My bike came with only one water cage mounting. Since I have the Topeak Modular Cage XL which fit 1 ~ 1.5 lts bottle, I have decided make mounting points for it and add extra mountings on other tubing for different setup.
Initial intention was to make mounting points on the Seat Tube, additional mounting on the upper Down Tube as it was too low and the bottom of the Down Tube. After taking measurements on the upper Down Tube soon realised the drill could not fit in....Crap!!
So ended up just making the bottom Down tube. Took almost an hour because the material brought back by my partner was wrong. Needed a hex M5 Bolt and Nut 8.8 carbon steel and received only the bolt 8.8 carbon steel and the nut was galvanised steel, ended shredding the nut thread. Lucky I found one M5 8.8 carbon steel nut in my tool kit.
TOOLS NEEDED
Been searching these Rivnut for a while and finally found it. They come in various sizes but for our bikes, M5 Rivnuts are requried. If you need it send us a message.
- Rivnuts
- Drill
- 3mm Drill Bit
- 8mm Drill Bit
- Mini Half Round Files
- Centre Puncher
- String
- Paper Tape
- M5 Bolt and Nut Carbon Steel 8.8
- Lock Nut
- Steel Rule
- Pencil
Used a string and packing paper tape to find the centre of the Down Tube.
Next used a steel rule and drew a straight line
Placed the cage on the straight line and pin point the holes needed to drill
Used a nail as centre punch
Started with 3mm drill bit for the Pilot hole
Then 5mm Drill bit (can skip this part)
Finally 8mm drill bit
Filed the edges with mini half round files
Started work on the Rivnut and all went wrong
Decided to use a lock nut and a carbon steel nut, did not have the right wrench instead used a 4" adjustable spanner and rounded some of the nut edges but job still get done. The idea of using the lock nut is to hold the Rivnut from spinning while turning the bolt in anti-clockwise direction. I should have use a locking washer but this was I have at that moment.
After an hour finally it was done
Started with the bottom Rivnut and had some facial damage, after getting the hang of it, the upper Rivnut was easy.
Finally Product
Thoughts
This is the fist time using this method to do it, there is a Rivnut Gun but it is rather expensive to get one just for this job. Still need to do the Seat Tube and Upper Down Tube but need someone with the right tool. Maybe I should invest in the Rivnut Gun after all, could use it on our BOV (Bug Out Vehicle) or something else, will see about it.
Having extra mounting points gives option for different setup, I could instead replace the Topeak Modular Cage XL and use a normal cage for carrying fuel bottles. If you prefer less hassle then take a look at the Monkii Clip, for me I prefer DIY and trying things out :)
My inspiration was from this guy's Blog While Out Biking. He was the one inspired me to switch to steel frame and made the mod.
Hope you have enjoyed the post.
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