They come in all sorts of shapes and colors. They come in a variety of materials. Some even come with tools attached to them. If you haven’t guess it yet, I’m talking about bike water bottle cages. It’s funny to think that something so simple can be created in so many different ways.

So, what is required to attach a water bottle cage to your bike? Most bikes come with standard cage mounting holes. The holes are located 64mm apart and are usually centered on the top of a frame’s downtube. The holes are threaded and accept M5 x 0.8 bolts (5mm in diameter with threads 0.8 mm apart). Most bikes just have one set of mounting holes which allows attachment for one water bottle cage, but some tandem bikes, can carry upwards of six water bottle cages.

If your bike doesn’t have cage mounts, there are multiple companies that make cages with attachment options that strap around your frame or attach to your handlebars. Adapters also exist to allow a standard cage with 64mm bolt spacing to attach to your handlebars instead.

One of the newest developments in water bottle cages are known as “side loading” cages. As the name implies, instead of loading the bottle from the top, the bottle can be loaded from the side. These have become very beneficial for small riders that tend to have tight frames. Many people consider them easier to use compared to the traditional design.

A small portion of the water bottle market are aerodynamic water bottles. Aero water bottles are typically used on time trail bikes and some road bikes. These water bottles have unique shapes that are designed to cut through the air and create little drag. Since they have such a unique shape, they need a unique bottle cage to hold them. Most of these bottles come with a proprietary cage included in the purchase, so separate purchase of these cages is rarely needed.

If you have any questions about water bottle cages at all, hop on a call or a chat with one of our expert Gear Advisors at 888-880-3811 so that we can help you find that perfect water bottle cage.