Where to find spoke clamps for reflectors?
02-09-23, 10:53 AM
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Where to find spoke clamps for reflectors?
Hi, I have a few late 70s to mid 80s Raleigh and Motobecane road bikes that use pretty much the same white or black spoke clamp to hold the wheel reflectors on. Where do I find replacements?? Is anyone reproducing them? I see a pair on Ebay for $22. I think not. Just asking. Thanks
Last edited by geph0007; 02-09-23 at 11:12 AM.
02-09-23, 11:28 AM
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This may or may not help, but there are a few in my trash can every time I overhaul a bike.
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02-09-23, 12:05 PM
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I'm remembering these being a sort of a maybe D-shaped plastic nut with a groove for the spoke, easily fabricated(?).
Not going to be a lot of demand, but I myself do sometimes prefer to retain original reflectors if/when it is convenient to do so. Maybe someone would go to the trouble of 3D-printing a batch of them, however unlikely (though not hard to do).
More often, I install relatively modern, svelte wheel reflectors made of clear plastic (the very slender ones held on with a single plastic quarter-turn screw). The industry has sadly had to replace these with "winged" monstrosities (that are intended to bridge the span on low-spoke-count wheels).
Not going to be a lot of demand, but I myself do sometimes prefer to retain original reflectors if/when it is convenient to do so. Maybe someone would go to the trouble of 3D-printing a batch of them, however unlikely (though not hard to do).
More often, I install relatively modern, svelte wheel reflectors made of clear plastic (the very slender ones held on with a single plastic quarter-turn screw). The industry has sadly had to replace these with "winged" monstrosities (that are intended to bridge the span on low-spoke-count wheels).
02-09-23, 12:31 PM
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geph0007 I can't help you find the clamps for your reflectors, but I can forward this.
If the cheap plastic clamp holding your spoke mounted reflector fails during a ride and the reflector slips and rotates.
You could be looking at an accident, broken spokes, or both.
If the cheap plastic clamp holding your spoke mounted reflector fails during a ride and the reflector slips and rotates.
You could be looking at an accident, broken spokes, or both.
02-09-23, 02:33 PM
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I use velcro wheel reflectors that I bought from Rivendell.
02-09-23, 02:57 PM
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Maybe try a bike co-op type place if there is one near you. The "Recyclery" near me had zillions of old wheels and miscellaneous parts.
02-09-23, 03:17 PM
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had some lying aboot har sumwharz but the cat decided to place them in its eye...last have seen of 'em
see be yeah
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had some lying aboot har sumwharz but the cat decided to place them in its eye...last have seen of 'em
see be yeah
-----
02-09-23, 03:24 PM
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geph0007 I can't help you find the clamps for your reflectors, but I can forward this.
If the cheap plastic clamp holding your spoke mounted reflector fails during a ride and the reflector slips and rotates.
You could be looking at an accident, broken spokes, or both.
If the cheap plastic clamp holding your spoke mounted reflector fails during a ride and the reflector slips and rotates.
You could be looking at an accident, broken spokes, or both.
Thankfully, while I've had several wheel reflectors manage to "part company" while riding, they always became brittle when contact was made with the stationary fork legs, chainstays or whatever they contacted, followed by a "snap" sort of sound.
I suspect that the reflector's designer may have tested them for any ability to stop or to damage the wheel and spokes.
The worst outcome came when I literally test-rode my 45-lb, $200, 27.5"wheel, 2016ish Mongoose Hondo mid-fat sort of bike on my post-purchase ride out of the store. The tires were nearly flat, leading me to immediately downshift (toward the spokes), whereupon the rear wheel reflector (mounted to the right side of the wheel, doh!) contacted the rear derailer roughly and luckily didn't seriously bend the flimsy mechanism. Lesson learned about riding a K-Mart bike out of the store (although I did ride the three miles home on it with about eight psi in the 2.6" tires).
I later removed the reflectors, and also replaced the horrible Chinese twist shifters, all-steel crankset and brake levers, added fork boots, suspension post, beer/lock carrier rack, 10mm solid rear axle and so on until the bike was actually somewhat good for real off-road riding adventures.
EDIT: Recalling now that I replaced nearly every part of that bike, save for the fork, headset, calipers, front derailer and wheels.
Last edited by dddd; 02-10-23 at 12:08 AM.
