Hardware or tricks to sub for front fork eyelets?

In article said:

So, I've been given the job of fitting a front fender and a set of low riders (for front panniers)
onto a road frame which has no eyelets on the front fork ends.

I could get out the torch, I suppose, and braze on at least one eyelet per side, but I hate to
wreck the paint. I'm curious if anyone's familiar with hardware that will do the job. We're talking
about carrying a pretty serious touring (camping) load a long, long distance, so it's got to be
quite strong and reliable.

Steel P-clamp is what I use in that situation. Usually there isn't that much weight in low-riders
anyway, compared to the rear. I have never broken one. You can get them at a bike shop, but good
hardware stores also often have them for a lot cheaper. Don't use the aluminum ones. They come in
sizes so have an idea of the tubing diameter before you go shopping. You might take an extra one
with you on the trip.

--Paul

Frank Krygowski <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

So, I've been given the job of fitting a front fender and a set of low riders (for front panniers)
onto a road frame which has no eyelets on the front fork ends.

I could get out the torch, I suppose, and braze on at least one eyelet per side, but I hate to
wreck the paint. I'm curious if anyone's familiar with hardware that will do the job. We're
talking about carrying a pretty serious touring (camping) load a long, long distance, so it's got
to be quite strong and reliable.

Ideas?

Idle speculation, based on nary an engineering principle:

If the dropout has enough room, could you just drill and tap an 'eyelet'? Looking at a couple forks
hanging around my room, it looks quite doable, and there is enough material that it wouldn't scare
me. Then again, i dont know what im talking about.

anthony

(if the blade got in the way of the pannier rod that attaches to the eyelet, you could use a spacer,
and bolt through the dropout-spacer-pannier, i imagine. or you could bend the pannier rod)

Paul Southworth said:

Steel P-clamp is what I use in that situation. Usually there isn't that much weight in low-riders
anyway, compared to the rear. I have never broken one. You can get them at a bike shop, but good
hardware stores also often have them for a lot cheaper. Don't use the aluminum ones.

Yep, that's what I've done on my commuting bike for the last 5000 miles or so. No problems
whatsoever. I used cheap hardware store aluminum (GASP!) P-clamps that had a rubber sleeve around
them to prevent scratching. I know I wrecked that bike at least once in an ice patch this winter. Th
fenders didn't move one iota.

"Frank Krygowski" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, I've been given the job of fitting a front fender and a set of low riders (for front panniers)
onto a road frame which has no eyelets on the front fork ends.

I could get out the torch, I suppose, and braze on at least one eyelet per side, but I hate to
wreck the paint. I'm curious if anyone's familiar with hardware that will do the job. We're
talking about carrying a pretty serious touring (camping) load a long, long distance, so it's got
to be quite strong and reliable.

Since the weight of the lowrider pretty much hangs from the eyelet bolt I would add a braze on.
Instead of a water bottle boss ( which is fine for mudguards) i would use an hourglass type boss as
used on seatstays. They fit nicely against the back of the fork blade and give plenty of surface
area for the braze.

The auto wiring-harness clips that are so often used here can fail when hanging a lowrider rack.
They move around at the very least.
--
Andrew Muzi yellowjersey.orgyellowjersey.orgOpen ↗ Open every day since 1 April 1971

Frank Krygowski <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, I've been given the job of fitting a front fender and a set of low riders (for front panniers)
onto a road frame which has no eyelets on the front fork ends.

I could get out the torch, I suppose, and braze on at least one eyelet per side, but I hate to
wreck the paint. I'm curious if anyone's familiar with hardware that will do the job. We're
talking about carrying a pretty serious touring (camping) load a long, long distance, so it's got
to be quite strong and reliable.

Ideas?

--
Frank Krygowski [email hidden]

I've used plastic coated steel P-clips with good results. If I had to do it again I would use
stainless steel screws, all the water runs down the rack and rusted up the screws. I used
flatwashers, lockwasher and Loctite and never had one come off.

PB

Not an answer to your question, but once I asked about modifying a 'cross frame to use for touring
and many advised against it. Maybe this is something you should ask about. Touring bikes are
stronger and designed with a geometry to carry loads. I bet that a road bike not fitted with fender
tabs and rack tabs is not designed for touring.

Gary Jacobson Rosendale, NY

"Frank Krygowski" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, I've been given the job of fitting a front fender and a set of low riders (for front panniers)
onto a road frame which has no eyelets on the front fork ends.

I could get out the torch, I suppose, and braze on at least one eyelet per side, but I hate to
wreck the paint. I'm curious if anyone's familiar with hardware that will do the job. We're
talking about carrying a pretty serious touring (camping) load a long, long distance, so it's got
to be quite strong and reliable.

Ideas?

--
Frank Krygowski [email hidden]

In article <[email hidden]>,

Tim Lines said:

Paul Southworth said:

Steel P-clamp is what I use in that situation. Usually there isn't that much weight in
low-riders anyway, compared to the rear. I have never broken one. You can get them at a bike
shop, but good hardware stores also often have them for a lot cheaper. Don't use the
aluminum ones.

Yep, that's what I've done on my commuting bike for the last 5000 miles or so. No problems
whatsoever. I used cheap hardware store aluminum (GASP!) P-clamps that had a rubber sleeve around
them to prevent scratching. I know I wrecked that bike at least once in an ice patch this winter.
Th fenders didn't move one iota.

...and if you're like me and have tapered, eyeless forks that resist proper clamping by a P-clamp,
dig into your collection of useless tubes or extra computer/light mounts and make up a rubber "shim"
(Thanks, Dave!).

Note: I did this for _fenders_, not panniers.

--
Ryan Cousineau, [email hidden] sfu.ca~rcousineOpen ↗ President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club

Old Man Mountain (oldmanmountain.com surprisingly enough) sells front and rear pannier racks that
can be mounted using the wheel's quick release. No need for any eyelets. All the weight is
carried at the axle; a pair of p-clips can be used up top simply to hold the rack in the correct
vertical location. They mainly pitch their racks at the MTB crowd, but they are easily adapted to
road frames.

Pat

Frank Krygowski <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

So, I've been given the job of fitting a front fender and a set of low riders (for front panniers)
onto a road frame which has no eyelets on the front fork ends.

I could get out the torch, I suppose, and braze on at least one eyelet per side, but I hate to
wreck the paint. I'm curious if anyone's familiar with hardware that will do the job. We're
talking about carrying a pretty serious touring (camping) load a long, long distance, so it's got
to be quite strong and reliable.

Ideas?

ant said:

Idle speculation, based on nary an engineering principle:

If the dropout has enough room, could you just drill and tap an 'eyelet'? Looking at a couple
forks hanging around my room, it looks quite doable, and there is enough material that it wouldn't
scare me. Then again, i dont know what im talking about.

I wouldnt fancy it myself. The fork end could be highly stressed as the bike travels over bumps. You
are putting a small (threaded?) hold in it. This could make a nasty stress raiser.

The effects if a sudden faiure of a fork end could be exciting.

--
Andy Morris

AndyAtJinkasDotFreeserve.Co.UK

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