Does Charlie look stupid like this?

[Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!]

The new Varia 820 is heavy. The mount I had on my Bananasax was too flimsy and I worried that expensive cycling gem would fly off and break into a million pieces.

The only other feasible placement is on the seat post. But that means no bag on the saddle loops - it must live on the bars instead. 

I will do the pics in the next post because Gmail lets me embed them…

[Leah Peterson]

Here is Charlie in his original state. Isn’t he luscious? Just how I liked him. Everything I needed, but not an ounce of fat.

Well, now he has a new Varia. And this is the mount. It straps to the seat post.

I need to carry a small bag of essentials (dynaplug, a tiny electronic air pump, etc), and now the only place for it is on the bars. The olive camouflages a bit, but I don’t love it.

Does he look muzzled? 

And it covers his gorgeous head badge. This is my favorite head badge ever.

We rode 26 mi with the girls on the club ride this morning and he was flawless. The bag wasn’t noticeable to me on the ride or anything…I’m just stuck on the aesthetics. 

Anyone have any mount suggestions?

Leah

On May 15, 2026, at 9:00 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! <jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:

The new Varia 820 is heavy. The mount I had on my Bananasax was too flimsy and I worried that expensive cycling gem would fly off and break into a million pieces.

The only other feasible placement is on the seat post. But that means no bag on the saddle loops - it must live on the bars instead. 

I will do the pics in the next post because Gmail lets me embed them…

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[Jason Fuller]

That handlebar bag doesn't seem to be much larger than the stem / feed / bartender bag, what about adding a second one of those instead? You'll get symmetry points while not covering the head tube. If that's not quite enough room, which I suspect might be the case, you can also add a second bottle cage on the seat tube and get one of the Randi Jo's MUTs that are designed to fit in a bottle cage 

[Valerie Yates]

It doesn’t look stupid but it doesn’t look like your usual glam package. 

I love handlebar bags. This looks like a seat bag attached to your handlebar. The proportions don’t look right to me. Might want to look into other shapes that won’t hide your headbadge. I use Randi Jo’s hip pack as a handlebar bag.

This is exactly why I don’t have a varia. I love a small saddlebag for spare tubes and tools.  It is so perfectly out of the way. Maybe add a lightweight rack so you can use that same mount you have on your other bike?

Val in Boulder CO

[Mike Rossi]

Would a seat stay mount be an option?

Mike

On May 15, 2026, at 11:47 PM, Valerie Yates <vya...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Leah Peterson]

Yes, this is right. This gives words to how I feel when I see that bag on the bars. I have another idea for a bag - I’m going to look now!

On May 15, 2026, at 11:47 PM, Valerie Yates <vya...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Leah Peterson]

 I may have to do this for my purple Platy. I have the Pletscher rack and I love it and no mount will work on it for my Varia. Where did you see this? 

On May 16, 2026, at 5:59 AM, Mike Rossi <mwill...@gmail.com> wrote:

Would a seat stay mount be an option?

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[Leah Peterson]

Well, the Northern Lights Swift bag is on sale…what do you guys think?

On May 16, 2026, at 7:39 AM, Leah Peterson <jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:



[Johnny Alien]

I don't think it looks stupid but I do think a singular bag looks best on the saddle and handlebar bags look best in a dual bag situation. But I stress this doesn't look stupid. If it were me and it was mainly used for club rides I would lose the triangle and see if a roll of some kind might clear the light. The bag you linked above is glorious no matter where it goes. Thats a killer color and style. Buy it even if its not used on Charlie

[Ron Mc]

Charlie is a handsome bike.  

I can always come up with a secure way to mount my favorite Cygo tail-lamp to a bag or rack.  

 

 

Here's my favorite, on Ostrich S-2 bag.  I took apart the Cygo seatpost mount, and attached the lamp clip-on frame directly to the bag loops.  

Opened the M4 pilot hole to M5, and made an M5 stack that tightens against a sleeve I made by drilling out brake-cable ferrules.  

It's secure, and pivots freely to get into the bag loops.  

 

[R Olson]

Lots of great ideas and I think Charlie looks great either way, but here are my thoughts if you want to keep the saddlebag:

1) Move the Varia down to the seat post? Above the top tube and below the seat lug.  Looks like it might fit.  The top tube will keep it from sliding down and you have fenders, so it won't get mucked up. 

2) Apart from that, can you put it in you saddlbag?  Isn't it just a reciever?  I don't know much about these devices, but if so, I would think it should work if inside the saddlebag.  You could put it in  an interior pocket or another bag to protect it.  Also, makes it easier if you want to move it from one bike to another.

Just some thoughts.  You bike looks great.

Ryan

[Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!]

VERY creative. Extra points to you for using oil slick bolts!

[Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!]

Thank you, Ryan. I tried #1 at your suggestion, but alas, the frame interferes with the view of the radar. #2 I am pretty sure the radar can’t be in a bag and has to be mounted with unobstructed view. Plus you want the light it emits. It does clever things like change pattern to signal to the rider behind you that you are slowing, or flashes excitedly if a car is rushing up on you. 

Johnny - I can’t fit my stuff in the saddle rails, but good thought. I might just get that Swift bag and be done. 

[Valerie Yates]

I like the proposed colorful bag, the splashes of color will look great in Charlie and the size and shape are cute. It reminds me of the colorful bags made in CO by Oveja Negra. They are sold out on their website but I see they are in stock at Campfire Cycling. 

Looking for the seat stay mount pictured above, I came across a KOM saddlebag mount at Competitive Cyclist. Have you tried this one?

When I attempted this a year or so ago, I could not figure how to secure ir other than the seatpost, which was not an option for me. Ron's handiwork shows me that I was not thinking creatively enough. 

[Ron Mc]

Actually, I'm a titanium junkie, and most always have a small order in transit from Wanyifa.  

Unlike stainless, titanium is gall-proof, 40% lighter, and 2-1/2-times the yield strength.  

Also available in cool anodize.  

[Ron Mc]

ps - here's the rest of Rowena at the greenway summit overlook Thurs morning.  

Noteworthy ride on my 3x1.  Over the greenway summit, down to the pond and back.  

385' elevation.  

Ate my orange at the pond turnaround, and the deer came up looking for handouts.  

On Saturday, May 16, 2026 at 10:19:41 AM UTC-5 Ron Mc wrote:

Actually, I'm a titanium junkie, and most always have a small order in transit from Wanyifa.  

Unlike stainless, titanium is gall-proof, 40% lighter, and 2-1/2-times the yield strength.  

Also available in cool anodize.  

On Saturday, May 16, 2026 at 10:07:36 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:

VERY creative. Extra points to you for using oil slick bolts!

On Saturday, May 16, 2026 at 10:23:13 AM UTC-4 Ron Mc wrote:

Charlie is a handsome bike.  

I can always come up with a secure way to mount my favorite Cygo tail-lamp to a bag or rack.  

 

 

Here's my favorite, on Ostrich S-2 bag.  I took apart the Cygo seatpost mount, and attached the lamp clip-on frame directly to the bag loops.  

Opened the M4 pilot hole to M5, and made an M5 stack that tightens against a sleeve I made by drilling out brake-cable ferrules.  

It's secure, and pivots freely to get into the bag loops.  

 
ae400-6e68-49d3-a58d-e68fb22a7a6en%40googlegroups.com.

[Ryan Fleming]

That looks like it could work given Charlie's aesthetic...agree with Valerie, the banana bag belongs on the back

[Will Boericke]

If it were me, I'd think about using that chunk of real estate between your fender and the seattube.  Get a nice custom bag made in a matching or contrasting color.  Here's Esker's long chainstay Hayduke for an idea.

[Leah Peterson]

Valerie - I did look at that mount. I think Garmin isn’t making it now, and there’s an off brand version on Amazon. But several reviews say the Varia flew off when using this clip. I chickened out.

On May 16, 2026, at 11:16 AM, Valerie Yates <vya...@gmail.com> wrote:

I like the proposed colorful bag, the splashes of color will look great in Charlie and the size and shape are cute. It reminds me of the colorful bags made in CO by Oveja Negra. They are sold out on their website but I see they are in stock at Campfire Cycling. 

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/0a1c1fd1-ae24-495c-aed0-43787beb71c3n%40googlegroups.com.

[Valerie Yates]

Ahh! Yeah, that's concerning for sure. 

[Mike Rossi]

The seat stay mount I saw was on Etsy. It’s 3D printed and sold from a female cyclist (by the looks of her profile photo)and has good reviews. One guy did say that he uses handlebar tape between the mount and his stay so it will hold better on rough trails that he gets on.

Mike

On May 16, 2026, at 2:43 PM, Valerie Yates <vya...@gmail.com> wrote:

Ahh! Yeah, that's concerning for sure. 

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[Chris Halasz]

I recently bought one of these Rhinowalk handlebar bags, similar to the Swift Burrito, and at $37 is about a third the price, and, for me, some additional if not better features. 

It fit fine on my Brooks B68: 

Has an internal pocket, straps that are like voiles on steroids, and with my pump attached underneath and out of sight at the bottom cinch straps, with some handy loops that I don't yet use at the back, but that may work for the radar gizmo. 

Logo is not too obnoxious, zipper is YKK. 

Might not come in a color combination suited to your CHG, but I'm very pleased with its looks and functionality. 

- Chris 

[Mike Rossi]

Mike

[Leah Peterson]

Mike!!! Thank you!!!

Sent from my iPhone

On May 16, 2026, at 5:32 PM, Mike Rossi <mwill...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Johnny Alien]

I want to stress that even if you figure out a different mounting solution you should still get that swift bag. :)

[Leah Peterson]

Lol, Johnny. I did get the bag. It was on sale!

On May 16, 2026, at 7:48 PM, Johnny Alien <johnny....@gmail.com> wrote:

I want to stress that even if you figure out a different mounting solution you should still get that swift bag. :)

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[Menos Joven]

One consideration with seat stay mounting that I discovered is that the light disappears from view on curved roads. I returned my Varia 820 so don’t know if there would be issues with radar.

Leslie “who joined this group 3 years ago and patiently waiting for Riv to offer Platys in Ana Purple again”

[Ted Durant]

On Friday, May 15, 2026 at 8:00:35 PM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:

The new Varia 820 is heavy. The mount I had on my Bananasax was too flimsy and I worried that expensive cycling gem would fly off and break into a million pieces.

The only other feasible placement is on the seat post. But that means no bag on the saddle loops - it must live on the bars instead. 

I feel your pain here. I'm a dedicated handlebar bag guy for most of my bikes, so mount the radar on the seat post, but not always, and it's nice to have the option to use a saddlebag.

Here's how I mount my Varia 515 to the mini saddle bag on my Riv Road. It's the wrist mount that came with my first Garmin computer, held to the rear loop on the bag by a velcro strap. I'm confident it could carry the weight of the 820, which is only an ounce more than the 515. Should work fine on the leather strap on the BananaSack. May hang in a way that's not perpendicular to the road surface, but my guess is you have a fair amount of leeway there for it to still work properly. The bigger problem might be if it is too loose, it will swing around and maybe throw off the radar math. Hasn't seemed to be a problem with this setup.

Ted Durant

Milwaukee, WI USA 

[Leah Peterson]

Ted, that looks really good. Is that a mount they still sell? Where did you get the Velcro strap? 

Someone said the problem here is that I’m melding two cycling worlds - the Varia is A Roadie Thing but I’m bringing it to bagged Rivs. And that is true - I do road rides with the club and then I do lots of other riding on my own but I still want my radar for a lot of it. Once you have one, you really depend on it. This, from me, who famously said bike computers and the like were unnecessary. 🙄

There is currently NO MOUNTING OPTION for my purple Platy. I’ll show you that conundrum tomorrow. And it has to have it; if it doesn’t I don’t like riding that Platy out on the roads around here, and some other bike gets chosen. The 55s got dialed; I’ll show you them tomorrow, too. Maybe we need a whole new thread about mounting Varias…

Sent from my iPhone

On May 16, 2026, at 9:18 PM, Ted Durant <tedd...@gmail.com> wrote:

<IMG_3671.jpeg>

Ted Durant

Milwaukee, WI USA 

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<IMG_3671.jpeg>

[Ron Mc]

Cygo tail-lamp on my daughter's '86 Team Fuji - no mount needed, clips right to the strap on the mini-bag.  

 

[Steven Seelig]

Echoing the seat stay mount option for the Vario as perhaps sub-optimal.  I went through this whole thing for my road and gravel bikes and discovered there were no options other than to mount it on a rear bag or on the seat post under a small rear bag.  I assumed Garmin would have made a different mount if they thought is actually worked other than as high up on the bike as possible with the radar element, and I ascribe a lot more knowhow to them than me.  So yes, I appreciate the Etsy person being so creative as to want to scratch my itch, On winding roads I just think having the radar lower and even to the left side will block the radar signal, which I would want to avoid for something that is protecting my life.

I have no actual knowledge about how the radar signals work, so if there are any physicists (or anyone) who want to call me uninformed, go at it.

[Valerie Yates]

The BUPlabs website has seat rail mounts that look like they could extend over and out past the saddlebag and also have a tether for the camera, just in case. 

[Ted Durant]

On May 17, 2026, at 8:34 AM, Valerie Yates <vya...@gmail.com> wrote:

The BUPlabs website has seat rail mounts that look like they could extend over and out past the saddlebag and also have a tether for the camera, just in case. 

Nice find - those look promising.

I’m afraid I found the wrist mount and velcro strap in my 50-years-worth-of-accumulated-reflectors-and-light-stuff box. I did a quick search and couldn't find it still for sale. It’s possible you could find one on eBay … or maybe somebody on this list has another one sitting in a box.

I did find this, which looks similar:

https://www.magcad-designs.com/products/magcad-garmin-watch-mount-90deg

And this, which I’d worry would flop around too much, but maybe would work the same:

https://komcycling.com/collections/garmin-bike-mounts-1/products/garmin-varia-clip-mount-for-saddle-bags

[Sean McRobert]

I use a Go Pro seat mount and extension to extend my tail light past the saddle bag.  I have to remove the light (Garmin Varia) to access the saddle bag but I keep infrequently needed items in there and use a combination of handlebar bags / basket / snack bags for the things I need more often. 

On Friday, May 15, 2026 at 9:00:35 PM UTC-4 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:

The new Varia 820 is heavy. The mount I had on my Bananasax was too flimsy and I worried that expensive cycling gem would fly off and break into a million pieces.

The only other feasible placement is on the seat post. But that means no bag on the saddle loops - it must live on the bars instead. 

I will do the pics in the next post because Gmail lets me embed them…

[Valerie Yates]

Sean, that looks perfect. Do you have a link for what you are using? Does the gopro mount fit the varia or do you use an adapter?

[Sean McRobert]

You would need a few things, something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0D2X6DWMF

https://www.amazon.com/Bicycle-Saddle-Campark-Crosstour-Action/dp/B07DMD6BG2

https://www.amazon.com/BSSOK-Interface-Adapter-Compatible-Headlight/dp/B0G1FV33H4/

[Sean McRobert]

Actually this adapter would be correct.  You would want the notches to be horizontal when mounted for this purpose rather than vertical.

https://www.amazon.com/Cestbon-Headlight-Interface-Compatible-Magicshine/dp/B0B9251DSQ/

[Valerie Yates]

Very helpful! It looks comparable to the elements of the BUPlabs kit and at a combined lower price. Thanks! 

[Andrew Letton]

I have my Varia 515 mounted to the saddle rails, but I mount it horizontally, as my bikepacking Bombadil has a dropper post, and if vertical, the Varia hits the drybag on the rear rack. The only downsides are aesthetics and that the side lights of the Varia point up and down. The radar function works perfectly. I have found nothing to indicate that the radar beam is not axisymmetric, so horizontal vs vertical make no difference. (I'm not sure whether this is true for the new Varia 820; maybe call Garmin and ask)

cheers,

Andrew in Sydney

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[Leah Peterson]

This may not work for the 820. I was programming all my preferences into it and the Garmin and the Varia would protest when I set it down in a way it didn’t like. It alerted me on the Garmin that the orientation was wrong. 🤷‍♀️

On May 17, 2026, at 9:00 PM, 'Andrew Letton' via RBW Owners Bunch <rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com> wrote:



I have my Varia 515 mounted to the saddle rails, but I mount it horizontally, as my bikepacking Bombadil has a dropper post, and if vertical, the Varia hits the drybag on the rear rack. The only downsides are aesthetics and that the side lights of the Varia point up and down. The radar function works perfectly. I have found nothing to indicate that the radar beam is not axisymmetric, so horizontal vs vertical make no difference. (I'm not sure whether this is true for the new Varia 820; maybe call Garmin and ask)

cheers,

Andrew in Sydney

<1779065885367blob.jpg>

On Monday, May 18, 2026 at 12:26:46 AM GMT+10, Sean McRobert <sean.m...@gmail.com> wrote:

I use a Go Pro seat mount and extension to extend my tail light past the saddle bag.  I have to remove the light (Garmin Varia) to access the saddle bag but I keep infrequently needed items in there and use a combination of handlebar bags / basket / snack bags for the things I need more often. 

<PXL_20260517_141449086.jpg>

<PXL_20260517_141436165.jpg>

On Friday, May 15, 2026 at 9:00:35 PM UTC-4 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:

The new Varia 820 is heavy. The mount I had on my Bananasax was too flimsy and I worried that expensive cycling gem would fly off and break into a million pieces.

The only other feasible placement is on the seat post. But that means no bag on the saddle loops - it must live on the bars instead. 

I will do the pics in the next post because Gmail lets me embed them…

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<1779065885367blob.jpg>

<PXL_20260517_141449086.jpg>

<PXL_20260517_141436165.jpg>

[Ted Durant]

On May 17, 2026, at 8:33 PM, Leah Peterson <jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:

This may not work for the 820. I was programming all my preferences into it and the Garmin and the Varia would protest when I set it down in a way it didn’t like. It alerted me on the Garmin that the orientation was wrong. 🤷‍♀️

To which I hope you responded, “But, that’s my preference!”

:-)

[Leah Peterson]

And why didn’t it work?!? 🤣

Sent from my iPhone

On May 17, 2026, at 10:02 PM, Ted Durant <tedd...@gmail.com> wrote:



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