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review
Bottle cages
Elite Rocko Carbon Elite Rocko Carbon
Elite Rocko Carbon

Elite Rocko Carbon

7
by Mike Stead
UPDATED Sun, Sep 09, 2018 00:02

First Published Sep 8, 2018

0
£27.99

VERDICT:

7
10
A good choice for a light, carbon cage for restricted frame sizes
Weight: 
27g
Contact: 
www.madison.co.uk
How we test

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The Elite Rocko Carbon bottle cage is very light, and well designed to allow side-ish access of a bottle if your frame space is restricted by design or bag. It's not cheap, but it works.

  • Pros: Lightweight, allows access in restricted frames, reasonably priced for carbon
  • Cons: Only comes in black

Falling well below the price of the £45 Vel SL-O at 20g and rather above a host of other cages at the same-ish weight for around £20, the Rocko Carbon is acceptable value for money in the carbon cage stakes.

> Find your nearest dealer here

Load-holding-wise the Rocko had absolutely no problems, with a 750ml bottle full of 1,200 calories-worth of superfine berry-and-oats smoothie staying put over a 100km Highlands jaunt.

Entry and exit are easy, with the design falling midway between a traditional cage and a proper side-entry model. A bottle can go in at 45 degrees then twist straight while being pushed downward. There's enough flex in the cage to allow this while not having to raise the bottle upwards in an arc, thereby preserving clearance from frame or bag. If you are maybe planning on fitting a frame bag or have restricted space, you could roughly guesstimate how well the Rocko would serve you over your current model.

elite_rocko_carbon_2.jpg

Once in place there's nary a rattle or squeak, trying different bottle designs over rough roads.

Opt for the Vel SL-O mentioned above and you'd be paying an extra £17 to save 7g, so unless you dislike the black finish, the Rocko seems the better buy. You do get a choice of three different accented colours as well as a gloss version. The branding is minimal so unlikely to clash.

> How to trim bike weight on the cheap

All in all, the Rocko Carbon is a decent choice for a light, easy-entry cage, so long as you like black.

Verdict

A good choice for a light, carbon cage for restricted frame sizes

road.cc test report

Make and model: Elite Rocko Carbon

Size tested: n/a

Tell us what the product is for and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

It's a light carbon bottle cage for weight weenies with small frames needing side-ish insertion.

Elite says: "Innovative design with side and bottle insertion/removal"

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

From Elite:

Carbon injection bottle cage

Extremely light, 25 grams

Compatible with all frames, ideal for sloping tubes or small sizes

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
8/10

Nicely finished.

Rate the product for performance:
 
8/10

Bottles come in and out easily and stay put. Result.

Rate the product for durability:
 
9/10

Feels like it will last a lifetime.

Rate the product for weight (if applicable)
 
8/10
Rate the product for value:
 
6/10

It's not bad, all things considered. You can pay lots more to go just a few grams lighter.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

Bottles went in and out easily, and stayed put.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

Ease of access.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

Nothing really.

How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?

It's £17 less than the £45 Vel SL-O, but a bit more expensive than other offerings, but it is light, plenty flexible and designed for hard-to-access frames.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes

Would you consider buying the product? Yes

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes

Use this box to explain your overall score

The price is good for the weight, it's very nicely made and with better-than-average side-entry capability. You only get a choice of one colour, but the cage works well and should last years.

Overall rating: 7/10

About the tester

Age: 44  Height: 183cm  Weight: 72kg

I usually ride: Merida Ride 5000 Disc  My best bike is: Velocite Selene

I've been riding for: Over 20 years  I ride: A few times a week  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: cyclo-cross, club rides, general fitness riding, mountain biking, Dutch bike pootling.

Elite Rocko Carbon 2018
Elite Rocko Carbon
Elite 2018
Elite
Mike Stead

Living in the Highlands, Mike is constantly finding innovative and usually cold/wet ways to accelerate the degradation of cycling kit. At his happiest in a warm workshop holding an anodised tool of high repute, Mike's been taking bikes apart and (mostly) putting them back together for forty years. With a day job in global IT (he's not completely sure what that means either) and having run a boutique cycle service business on the side for a decade, bikes are his escape into the practical and life-changing for his customers.

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