Brompton P Line: Monkii Bottle Cage and Quad Lock Mount

Some accessories to be added to the Brompton P Line! After showing the stock condition, and also the special features of the P Line, now it is time to add some accessories and bring the bike out for a ride.

I decided to keep the accessories to a minimum, which is why the dedicated accessories for the Brompton P Line is only the phone mount and the bottle cage.

The bottle cage is usually mounted on the vertical handlepost of the Brompton, for easy access while riding. However, a permanent bottle cage that is mounted here would affect the folded size. Therefore, I got the Monkii Cage bottle cage, which I first used a long time ago on the Dahon Boardwalk.

What's unique about the Monkii Cage system is that the bottle cage itself can be easily separated from the base, so as not to affect the folding.

Depending on the diameter of the handlepost, and whether it is straight or tapered, use the different spacers accordingly.

After a bit of trial and error, I found that the Brompton handlepost does not require the use of spacers. However, I also did not want to scratch the handlepost by clamping the Monkii Cage directly onto the painted surface. Therefore, I found some thin rubber shims to protect the handlepost.

Weight of Monkii Cage mount, with thin rubber shims, is 35 grams. That is more than the weight of most bottle cages already...

This is the new version of the Monkii Cage, which is called Type V. The way it fits onto the mount is more secure than the original.

New cage design on the right, my old Monkii Cage on the left. From the front you can't really tell the difference.

Old cage on the left just slides straight into the mount. However, it can sometimes jump off on bumpy roads. The new Type V on the right requires some clever movement to prevent self-ejection.

New cage requires the cage to be slid into the top screw boss from the side first, before rotating and then sliding downwards onto the bottom screw boss. This ensure it will never slide off on its own.

Mounted onto the handlepost of the Brompton P Line! When folding the bike, I just slide the bottle cage off, and leave the mount on.

Other than mounting a bottle cage, I also needed to mount my phone onto the bike. As what I have done on all my other bikes, a Quad Lock mount will be used to attach the phone to the bike. I have used Quad Lock for many years since Samsung Galaxy S8, on the Java Freccia carbon mini velo. The Quad Lock design has never failed me and is 100% reliable.

The Brompton Quad Lock mount is a bit special, because it is not sold directly by Quad Lock. Rather, it can only be bought through Brompton retailers.

Collaboration between Brompton and Quad Lock to create this mount that is specifically designed for Brompton handlebars.

Made in UK, with Brompton logo. No surprise that it commands a Brompton premium as well.

Official Quad Lock mount for Brompton!

It's designed to make use of the dead space in between the M or H type handlebars.

Instructions are written in a recognizable Brompton style, if you have seen the Brompton manual before. Adjust the angle to avoid the Quad Lock mount sticking out when bike is folded.

Brompton Quad Lock mount weighs 55 grams.

Quad Lock mount installed! Very stable with two clamps on the handlebar.

Monkii Cage mounted on the handlepost, and Quad Lock mount on top.

When folded, it does not cause interference or take up additional space.

I'm happy with these two accessories, as they fit well and work well. These are pretty costly, but I think its worth the quality that I get.

Here is how it looks with the Monkii Bottle Cage and Quad Lock Mount!

Quad Lock Mag Case and Wireless Charging Pad

During the Quad Lock Black Friday sale, I managed to get a whole collection of Quad Lock related accessories for the phone. For those who have not heard of it, Quad Lock makes a whole range of accessories to fix your phone to almost any vehicle or surface. From cars to motorbikes to bicycles, you can surely find something that works for you.

A Quad Lock set basically consists of 2 main parts: The phone casing and the mount. If you have a popular phone model, the case would be readily available. Else just use the Universal Mount to stick onto a third party phone case.

The mount would be the interface between the phone case and the car/motorbike/bicycle. It is available in a wide range to suit your needs.

My first Quad Lock was for the Samsung Galaxy S8, to be mounted onto the bicycle stem. There are other mounts such as the Out Front Mount which I used when using the Wahoo Kickr Core bike trainer.

This time, I got a new Quad Lock case for the iPhone 13 Pro Max, and it is an improved version that is Magsafe compatible.

Lots of new Quad Lock stuff! Let's go through them one by one.

New Quad Lock case on the left, with a Quad Lock logo in the center.

Specialized Aethos: Weight of Accessories and Tool Kit

Although the Specialized Aethos is a very lightweight road bike, the reality is that some accessories need to be added to the bike in order to make it more practical. 

Bottle cages and lights are necessary, as well as some simple tools to fix a puncture. You can always leave out some of these items, but there is a risk that you might get stranded if you can't fix a puncture yourself.

In this post, the weight of the bike accessories will be measured, to see how much weight is added onto a bare bicycle.

Specialized Zee Cage II side load bottle cage. A bit heavier as it is made of plastic instead of carbon fibre.

Generic carbon fibre bottle cage. Reason I got this is due to the gap between the two screw holes that allows an Airtag holder to be slotted in between.

Quad Lock Out Front Mount

If you ever wanted to mount your mobile phone on the handlebars, you will find that there are so many different ways to do it. Many years ago I used to have a Topeak DryBag, which protects your phone and makes it rainproof.

However, nowadays most new mobile phones are already waterproof, so it is OK to mount the phone directly on the handlebars without any additional bag or cover for rain protection. Some people mount the phones on the handlebars to use as a speedometer (via GPS in app), others as a map for navigation.

For me, I actually don't use it this way, as I already have other devices (Garmin Edge 530 or Cateye Padrone+) for tracking distance and speed. In rare cases I will use my phone for navigation, if I am cycling in unfamiliar areas. I just want a place to mount the phone securely, so that I can see that it is not missing. If I receive a message or call, I can check easily to see if it is urgent or not.

I first used a Quad Lock mount a few years ago, and was very satisfied with it. I had an additional Quad lock phone casing for my Samsung S8, which I will use when cycling. For this Quad Lock system, you can purchase additional mounts for different bikes, so that you can attach your phone to different bikes easily.

In fact, now I have Quad Lock mounts on all my existing bikes, so that I can change bikes seamlessly. For the folding bikes, I install the Quad Lock mount on the vertical handlepost to avoid interference during folding.

Bike Friday Haul-A-Day

Fnhon DB11

Dahon MuSP

Cervelo Aspero

Fabike C3

Recently, I have been using the Dahon MuSP as the indoor trainer bike, to use with the Wahoo Kickr Core smart bike trainer. I use the Zwift app which links to the bike trainer, so I need to be able to see the Zwift screen on my mobile phone.

Some people use a dedicated laptop or tablet for Zwift, but I just use my own phone. Sometimes I will mirror the screen to the TV, while at other times I will use place the phone beside the bike trainer, on a table.

All these are not ideal as it is difficult to see and use the Zwift app while cycling. Therefore, I decided to get a dedicated Quad Lock mount, so that the phone can be placed directly in front of me when I am on the bike trainer.

The Quad Lock Out Front Mount Pro is a mount that places the phone in front, so that I can secure my phone in front of me for good visibility and easy usage, while riding on the bike trainer. The Pro indication just means that it is longer, and made of aluminium instead of resin for better strength and rigidity.

Quad Lock Out Front Mount Pro

Fits all the standard handlebar sizes

Comes with two different rubber shims to fit smaller diameter handlebars.

Weighs 66 grams without any shims.

The bracket has serrations to properly secure the top part of the mount. These serrations allow angle settings at 10 degree increments.

Here is the top part of the mount, which will be screwed onto the bracket.

The blue lever is spring loaded, and locks into the back of the phone casing to prevent unintended rotation.

Here is how it looks on the Dahon MuSP. I chose the Pro version because I needed the longer bracket to avoid interference.

I would say it works pretty well as I can fix and remove the phone from the bike easily. The phone is also located at a convenient position for easy usage and good visibility.

Quad Lock parts are rather expensive, but they are really good stuff. Spigen also makes something similar called the Gearlock, at a lower price. It looks just like a copy product of Quad Lock, and even the packaging looks the same. I have not used those so I don't know the quality.

I am committed to Quad Lock as all my bikes are using this mount. The mounts also come in different colours to better match your bikes.

Quad Lock Phone Mount - Galaxy S8 Bike Kit

When I go on bike rides, my mobile phone is usually mounted onto the bike. If I put the phone into my pockets, I always worry that it will drop out during cycling. The alternative is to place the phone into my backpack, but I don't always use a backpack, and I might miss important calls or messages as I can't hear my phone when it is in the backpack.

In order to protect the phone from rain, the phone is always placed inside a Topeak Smartphone Drybag, which is sealed and is rainproof. It has worked well for me for many years.

One downside of this is that if I need to operate the screen on the phone, it is difficult to use it properly through the transparent plastic cover. Also, if I want to take a quick picture, it is also troublesome to remove the phone from the pouch before I can take a picture.

Recently I came across this new mounting from Quad Lock. I think it has been available for a few years already, but I have not come across it before. The feature that interested me is the mounting method. It is similar to how a Garmin is mounted, just twist and it is locked in place!

After testing it with my friend's Quad Lock sample, I was sold on the idea of using this mounting kit. Let's take a closer look at this.

Quad Lock bike kit for Samsung Galaxy S8 phone. It has a phone casing that is specific to your phone model. In this case it is the S8.

It comes with a phone casing that you attach to your phone. Your phone will now be compatible to the mount.

The bike mount can be fixed to many places, using either the rubber bands or cable ties. In this case, it is mounted to the stem.

It is advertised to be super secure, as it has an additional spring latch, on top of the usual Garmin-type twist lock design. Once your phone has this Quad Lock casing, you can also attach it to other Quad Lock mounts.

This is the hard rubber casing that you attach to your phone

Quad Lock mounting profile at the back of the casing

Quad Lock mount, comes with rubber bands and cable ties for mounting.

4 tabs which is used to lock the phone casing to the mount

When you push down on the phone casing, the blue part (which is spring loaded) will move down, allowing you to twist the casing into place.

Before the 4 black tabs of the mount is engaged with the phone casing...

...after twisting the casing into place, the blue part will lock into place and prevent the casing from twisting free!

It is practically impossible to remove the phone accidentally, as you need to push down the blue part, while simultaneously twisting and lifting the casing off the mount. Unless you have big hands, you will need both hands to remove the phone from the mount.

Mount weighs 23 grams, including two rubber bands. For weight weenie info.

As mounted on the Java Freccia mini velo. The mount just manages to fit on the 80mm stem. If the stem is any shorter, the mount cannot fit.

The mount protrudes quite a bit, not the best looking mount.

From this view, it seems that the Quad Lock profile on the back of the casing is really slim and does not protrude much.

However, this view shows that the casing itself is really thick, which is meant to hide the depth of the Quad Lock mechanism.

This casing is thicker than normal casings, which means that the phone is a bit bulkier than usual. This extra bulk is not a problem. However, the increased thickness means that inductive charging does not work when this casing is used! This is a downside for me, as I like the inductive charging feature of the S8 phone. When this casing is on the phone, I will have to charge the phone by plugging in a USB cable.

Landscape orientation, probably useful for navigation?

Portrait orientation, for normal usage, and also to avoid interfering with the holding of the drop bar at the top area.

As I plan to use this phone casing and mounting across more than one bike, I also got the additional bike mount to install onto a second bike. This was a free gift which a friend passed to me, which is really nice.

Additional bike mount kit

Phone casing not included in this kit

The other bike that I wanted to mount this Quad Lock kit on was the Canyon Endurace road bike. However, the blue coloured mount does not match the red frame at all! It looks too out of place. Therefore, some DIY work was required, to improve the appearance of the Quad Lock mount on the Canyon Endurace.

First, the mount was disassembled, so that the blue part can be sent for spray painting. This is the post-painting picture, where the blue part (centre) has already been painted black.

Assembling the whole unit back together was a bit tricky, due to the spring force and the alignment required. However, it looks much better and stealthier in this all black edition!

As you can see, the black mount matches the black handlebar and stem well. It still sticks out quite a bit, but I can live with that.

Advantages of Quad Lock:
1) No additional phone pouch required for attaching the phone to your bike.
2) Quad Lock casing is strong and durable for everyday use, even when not attaching it to the bike.
3) Super secure mounting, no worry of it flying off accidentally.
4) Relatively easy to remove the phone from the mount, for taking quick pictures or answering phone calls.
5) Easy to use the phone even when it is mounted, as the phone screen can be touched directly.
6) Versatile mounting options available, you can use Quad Lock for your running armband or in your car if you want.

Disadvantages of Quad Lock:
1) Unable to use inductive charging for your phone as the casing is too thick.
2) Unable to use your favourite phone casing or cover.
3) Bike mount sticks out too much from the stem, which does not look nice.
4) No waterproofing compared to using a sealed phone pouch.

One big downside of using this Quad Lock as compared to a phone pouch is the loss of waterproofing ability. However, as the S8 is already waterproof, this is not a concern for me. If your phone is not waterproof, and you are worried about rain damaging your phone, you have to use a sealed phone pouch.

Depending on your phone usage and whether you use a phone cover, this Quad Lock may or may not work for you. For me, it works well as there are many advantages, which outweighs the disadvantage of not being able to use inductive charging.