The Finest Bike Handlebar Luggage of 2024

Why Ought to You Belief Us?

For the group at Bikerumor, writing about and driving bikes isn’t simply our job, it’s our ardour. Lengthy rides, quick rides, highway, gravel, mountain, we love being on the market. We additionally love being ready for no matter could come our method, whether or not we’re out for an hour or your entire day. Being ready means having all the pieces we have to keep comfy, nourished, and able to repair mechanical points that will come up, so we’d like house to maintain all the necessary issues with us. Extra just lately, handlebar luggage have grow to be certainly one of our favourite methods to maintain our important gadgets shut at hand wherever our rides take us.

For our handlebar luggage purchaser’s information, we known as on the experience of Bennett Shane to check and evaluate a various choice of the perfect handlebar luggage available on the market. Bennett has been biking severely for over twenty years and spends an inordinate period of time on the bike whereas driving for health, enjoyable, and many product testing. He lives simply outdoors of Portland, Oregon, and enjoys each lengthy and quick rides all through the countryside and mountains of the Pacific Northwest (and all over the place else for that matter). Residing in an space with extremely variable climate and sometimes embarking on half to full-day rides within the mountains signifies that he typically wants to hold plenty of gear, meals, and instruments to be ready for altering temperatures and climate whereas remaining self-sufficient. Because it isn’t all the time doable, or comfy, to stuff all the pieces into jersey pockets, Bennett depends on handlebar luggage to develop his on-bike storage capabilities and preserve necessities shut at hand. Having owned and used many alternative handlebar luggage through the years, Bennett has distinctive perception into this rising class of merchandise. Bennett additionally has a great deal of expertise testing and reviewing different merchandise like handlebar tape, biking shoe covers, winter biking gloves, highway bike sneakers, biking bibs, highway bike helmets, and extra.

After researching the perfect handlebar luggage available on the market, we gathered 19 completely different fashions for testing and side-by-side comparability. Our numerous choice features a vary of sizes, manufacturers, and worth factors, with fashions appropriate for any kind of driving or storage want. After analyzing the supplies and building of every mannequin, Bennett mounted them up on his small fleet of highway bikes, loaded them with jackets, gloves, snacks, telephones, cameras, keys, and extra, and hit the highway. Over the course of a number of months, Bennett rotated by way of these handlebar luggage on his every day rides whereas assessing every mannequin’s storage, attachments, stability, zippers, ease of use, climate resistance, and all-around efficiency in real-world driving circumstances. When testing concluded, we zeroed in on our favorites and people who excel for particular causes in comparison with the remaining.

Shopping for Recommendation: The best way to Select a Bike Handlebar Bag

Handlebar luggage are pretty easy items of substances, however with so many fashions available on the market, choosing the proper one might be tougher than you may count on. Whereas many bar luggage share an identical barrel-like form, sizes, supplies, and constructions fluctuate such that some are seemingly to fit your wants higher than others. For example, some are impressively weather-resistant whereas others are easy however efficient canvas. Some use inner reinforcement to carry their form, whereas others provide much less construction and thereby shed weight. Many provide a bunch of options like exterior pockets, in addition to straps for attaching lights and securing light-weight clothes whereas others are extra easy. We’ll break down necessary elements to think about when selecting a handlebar bag under.

Measurement

Discovering the appropriate dimension handlebar bag is arguably an important side of getting one which serves your wants the perfect. Fortunately, handlebar luggage are available in quite a lot of shapes, sizes, and storage capacities to fulfill completely different storage wants and needs. We examined 19 completely different fashions with practically all of them having capacities ranging between 1.15 and three.4 liters (with one outlier at 5 liters), that are all nice choices for including a bit of additional storage to your bike for on a regular basis rides. After all, with these completely different capacities come various dimensions which is able to influence how they match and the way a lot house they take up in your handlebar.

Capability

The storage capability or quantity of handlebar luggage is often expressed in liters and generally in cubic inches. The baggage we examined vary between 1.15 liters on the smaller finish and as much as 5 liters on the bigger aspect of the spectrum. What dimension works finest for you’ll depend upon what you’re intending to hold in it. After all, this may increasingly fluctuate relying on the size of your journey, the climate circumstances, or the season, so for some riders, having multiple handlebar bag to swimsuit various wants could also be vital. For others, discovering a flexible dimension that works more often than not is the perfect wager. And, along with a handlebar bag’s acknowledged capability, different storage options like exterior mesh or zippered pockets can successfully enhance their capability.

For riders with low storage calls for, the smaller, 1.15 to 1.3-liter, choices could also be preferrred for stashing journey necessities like a telephone, keys, diet, winter gloves, or different small gadgets whereas incurring the bottom weight and aerodynamic penalty. We examined six luggage on this dimension vary together with the Arundel Mini Bar Czar, Lead Out Mini, Ornot Mini, Orucase Smuggler, ALMSTHRE Compact, and the Blackburn Grid. Not surprisingly, these luggage all share related compact dimensions and are lighter weight than bigger choices.

Shifting up a step in storage capability are what we’re calling medium-capacity handlebar luggage. We examined eight fashions between 1.7 and a pair of.4 liters with most of them falling at or nearer to 2 liters of storage. These luggage fall into what could possibly be known as the “goldilocks” zone the place they’re neither too large nor too small, as a substitute, they’re “excellent”. These luggage simply accommodate all the pieces you may match into the smaller fashions whereas having sufficient further house to squeeze a packable jacket for variable climate and/or extra snacks to maintain you fueled on longer rides. These embrace the Mission Workshop Toro, ALMSTHRE Signature, Swift Industries Kestrel, Rapha Bar Bag, and several other others.

Shifting up as soon as extra, we examined 4 luggage that maintain 3 to three.4 liters. Whereas 3 liters is certainly not enormous, it’s fairly a little bit of space for storing and many for many riders to sort out all-day rides and carry all the pieces they want with out being prohibitively massive or heavy. These luggage will permit you to deliver a number of layers, bigger meals gadgets, and even greater cameras. The 4 luggage on this dimension vary are the Ornot Handlebar Bag, Swift Industries Bandito, Wizard Works Lil Presto, and the Chrome Helix. For these with even better storage wants, the 5-liter Highway Runner Luggage West Coast Burrito has you lined.

Dimensions

Together with their capability, the form and dimensions of handlebar luggage fluctuate too. As storage quantity will increase, so do the scale of the bag. Eleven of the fashions we examined share a barrel form and have measurements for his or her size and circumference. The remaining eight fashions have extra of an oblong (or flattened oval) form that embrace measurements for size, peak, and width. Most of the barrel-shaped luggage have inflexible inner buildings that assist them retain their cylindrical form which prevents them from sagging and helps preserve them extra steady, even after they aren’t full.

It is very important contemplate the scale of a handlebar bag as it could influence how properly it matches in your handlebar and whether or not or not it conflicts along with your hand positions. Relying on the form and width of your handlebars, some luggage is perhaps too large/lengthy. The fashions we examined vary between 7 and 11 inches in size, with most of them falling between 7.5 and 9.5 inches. It’s worthwhile to have a good friend measure the house between your palms in these positions, so you should utilize the measurements supplied on this information to decide on a bag that’s ideally sized for you and your bars. 

Attachment

Most handlebar luggage connect to the handlebars in an identical method though there are slight variations on the theme. The standard bar bag attachment system contains two straps that loop across the handlebar on each side of the stem together with an elasticized tether twine that loops across the headtube or stem to anchor it and add some stability. The handlebar straps on some luggage are mounted in place, whereas others have a number of attachment factors that permit you to place them optimally to your cockpit setup.

Whereas all of them obtain the identical objective, completely different manufacturers use completely different handlebar strap sorts to connect luggage to the bars. Some use hook and loop (velcro) straps, others use nylon webbing straps with plastic buckles, and a few use rubber (Voile-style) straps. All of them work in comparatively the identical method, though some make it just a little simpler to put in and take away a bag and a few are extra grippy and steady than others.

Relying on whether or not you will have equipment like lights or a pc mounted in your bars, or the place you place your palms on the bar tops, having the choice to regulate the place of the attachment straps could also be worthwhile. If, for instance, the house instantly subsequent to your stem is already cluttered with laptop and/or mild mounts, it’s good to have the ability to transfer the straps out and have them over your handlebar bar tape. Conversely, if you’d like all of the house doable to your palms on the bar tops, transferring the straps nearer to the stem may give your thumbs extra room. The Ornot Handlebar Bag is an effective instance right here, because it has two attachment factors for the Voile straps at 4 inches aside and 6 inches aside.

Water Resistance

Relying on the climate circumstances you journey in, water resistance could or might not be a deciding think about your handlebar bag selection. Thankfully, there are many choices which can be extremely waterproof (some even declare to be “weatherproof”) and are made with DWR-treated materials, water resistant linings, waterproof zippers, or all the above. Whereas few luggage declare to be fully waterproof, there are lots of which can be fairly darn shut, just like the Mission Workshop Toro, Rapha Discover Bar Bag, and several other others. These can usually fend off showers, highway spray, and dust with ease whereas maintaining your treasured cargo good and dry. Others have less complicated constructions that aren’t fairly as water resistant however will normally fare properly towards tremendous mild quantities of moisture.

Reflectives

Some manufacturers and fashions of handlebar luggage have reflective components added to them so as to add a little bit of visibility in low-light circumstances. Whereas we don’t really feel it’s a requirement, and a lot of the luggage we examined don’t have them, we do recognize reflective options when they’re added to an adjunct like a handlebar bag if it will increase our possibilities of being seen by motorists. The Blackburn Grid is a standout for its reflectivity as your entire entrance face of the bag lights up when hit with a headlight. Another fashions have reflective strips built-in into the front-facing webbing like on the fashions from Ornot and Rapha. Many luggage even have daisy chain-style webbing attachment factors the place clip-on lights might be connected for these rides the place you’re flirting with darkness.

Fashion

Whereas many riders most likely don’t consider a handlebar bag as a modern accent, there are loads who do, and it’s certainly one of some ways to simply and affordably add some private aptitude to your bike. Some handlebar luggage solely are available in one or a number of protected colour choices like black or gray that are simple to coordinate with nearly any bike, whereas others can be found in a spread of colours. ALMSTHRE, Orucase, Mission Workshop, and Wizard Works provide a few of the most colour choices among the many fashions we examined. Lowland Crafts is exclusive with reference to fashion since these luggage are handmade to order and the client is given the choice to decide on the principle cloth, entrance panel, and attachment webbing colours when buying.

Worth

In comparison with many issues in biking, handlebar luggage are a comparatively cheap accent. That mentioned, they arrive at a spread of costs with the vast majority of the fashions we examined coaching between $40 and $125. Normally, the bigger the bag, the dearer it’s, and vice versa. Nonetheless, a few of these seemingly easy little luggage price just a little greater than you may count on. One of many causes is that most of the manufacturers that make handlebar luggage (like Wizard Works, Swift Industries, Highway Runner, and Mission Workshop) are fairly small, produce in small batches, use recycled materials, and/or make their merchandise within the USA the place prices are larger. All these elements make the value go up, however must also correlate to added worth with long-term sturdiness due to high quality supplies and constructions.

Continuously Requested Questions