Holds bottles securely even on rough roads, but bottles still go in and out with ease. Very light and look great. Not cheap, but BTD typically has the best price anywhere. As others have said, if you want a carbon cage, these are the best available.
Bought Arundel Dave-O Carbon cages in white to replace some black carbon cages on my white frame Cannondale Synapse that were to light & weak to hold a full water bottles on some Northeast back roads especially after the winters we had recently, after I received them, I installed them immediately the color was almost a perfect match & made a dramatic improvement in my opinion compared to the ones that they replaced also a significant improvement in size & strength with just a small weight penalty of a few grams each which was easy to take, in place of bouncing, broken or the very least dirty water bottles to deal with during rides. Can't go wrong choosing Arundel a hundred percent top quality product! It gets all five stars plus!
I wanted a reliable cage that would hold bottles tight and not fail down the road (previous cage had an elastomeric band that failed at the worst possible time). The one fills the bill. For something that I use a number of times on every ride, I wanted the best.
I recently put these on my Time bike which came with Time bottle cages. Midway through a 60 mille ride, with temperatures over ninety, my front Time cage broke. This is the second time the Time cage has failed and, although they have a lifetime warranty, I switched to the Arundel cage. They are strong, hold the bottle firmly and I am extremely pleased with this purchase.
This cage holds bottles very well. No looking required to know bottle properly seated in the cage. Yeah, it's a bit expensive but I've tried many other carbon cages and these work the best. I've added them to most of my bikes.
This cage is mounted on my road bike. It replaces a brand name cage that occasionally ejected water bottles when I rode over cattle guards. In addition to the added grip, I expect the wider bands to stand-up to the nicking and cutting that seem to be the start of failure for the other cages I have had. I have had this cage for only a month, so it remains to be seen if it loosens up with use.
I no longer use carbon cages because they get all scuffed up inside and look shabby without a bottle in them and then scrape up your bottles as well. For this reason, I moved on to King Titanium. BUT . . . if you must have carbon, I do understand. This is the best of the many I've tried. Rock solid grip, but easy in and out. Very sturdy. Perhaps not as stylish as some, but I think the more beautiful ones break more easily. The Arundel Mandible is good as well if you want something a bit more svelte.
I bought a pair of these to replace my 20-years old Zipp carbon bottle cages. I purchased the cages with the blue insert which matches the blue highlights on my Fuji Gran Fondo 1.1. The cages hold bottles very securely, are very lightweight and great looking. The perfect trifecta!
The Arundel Dave-O Carbon cage is a sharp-looking, lightweight cage, but most importantly it works! I've used the Dave-O on my road bike for three years and it still works perfectly. Not so with a competitor's cages which failed at the bottom tab support after just 9 months. I decided to try the Dave-O on my mountain bike, and after six months I'm pleased - no failures and the bottles (even 24 oz) stay put. Definitely worth the money.
So far, I like the cages. You will not lose a bottle if you hit a pothole riding at high speed! That said, they take some getting used to because they are extremely tight. The cage I have on the down tube appears to be loosening up just a bit which is a good thing.
These cages look super and they really do hold the bottles very tight. Much better cage than my old Zipp cages that broke when I hit a hard bump and the Zipps cost more.
Light. Sturdy. Hold my Polar insulated bottles just right...tight enough not to come out when you want them to stay in (pot holes, etc.) and loose enough to come out easily when thirsty. Plus they look sharp.
Nicely made, nice finish. They hold the bottle very well. I can see these lasting a long time. Not the lightest, but stronger than any aluminum or plastic cage I've used so far. Five stars.