Even on the shortest of rides there are a few things I’d say were essential to take with you:
- A spare inner tube (even if you run tubeless tyres, you never know!)
- A pump or at the very least a CO2 inflator and cartridge
- a multitool and tyre lever
It would be easy to carry all these (apart from the pump maybe) in the back pocket of your jersey, in a handle bar or frame bag for example, but not everyone wants their jersey weighed down or uses bags and anyway. Those are for carrying cake or snacks in! Seriously though having to remove the contents of your bag to get to the tube or tool that has inevitably worked its way to the bottom is a pain, especially added to the stress of having a puncture or a mechanical.
An alternative to that is to carry the items on the frame. There are a lot of bolt on adaptors or straps available that will do the job but I’m sure you’ll agree not all of these are aesthetically pleasing or designed that well. In searching for a solution to this I came across 76 projects attempt at it.
Straight away the look of the mount was good and purposeful, made of sturdy plastic with a gloved hand friendly Velcro strap to hold everything in place, as movement and rattle would be a reason for me to not to want it on my bike. The instructions that come with the mount are easy to follow and there’s some adjustability for the placing of the holder. I set mine quite low as currently I’m only running one bottle cage as it’s winter. When it gets warmer and I want to carry more fluid I can move the mount up to give the second cage more clearance. The Velcro strap is plenty long enough to hold quite a lot of kit and easily adjusted. once in place it made things very secure. Not once in many on and off road rides has anything moved or needed readjustment.
With this type of item you never find out if there are any shortcomings until you need to use one in an emergency, usually in a torrential downpour in a muddy field and as far from home as your ride will take you. Luckily for me this didn’t occur so I had to simulate it by accessing the multi tool to make an adjustment while out riding. The Velcro was easy to open and it took seconds to remove the tool and not much more time to replace it. Once cinched down again it was as secure as before.
The Piggy bike storage really does work, it holds everything securely and it’s easy to access when you need them. I added the dry bag option and unless you want your tools and tubes covered in whatever is thrown up from the wheels I think its essential. 76 Projects also sell a fabric zipped bag too that looks very neat. At £25 for the mount alone I think it’s pretty good value for money. The dry bag adds another £10 More details on76 Projects “The Piggy” can be found here
As with all my tests, this is an impartial and real world review. I’m not sponsored and I’m just an average rider like most of the cyclists out there. I do inform anyone who sends me things to test that It will be an honest review good or bad.
on this occasion 76 projects did not send me this to test I paid for it myself
In order to be able to afford to buy things in to test so you can see how what they are like for a real rider before splashing out I’ve set up a shop selling UKGRAVELCO stickers and T Shirts etc, please take a look in The UKGRAVELCO SHOP and help support the website, cheers!
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