SP-Connect vs Quad Lock
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SP-Connect vs Quad Lock
any real world / long-term experiences with sp-connect (the new one) and quad lock?
i've been using quad lock for my bar mounts for a few years, and they've been great. easy to attach/remove, super sturdy, the cases are a little bulky but decent looking. however, i really didn't love the look of the mount on the bike, particularly the big lever.
i printed a couple alpinist cockpit -> SP connect adaptors this week, and gave one a try today. it worked very well. seems rock solid. my only complaint so far is that it's a little harder to attach, doesn't quite pop in immediately the way quad lock does. that may be muscle memory or it may be the design, which has generally smaller engagement surfaces and no tapering.
the mount, though, is much more svelte! my adapter weighs 5g before the bolt and nut, which are stainless for now but titanium ones are in the mail. the adapter comes with M6 hardware, which really seems like overkill so my current version is using M5. i'm rotating the mount surface another 3 degrees and down a few MM for the next version, get it a tiny bit closer to the stem.







here's the quad lock version it replaced. one other advantage for quad-lock, potentially, is that the interface goes in 90 degree clicks, allowing landscape mounting and thus an anti-rotation design to the interface between the mount hardware and the bike mount. sp-connect's bike-side mount is fully symmetrical, nothing to lock into position for rotation other than the head of the m6 bolt. i added a thin layer of conformal tape between the mount and the adapter, so it's not going anywhere, but still....


i've been using quad lock for my bar mounts for a few years, and they've been great. easy to attach/remove, super sturdy, the cases are a little bulky but decent looking. however, i really didn't love the look of the mount on the bike, particularly the big lever.
i printed a couple alpinist cockpit -> SP connect adaptors this week, and gave one a try today. it worked very well. seems rock solid. my only complaint so far is that it's a little harder to attach, doesn't quite pop in immediately the way quad lock does. that may be muscle memory or it may be the design, which has generally smaller engagement surfaces and no tapering.
the mount, though, is much more svelte! my adapter weighs 5g before the bolt and nut, which are stainless for now but titanium ones are in the mail. the adapter comes with M6 hardware, which really seems like overkill so my current version is using M5. i'm rotating the mount surface another 3 degrees and down a few MM for the next version, get it a tiny bit closer to the stem.







here's the quad lock version it replaced. one other advantage for quad-lock, potentially, is that the interface goes in 90 degree clicks, allowing landscape mounting and thus an anti-rotation design to the interface between the mount hardware and the bike mount. sp-connect's bike-side mount is fully symmetrical, nothing to lock into position for rotation other than the head of the m6 bolt. i added a thin layer of conformal tape between the mount and the adapter, so it's not going anywhere, but still....



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#2
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Been using quadlock for a while now. Never had an issue with disconnect from bumpy bike ride. Not worth the risk to have your expensive phone not secured correctly. Interesting to hear about another brand in the market though!
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sp-connect seems just as secure. it doesn’t have the locking lever, but it would have to rotate 90 degrees to come out. about 200 miles on it and no worries. the case and mount are certainly sleeker.
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