CrankTank 3: It’s About Mass Placement
The CrankTank 3’s real value is low, centralized 3L water storage — with weight and frame rub tradeoffs.
Forget the Strawberry Milkshake paint job for a second, I know it's awesome. The spec that matters on the Adventure Hydration CrankTank 3 is placement: it sits above the bottom bracket and carries up to 3 liters in a rigid shell.
Mass low and centered changes handling less than bottles scattered across fork legs and seat tubes. Three liters is about 3 kilograms when full. Put that high or wide and you’ll feel it in slow-speed steering. Keep it tight to the frame’s center and the bike tracks more predictably. For a busy dad who doesn’t have time to relearn handling every summer, that matters.
Here’s the catch: 3 liters is still 3 kilos. On punchy climbs or repeated accelerations, you’re moving that weight no matter how well it’s placed. And Velcro straps are simple, but long-term frame rub is real — the brand even recommends adapters or protective tape. I haven’t ridden it, so I can’t say how noticeable the bulk feels when standing. If you ride a compact frame or have limited triangle space, this depends heavily on fit.
This isn’t about limited editions. It’s about whether you want one centralized water mass instead of five smaller ones. Less leg rub than a soft frame bag is plausible. Just know you’re trading bottle modularity for one large reservoir bolted to physics.
Adventure Hydration
