Good water bottle cages?
 

Mine are starting to look tired... I have Elite Custom Race and they've been solid (never dropped a bottle) but they start to look worn out quickly.


How about the Arundel Mandible?

I'm a big fan of my Shimano PRO Deluxe Bottle Cages in matte black, because they were $10 each and 32g, compared to the Arundel at 29g for $70. I genuinely don't understand the appeal of CF bottle cages. They're no lighter, prone to material fatigue, and cost a small fortune. As long as it holds the bottle without marring it all up, job done... right?

I find that the $2 cages I get either at bike swap meets or off ebay work perfectly well.

I really like the Trek Bat Cage. Very secure, basic and not too pricey. Easy in/out. What's not to like.

http://www.bontrager.com/model/00980

-Jeremy

After working in a bike shop, I came to the conclusion that Arundel cages are the best, without exception. They make plastic versions of the mandible if you don't want to get spendy, but their CF cages are superior to any other CF cages I'be ever seen and handled.

Most CF cages are flat and flimsy, but the mandible has more of a structured profile that stays more rigid and is much less prone to breaking or weakening. I saw super light CF cages snap all the time.

That being said, the number one seller in the shop were the 20 dollar plastic ones, because they do just fine. Side by side, the Arundel CF mandibles had a much more snug fit for the bottles, though. Most people don't care that much.

I bought these and love them:
Light New Road Bike MTB Water Bottle Cage Holder Carbon UD Matt in Black 2pcs | eBay
http://i.imgur.com/r0XkQsJ.jpg

They're inexpensive, very light, easy to get bottles in and out of, hold bottles securely, neat looking, and thus far very sturdy. Can't find a problem with them yet.

I only use Arundel cages. My Arundel cages have been on my bike since 2007 and I have never lost a bottle.

+1 on the Arundel Mandible cages. I have the CF versions on both my road and mtb bikes and the are very sturdy and hold bottles securely (I have never ejected a bottle even on some rough mtb xc race courses).

Arundel Mandible...best cage on the market.

I like a lot of cages,but the ultra cheap ones won't hold larger bottles and won't last long. My favorites are the Bontrager RL, Chris King Stainless steel and the Iris, Lezyne CNC and the Alloy; never had a heavy 24 ounce Polar bottle get ejected. I have friends who like the Specialized Rib cage carbon but at $60 I don't see the point, and for a very unique cage yet strong is the Portland Design Works the Bird cage.

Have that on one of the bikes.. because Portland.

King Cages SS

I have those as well, would never change. Rock solid, flexible and reliable. Paid ~9 $ for each. Did u try em in Nero Black? They barely look worn out after a year.

I recently bought a pair of these cages and bottles and they looked sweet enough on my matte black and red bike, but I've dropped a bottle 3 times already on bumpy descents so I am going back to the Elite Custom Race cages I used to use. Most of the pro teams seem to use Custom Race so they must be pretty decent.

http://i1.adis.ws/i/washford/141949?$pd_zoom$

i love s/s cages. RavX, or Blackburn's chicane.

[QUOTE=Alias530;17903928... I have Elite Custom Race and they've been solid (never dropped a bottle) but they start to look worn out quickly...[/QUOTE]

I'm am puzzled by this as I have about 16k miles on a pair and they look new. The white rubbery parts can get dirty but clean up easily with a little solvent on a rag (WD40 works).

+1 on the blackburn chicane.

I have 2x Elite Cannibals because I need side entry in my diminutive frame. They grip nearly as tight as Custom Race and look nice IMO, and a few WT teams use them as well.

I bought a matching set of Silver Color Blackburns over 20 years ago they have a Red Plastic, or maybe is Rubber trim on them. The trim piece is faded, starting to crack, but they give service, and still work.

I recommend Tacx Tao

Is that the matte black pictured below? I have these on my cross bike and the same color but slightly different design on my MTB (tighter front triangle, need easier side access) and they are both holding up better than the gloss black I have on my road bike.



http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=458991

Blackburn alloy cages are plenty functional on classic bikes. On modern bikes I like the cheapest thing that looks right.

Spend money on things that actually have a performance value.

Performance-wise my bike is where it needs to be, probably even more than it needs to be. This is just replacing what is essentially a wear item...

I use the cheap $10.00 plastic cages that the LBS puts on their stock bikes. I have never lost a bottle and after 6000 miles they still work like brand new. I have followed several guys with carbon cages and they lose bottles regularly.

Just bought a pair of matte black Cannibals to replace the crappy Mejios. I was going to just put back my old gloss black and white Custom Races, but I thought I'd give these a whirl as the gloss finish doesn't really go with my bike.
http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/produc...956_1_zoom.jpg