I’m sure the manufacturers of your bike never gave a seconds thought to the fact that you’d start strapping bags to it. If they had, then they might have put the bottle cage mounts somewhere different. Frame bags and water bottles is rarely a match made in heaven – side access cages help but you can still find yourself limited to a smaller bottle than you might like or forced along the custom frame bag path.
One way to gain a touch more room is by using an adaptor which moves the position of the bottle mounts. There’s a number of different ones available and the ‘Bottle Relocation Accessory Device’ or B-rad is Wolf Tooth’s offering. Before we go any further, I’d like to point out that despite the name, fitting this adaptor will not enhance your bike handling skills, in fact, I can’t think of many things less ‘rad’ than wanting to move your bottle cage … just so we’re clear and there’s no misunderstanding.
The B-rad is available in 2, 3 or 4 slot mount versions – as the eagle-eyed amongst you can see, this is a 3 slot mount, which basically means that it’s designed to move the position of a water bottle and should you wish, allow you to attach something else to it, such as a pouch or strap. It comes complete with all the required fitting hardware and is very nicely finished. I’m sure a chimp with an allen key, if left for ten minutes could fit it but you (or your primate) do need to pay attention to which bolts you use when fastening your cage to the adaptor … too long and they will hit the frame tube, which could be quite nasty and potentially costly. So, just check that the bolts you use don’t sit proud of the base of the adaptor when fully tightened … maybe a trial run before you let the chimp loose?
The slotted mounts on the B-rad provide 55mm of adjustment and allow you to locate the cage exactly where you want it within the range available. If you use the 3 slot version you also gain additional movement because it has 2 pairs of cage bolt holes. The picture above shows the cage mounted in the standard factory position, the picture below shows it mounted in the lowest position possible using the B-rad with the cage on the lowest pair of holes – I’m sure you’ll agree, it certainly makes quite a difference.
Alongside the adaptor brackets, Wolf Tooth manufacture additional bolt-ons to produce what you might describe as a ‘system’. Perhaps one of the most interesting from a bikepacking stand-point is the double bottle adaptor, which as you might have guessed allows you to fit two bottle cages where you previously had one.
I’ll admit to not having tried one, so have shamelessly stolen this picture but it looks like a practical solution when conditions dictate more water carrying capacity is required – Great Basin, Gobi, Yorkshire Dales?
B-rad adaptor brackets are priced between £18 and £23 depending which one you want and where you buy it from.
Passport (brand) cage mover does the same for tenner 😉
M Wave also do a double bottle holder, at about half the price