Mounting light on handlebar with bag installed

Question

On my bike I have installed an handlebar bag (the Ortlieb Ultimate 5).
Since I am also considering installing lights on the handlebar, I am afraid they will be simply shielded by the bag.

The clerk of the bike shop where I asked for information assured me the handlebar bags are designed to ensure handlebar lights can be used, but I am not sure and I don't want to try it by buying an expensive light that I cannot then use.

In the picture you can see the bag holder as installed on the handlebar. The bag will exceed its level of few centimeters.

RoboKaren · Accepted Answer

As Chris H notes, the clerk was wrong. And he suggests a good suggestion to raise the light above the bag. However, you can also mount the light below the bag as well. Operating on the same principle as fog lights on cars, low mounted lights can do a better job of showing some road hazards. They are also much less likely to blind drivers and pedestrians (StVZO-compliant handlebar lights are still sadly rare).

There are lights that will mount on the crown of the front wheel fork (where the bolt for caliper brakes and mudguards attaches), but those might still hit the bottom of the bag -- although the Ortlieb bag shown in Christian Lundvig's photo is quite small and thus compatible with fork crown mount lights.

Here's a google image search for "bicycle lights fork mount". In addition to the fork crown lights, there are also front fork adapters that let you mount handlebar lights on one of the legs of the front fork.

Here's a blown up image of the top left two -- a fork-mount adapter and a light mounted on said adapter. Note that this placement is just about where ye' olde friction dynamo lights used to be mounted.

Another option is of course a helmet light:

Chris H · Answer

The clerk was wrong, in the sense that modern lights sit very close to the bar, as do bags. Very wide bars might give you an option but your picture suggests you don't have very wide bars.

I saw a product the other day (while in the bike shop buying grips) designed to sort this out by lifting the lights over the top of the bars. A search for "handlebar light extender" turned up a few including this one from Topeak. There are also lots designed for mounting lower, for example built in to a front mudguard or mounted on a front rack (if you have either of these accessories).

Most bike shops should be able to try things together if you take the bike in with the bag fitted.

Christian Lindig · Answer

Ortlieb is selling an adapter for this problem: Ortlieb Aufsatz für Ultimate6 Montageset -- this is in German, the link to the English language page was broken. The second image is a view from the front and how the adapter fits into the bag-mounting fixture. The price is below 20 Euro.

William · Answer

Since your bicycle frame is made of tubes and most lights approximate tubes, our problem is basically "attach tube to other tube" and is a pretty straightforward piece of design work in any CAD software.

If you know somebody with a 3D printer, you can sketch up a mount pretty easily and have them run one off for you regardless of what Ortlieb makes. If you don't, you can try 3DHubs, Shapeways, and other sites in that vein. If you have access to a wood or machine shop, you could make something appropriate out of almost any stock. with just a few operations.

Frank · Answer

I have an MTB w/60cm flat bars, Ortlieb handlebar bag, and a mudguard that clips to the bottom of suspension fork’s the steerer tube. I kept unsuccessfully trying to mount the headlight high or low along the centerline of the bike, but finally figured out that if I used multiple shims between the light clamp and narrow outboard part of the handlebar, I could mount it on the outer part of the bar - inboard of the grips/bar-ins/brake lever, but outboard of the bar bag.

Mounted at angle shown above, the light throws the pattern shown below.

Mounting light on handlebar with bag installed

5 Answers

Add your own answers!

Ask a Question