Would you drill holes in your bike frame

[number3]

Hi all,
I want to fit my pump to my frame but the bracket is awkward and to fit it comfortably I would need to drill a couple of holes in the bikes frame and thus spoiling it's looks. Is this the done thing or should I try and look for a better bracket?

 

[eck]

A better bracket? Or zip tie it to the frame?
What is the bracket you're having problems with?

 

[number3]

The bracket makes the pump stick out of the side of the frame. Ideally I would like the pump to be more central inline with my bottle cage. I have two spare holes where I've removed one bottle cage but the pump bracket makes the pump stick out so that I catch it with my leg when riding

 

[HovR]

It sounds like you have a type of mount designed to be used on the same mounting point as a bottle cage. It is offset slightly so the two don't interfere with each other. You could try mounting it at the other set of bottle bosses on your bike and see if it still catches your leg there.

You can see what I mean in the picture below.

 

[number3]

Ok I'll give that a try thanks

 

[number3]

Nice quote by Hemingway by the way

 

[samsbike]

You can also get some Velcro loops that are used to fit long pumps. But personally I would not drill holes in my bike.

 

[mattobrien]

Smaller pump in saddle bag / CO2 inflator are possible options.

 

[Davidc]

Beware drilling aluminium frames, you may create start points for cracks. You'd be more likely to get away with it in steel but still not something I'd do. Don't know about carbon or Ti.

 

[ufkacbln]

It can be addictive

A bad case of Drillium on a Catrike recumbent trike - one way to lighten the frame and parts:

 

[eck]

Not a great pic, but the Topeak bracket fits square on to the bottle cage bosses, not to one side, Or you can zip-tie it to your frame.

 

[number3]

Thanks for the replies people. I'm leaning toward the topeak bracket. That looks exactly what I'm after.

 

[uphillstruggler]

Halford have the elite bottle cage clips for £3 per set at the moment. bought 3 sets and got the third free today as i have two bikes that need them

edit: http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_163286_langId_-1_categoryId_273927

 

[green1]

Beware drilling aluminium frames, you may create start points for cracks. You'd be more likely to get away with it in steel but still not something I'd do. Don't know about carbon or Ti.

Very unlikely to start a crack that way. A very common way to stop cracks growing is to drill a hole at either end of it.

 

[Shut Up Legs]

Here's how I mounted a Lezyne mini-pump on my latest pride & joy, the Specialized Roubaix Expert SL4 road bike I bought in November

It's the same mounting style as HovR mentioned above, and this picture I think shows how little space the pump occupies. The mount came with the pump, and is simply a clip-in, with a velcro strap for extra security (probably redundant, though, because the clip-in mount is quite secure).