Hi everyone,
I’m part of a small bikepacking project based in France, and I’d love to get some honest feedback on a product we’ve been working on: a modular cargo cage.
The original idea came from something I personally care a lot about: I love when one object can serve several purposes, instead of multiplying accessories on the bike.
So when I started designing this cage, I knew from the beginning that it should be made from several parts and not be limited to one fixed use.
I looked at what already existed in the industry, and apart from removable feet or slightly different shapes, I didn’t really see innovations around modularity. A long time ago, I had seen a large plastic cargo cage that allowed bottle cages to be mounted on the sides, and I really liked that idea.
So I started designing our own cage with modularity as the main goal.
The idea was that it should be usable:
– as a classic cargo cage on fork mounts,
– on any standard bottle cage mount,
– with a removable foot to support a larger bag on the fork,
– and with side extensions, like an extra bottle cage mount.
Today, the cage has two extra mounting points that allow us to attach a side “wing” for a bottle cage. But the long-term idea is that these points could be used for other accessories too. I like the idea of an object that can evolve instead of being locked into one use forever.
Once the design was ready, we made a very small first batch: 20 pieces, mostly to see if people would understand the idea and if the product made sense in real life.
To our surprise, they sold out in less than 48 hours, with only one post on our own social media. That was a huge moment for us. We thought: okay, maybe this thing really has potential.
So we started talking with suppliers, thinking about producing 100, 1,000, maybe even more units eventually. That’s when the idea of launching a crowdfunding campaign came up. We thought Kickstarter could help us introduce the product outside of France and reach people who are actually into bikepacking, gravel and touring.
The campaign has now been live for about 15 days, and it ends in a few days. Despite a pretty modest goal of 1500€, we’re currently at 43% funded.
So now I’m honestly wondering:
Did we get too excited too quickly because the first 20 units sold so fast?
Or is the product interesting, but we simply failed to get enough visibility for the campaign?
I’d really appreciate honest opinions from people who ride, pack gear on their bikes, and use cargo cages.
Does this kind of modular cage make sense to you?
Would you actually use the side bottle cage option?
Thanks a lot for reading.
TL;DR: We designed a modular bikepacking cargo cage with a removable foot and optional side bottle cage mount. Our first small batch of 20 sold out in less than 48h, so we launched a Kickstarter. It’s now ending soon and only 43% funded. I’d love honest feedback: did we overestimate the demand, or did we just fail to get visibility?
by LaGaffe_Bikepacking
18 Comments
I get it, but years of bikepacking in the US southwest my first thought is that its adding too much to the bike, there needs to be simplicity and less is more
Also carrying water is a dynamic load which puts more stress on parts and fasteners; western washboard roads may cause failure or loosening of the water bottle extension just a thought but its a good idea I have 10-12 litres of water on my bike its tough to find space
Really only makes sense with a limited number of carbon forks that are actually designed for carrying more weight. Steel forks would work as well, but those are getting less popular.
A lot of carbon forks aren’t designed to carry a lot of weight. I’ve seen some as low as 3 kg.
Putting the bottle way out there probably has some effects in increasing the forces applied on the bolts. I’m not a mechanical engineer, but I took a bunch of physics and mechanical engineering classes as part of my software engineering degree.
Putting a large mass like water that far out from the pivot points seems like it wouldn’t be the best configuration.
This is actually awesome. I need this on my bike
I kinda like it.
Haven’t seen anything on the market and it’s different and somewhat modular..
It’s not for me for half a dozen reasons. But I’ll keep my negativity to myself.
Good luck with it.
That extension will fatigue and break if it doesn’t get caught on something first and tear off. The modular mount idea is interesting. This implementation, not so much.
To be honest it looks like a product that people that have never ridden a loaded bike would be excited about, but folks that have actually been bikepacking would immediately see flaws in. Thin metal supports carrying a relatively heavy load that close to the spokes in the area most likely to take a hit makes me think this is a trap set by either a dental or facial reconstruction surgeon.
Great idea “on paper” and for people like “that looks neat!” until you actually think about the long term stress on the mount points of a heavy bottle of water being constantly out front and pulling out and down on the points
Is the reason the arm to the bottle is that long? Seems like that would invite trouble
I just wanted to say good luck and the fabrics used for the bags are amazing. So nice to see something else besides black, grey or brown.
Gotta think the water bottle is going to fatigue the section pretty fast
Catastrophic failure ahead. You can’t have an engineering degree.
nice! i’m sending this to my friends in China, hopefully they’ll send me a sample product, thanks!
The modular idea is solid but mounting a water bottle way out on those thin arms on a fork that probably isn’t designed for it is asking for trouble on rough terrain, the leverage alone would wreck those bolts eventually.
Intriguing.
Have you any other photographs of the brackets?
I assume that bottle wing has a 90-degree bend at its attachment point. If not 90, then is it approaching 90-degrees? 80? 70? A top-down view would be helpful to clarify.
Also, what are you planning for fasteners between the bottle wings and the base bracket? The amount of tension and shear strain on those closely-set bolts at the base of the wings could be considerable. Particularly on a rough surface with 700ml of water suspended from them.
Speaking of fasteners: I wouldn’t want to affix something to the fork tube that places the threaded inserts in my carbon tubes at increased risk of damage from the added mass. And vibration. But what might be envisioned for the base attachment? Common M5 x 0.8, clearly, but in Titanium? Stainless Steel? Aluminum Alloy?
Will the bottle wings be equivalent fasteners? Or something of slightly lower shear strength to ensure it minimizes damage to the forks?
I can appreciate your reticence in including the Kickstarter link. However, if you have a moment, could you please PM the link to me?
You’ve got to try to isolate variables:
– visibility
– timing
– price
– design
In terms of design, I don’t want my bottle in that position for reasons others have noted. Even if it’s secure, I don’t want it there.
In regard to the other points:
I’ve backed 100+ kickstarters, and I follow a lot of independent cycling accounts on IG, this is the first time I’ve seen your product. In terms of price, I didn’t look – the design is a non-starter for me.
Good luck with next steps!
I’m worried about the forces that would be exhibited on those screws and more importantly the fork around the mount. Especially with a large cantilever weight.
I wonder if some of the higher end manufacturers can give you the tolerances of their design so you have some numbers to test against.
So instead of mounting the water bottle cage directly, you expect people to mount it to your thing that is taking the place of a direct mount? Silly