Orucase Smuggler XL Handlebar Bag Review
By Danny Geary
Recently I had the opportunity to test out the new Orucase Smuggler XL Handlebar Bag. Unlike popular burrito-style or mini handlebar bags you see out on the trails and roads these days, this bag is designed with extra volume, 4.5L to be exact.
I had a 3-day, 200 mile road ride planned with three friends to ride from Santa Barbara down the coast to Newport Beach. The plan was to spend 2 nights along the way while packing as minimally as possible. What each of us carried varied, but we all kept it as simple as possible. Aside from tools and repair supplies I carried in my saddlebag, I used the Smuggler XL to pack the following essentials:
t-shirt
boardshorts
chill shorts
sandals
crushable hat
sunscreen stick
3 day’s supply of gels, hydration powder and bars
travel toothbrush & toothpaste
charging cables
glasses
Oddly, finding a bag to fit this amount of gear wasn’t easy, and the sandals proved to be the biggest challenge because of their length. I wanted to fit everything in one bar bag without it being too heavy and cumbersome. To truly test the Smuggler XL, I decided to swap handlebar bags with one of the other riders along our journey who happened to be on a smaller bike. This allowed us to gather two different perspectives on the bag and see how it fit two different bikes.
The Smuggler XL Handlebar Bag is a well-built, larger volume handlebar bag. In comparison to many of the larger bags meant for bike-packing, this bag was designed with several external accessible pockets/features. What I found currently available on the market for multi-day trips were roll-end expedition-style bags with little or no external pockets. Or I found much larger bike-packing type bags that were just generally over-built for my use case. I desired something simpler, that would work with the short stack and compact area of the drop bars on my road bike. The Smuggler XL’s size, built-out structure, and external pocket details looked like an ideal solution.
Designed in a 10” x 6” cylinder shape, the bag has a structured circumference sidewall with a cylindrical zip end lid. This made it easy to roll up my gear every morning and repack the bag. Once packed, the bag mounts easily with the two Voile straps (included). The straps cinch down nicely to feel secure, and because of the structure of the bag, there is very minimal movement when on the bike. There is an additional bungee at the bottom/backside of the bag to tether around the headtube to really hold it tight, but if clamped too much, you could possibly crimp one of your cables, so I chose to keep it loosely attached.
The exterior of the bag has two waterproof horizontal zippers, two side-end pouch pockets with bungee tethers, and a zig-zag bungee system across the front of the bag. The uppermost zip pocket is a small pocket perfectly sized to accommodate a plus-size cell phone. I found this pocket to be great while I was on the bike. The lower zip pocket offers entry into the main compartment, which I found ideal for keeping extra food and gels to access along the way. The side compartments I assumed were for the same reason, easy access for on-the-bike needs. The bungee system on the front ended up being perfect for my sandals because they were a bit too structured and large to fit inside the bag. When my friend on the smaller bike tested the bag with his sandals in the bungee location, his tire came much closer to touching the pack. For peace of mind, he opted to stuff his sandals in the bag, which were able to fit by bending them into the bottom of the bag.
The construction of the bag is quite durable and high-quality, and the structured sidewalls helped the bag keep its shape even when full. The waterproof YKK zippers have a very sturdy feel, and the waterproof aspect was certainly welcome to keep contents dry. Overall the Smuggler XL handlebar bag performed exactly how I wanted it to for my 3-day California bike tour. But I was also curious how it would perform as an everyday bar bag for gravel riding. The following week I loaded up the bag and threw it on my Open WI.DE. gravel bike to test its capabilities on the fast and bumpy terrain of Crystal Cove State Park. Needless to say, the bag fit my gravel bike even better and functioned just as well on dirt as it did on the road. If you’re searching for a medium-large handlebar bag for gravel or minimal bikepacking adventures, I definitely recommend checking out the Orucase Smuggler XL.
Check out the Smuggler XL at Orucase.com