Hind_marauder

Hello all, i made a few visit at my parent's place and me and my sibling's old bikes were still there, they are covered and cleaned from time to time after years of not in use. They usually get used when needed to get something down the road if its nearby.

I'm just worried because the retro reflectors or safety reflectors are pretty dull or kind of worn out, i tried to clean up the outside but i cant get to reach the inside of the reflector it self, should i just put on reflective tapes at it or replace it completely.

I know we could just buy some new parts and get along, but i cant find such similar parts/reflector that looks the same, wanted to have a good nostalgic look to those bikes because we used them a lot back in the days. Also some might wanted to do the same and save up some cash while they're at it, since it really seems like a simple fix to just clean it completely.

Cheers!

jon c. 

I understand the desire for the retro look, but reflectors served their purpose back when lights were impractical. Now that we have LEDS that run on small rechargeable batteries, reflectors are archaic from a safety perspective. I'd leave the reflectors for the look and buy cheap tail lights for safety.

Milton Keynes

If I had a reflector that was dirty on the inside, I'd just toss it. I don't think, though, that would affect how it works anyway, since the light reflects from the inner surface of the plastic. If they looked like crap I'd just toss them and put on one I salvaged from an old bike, if I thought it needed one. But I think lights are far more important for safety.

FiftySix

Sometimes you can't tell if the inside of a reflector is bad until you clean the outside thoroughly first. UV damaged reflectors ought to clean up just like a car headlight. The only trouble would be the areas with any wording molded into the reflector.

Depending on the damage it could be a sand and polish job. Some videos in this link may give you ideas how you want to do it.

Here's pics of a headlight (with side reflector) on one of my "kid's" cars from about a year ago that I repaired. Pics of before and after the sand and polish work. Painted it afterwards with automotive grade clear gloss paint to reduce new UV damage.

Iride01 

Of course in some, perhaps many states and other jurisdictions, reflectors are required whether you have lights or not. Usually just the front and back, not the side reflectors that are also required to be provided by the manufacturer of a bike sold in the US.

State, Federal and even the bike lighting requirements of many countries are easy to google.

JanMM

Adding some red reflective tape could be an interim step. Can be removed later, if desired.

Milton Keynes

That's what I've done with my bikes. I got the red/white reflective tape for use on trailers and put a long length of red around each seat stay, making sure the backs & sides were covered, put a white strip around the top end of the down tube, and then a couple of strips on each side of the fork, at the top and near the ends of the fork.

Reflector Guy

If in doubt, more reflectors are always better than fewer, especially if the original ones are dirty or scratched.

VegasTriker

I bought some of the 3M reflective tape used on ambulances. It is extremely reflective, far better than you would get with a reflector and you can mount it on the frame so it can be seen in all directions at night. It is dirt cheap if you are willing to buy it from overseas sources on eBay with about a 3 week delivery time to your mailbox.

2" wide by 10 feet long in a variety of contrasting colors $1.36 including shipping https://www.ebay.com/itm/153431196607 or a single color 16 foot strip from a US seller on eBay for $5 https://www.ebay.com/itm/27450962688

FiftySix

I guess this really comes down to if the OP wants to restore his old reflectors to keep his bike(s) in vintage looking condition, or not.

Hind_marauder

Much obliged on these informative replies! I actually do have some LED lights on the bikes and just wanted to have that neat look with the clear reflectors when out and about.
Will definitely get into time in doing those, going to grab some tapes too just in case.

If ever im going to end up buying new ones, which for sure i will just for some spare, i'd love some of those reflectors to hang at the garage too.

Thanks!