Looking for a bar bag. Although, it looks like I have little tire clearance w/ a hardtail mtb. How do youse guys deal with this?
I’m working with ~ 15 to 17cm from the center of my bars to the top of my the cross-member of my compressed suspension fork. The tire would be a cm or two lower. 2 numbers b/c I i have yet to test out which of my mtbs is the better bikepacking bike, but leaning towards the 15cm option.
I’m drooling over top-loading bags as I imagine they work better for commuting, carying 12oz cans and boxy lunch items through the city. But It looks like these might droop more. Would a side roll 9 to 11L dry bag in a harness ride abt higher? I’ve struggled to find info on this.
The most appealing options I have seen so far are:
(1) [Ortlieb handlebar pack QR 11L](https://www.ortlieb.com/usa_en/handlebar-pack-qr+F9926) roll top. Bikepacking.com review suggests 16cm is needed to the tire, but closer to 20 recommended. I found it on sale for similar $ to the other options
(2) $90 [Outershell Drawcord bag](https://outershell.com/shop/handlebar-bag) as a daily opt augmented w/ [their $60 handlebar harness](https://outershell.com/shop/stuff-sack-harness) and a dry bag for big trips
(3) $190 [Salsa EXP anything cradle](https://www.salsacycles.com/gear/exp_series_anything_cradle_35mm) and dry bag. The rigid attachment here would certainly help w/ clearance, but a lot o dough for something I wouldn’t want to use for commuting or swap between bikes.
I was thinking I could augment 1 or 2 with a $60 [Restrap bumper bar](https://us.restrap.com/collections/cages-mounts/products/bumper-bar) to gain a cm or two. Will that be enough?
by MalcolmSex