When I first used the Struka bottle cage I found it a little frustrating. I had it mounted on the down tube of my road bike and quickly became tired of adding in additional steps of unbuckling the dial and tightening it back up again just to take a drink. But the beauty of the Struka lies beyond the tarmac.
When I mounted the cage on the bosses under the down tube on my gravel bike, keeping both bottle cages inside the frame triangle free, I found the true purpose of the Struka. If you're going on a bikepacking trip you lose all the traditional spaces where you could mount a saddle bag or tool keg, and I always feel a little uneasy hanging a keg, with £40 worth of tools and spares in it, precariously under the down tube. However, the added security offered by the Struka was very welcome; not once did I fear that my tools had skittered off down the trail, no matter how hard I pushed the bike on rough, technical off-road descents.
Also, although I didn't use it this way, it would undoubtedly offer a similar improvement when mounted to bosses on the fork legs of a gravel bike, ideal for longer trips in remote areas where you need to carry additional water and might use containers outside the dimensions of a traditional cycling-specific water bottle.
It's not cheap for a plastic bottle cage, but with the addition of a steel wired dial – of which there are only a few alternative products out there – it's not bad value. The Fidlock uni connector and base combination is £54.99, for example, and while the Arundel Looney Bin is £22, it only takes regular size bottles.
In summary, I think it's a nicely designed product that delivers on expectation. If the only riding you do is on the road, you can save a little bit of weight and money by using more traditional cages, but it's a good choice for more adventurous riding where the extra security is very welcome.
Make and model: Elite Struka bottle cage
Tell us what the product is for and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it?
Elite claims the Struka's "versatility ensures a secure and sturdy grip for all your cycling adventures, accommodating bottles of varying dimensions", and that pretty much sums up the product. It's one for the more adventurous cyclists, and is a great addition to any gravel, all road, or bikepacking setup.
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product
The Struka's stand out design feature is the steel cabled adjustment system. Elite says "In addition to offering precise adjustment, Struka is designed to provide maximum durability with its steel wire, all while maintaining an optimal lightweight design, weighing in at just 34g".
From Freewheel, Elite's UK distributor:
Ideal for bike packers, tourists, gravel riders, or anyone else who thinks outside the box; the Struka's adjustment feature allows you to carry a wide variety of different shapes, not just standard bidons
Ratcheting twist-buckle allows you to quickly adjust how tightly the object in the cage is clamped, great for securing items over bumpy surfaces
Single handed operation, to tighten turn the buckle, to release, just pull the buckle up
Can adjust from 65mm to 80mm in diameter
Perfect when the sun's coming down and you just NEED that bottle of cola to get you home
Fibre-reinforced resin construction
Proudly made in Italy
Rate the product for quality:
9/10
Rate the product for performance:
8/10
Rate the product for value:
6/10
Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose
For use with oversized bottles or cargo of irregular shapes, the Struka is a great solution. Used with a standard cycling water bottle, it felt a touch over-engineered – adding an unnecessary level of complexity to an otherwise simple, timeless design – but its purpose goes beyond that.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the product
I liked the security offered by the Struka bottle cage when using oversized bottles or tool kegs. For everyday road riding, the design doesn't add much to the experience, but when mounted under a down tube on a bikepacking setup, or on a fork leg, the Struka comes into its own.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product
Nothing particularly stood out as dislikable.
How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?
At £22.99, it's quite expensive for a plastic bottle cage. However, with the addition of a steel wired dial – of which there are only a few alternative products out there – it's not bad value at all.
Did you enjoy using the product? Yes
Would you consider buying the product? Yes, if I was doing more adventurous riding regularly.
Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes
Use this box to explain your overall score
It's a bit overkill for everyday road riding, but I would definitely recommend this if you store bottles or tool kegs under your down tubes or on your fork legs for more gravel and adventure style riding. For those purposes, it's very good.
Age: 28 Height: 175cm Weight: 67kg
I usually ride: Road (Tarmac SL7) My best bike is:
I've been riding for: 10-20 years I ride: Every day I would class myself as: Expert
I regularly do the following types of riding: road racing, time trialling, cyclo cross, commuting, mtb, Occasional Ultra Racing
I repurposed a bent rear derailleur hanger into a keyring. It's very useful, and you can use it to open bottles of beer.
This is the denial in question from an Oxford CC councillor. Appears Road.cc is the one telling whoppers....
Sounds like the perfect deal for senior management: lots of corporate cash flowing in, fewer pesky members to deal with. Win-win. Until Shell's...
My bum hates Flites. Worse saddle ever for me.
Putting this here as no where else to go...
If you're travelling fast enough then the red light could appear green due to the doppler shift!
Me too!
Jamie, I'm guessing that this is now your saddle, unique like, please tell us how long it takes to die, how the feeling changes and if your are...
"Do you want me to wash it for you?" "can you do me a blowout?"* * Yeah ok I looked that one up https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hairstyles
Of course not! I will be chasing up after Christmas, no point in doing so now as they will just point to "hopefully" and "in December".