The most sophisticated, durable, efficient, simple, discreet, reliable, unique, soundless (not more clanking), light, eco-friendly, good looking bicycle fenders in the world. And they are free :)
Am I exaggerating?
Stay tuned for the illustrated tutorial!
Looks like this:
Recycled bike fenders
UPDATE: unfortunately after 10 or so washings the patch gave up 
. You can still try it because maybe my patch wasn’t glued or secured properly. If you have a different idea about the problem, please let me know!
Hello again!
Recently my girlfriends washing machine started leaking, and because I was really busy at the time I left it as it was until the problem got really bad. When I examined the case I noticed that the cause of the water leaking was a huge hole on the rubber door seal. I immediately thought about tube patches but the hole was on a spot very difficult for a patch to glue on. Anyway I tried my best and voila! After 10 washings I can’t see no leaking!
We ‘ve saved 25 bucks (or much more if we had called the plumber) and save a nasty rubber from being thrown somewhere. Power to the patches!
Cat eye’s plastic mirrors are ok but they almost always break. So I found a way to keep the base, purchase a new cheap chinese mirror from ebay (just type bicycle mirror and choose the cheapest one – 1.26$) and connect the two someway. Here its how I made it.
Firstly this is the part that broke. Its the plastic thing that makes the mirror movable. You tighten the plastic base with a screw and the plastic ball (which it is attached to the actual mirror) stays in place. This little plastic rod that connects the ball with the mirror will eventually brake in your mirror. So follow the steps and make a better and stronger one.
Here are the steps to make the new one! If you have any questions post them in the comments section.
Here how it looks (painted black to look even). I’ve done some big trips with it and I can say it works wonderfully (and it’s very very durable).
Turn two old backpacks into the world’s best DIY rack panniers
These rack panniers (check the pictures at the end of the article) in my opinion are just unbeatable, they are extremely cheap, extremely durable, light, reliable, compact and even completely waterproof. I’ve been using them the last months with complete success .
You ‘re only going to need these (don’t worry, it’s very easy, I will walk you through):
2 x Backpack
4 x Hoseclamp or Rubber P-clamp
1 x Bamboo stick (around 1m long and thick like a marker) or a wooden broom stick or a branch from a tree etc
1 x Plastic sheet (2x2m – it’s the one they use to cover things from the rain, you can find it in almost every hardware store)
1 x Old Belt
1 x Inner tube (if it’s from a road bike don’t fold it – you will understand when you get in that step)
4 x zip tie
2 x Bungee cord (depends – you can get them very cheap in ebay)
2 x Small steel carabiner or metal S hook
And if you really want to make it look cool:
Laminating machine (all photo copy shops can do it for you) or wrap it with transparent tape
I’ve made some drawings to help you get what I’m talking about.
Ok, here is the main idea. You only need the naylon straps that are located on the bottom part of the backpack and connect to the shoulder harnesses (If your backpacks will be used only as rack panniers you can cut off the shoulder harnesses).
Now, take the strap and make a loophole with a knot so it won’t get loose. Then take the rest of the strap length and make an other loop in the same way. If you do it right it will look like this(I). Do the same for both straps on the two backpacks.
Measure the length of the back of the backpack and add 10-20 cm (*). Cut two bamboo sticks with this length. Take the bamboo stick and make it go through the two loop holes. Do the same for the other backpack. Now take 4 pieces of inner tube (depends on the size of the loophole- but it should be around 10 cm each), fold them in half and wrap them tightly around the end of each stick. Then strap them tightly with zip ties(II) .
We are almost ready. Take the carabiner/metal s hook and hook the right backpack (from the top handle) to the left part of the rear rack. Do the same with the other backpack but make it go through the top handle of backpack you already installed(III).
With a piece of rope secure the hooks. I have permanently strapped a bigger piece of inner tube on each side of the rack (same thing you’ve done with bamboo sticks) so the metal hook won’t chip the paint of the rack or slip left and right.
Notice the bamboo sticks prevents the backpacks from intervening with the wheels. Now, depends on your liking (feet size, backpack size etc) strap the bamboo sticks with the rack using the clamps (before you do that simulate the weight of the loaded backpack by pulling it downwards and strap it there).
You can hold all your things together by bungee hook the free loophole of one backpacks with the opposite one or with the rack. The possibilities are so many. You can take anything with you this way! I recommend You to cut two pieces of belt, open holes and tuck it on the stick between the two loopholes. Do the same on the other back pack Then bungee hook them with the rack to make them more compact and more secure (IV). You can cut many pieces of belt if you want more places to hook.
You can now make a sign with reflective tape or make a logo, a flag or whatever, heat seal it with plastic and hang it with rope from the ends of the bamboo sticks. It looks so cool! (V)
You can even make a wooden shelf on the ends of the bamboo sticks (you can make them big if you want to put more stuff) and put there a sleeping bag, clothes etc.
I used these panniers for the tour around Peloponnese. They performed just perfectly.
If it rains just stack the plastic sheet around your stuff and under the bungees to cover anything, it works even in the heaviest rain!
Now if you want to take out the backpacks just open the carabiners and unscrew the hose clamps with a coin and they are free.
Ok, that “turn into world’s greatest” line maybe is too much. But it’s not. It’s absolutely true! Why? Because this stand is completely free, extremely easy to make, can work perfectly on the heaviest loaded touring bikes, can be used as a flagpole, snake catcher, something to put your light on so drivers can see you, cloth dryer and million other uses and…it is the lightest stand in the world! Guaranteed!
So how can you make this magic stand? First find a good piece of reed (not too fresh not too old) and cut it in the length of the distance between the angle that joins seatstays and vertical tube and the ground PLUS few centimeters (3-5).
Then find any branch with a crotch, like the drawing. It should be fit inside the reed cane. Now, take a knife and cut a piece of the cane exactly as the drawing depicts. Take the branch and stick it there. With the knife make also some grooves so the zip ties won’t slip up and down. Finally strap 2-3 zip ties tightly around it and you have the stand!
NOTE: The end of the reed cane should be a cm or such after a join, so the edge won’t crack.
Just stuck it inside your panniers and left the rest of the cane be used as flagpole or whatever you like!
To use it just put the branch end of the cane under the angle that joins vetical tube and seatstays and let it carry all the weight. The other end of the cane, that’s on the ground, should be half a meter away from the bike. Just play a little and you’ll find it the best position.
I’ve heard a lot about this problem with the U-locks. Their mounts are verycheap plastic and they end up useless after some rides. So I came up with this solution for my girlfriend’s bike (which has a very small triangle and the mount doesn’t fit). It works brilliantly and its very easy to mount and dismount on your bike. It’s actually just two bunjee cords holding the Lock from touching the rack and few pieces of inner tube to keep the hooks in place. You don’t have to take the cords out everytime you dismount the lock, just hook them on the rack.
Take a look at the pics bellow.
