Elite

I've used various Elite products for years, always happy with the purchase, though they do tend to be pricier than competitors. I bought these to pair with a speedy Italian bike that I wanted to trim with Italian bling.

Based on about 25 hours of road riding, this holds various bottles of standard diameter well and even hitting some hard bumps I'm confident I won't be losing bottles. If anything, the weight-saving design with the thin, angled arm may work too well, catching on any indented bands on some bottles.

One general concern with carbon cages over plastic or metal is the flexibility versus fragility. There's enough flex in this to accommodate slightly different sizes/styles of bottles, and other than the potential catching on indented bands, I find it is reasonably forgiving when trying to return the bottle when riding by feel, imperfectly aligned.

Have used ELITE 550cc bottles for the past 5yrs. these seemed like they would work well as bike themed decorations,bought 2black and 2yellow. I think that 550 Fly bottles are great value,they seem to hold up well even with the abuse they get from me. I ride small framed bikes and 550s fit well and are easy to get in and out of the cages whitch are ELITE Cusom Race cages and are on 4 of the 5 bikes that I ride on a regular basis. Cages also purchased from Bike Tires Direct in 2023 as part of trying to make all my bikes similar.

These bottles are fantastic! They are lightweight, for sure, the lightest I've owned. However, it is their suppleness that makes them so much better to get lots of drink in one squeeze. I can squeeze the bottle until the insides touch, squeezing out about 1/3 of the bottle at a time. These are great for consuming large gulps at a time. They do not insulate at all, however, so drink your cold drink fast. If you are a big drinker, like me, you will love these bottles. I have them in all three sizes and use them according to what type of ride I'm doing. I appreciate that they are available in my cycling club's colors--pink and blue. I have two in color and five more in clear--I like them!

Also, I like how the spout pulls off completely for thorough cleaning. Definitely a plus!

Bottle gunk is that little problem we all tend to ignore and often resolve either by adding more forever plastic to our landfills or continuing to add interesting things to our gut biomes. Disassembling bottles for a proper cleaning can be more complex than servicing a set of headset bearings. So I was intrigued by this potential solution and have tried it out several times.

Pros-very easy to use though pay careful attention to the warnings about time/temperature to avoid the obvious melting of your bottle but also the less obvious cooking/releasing of PFA's. Nothing to add--no soap, bleach, etc., just pure sterilization (theoretically) via water.

Cons-very specific shape/design for Elite bottles, might also work for a small number of other brands but most likely they'd tip over/need some type of support. I'd also point out that it's intended to sterilize, not clean, so any staining still needs soap/scrubbing.

As to whether this actually sterilizes or if it's just placebo effect, I'd love to see some basic lab testing on it to confirm, as it does almost seem too good/easy to be true.