what bottle cage for underside of down tube on a world tour?

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
Ah I've put my specs on and I see "camelback" bottles.

[vegan dog]

I also opted for these as from what I read, they are better quality than the Velo Orange (but saying that I had the velo orange on my Surly LHT (sold now) and I never had any problems

Maybe you are right there, as I was just about to take a punt on the Velo Orange retro cage and then read this review on Amazon

'it shattered after about a month of road use. Avoid, either the engineering or the materials are flawed.'

Not the sort of thing I want for a world tour! Aside from the retro cage Velo Orange do another cage with a full surround deign called the Velo Orange Mojave Bottle Cage
https://www.amazon.co.uk/V-O-Mojave-Bot ... B01498XPNC

What do people think of these Velo Orange Mojave Bottle Cages for the down tube? They are a little more expensive but they get very good reviews and seem to accommodate a large bottle e.g. 32oz Nalgene or 40oz Kleen Kanteen.

[axel_knutt]

Mine's on an extension bracket with room for a 980cc bottle, there isn't even room for 600cc with the cage mounted directly on the bosses. The cages are from Halfords, and about 19 years old.

[dim]

found an old photo of my Surly LHT with the Velo Orange cages and Kleen Kanteen bottles: this pic was still in early stages of the build .... I ended up fitting racks etc etc

[vegan dog]

Great picture dim. I have to say they do look very nice, like a work of art. Did you ever use them on the down tube?

What mudguards were you using on the surly?

[dim]

Great picture dim. I have to say they do look very nice, like a work of art. Did you ever use them on the down tube?

What mudguards were you using on the surly?

never bothered for a bottle cage on the down tube as I had 4 pannier bags and could store extra water in the bags

mudguards were Gilles Berthoud and saddle was Gilles Berthoud Aravis (very good saddle and much more comfy than a brooks leather)... the photo shows the standard tyres that came with the bike but after the photo, I switched them for Marathon Supreme

ended up selling the bike for a lot of money (3 1/2 times more than what I spent) .... a lady flew to the UK from Australia and paid cash as soon as she saw it

I should have kept the saddle though

[vegan dog]

Just to let everyone know, I went for the Velo Orange Mojave Bottle Cage in the end. It's an oversized cage and is designed to fit a 32oz Nalgene or 40oz Kleen Kanteen bottle. I have not purchased the bottle yet, as I will have to play around and see exactly what the maximum size is that my bike will hold without causing interference to the front wheel. I may even take the cage to the supermarket and see what different shapes and sizes of bottles fit.

What I liked about the cage is that it has 5 mounting holes, so I have a little flexibility with placement. This will be useful when getting something to fit in a tight space. The enclosed design should also be good for securely holding a bottle under the down tube. I also like the stainless steel construction and the positive reviews that it gets.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/V-O-Mojave-Bot ... B01498XPNC

I will provide an update when I have fitted it and know what works.

[simonhill]

Did I miss it, what is your bike?

[vegan dog]

Did I miss it, what is your bike?

Santos Travelmaster - it's a dutch bike with the old steel frame. I think Santos now only make aluminium frames. Took me a while to find a nice steel frame bike with a Rohloff.

[pq]

I've used a titanium King cage for years in that position with no problems, including thousands of miles on very rough dirt roads. They're expensive but very good. They also do a cheaper steel version which I've never used.

[vegan dog]

I saw those King cages which look very nice quality, however they don't look as large as the VO ones. Fingers crossed my VO cage works out!

[nsew]

I've used a titanium King cage for years in that position with no problems, including thousands of miles on very rough dirt roads. They're expensive but very good. They also do a cheaper steel version which I've never used.

I use steel King cages. They’re rock solid. Not sure why OP didn’t go with the large volume Nitto.

[vegan dog]

Not sure why OP didn’t go with the large volume Nitto.

Nitto don't seem to do a large volume. The VO one appears to be much larger than the Nitto, as it can carry a 1.5l Nalgene. Also the all surround design looks a little better for supporting a bottle under the down tube. But saying that I could be mistaken! I will update with a review when I have tested out the VO.

[vegan dog]

As for bottles, does anyone know of any bottles in 1.5L made from stainless steel. I want the type that tapers towards the spout end. KLEAN KANTEEN do a 1.2L but not a 1.5l. Seen a few bottles in aluminium in 1.5l size, but I really want stainless steel. Any ideas?

[pq]

I have a different approach to carrying more water.

I use 3 frame mounted bottle cages, but I don't use huge bottles - they're awkward and difficult to accommodate on a compact frame. When I'm touring (and I tour in some very remote places) I very rarely need more than 3 normal bottles of water. For the occasions when I do, I use a 10L water bag, strapped across my panniers. Usually that only happens when I've decided to look for somewhere to camp, so I fill up with enough to cook and wash. The bag also doubles as a shower if I hang it in a tree and takes up very little space when not in use. Not an answer to the OPs question, but an alternative to the difficulties of using very big bottles.