Mountain bikes have changed a lot over the years. Although modern trail bikes are more fun to ride than ever, mounting bikepacking gear to them has become more challenging. We rose to this challenge for seat bags with our groundbreaking Black Dragon Dropper Seat Bag. With the Moab, we took a similarly radical approach to handlebar bags. The Moab rides incredibly solid on any trail, maintains your bike's handling, and fits most modern trail bikes with a minimum of fuss.
The issue with current MTB design and handlebar bags is simple. Traditional cylindrical handlebar bags ideally sit in a 'channel' underneath the handlebar, against the bike's head tube, behind the brake levers. As handlebar stems get shorter, this channel no longer accommodates straight cylinder bags. (See diagrams in the photos above for illustration.) We realized that the channel for handlebar bags didn't disappear – it just changed shape. So, we spent months creating the Moab, taking advantage of the new channel shape and meeting our standards for solid ride quality and low impact on handling. The Moab's delta shape fits perfectly on most modern trail bikes. The loaded weight literally wraps around the steering axis, and handling is impeccable.
Other companies have responded to this challenge with various hard-mount systems that push the bag out beyond or below the brake levers. While this does work, it has a major effect on handling: Weight pushed that far out from the steering axis has exaggerated leverage on the handlebars. When you're rallying singletrack, you don't want your handlebar bag pulling your front wheel around. Alternately, moving the bag downward on long-travel bikes with short head tubes creates tire contact under full compression. Finally, hard-mount systems fatigue invisibly and can break in crashes. The Moab neatly solves all these issues.
The Moab can be used with or without the included pocket; the pocket is quickly detachable, perfect for carrying valuables into the grocery store or restaurant.
The Moab is intended for use with modern MTB trail bikes: Short stems, long top tubes, and wide bars. If you have a more traditional setup with a longer stem, our Entrada Handlebar Bag is likely a better choice. Use the diagrams in the photos above, and the following info, to determine whether the Moab or Entrada is better for your bike:
-Stem length 30-60mm: Moab
-Stem length 70-80mm: Moab or Entrada (SRAM levers or steeper lever position works best with Moab; Shimano levers or shallower lever position works best with Entrada)
-Stem length 90mm-up: Entrada
The Moab requires 5.5" between your tire and handlebar when your suspension fork is fully compressed. Compatible with Jones Loop and similar bars. Will not work on bikes which have cables protruding directly from the front face of the head tube.
While the advantages of the Moab are many, there are a couple potential disadvantages: 1) “Feedbags”, including our Tapeats Handlebar Bag, are incompatible with the Moab. 2) We've tested the Moab thoroughly with people from 5'4" to 6'3". Most people have no, or minimal, contact with their knees when standing to pedal on steep inclines, if the Moab is packed full. No testers considered this an issue. If you have any knee contact, simply packing slightly less and rolling down the ends a bit solves the issue. If you are short, or ride a short-top-tube bike, you may not be able to use the maximum volume of the Moab.
A non-issue that people tend to expect is that tight turns (switchbacks) will be limited. This has NOT come up during testing at all – we found that by the time you are in a switchback that tight, testers needed to “hop” around the corner anyway, with or without the Moab.
As with most bikepacking gear, the Moab depends on its contents to define its shape and ride quality. Stuffable items (clothing, sleeping gear) work best. If you place other items in the main bag, wrap them in soft goods to mute their edges and make them more packable. Pack tightly and don't be afraid to use the compression straps - they are there to be cinched down!
For installation instructions (very important!), watch the video above.
Step-by-step instructions: There are three pieces to the Moab system - the harness, the main bag, and the pocket.
1) Install the harness by holding the large alloy buckles in your hands and letting the rest dangle below. One side of the harness has the webbing straps sewn in an "X"; one side is textured with no webbing. Place the textured side flat against your head tube, alloy buckles up, then pass each strap behind and over top your handlebar. Fasten the straps to the handlebar on either side of the stem using the velcro threaded through the two small plastic buckles. If you have done this properly, the harness will be sitting just under your stem, with one strap fastened to the bar on either side of the stem, the textured face against your frame, and the two bartacked loops in the ends of the webbing hanging near the tire.
2) Load the Moab's main bag - stuffable items work best. Roll down tightly and clip each end's buckles into the corresponding surface-mount buckles.
3) Push all cables/hoses EXCEPT the front brake hose up to the bottom of the handlebar. Place the loaded Moab main bag under the cables and handlebar, sandwiching the harness between the main bag and your frame, and strap the ends into place using the velcro loops on top of the bag (you can change the position of these loops as needed). Then pass the large alloy buckles over the front of the bag, pull the bartacked loops on the other end of the harness up, pass the buckles through the loops, and cinch tight. The front brake hose will run over the front of the bag. (Your cables/hoses may need to be routed differently, but this is the method we've found works best.) Make sure the Moab is centered on your head tube, that the ends of the bag are strapped firmly to the handlebar, and that the harness straps are cinched tightly. You can ride the Moab just like this for a sleeker, more minimalist setup; but if you want to use the pocket,
4) Place the pocket over the front brake hose and slip the small alloy hooks into the matching daisy chains on the front lower portion of the main bag. You can adjust this position as desired, but the lowest slot is the ideal placement. Clip the pocket's upper buckles into the corresponding surface-mount buckles on the main bag, and tighten.
5) Go ride!
Custom Colors: Beyond our stock color options, we offer several custom colors to reflect our Custom Frame Bag options - see swatches in the product photos. This option costs $40 more and takes 2-4 weeks longer. If you choose the Custom Color option, email us after placing your order with your color choice from the swatch list.
