’d like a full frame bag for maximum storage while utilizing two-bottles.

      If that’s not your jam, I think the vertical placement of the bottle is most efficient geometrically, unless you want to store longer items like tent poles. If it’s just food, layers, etc, one cohesive triangle will probably be most efficient.

      https://preview.redd.it/0levvtmzrvjg1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7e0fe85e70a15a4e1c8586d51679e14db66a5982

    8. KJL_3519 on

      Just an observation but does it make more sense to just go full frame bag and then run one or two feed bags that you can use as your water bottle holder for drinking on bike – then you have room in bag to stack bigger bottles or bladder and utilize that extra space inside the bag? Another small plus is the water vessels are not out in the sun baking. I run a revelate feed bag and it fits 20oz bottle.

    9. tool_nerd on

      I know a guy who rides XL frames and can fit a “full” frame bag in the space in front of a bottle on the seat tube.

      I’m a smaller person and for me, the largest frame bag I could get in that configuration wouldn’t hold my pump (no problem, buy shorter pump, then relocate to one of the mounts that slip under the bottle cage) or sandwich without slicing it in half. That said, I ended up finding Rockgeist would make a custom framebag for my frame that actually fits two bottles well — and it actually has a dip between the bottle and hugs the shape of the open volume.

      This gives me a half-bag where I can fit longer objects (pump, tent poles, etc), as well as two “thicker” volumes where I can put my sandwich without cutting it in half, a couple extra tubes, my GPS emergency receiver, water filtration thingy, and a donut or biscuit (uh, for those long gravel rides. Totally not because I’m fat. Don’t fat shame me!)

    10. thync on

      I don’t do multi day stuff with it but I use a wedge bag against the seat tube and top tube that goes about halfway across and 6” or so down. I can fit a 24oz bottle in a side exit cage on a wolf tooth lowering bracket on the seat tube then on the down tube I have a Nalgene sized bottle cage that I use a strap to hold the bottle down

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