Bar harness on rigid forks

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benp1
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Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by benp1 »

I have an issue with my Revelate harness rubbing tyre on rigid El Mariachi

I've used this harness on my Solaris with 120 forks and there's no rub, but I stiffen up the suspension which gives me more clearance. It's a large frame

Set up my large El Mariachi last night and the harness carries too low on the rigid fork so it rubbed. Knew it would be close when I put the harness on but with a 20l drybag there was no way it would fit. Can't see it being different with a smaller bag due to the way the harness swivels around the bars. Had to use my Gourdon instead, not a long term solution but it was a quick local bivy

The design of the Revelate harness means there's nothing 'pushing' it up, there's a loop to go round the head tube and then the loops (with spacer blocks) to go round the handlebar. It is 'pulled' down to secure it. I have more space on my Solaris so it hasn't been an issue, but I suppose it was closer than I'd like

From the look of it I can't fit a drybag there unless the harness moves it up

Questions
- anyone had the same issue with the revelate harness?
- anyone had similar issues with a rigid forked bike?
- any ideas for what I could do?
- are there any harnesses that would be a better solution? (alpkit version has struts I think)
u02sgb
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by u02sgb »

Not got the revelate, but do have the Alpkit. The struts do fix the problem your talking about. They also raise it up above bar height making fitting a light to the bars a challenge. Just got a joystick for my helmet to deal with this.

Other than that the Alpkit is great, although I've made my own spacer from pipe lagging to move it away from the bars/brakes.

Oh, one thing the struts do rub a bit on the head tube. I protect it with gaffer tape. I'm not sure if the new ones have a wider gap between the struts as mine was fine on my 1 1/8 headtube, it's a bit of a tight fit on the tapered one.
Justchris
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by Justchris »

Can you not use a bungee, or strap it up a bit. Probably not neat but should work.
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benp1
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by benp1 »

There's nothing to pull it up to/against, that would be solid enough on rough ground

The load pivots around the bars towards the forks. I could use the (redundant) rim brake mounts with some rods to push it up I suppose... It'll look fugly though
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Mariner
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by Mariner »

Try a long strap each side that attaches to the bar loops right round the harness and bag back over the bars and down to the top of the forks.
It might look odd but should be able to raise the harness which will pivot on the bar mounts and swing out/forward.
With a bit of ingenuity you could have a tension strap at the fork end so you put the whole thing on loose then tighten it up in situ.
Zazen - nothing happens next this is it.
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voodoo_simon
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by voodoo_simon »

El mariachi here (extra small), two spaces fitted between the stem and frame and using wildcat harness, I can only use a 13l dry bag. Guess if you use a steeper stem (try flipping it up), then your 20l may squeeze in
Justchris
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by Justchris »

benp1 wrote:There's nothing to pull it up to/against, that would be solid enough on rough ground

The load pivots around the bars towards the forks. I could use the (redundant) rim brake mounts with some rods to push it up I suppose... It'll look fugly though
More to just squash the bag up in the middle. You only need to rise it an inch or so.
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FLV
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by FLV »

20l :shock:

Can you trim down the kit a bit?
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FLV
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by FLV »

20l :shock:

Can you trim down the kit a bit?
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benp1
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by benp1 »

Maybe i'll try a 13l bag first

I don't need 20l of space, but the width and length is helpful for packing, I squeeze it down quite a lot

I pack a large thermarest with a chair kit attached so the length means I can fit the rods in ok

When I squeezed the middle strap up it didn't seem to make a difference to it. I'll try again though

The space between the top of the wheel and the bar doesn't seem huge. I've got some jones loop bars to fit, but the brake cables are too short at the moment. I don't know if that would help too
ScotRoutes
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by ScotRoutes »

Use a Revelate Salty Roll.
It's longer and thinner than the likes of an Alpkit drybag.

The other thing is; are your rigid forks long enough? The distance between wheel and handlebar should be the same as your suspension forks
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benp1
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by benp1 »

Good shout

This is the setup from last night, how does that look?
Image

For reference, here's one of my Solaris with similar bag setup but including the harness
Image
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johnnystorm
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by johnnystorm »

The rigid fork on my Fargo is only 80mm corrected and has loads more tyre space than that. Assuming it's a 29er have you got a 26" Fork?
Image
ScotRoutes
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by ScotRoutes »

Everything else being equal, you'd expect the gap between the crown race on the rigid fork to be the same as that on a sagged set of suspension forks (of 80//100mm travel).

The other thing is to pack your drybag so that the contents more closely match the shape of the black end panel (you'll see that it's oval, not round) then rotate it in the harness to give more tyre clearance. You might be able to make out how I have set mine up

Image

FWIW, I like the fact that the harness sits lower than the bars. It makes fitting lights easier.
jameso
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by jameso »

I've got some jones loop bars to fit, but the brake cables are too short at the moment. I don't know if that would help too
Should help a lot ime, you can use the front and rear bar sections to wrap the harness loops over and reduce / eliminate bag rotation.
ScotRoutes
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by ScotRoutes »

I found this random photo of an El Mar via google. Note the gap between the top of the tyre and the inside curve of the forks

Image
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benp1
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by benp1 »

Thanks for all your help folks. I had a proper go at fitting the drybag and it fits ok now, I did the following
- re pack the drybag to allow it to compress into a narrower diameter tube (thermarest chair kit doesn't fit in a 13l drybag due to the length)
- rotate the drybag as per scotroutes' tip
- tighten the middle strap a lot!

I can then fit the jones loop bars for even more space

I measured the A-C on the forks and its 44cm so it's obviously a 26in fork. I picked the bike up secondhand so i'll track down some other forks. That should give me another inch of clearance
Gari
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by Gari »

I have the Salsa 29er fork and they are 468 a-c if memory serves so that will help.
The Jones bars make.quite a dicference., and as Scotroutes mentions, the salty roll is well worth the cost IMO.
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benp1
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by benp1 »

What makes the salty roll so good?

I've not ever considered a double ended dry bag before as I didn't really get the point (as I only open and close it once a day usually)

They're spendy over here but I could get my sister to bring one back from the U.S. which makes them more reasonable
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Cheeky Monkey
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by Cheeky Monkey »

Cheaper Polish version of a double ended bag available from BikePack:

http://bikepack.pl/en/bikepack-bags/12- ... st-x2.html

Image

c.£50 exc.delivery. Comes with a front pocket as well.

Pavel (guy behind BikePack) has been on here occasionally. I have one of the earlier versions of the X2 and it was very well made. Attachment system not quite as solid as the Wildcat harness now using but good, particularly for the money. I imagine with a bit of judicious additional strapping stability could be improved.

(Just realised this is the equivalent of a Revelate Sweetroll and the Salty's just a double ended bag. Mleh. Info maybe of use)
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Scattamah
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by Scattamah »

benp1 wrote:What makes the salty roll so good? I've not ever considered a double ended dry bag before...
When you've been riding all day and you're beginning to hallucinate, it's quite nice to ignore which end you grab on the dry bag and just open it. That's about the only benefit I ever found.

Personally, I use the Revelate harness system which means I can strap in any ol' dry bag. The harness has a strap that goes around the fork crown. Make sure you tape 'em first though or you end up like me with really expensive forks with rub marks. Upside of the crown strap is the harness doesn't bob about on the rough stuff.

Greetz

S.
ScotRoutes
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by ScotRoutes »

benp1 wrote:What makes the salty roll so good?

I've not ever considered a double ended dry bag before as I didn't really get the point (as I only open and close it once a day usually)
For one, it's only 7" in diameter, yet a bit longer than the alpkit bags. I suggested it as that would improve your tyre clearance (the original reason for this thread :-) )
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benp1
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by benp1 »

:grin: I meant apart from that!

I guess i was also trying to find out the benefits of a double ended drybag
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atk
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Re: Bar harness on rigid forks

Post by atk »

I suppose it depends how you distribute kit around the bike, I quite like using my Sweetroll with clothes at one end and food at the other, makes it quick to add/remove layers or snacks... Sleeping kit goes in the saddlebag and only opened/closed once a day...
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