Another vote for Tailfin. Just used mine all over OR, ID and MT–and it was great. Roomy, bolt-on, appropriately rigid, easy to use when stopped or moving.
I went to an EVOC - that’s pretty good. Bolt on an/or straps.
Tailfin. Tried Some others (in store) and also had a restrap bolt-on top tube bag, but they cannot beat Tailfin. Also a plus is that the Tailfin doesn’t use a headtube strap.
Is this a general thing with top tube bags? Climbing out of the saddle seems to result in me doing some kind of weird “John Wayne riding a bike” knees out thing to try and avoid rubbing my knees on my Apidura Race top tube bag. I also end up straddling the bag when I stop, which I dislike.
Is it the bag, or me?! The Tailfin bag looks good, as do a few others I’ve seen, but I can’t keep spending ~AU$100 a time to try them all out…
Apidura get’s my vote. I have two different types, the race series top tube pack which fastens with velcro straps and works well, the magnetic closure works well too.
I also have the longer race series long top tube pack which I use when I’m off on a bike packing ride, it is a little less stable but it was a pre production model which they were selling cheap. The biggest draw back with this bag is that if the top tube is a little high then when you are stopped and standing it does rub against my downstairs area.
Another vote for the Tailfin bag - I am using straps (rather than bolt-on: system allows either) and it has not moved a mm over 12 months on some very rough terrain
I’m liking the look of the new Post Carry Slim Top Tube Pack - long, but low profile.
Might be too soon, but anyone tried one?
If you really only need to carry a couple of gels and bars, the Stealth pocket is the one I use and it’s very low profile so no risk of hitting your knees.
Needs to be able to carry a TPU tube and a mini electric inflator at least.
If the frame didn’t have top tube mounts I’d stick to my small Apidura frame bag, but the opportunity to eliminate straps appeals a lot!
BMC make a nice tidy (bolt on) one, I use it on my Scott gravel addict
And neither melted/spantaniously combusted on contact with the other? Surely that’s like putting Roval wheels on something that isn’t a Specialized ![]()
Decided to gamble on one of these. Fits really nicely, is really narrow (4cm wide, only just fits a Pirelli TPU tube width-wise), and is low profile enough that it seems to stay mostly clear of my knees when out of the saddle:
I don’t love the length of it, and I’m sure it’ll be even more annoying when stopped, but it is very nicely low profile otherwise.
They do provide extra straps to stabilise the long rear of the bag, but I’d rather minimise strap use, and it seems plenty stable without one. I’ve also installed it with a 76 Projects A.S.S. Clip (apparently now discontinued) for side-to-side flop stability without needing straps, but I don’t think it really needs that either.
By comparison, here’s the same bike with an Apidura Race 1L top tube bag - note the big difference in the stack height of the bag, which is what drew me to the Post Carry option in the first place (the Post Carry is also a good centimeter or two narrower). Both bags are carrying the same stuff, but the Post Carry basically has everything lined out along the top tube:
I do slightly prefer the aesthetics of the small Apidura frame bag, but I hate the straps being so visible when there’s a dedicated bag mount on the frame, and the frame bag is a total PITA to use by comparison!:
I have had good luck with the Apidura. Pretty good volume, like the closure. Weather ‘resistant’, not waterproof
Can confirm.
I may have had Roval wheels on the bike at the same time as well… I realise I’m playing with fire here
I tried the Silca and Apidura bags before settling on the Speedsleev bag. The Silca bag was too long and annoyed me when I rested my leg on the top tube when stopped, and also had little capacity. The Apidura had plenty of capacity, but was too wide (knees sometimes hit it) and I didn’t like the magnetic closure and needing to lift up the flap to access the inside. Speedsleev was “just right” for me: the most rigid of the bunch, same bag can bolt on or strap, not too long, not too wide, and waterproof top zipper for easy access.
I have one also, really solid when using bolts and doesn’t sway at all.
Any top tube bag with straps that attach to a narrow portion of the bottom will sway excessively. I don’t know why companies do that, except to ensure the strap attachments are invisible when the bag is bolted on. I’ve resorted to modifying my bags by cutting slots at the very edge of the bag bottom and running the straps through that. X-Lab and Profile are two companies that make them correctly out of the package.
I recommend checking out the Profile Design ATTK-S




