Home > Reviews

Mini Review: Arundel Mandible Bottle Cages

9 Comments
Support us! Bikerumor may earn a small commission from affiliate links in this article. Learn More

There are good bottle cages and there are bad bottle cages. If your response to that is, “A bottle cage is a bottle cage,” then consider yourself lucky to have always had good bottle cages. If you read it and say, “Amen, brother,” then you need to keep reading and prepare to crack open your wallet (although not as far as you probably think).

I’d been rocking the PRO fiberglass cages that a buddy gave me when I first built up the bike. They were light and the somewhat unique shape made for an extremely good grip on the bottle, but I found that also translated into difficultly with removing and replacing the bottle and after a mildly groggy morning mishap putting a bottle back, I knew they had to go.

Enter the Arundel Mandible. Check it out after the jump…

I‘d previously had Arundel’s stainless steel cage on other bikes, and this time I bought myself a pair of the Oil Slick Mandibles to match the other UD carbon components on the bike. They retail for $65 a piece, and weigh in just under 30g, making them comparable to a lot of the other popular carbon cages on the market. There’s no doubt that they could probably be cheaper or lighter, but that would compromise security and lead to a sentence like this one found on a competitor’s site: “Recommended for use with small water bottles and on-road use only.”

Immediately on the ride home, I couldn’t believe how much easier they were to use. The bottles came out and went back in with ease, and I’ve never had to give it a second thought since (except to write this piece and tell all of you, of course). When the bottle is in, there’s no doubt that it’s not going anywhere, and I’ll never worry about that. These are the best accessories, the ones you can forget about. It’s clear they made the cage they set out to make, and I’m happy to have found them. So, if you’re in the market for new cages, check them out, you won’t be disappointed.

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

9 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
phlat albert
12 years ago

$130? that’s a helluva cover charge for a byob.

mkrs
mkrs
12 years ago

True… the price is definitely too steep, even for the world’s best cage.

Personally I use PRO Fiberglass and can’t complain, really. The bottles (I use Camelbak Podiums – highly recommended, by the way) are indeed a little bit hard to pull off the cage, but that’s absolutely fine for me. If you need a cheap alternative that is a little more loose, try the new Tacx Uma.

AnonymousChris
AnonymousChris
12 years ago

@mkrs -if you like the Podium bottle, you should check out the Purist bottle. I used the Podiums for years until I bought those Red Kite Prayer Purists in the photo, and now I’m hooked.

Paul
Paul
12 years ago

They also make a plastic “Sport” version that is only a few grams heavier but cost less than $10! No brainer here, plus they come in a bunch of colors.

Nathan
Nathan
12 years ago

This design looks suspiciously like Bontrager’s Race Lite plastic design. Those cages have been the only one’s i’ve owned and have worked with no problems.

b*tcH
b*tcH
12 years ago

Blackburn slick racing cage, 27g, $14.99, i love them, slick like they say, no lost bottle!

Chris
Chris
12 years ago

I’ve had a pair of these for about a month. The main reason I chose this model is that it has two sets of mounting holes. The mounting holes on my frame are a bit high, making larger bottle a tight fit. With these cages, I can place them a bit lower down by using the second mounting holes and have more clearance for larger bottles.

I’ve used a pair of Bontrage Race Lite carbon cages on another bike for a long time. The Bonty’s are much easier to put the bottle in and out of, and even when using them on a cyclocross bike over some really rough stuff, I never had a problem with bottles coming out. The Arundels are a lot stiffer, and it takes a lot more force to put the bottles in and out, which I think is unnecessary since I’ve had no problems with the Bonty’s. Even so, I’m pleased with the Arundels and I’m quickly getting used to pulling a bit harder on the bottle.

Robin
Robin
12 years ago

I’ve always wanted to try Arundel cages, but alas, my Zipp CF cages refuse to break after 6 years of use. My next cages will either be Arundels, Zipps, or a King Cage depending on whether the next bike is CF or something that came from an ore.

wigz
wigz
12 years ago

BONTRAGER RACE LITE cages are $15. They are awesome.

Subscribe Now

Sign up to receive BikeRumor content direct to your inbox.

Subscribe Now

Sign up to receive BikeRumor content direct to your inbox.