Vel SL-O Carbon Cage

There are few things in cycling that cost as much per gram as a carbon fibre bottle cage, but if you must have a drink retainer made of the black stuff then the Vel SL-O Carbon Cage is a smart choice. It's a sturdy, rattle-free solution to carrying your bidon.

• Pros: Holds a bottle firmly, easy to get a bottle in and out
• Cons: A bit pricey

I've had a lot of gravel/adventure bikes in for testing lately so the SL-O has been thoroughly put through its paces on the local rough gravel tracks and potholed bridleways. The fact it hasn't jettisoned a single bottle means it's passed the most important test of bottle retention.

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The carbon arms offer a firm grasp, which when paired with the curved top and bottom lips means that your bottle is held from all angles and isn't going to go anywhere whether it is full or empty.

The cage uses an open design (that's what the 'O' stands for – open) with the arms not joining in the middle, allowing you to remove and fit the bottle without hassle as the arms spread a little when you put the bidon at an angle.

You have to be quite precise lining up the bottle to put it in to start with, but once you've got used to it it's easy.

SL means Super Light, with the Vel weighing in at 20g on the road.cc Scales of Truth; that's 4g less than that quoted on Vel's own website so it'll definitely impress the weight weenies.

Saying that, it's only 8g lighter than Vel's T5 SL alloy cage, which costs just £17.99, or 14g lighter than its Race Cage for £11.99.

It is impressive that this carbon offering can offer such high levels of retention for such a small amount of material though.

Overall build quality can't be knocked either. It doesn't feel flimsy and the carbon feels to be good quality. It's full carbon, too, not a nylon/carbon composite mix like some of the cheaper cages on the market.

If you're looking for a carbon cage then value for money probably isn't a major priority, but we'll take a look anyway. The Vel is priced at £44.99 which when you look at something like the Elite Vico carbon cage at £24.99 is quite high, even if the Elite only really works with the company's own bottles.

> Read more road.cc reviews of bottle cages here

Both Zefal's Pulse and Hoy's carbon cages are priced at £34.99 for similar weight items.

Overall, if you want some bling and only carbon will do then the Vel is a smart looking, top performing, lightweight bottle cage provided you're willing to pay for it.

Verdict

Secure bottle cage for weight weenies who are happy to pay the price