(please note I have no affiliation to Buggybags)
I recently commissioned Buggybags to make me a custom frame bag for my MTB. I had heard about these guys on this forum, and was keen to give them a go, as their waiting lists and costs were more realistic than the USA based makers, especially if you live in the UK or Europe.
Their main business up till now has been making bags and suchlike for kite buggies, they had just started making these MTB bags (this is their third one I believe). We had some email discussions regarding the design, looking at other designs and seeing how we could
best make one for me and my bike.
I had some quite specific requests and dimensions,and after tracing out the inside of my frame onto a big sheet of paper, cutting that out,
fitting it into the frame with string, taking a photo, and emailing that to Jon at Buggybags, we finalised the design and time frame for making the bag, and I sent the cut out template plus design brief off.
Within 10 days, I had the bag, which I consider to be a really fast
turnaround.
The quality of the bag is superb, being made from strong cordura, with a water resistant backing. The bag fitted the frame very well, and all my design requests had been implemented.
The bag attaches to the frame via three full length Velcro flaps. The Velcro is high quality - it took me considerable force just to peel it apart when I got the bag! Attaching it to the frame is easy, although a little care is needed to get it tight and even. There is also a strap that goes round the headtube. Once on, it feels like the bag is not going anywhere.
The design I asked for incorporates a top and bottom compartment on the right hand side with zips, and flaps covering the zips. The left hand side has a map pocket. The floor of the compartment is made out of Velcro with a stiffening strip sewn onto it. This is very clever, as it allows the floor to be moved about an inch up or down, as well as
forward or back to accommodate any long items, or even removed entirely if necessary. This is by far the best design I have seen, it is really versatile.
I first tested the bag by filling the top up with bulky clothes, and the bottom with various tools, bottles of oil, etc. There is a certain Tardis like quality to the bag when it comes to smaller items, but remember that it is limited by the size of your frame and the width between your legs. I asked for the bag width to be 5cm at the bottom, to 7.5cm at the top front, which indeed it was. I feel these widths were about right, there is plenty of room round the bottom bracket - there is no chance of the pedal or crank getting caught. If there is any area that is going to contact, it is inner calves against the top rear section of the bag, but this only happens when the bag is filled up to bursting and I was wearing jeans and I was standing up, and even then it was only the flap of the map pocket that brushed past - not a big deal.
The zips are heavy duty and look like they will stand up to much abuse, and the added flaps make them seem even more robust. Access to the interior is acceptable, but because of the nature of the bags, the flaps, and the length of the zips, access is somewhat restricted, especially in the bottom pocket. For example, I was able to get a 380ml bottle of Lucozade into the bottom pocket that was already quite full, but getting it out again was a bit harder! I am sure with some practice, I will figure out the best way of filling the bag, and
it'll be fine, but I did wonder if there were other ways to do it that would provide better access - perhaps a top zip and a vertical seat tube zip that allowed the whole side of the bag to open up would be the ultimate for this, although that design would loose the centre
compartment and the dimensional stability it offers. I'm sure that Buggybags would be happy to work on any design you can think of!
I used the bag as part of my kit on an overnight bikepacking trip, you can see my post about that at http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/sick-as-a-dog-so-show-me-you-bivi-bikepacking-adventure-racing-gear/page/43#post-2592001 . I used the frame bag for cooking and food, my stainless steel pan, plus 2 100ml gas cans, Coleman F1 stove, food, and various other bits and pieces. For this, I removed the compartment floor and used it as one big bag, which in fact works better than using the divider, as the pan with all the cooking stuff can fit in nice and low, and all the food put above it.
I have also used the bag on a thrash round the Glentress red / blue route, and on a bike / packraft paddle, the bag working fine for both things.
Buggybags can also do custom embroidery. In retrospect, I wish I had got them to do their logo on the bag like this, rather than their standard white sewn on tag - I think it would make the bag look smarter - but this is really a minor niggle.
Overall, if you are looking for a bike bag, I can highly recommend Buggybags. Their experience making tough bags for beach going buggies translates very well into making MTB frame bags. They are quick and easy to deal with, and seem happy to deal with custom requirements. This bag comes in at around £50 all in, which seems like good value
for money to me. If you simplified the design - maybe just one zip and no map pocket, the price would be even less, representing outstanding value for a custom made bag.
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