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Old 04-27-18, 04:08 PM
  #622  
sjanzeir
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Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Posts: 1,566

Bikes: 1990 Raleigh Flyer (size 21"); 2014 Trek 7.6 FX (size 15"); 2014 Trek 7.6 FX (size 17.5"); 2019 Dahon Mu D9; 2020 Dahon Hemingway D9

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Probably as a possible cost-cutting move (and perhaps I'm a cheapskate for having bought the thing in the first place,) Dahon must've thought it would be a good idea not to provide bottle cage bosses anywhere on the Vybe's frame.

Because I'm not brave enough to drill my own holes in the frame and tap them out, a third-party solution like Topeak's cage mount was handy for a while. With the only practical place to install it being the lower handlepost in a vertical position, though, the bottle tended to pop out if I hit a pothole hard enough, which is distracting and inconvenient, not to mention just plain ugly:





The bike already was up for sale. Being strapped for cash, I wasn't about to spend any money buying new gear, no matter how inexpensive. I needed to finnagle a setup using whatever I had lying around, and one that I could easily undo at any time.

Cannibalizing one of the other new Topeak cage mounts I had, I screwed together a strap that's long enough to go all the way around the main frame tube, avoiding damage to the brake and shifter cables that run along the bottom:



The four rubber pads kept the straps away from the cables, while ensuring that the two straps are screwed together at two points instead of one:







All I had to do next was screw the base down, locking the two ends of the straps together, attach the cage base, and screw on the cage:



The bottle was more secure, and at once more accessible and out of the way. It also looked better!

Despite having used some rubber strips, I still ended up scratching the finish, which is a bummer!

Last edited by sjanzeir; 06-21-18 at 10:54 PM.
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