Acid Saddle Bag Pack Pro 6

The Acid Pack Pro 6 is an impressively well-made and feature-packed saddle bag that stands up well to the elements and can pack away an impressive amount of kit without taking up a huge amount of space.

For more options, check out our guide to the best bikepacking bags.

> Buy now: Acid Pack Pro 6 for £69.95 from Cube

Although this summer has been pretty awful, it has made testing the Pack Pro 6 from Acid – German bike company Cube's accessory brand – a little more pleasant. Using it instead of my regular smaller saddle bag for almost every ride meant I could easily fit in a bunch of waterproof gear, and it could also act as a pseudo-mudguard given its size.

Away from just offering more protection from spray up my back and allowing me to chuck in a load of waterproof kit, it is a very impressive saddle bag whether it's part of a full frame setup for multi-day rides or just taking enough stuff on a long single-dayer.

As you can probably tell from the name, it officially has a capacity of 6 litres, but its roll-top construction offers plenty of flexibility in what can be fitted inside: if you've got lots in there you can get away with a single roll before using the clips to seal it up, or if you're carrying less just roll it more to reduce its size.

Helping with this is an air valve that allows air to be squeezed out of the bag to effectively shrinkwrap it around whatever is inside.

Attachment to the bike is through two straps that thread through the saddle rails and another that wraps around the seatpost. The saddle rail straps are soft, so unlikely to mark the rails, and there's a soft silicone grip pad inside the seatpost strap which prevents rubbing on the seatpost – a nice touch.

Once on the bike I had no problems at all with it getting in the way of a pedal stroke, with the traditional wedge design keeping the slimmest part of the bag nearest the seatpost and unlikely to get in the way of your legs. The strength of the attachment also meant there was hardly any sway; there might be an issue if you're packing very heavy objects, but it was fine for everything I carried in it.

As I mentioned, I had a lot of opportunity to test the weatherproofing of the bag this summer, and I am yet to see any water ingress, which, given the amount of water that's been chucked at it, is very impressive. It has an IP64 rating, the same as a typical rolltop bag from the likes of Ortlieb, and while water might get in if it was submerged, everything stayed nice and dry on all my rides.

There are some useful safety aspects included too – for instance, a thick reflective band running across the middle of the bag that a driver would struggle to not catch in their headlights in the dark, along with a light mount on the roll-top area. There are two positions to mount it, depending on how rolled the bag is – a small design element, but one that works surprisingly well.

The bag also feels like it has been designed to last, with a reinforced bottom that keeps its shape, so there's no unnecessary pressure on seams if an odd shape is inside it, and it is also protected from things being thrown up from the tyres.

Value

At £69.95 this isn't the cheapest saddle bag on the market, but for something of this size and quality it's not badly priced. It's a little more than similar to bags from Zefal – the Z Adventure R11 is a couple of quid less, and offers an additional 5L of capacity, while the 5L Z Adventure R5 is £56.99 – but neither of these has the very useful air release valve, though Matt was impressed with the R11's durability.

Topeak's Backloader 6L is the same size and a fiver less, but it's a slightly different design, with a drybag inside, and Emma found the 10L version could swing a little when riding out of the saddle or on rough terrain.

While the Lomo 13L Bikepacking Seat Pack Dry Bag is less than half the price and has more than double the official capacity, it has fewer features.

Conclusion

Overall I was really impressed with this bag – the thick material used in the most important areas means it's likely to prove very durable, it offers a good amount of storage space for a variety of rides, and has some really useful features like the air release valve and multiple light mounting points. It's very good.

> Buy now: Acid Pack Pro 6 for £69.95 from Cube

Verdict

High-quality, robust and innovatively designed saddle bag