Review FIXPLUS+ Straps
We had the opportunity to test out FixPlus+ straps during our world trip by bike. This little piece of gear can come in very handy on several occasions, but are they also easy to handle and as strong as they claim? Read all about it in our review of the FixPlus+ Straps on this blog. You can check out our verdict immediately here.
Specifications FixPlus+ Straps
The rubber FixPlus+ Straps are made of TPU material This ensures the straps being very flexible and strong at the same time. This manifests itself in the following specs:
UV resistant (although they do lose some color after heavy use)
Very lightweight
Carry strength up to 90kg
Aluminum, rust-free buckle
There is an upwards pin to attach the straps so that you do not damage your bicycle frame
FixPlus+ Straps come in different colours
FixPlus+ Straps come in different sizes: 15cm to 86cm in length // 1.25cm or 2.3cm wide
FixPlus+ Strapkeepers are not necessary, but convenient to purchase along with the straps
Frost and saltwater resistant
Applications FixPlus+ Straps
The application possibilities of these rubber straps are almost endless, mainly because they are enormously flexible and strong. We use the FixPlus+ Straps during our world bicycle trip, so mainly as a bike packing application. On their own website they indicate that you can use the straps for the following situations:
Bike Packing (we will go into this in more detail in a moment)
Sports and leisure (attaching skis together, attaching a yoga mat to your backpack, attaching a bike to bike rack, attaching extra sports equipment, etc.)
Home and garden (store garden hose neatly, store ladder, extra security ladder, etc.)
As you can see from the pictures via the links above, the straps can also be very useful at home and in your free time. For us they obviously serve a much more specific purpose, but once we return home from our world trip by bicycle we are sure we will use them for numerous other things.
Our experience with the FixPlus+ Straps
Mainly, we'll go a little deeper into why the FixPlus+ Straps can be useful for your next bike packing adventure or even a long-duration bike ride.
Ease of use and looks FixPlus+ Straps
When we first took the Straps out of the package, we were pleasantly surprised by the fun colours. We ordered straps in almost every color to get a good look at which one we would prefer. A bit of a cacophony of colours for our own bike packing setup, but we didn't mind that.
Our bikes are already quite colourful so we feel the neutrally coloured ones (gray and black) combined with an orange or black strapkeeper is the best combination for us. Should you have a neutral colour in terms of your bike, we are huge fans of the orange straps with a black strapkeeper or the gray straps with an orange strapkeeper. This is of course only a very subjective opinion and doesn't really serve a bigger goals of this review, but we thought to mention it briefly.
More important than looks of course, is the ease of use of these straps. When we wanted to use them for the first time, our brains did make a strange twist. Granted, this has much more to do with our own (lack of) qualities than the ease of use of the straps, but we still had to look up a video on how to use them properly. Once you figure out how the strapkeepers should be used and in which direction to tighten the straps, a little kid can do the trick. You can put throuw in quite some force to tighten the straps, the rubber material is plenty strong and this way you are also sure of a strong attachment.
We do want to give one tip before purchasing FixPlus+ Straps. Regardless of the length of the straps, if the object you want to attach does not have a solid volume, it is a lot harder to properly secure the straps around. For example, we wanted to attach a stuffed animal to Stefanie's bike. This worked out, but resulted in a near decapitation of our beloved friend "Dobby" (for the Harry Potter fans).
Applications FixPlus+ Straps for bike packing
During our trip around the world by bike, the straps came in very handy for subsequent uses:
Attaching fork bags to our cages
Adding an extra backpack to our rear rack (you can attach two FixPlus+ Straps together to get a longer length)
A more secure attachment for your drinking bottles (useful for off road routes)
Attach all kinds of extras to the frame or cages (inner tube, coffee cup, clothes, stuffed animals, cooking liquid, etc.)
Carrying extra food on the bike racks
These are the most obvious possibilities as to why you might want to bring FixPlus+ Straps with you on your bike trip. However, the straps can also come in handy at unexpected times. Mainly when transporting we find them immensely useful and can attach our bikes to anything with confidence.
For example, we had a few boat crossings in Scandinavia, but also during our trip to Faroe and Iceland we had a boat crossing of over 50 hours. No real help was provided to secure our bikes safely and we had to do this job ourselves. There were too many bicycles on board and not enough equipment to secure them, so that's where the strong FixPlus+ Straps came in handy. We lent some to other cyclists as well and after more than 2 days of rocking on board, our bikes were still safe and sound in exactly the same condition and place where we left them.
The straps can also come in very handy during long train rides or on a car's bike rack. Even when packing our bikes for our flight from Iceland to Vancouver, we found them a good addition to to securely attaching some equipment to our frame, this way everything stays safely stored inside the bike box.
Extra test: Stuff Mooring Line
In addition to the straps, you can purchase other items from FixPlus+ such as cargo cages, separate strapkeepers and a stuff mooring line. We also tested the stuff mooring line, although we didn't immediately find an application to attach this piece of gear to the bike.
In fact, we started with a setup that was built up more toward a standard touring setup for long distance touring. Once we headed to Iceland, and especially when we later went off-road cycling in Canada and the USA via the Great Divide, the importance of a bike packing setup began to sink in. Since then we started using this extra piece of gear on Niels' bike.
You can attach these bolts and the holder to your frame if you have enough mounts. What we like is that they are much lighter compared to a cargo cage, making them a perfect addition to a bike packing setup. They only weighs 10 grams and can carry 1.5kg each, so they are not made to carry heavy stuff. For example, we use them to carry cooking liquid on Niels' frame. They are perfect to use in combination with the FixPlus+ Straps. There is only 1 disadvantage and that is that the screws are not weatherproof, after only a few weeks they are already full of rust, so these screws will need replacement relatively soon.
Our opinion on the FixPlus+ Straps
During our trip from Belgium to Spain, we did not yet take the straps, back then we did everything with some bicycle ties and rope. This can certainly be handy when traveling, but the FixPlus+ straps are a lot more versatile and safer to use. If you attach them properly, they simply don't come loose, no bicycle tie can get caught in your chain in other words.
Overall, we can be fairly brief about our verdict. The straps are convenient to use (after a little trial and error the first few times), light and easy to carry, very strong and also look nice. The applications are enormous and on several occasions during our cycling trip we have been very glad carrying plenty with us. After 7 months, none have broken or come loose. So our final verdict is very positive and we can recommend to take these FixPlus+ Straps to every world cyclist or bike packing adventurer.
We recommend that when you have a bikepacking setup you take enough straps of at least 35cm, ideally even 46 to 66cm, these we use most often. The longest straps of 88cm can also come in handy if you want to carry an extra backpack. If you take about twenty of these straps per bike plus a few more smaller straps, you're sure to make your next cycling adventure an unforgettable experience. If you have any questions about the FixPlus+ Straps, don't hesitate to contact us. You can buy the straps here or find a dealer near you. Have fun cycling!
