Hi all,

First post here. Done a couple trips with a backpack this year and I'm now moving into the world of on bike bags. Picked up a second hand koala seat pack and am now thinking about a frame bag. My thoughts were, instead of making or buying a frame bag what about a harness type thing to hold a dry bag inside the frame? Maybe and 8 or so litre one? Cheaper with just Velcro and webbing? Anyone tried this and if so how was it?
Cheers
Huw

Won't it be too wide? Won't it catch your knees?

^^^ What Stu say's. Alpkit frame bags are only between 4-6 cm wide.

I can see it working as long as you give the bag some shape, maybe with a simple internal frame made from some 6-8cm wide hard flexible plastic strips, and then use some of that sticky-backed velcro to attach it to the frame. Could work. Maybe.

I was thinking it would be quite wide but could be packed in such a way that it's narrower. Saw on a video posted on the bike and bivi facecrack page where the guy had used a salsa cage. Was thinking I could bodge an old alloy bike bottle cage to make a bracket at the bottom and then webbing straps for the top, just for cook kit and tools really, end of the day or little used stuff. Just playing with some ideas. Anyone tried it?

Stu said "Won't it be too wide?"

I have an Alpkit frame bag that is a nominal 6cm wide, but by the time I've filled it with my stuff it's probably double that. I've never noticed my knees catching on it, but that could be because the frame carries the bag quite low down and my knees don't go down that far.

I have an Alpkit frame bag that is a nominal 6cm wide, but by the time I've filled it with my stuff it's probably double that. I've never noticed my knees catching on it, but that could be because the frame carries the bag quite low down and my knees don't go down that far.

Your legs are already further apart due to the 100mm bottom bracket

Actually, the frame bag was made for another bike, a Spesh Rockhopper. I didn't have knee-knocking problems on that either. I'm just lucky that the fatbikes' triangle is near enough for the frame bag to fit. Or maybe I'm too bandy for it to happen.

What about the gorilla cage as a dry bag mount? Or at least part of the mount? Thoughts?

You could certainly mount a Gorilla inboard but whether you could use the existing bottle mounts or would need to use a Monkii clip would depend on your frame and how shag-bandy your legs are ... oh and obviously the size of bag you're wanting to carry

Shag-bandy! Adopting that one me thinks! How wide is the gorilla cage?

How wide is the gorilla cage?

Actually not very wide, cage is only 80mm at the widest point, so it'll all hinge on what you put in it.

A friend of a friend's set up I saw on facebook. To show it has been done.
(I think that's in an anything cage)

So this is my set up and a bit of a prototype, but it does work. I have used a strip of meccano and an old CD rom stack case. It is all attached to the bottle boss's, including the straps. One strap follows the down tube and stops the dry bag from leaping out the top, while two other straps that make the verticals go over the top tube and a small frame bag. The photo shows it in an unfinished state, without the corners taken off and duct tape to stop the dry bag getting holes rubbed in it. So far it's only been for a test ride, but I will be taking it on a 60 mile overnighter at the end of the month. I am using it to carry a tarp, so about 1kg. Only thing I think I might need to change is the CD rom stack case. Sorry the picture isn't that good.