Handlebar bag
 

We are going on a winter tour and need all the room we can get in our small panniers for gear. So I want a LIGHT medium sized handlebar bag for a video camera plus phone etc to free up some space. I also just want straps for attachment, not quick release paraphernalia. I've searched on the net but so far haven't found anything interesting.

Any suggestions?

I have the Bontrager handlebar bag, which has served me well enough over the last few years. It holds a fair amount of miscellaneous stuff and stays out of my way. The one thing I did have to do was spray it with water repellant to beef up its water resistance, but once I did that I have had no complaints. I keep my rain cape, bike tools, lights, and bike chain in it without any problems. FWIW

I have recently completed a build of a Titanium Salsa Warbird that I plan to use on lighter tours with bikepacks and also to replace my current work commuter bike. Because I got carbon drop bars on it I could not put my favorite Ortlieb on it but I did repurpose one of my other bags that actually ended up looking rather nice on this setup. I added Revelate Designs Cuben Fiber Freshroll to it. I have checked out the Revelate web site and also found this handlebar bag that would definitely qualify as LIGHT per your request:
https://www.revelatedesigns.com/inde...r/EgressPocket



I haven't taken a photo of the bike with it yet. I only managed to squeeze in two days or riding on the new bike before it started snowing ;-)

I will take a photo sometime by the end of the weekend and post it. In the meantime here is my new Warbird after completion of the build:
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4526/...58dca0e7_b.jpg

Ortlieb has a way to wear one of their waterproof camera bags on your chest, to be handy and add space off the bike.
onto your body.
its a 4 snap hook harness made to be comfortable , even while wearing a full backpack.

the camera bags have 4 D rings,






....

Some of the older style handlebar bags (70s vintage) that had a steel frame that the bag hung from were much lighter than the bags sold today. I used to use one, but it was complicated to remove to take in a store with me etc. And it did not have a flat bottom so you could not set it upright on a table, I eventually quit using it.

Maybe instead of a handlebar bag you should think about one of the larger sized top tube bags that strap on the top tube just behind the steerer? A few companies make them with names like gas tank or fuel tank. Blackburn calls theirs an Outpost Top Tube bag. These are very light and just as convenient as a handlebar bag, but a bit smaller.

On one of my tours I used a triangular bag on top of the top tube in front of my seatpost to hold my spare tubes, some tools and a patch kit. It was extremely light, no frame was required. See photo. It is not really big, but for a small amount of stuff it was really convenient and light weight.

Check Dill Pickle and Swift Industries Bar bags.

https://www.jandd.com/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=FBB
I've got that one on the tandem for the stoker.


I've got a larger quick-release type bag that I've used a couple of times on my road bike. Works okay, except that it severely unbalances the handlebars. No problem riding, provided you keep a hand on the handlebars, but any time you're stopped or off the bike maneuvering it around, the handlebars want to flop all the way to the side. Moral is, try it out a bit before you set off on an Adventure. Bigger panniers might be a better answer.

hard to beat ortlieb.

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...corn-bags.html

(I've no connection with the seller)

I’ve been looking for exactly the same thing. Here’s what I found so far:

1. Outer Shell Adventure Drawcord Handlebar Bag.

2. My next plan was to get a Think Tank Photo Holster 5 and have some straps sewn on it so I could do something like this.. You could also do this with a variety of their belt pack modules that come various sizes. Take it over to a luggage repair place and it would be simple for them to do a quick stitching of some webbing onto the case. All of Think Tank Photos pouches, holsters, lens puches, and accessory modules have a rain cover that comes with them that is seam sealed and which you can pull over the top to pretty much cover them up and protect from rain or water. http://www.thinktankphoto.com. It’s what I use for all my sports shooting or for quick and fast hiking with a camera and extra lens in a belt system.

3. And my third solution I’ve found so far would be do like the youtube video below if I decide to go with a point and shoot or other small camera or a small pancake lens on my m43 camera. [/url] This won’t work with my Olympus OMD EM5-mII with a 12-40 f/2.8 on board. The guy talks kind of annoyingly fast, but it’s a good idea.


4. And here’s a variation on that idea and looks slightly larger. This could work well for you. https://roadrunnerbags.us/products/point-n-shooter-l

We’re going to be doing lightweight fast touring with <20lbs of gear per person including tent and cooking gear. I want to keep my bike computer and light out front for visibility and I just don’t like stuff on my bars anyhow.

J.

how about a basket? some here have posted photos of plain old front baskets,
as well as front racks with basket-y platform.

perhaps a small motorcycle/e-bike locking plastic box mounted atop a front
platform rack. waterproof, and filled with foam padding.

That one is great!

Which one? I'm really trying to figure this out (need to get this right) and would like your opinion as well on why it works.

J.

maybe your camera is OK with Moisture? a sewn bag cannot be water proof, because of the needle holes made by the sewing machine,
then you zip lock bag, your camera, inside it..

Pelican Cases make rugged submersible water proof boxes, but you have to figure out how to create a way to mount it..

https://www.thepelicanstore.com/



....

saw an amazing large front bar bag that was just a big box, but looked really well make

I liked the Outershell Handlebar bag that was suggested a few posts above.

I might even buy it myself. For carbon drop bars it looks like a great solution.

Here is my current bag from today after my commute to work:

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4523/...c976c7b6_b.jpg

Cool bike!

I thought the same thing with respect to the CF bars. That’s what I have too and I really don’t want to change my cockpit at all.

Here’s another one I found from a place in MA called Dill Pickle bags or something. It’s a bit bigger but is is still pretty light. There is no hardware associated with it at all but it’s got a system of straps that really secures the bag. It’s about half the size of the Ortleib/Arkel solutions and aobut a third the weight. There’s a video on the homepage of the website that shows how to attach it your bike.

Design Your Own Handlebar Bag

I'll third the recommendation for Dill Pickle gear. I use their handlebar bag for touring and randonneuring. It's perfect for wallets/phones/etc. as well as snacks for riding. The inner pocket options are worth paying for, I didn't get them but my partner did and the stuff stays much more organized and easily accessible with the pockets. The map holder is nice if you use paper maps though it's on the small side since it's a smaller bag. It's less than 5 minutes to swap between bikes if you want.

That looks good too but what's up with the long strap attachment to the top of the fork ? :-)

I’m pretty interested in that bag. Don’t use paper maps, so I’d probably not want the clear cover on top.

Question: How thick is the material on the cover? I was thinking of putting a magnetic GoPro mount on the top (mount with magnet on top, magnet underneath) to attach a light to. Do you think that would work?

Since this looks like it comes off the bike easily, and since I’ll be using it largely for camera storage, can this be used as a camea bag if I were to add some d-rings for a strap on the side? Or does it balance funny?

J.

That helps stabilize the bag. Between that and the cords to the sides, it replaces the frame and rigid mount that a lot of other bags use (ortleib, arkel). That’s done with a number of bags like this and the OuterShell bag can do the same (clips on bottom). The Revelate cockpit bag also does that.

If you watch the vido on the Dill Pickle site where she demonstrates mounting the bag, you can see at the very end how stable it is when she picks up the bike and drops it. The bag doesn’t move.

J.

DIY:

https://www.bikeforums.net/19861019-post20.html

Which I use for commuting but it would work for touring.

The trick is curved plates inside so that it doesn't sag, and I use another strap around it and the handlebars when the bag is more full. Otherwise it will sag.

I found the shape of the bag does make it balance off kilter when it's loaded and detached but with D-rings in the right place I think it could sit level. There are magnetic clasps that keep it closed so I dunno if they'd hold a camera's weight if the bag tipped. Since the bags are custom made you could try emailing them and asking about additional options.

Ortlieb's Accessory Pack might work ok for that. I usually use it in conjunction with the handlebar bag, however, occasionally I have mounted it on its own. It works ok. I also sometimes use a Revelate Mountain Feed Bag to throw my phone and camera into.

- Cpt Bob

I love my old Cannondales from the70’s/80’s. Not waterproof, but the quick release setup is nice. I have both sizes for different uses.