THE HANDLEBAR BAG LAUNCH
First, I need to say this is not the most creative product name, but maybe that is a good thing. Route Werks did not waste time coming up with something interesting, or one must assume that anyways, and they focused all their efforts creating a functional bar bag for cyclist. Currently, this is their only product (besides bag accessories), and it is possible that they will begin making saddle bags too (initial Kickstarter campaign options included saddle bags).
“Based in Rhode Island, Route Werks creates gear for cyclists and outdoor enthusiasts that makes getting outside as easy as possible.” – Route Werks
I remember coming across the Route Werks Kickstarter last October 2020, but unfortunately, I had missed a few of the early bird specials, so I ended up not buying the bag. Also, like many people, I am quite weary of Kickstarter campaigns, and I could not justify the purchase. But here we are, almost a year later, and Route Werks has come though with most of their campaign promises.
When Route Werks launched their Kickstarter campaign, they reached their funding goal within six hours. At the close of the campaign, there were over two thousand backers with approximately $315,000 of support. In the end they reached over 700% of funding.
About Route Werks
Route Werks is made up of a group of cyclists that wanted to create meaningful products in a sustainable way. Route Werks designs all of their products in-house and will often produce the first prototypes by hand in their Rhode Island, USA Studio. The bags ship out from Hong Kong, and thus are made in China.
Sustainability
The Handlebar Bag is designed to endure. When designing the bag, all aspects of the construction were carefully considered to ensure that all parts were replaceable, repairable, or to allow for color customization. This was critical to the design, that way there is no need to dispose of the entire bag if one small part of it breaks. Currently, there are no small parts available in their Shop, but contact them directly if you need a specific part.
The Bag
The frame of the bag is constructed from aluminum, and it is covered with 500d PU-coated Cordura. The interior is lined with 220d Gridstop Nylon. Both coverings together should provide the claimed weatherproof protection to the interior contents. Under the lid, there is a waterproof pouch attached with shock cord. Inside the bag there are three small pouches attached to the sides. One wider pouch on the front side that could fit a pair of glasses, and two on the opposite side for smaller items.
The bag dimensions are 5.8 x 9.3 x 6 in. (145 x 235 x 153 mm) and has an interior volume of 3.2 L. You might be wondering why, when you multiply the dimension together, the volume is larger than the claimed amount. If you look at the bag from the top, you will notice that handlebar side of the bag has a slight flare, thus reducing the actual volume. This thoughtfully subtle design feature gives you a little more finger room when your hands are on the handlebars.
Looking at the exterior of the bag, the top is wrapped with a shock chord for additional carrying capacity. On the sides, there are two additional pouches. These pockets are good for small items such as multi tools, but these pockets are not waterproof. The pocket covers are locked down with a hook that is attached to a shock cord that wraps underneath the bag.
This bag is quite heavy for its volume compared to other handlebar bags. The Route Werks Handlebar Bag weighs in at 684 g (1.5 lb), this includes the mount too. This is a 214 g/L (7.5 oz/L) ratio, where a similar bag like the Ortlieb Ultimate 6 Plus 5 L is 148 g/L (5.2 oz/L). Some lightweight burrito style bar bags can come in at 44 g/L (1.5 oz/L).
The bottom of the bag is lined with a piece of hard plastic. The plastic piece has a piece of fabric that slips over it to cover the bottom portion of it. The sides of the plastic tuck into two upside down pockets on the side of the bag. This plastic is a nice feature and should protect the bag’s fabric from any sharp objects that you might place in the bag.
The Handlebar Bag is only meant for rigid forks. Your bicycle must have at least 170 mm of space from the top of the bicycle tire to the to top of the handlebars to make sure there is plenty of clearance for the bag. The max load carrying capacity of the bag is 4 kg (9 lb). The bag also comes with a carrying strap so you can carry the bag over your shoulder when the bag is not on the bike.
Customizable Dashboard (Top Lid)
A lot of people use out front mounts to hold their cycling computer devices, and this type of mount will not work with The Handlebar Bag. Thus, Route Werks incorporated the mount to the top of the lid. The top of the bag is a hard-shell polymer lid with a raised section that allows for the attachment of any Bar Fly or Quad Lock adapter. This is the only handlebar bag that integrates the mount for phones or cycling computers directly to the bag.
Garmin and Wahoo users are both taken care of, and most devices are attachable by choosing one of the seven available Bar Fly Computer Mount Adapters or a Quad Lock integrated mount. And if you are not mounting a device on the dashboard then you can use the provided Route Werks Dashboard Badge that attaches with two screws through the bottom of the lid.
Hammerhead is relatively new to the scene, and they have recently released a new GPS mounting system with the Karoo 2. Read my Karoo 2 review. Unfortunately, there is not a direct adapter for the Karoo 2 to dashboard yet. To attach the Karoo 2, you would need to use the Hammerhead Karoo 2 quarter-turn adapter attached to the Karoo 2 and use the Garmin Adapter on the dashboard.
The Bike Mount
The Bike Mount bracket is 69 g (2.4 oz) and is made from anodized machined aluminum. It is designed to fit 31.8 mm diameter bars, but smaller bars can be used too. To attached to smaller diameter bars, a Bike Mount Adapter must be used (sold separately). The four-piece adapters are available for bars of 26.0 mm and 25.4 mm diameter. These spacers are specifically designed to fit the Route Werks Bike Mount and will add 20 g (0.7 oz)
Installation
Installing the bag is quite simple. All that is needed is a 3 mm Allen wrench. Unscrew the four bolts to remove the two u-shaped brackets of the provided Bike Mount. Place the bracket onto the handlebars and tighten down to approximately 4 Nm (check handlebar specifications). Slip the bag onto the mount and flip the lever to securely lock the bag onto the mount.
First time placing the bag onto the mount and locking it down, the bag was rattling a little when I shook it. To fix this common issue, the bolt that connects the red locking lever to The Handlebar Bag aluminum bracket needs to be tighten down. This hex bolt is tightened down using a 4 mm Allen wrench. Make sure not to over tighten the hex bolt, doing so will make latching the lever to the lock position too difficult to close completely. Also, it is possible that forcing the overtightened lever closed could break the bracket.
The Handlebar Stub
The Handlebar Stub is machined aluminum that is designed to carry handlebar mounted accessories. Unfortunately, the Stubs were out of stock when I ordered the bag. They are 30 mm wide (1.1 in.) and have a 31.8 mm (1.25 in.) diameter and are 17 g (0.6 oz) each. This is a must have if you plan on doing any night or evening riding. You will not be able to properly aim your handlebar mounted light if you have The Handlebar Bag on.
What Makes The Handlebar Bag Unique?
The bag has some great things about it and was cleverly designed. The mount was thoughtfully designed and once it is attached to the handlebars, attaching/removing The Handlebar Bag is very easy. With the bar bag properly locked down, it does not move or shake around while riding. This bag is essentially an integrated part of the handlebars once attached.
Unlike burrito style bags, The Handlebar Bag does not take up space on the bars. The bag even has a slight taper to make sure there is plenty of room for your hands.
The integrated computer mount on the lid, frees up space on the bars and allows for easy access into the bag.
Entry into the bag is very easy and can be done with one hand.
Wet Weather Riding
Being an urban style bag meant for commuting and day-long adventures, water resistance is a critical feature most people will want. Thus, further research was needed to determine Route Werks’ claim of fully weather-proof. Luckily, a few days after receiving the bag, quite a few thunderstorms rolled through, leaving plenty of puddles and moisture on the road.
To test for water intrusion, I put a piece of paper at the bottom of the bag. The problem is not water coming in from falling rain, the issue is from water continuously flying up from the front tire. The air was a damp and there was a light drizzle that was on and off. I made sure to ride through a few puddles too, but there was plenty of moisture on the asphalt that was thrown up and constantly hitting the bag.
I stopped mid-ride to check the paper and I noticed a few spots of water on the paper. At this moment, I was not sure if the spots were from a few drops falling in when I opened the lid, or if the water was coming in through the seams. To really be sure, I removed the protective plastic bottom layer, and replaced the paper with the dry side facing towards the bike. I installed the plastic layer and returned the items back in the bag.
On my ride home, I purposely went through some deeper puddles to really get the water to spray up. This was to simulate riding in heavy rain where lots of water would be thrown up. Sure enough, when I got home to check the piece of paper, it was wet along the entire edge that was against the seam. I touched the fabric, and it was wet. The water does not pour in as if the material were a sieve, but it does leave the bottom of the bag quite damp.
For a lot of people, they would only use the bag in fair weather and would probably only be carrying things that a little bit of water would not damage. For people that will be carrying important papers or a digital camera in the bag should place these items into a dry bag first. This is not ideal, and after every wet weather ride, you would need to make sure to air out the bag to prevent any mold growth. I have contacted Route Werks about the issue and I am still waiting for a response.
Update 9/27/2021 8:17 PM CDT: I have gotten a response from the Route Werks Customer Service.
“Hello
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The area you identify (leading seam) is going to let water in. Our bag is not waterproof. Wind pressure, tire spray and the fact that the area you identify is a seam will always let some amount of water in.
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Weatherproof is an industry standard term that denotes it can resist light precipitation but does not mean it is impervious to water migration.
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Our recommendation is that if there is something in your bag that CANNOT get wet to take additional precautions (i.e. ziplock bag or drybag).
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Let us know if you have any other questions.
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Sincerely,
Route Werks Customer Service”
Based on the industry standard definition, my interpretation of weatherproof was incorrect, and thus my water intrusion test goes beyond their claim. I still stick to my recommendation that making the seams waterproof will make the bag better. The shell of the bag uses waterproof materials, so making the bag waterproof seems reasonable.
Final Thoughts
I really like the bag. It is extremely solid, and it is made from high quality materials. The rigid lid allows for full access into the bag. The little pockets around the sides of the bag allows for storing small items, such as multi tools or tire plugs, without them getting lost in the main storage area. I am not super comfortable with flipping the lid open at speed knowing that the GPS is hanging over the front, but it is highly unlikely that it would fall off though.
Some downfalls of the bag are that it is relatively heavy and not fully weatherproof. It makes sense that the bag is so heavy, to have such a secure bag, it requires a stiff frame that securely locks to a solid mount on the bike. To me, the weight is not really that big of an issue, but the water intrusion is. The bag is not cheap, and for the price, one would expect it to be completely weatherproof as claimed.
Improvements that need to be addressed immediately by Route Werks, is to create a better seal at the bottom seams. I do not know how it can be fix, but I am sure it can be. A recommended improvement that will give many users a piece of mind, is to make an attachment point for small lanyard to provide a secondary attachment point for a GPS. That way if the GPS comes off the mount it will not fall to the ground.
Author Conflicts
I purchased this product with my own money. I did not receive any compensation from Route Werks to review the product. The product was reviewed on my own accord to provide information about the product to readers. Hopefully this review has provided useful information to help guide you when deciding to purchase the product.
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2 thoughts on “The Handlebar Bag by Route Werks Thoroughly Tested, Surprisingly Good”
Thank you for the review. Very informative and fair. I would like to see more reviews from you. Thank you again.
Thank you. More reviews on the way. Working on a few things now. Stay tuned.