Alt Bike Culture - Custom Fairings?

I suppose the technical crew here at ABC may know a good way to go about this.

My plan is to make a lightweight webbing that attaches either just past the diameter change by the stem of my road bars that extends outward past the brake hoods and then attach again at the very tip of the drops. I'm having a hard time drawing it, but I can visualize it.

Stretched across this webbing would be a Polyurethane Laminate or other water/wind proof material to act as a superlight fairing for the fast approaching cold wind.

I think a traditional lexan fairing would be too costly and to bulky. Any ideas for a good way or material to make this out of? It would need to withstand a 35mph wind without flexing. Metal-work is a viable option.

Maybe look into a Zipper fairing from the 80's.

Somewhere on the web is a "how to" on Poly or laxan Heat and balloon fairings.

Just thinking out loud... why not aluminum angle framework, with a corroplast skin?

Just thinking out loud... why not aluminum angle framework, with a corroplast skin?

My big goal is to keep this as lightweight as possible, My bike is 33+ pounds (when my pack is loaded) and I'm running a 42x19 single speed for 8 miles each way. I'm going to drive in tomorrow to take a rest day as today was pretty rough.

While metal is OK, the less the better. I think an angle Al framework would be a little on the heavy side, but that does give me a good idea!

I looked at the Coroplast stuff and I think my only issue may be keeping it windproof if I cut it for wind-slicing angles.

Not to belabor a point, but the aluminum angle I'm thinking of comes in .5" sizes. Weighs very little.

ask "hotbike" he's the expert on custom fairings. his even float!

I suppose the technical crew here at ABC may know a good way to go about this.

My plan is to make a lightweight webbing that attaches either just past the diameter change by the stem of my road bars that extends outward past the brake hoods and then attach again at the very tip of the drops. I'm having a hard time drawing it, but I can visualize it.

Stretched across this webbing would be a Polyurethane Laminate or other water/wind proof material to act as a superlight fairing for the fast approaching cold wind.

I think a traditional lexan fairing would be too costly and to bulky. Any ideas for a good way or material to make this out of? It would need to withstand a 35mph wind without flexing. Metal-work is a viable option.

I tackled the idea a while back in my thread Tempest--The grey bike grows up, I believe. I haven't tried to build it yet. It involves a 3/4" tube bent into a hexagon and flat extensions at each corner tied with a plate at least 1/8", and that's the front part that is going to be cut for the headlight. I've though about cutting some weather plyboard into strips to shape it and building the top as a internally hinged lid with a key and a good seal to allow storage, especially if I could get an actual Rollfast DeLuxe tank as that thing's pretty big and the battery, lighting relay system and Harley horn would possibly fit in there, leaving me room for stuff as well as my radio. I've got a stiff plastic sheet I could use as an undercoat and form over that, loading the lighting from inside and I've now got what look like Honda turn nacelles to mount on the sides ($2). I made some mockups in MS Paint if you wish to go back somewhere before page 5 and find them.

Have fun with it, whatever you do. My bike is heavy to make me stronger, my favorite exercise but I realize not everyone can do that. Don't forget the pictures at least of the finished one but show us how you accomplish this as we're all learning from each other.

Maybe look into a Zipper fairing from the 80's.

They're still around- it helps if you remember that there are two "Z"s. They also still make fairings for upright bikes:
http://www.zzipper.com/Products/prod_upright.php

I've worked with Coroplast:
http://home.comcast.net/~jeff_wills/tailbox2/index.html
http://home.comcast.net/~jeff_wills/tailbox/index.htm
and the results can be quite satisfactory, if a little industrial-looking. (Think Ford Tri-Motor (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Trimotor).)

They're still around- it helps if you remember that there are two "Z"s. They also still make fairings for upright bikes:
http://www.zzipper.com/Products/prod_upright.php

I've worked with Coroplast:
http://home.comcast.net/~jeff_wills/tailbox2/index.html
http://home.comcast.net/~jeff_wills/tailbox/index.htm
and the results can be quite satisfactory, if a little industrial-looking. (Think Ford Tri-Motor (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Trimotor).)

Either of those look useful, but I'm going to hand build something along the lines of MOTORCYCLE BIKE and I already have the motorcycle panniers on a custom-welded frame. The panniers were only about 13 lbs to start with and it worked out very nicely although a bit small. Can't afford the ones on the old Harley cop bikes I saw once OR the ones BMW uses (DROOL!)...

ask "hotbike" he's the expert on custom fairings. his even float!

"Speak of the Devil", Hotbike is here.

http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q119/hotbike/photo_0004-1.jpg

I experimented with a fairing that has a variable angle wedge. The interesting thing is that the lowest wind resistance occurred with the "wedge" at 53 degrees.

The fairing in this picture is mounted to the head-tube.

This is a new picture , which I took to show the rear panniers. The rear panniers are made of a Coroplast sign, that I scavenged the day after Election day. ( A political campaign sign).
I will try to get back to you, when I come up with an idea.

There is another brand besides Zzipper:


http://www.mueller-hp.com/


http://www.zzipper.com

Okay, I couldn't think of anything new, but I dug up some pictures that are really old.

This is a metal framework to hold a fairing on a road bike:

http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q119/hotbike/00000017-1.jpg

http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q119/hotbike/00000008-1.jpg

And this is a bike with the fairing installed.

My biggest mistake was making the fairings too narrow.

Leave enough room to flex your fingers while your hands are on the brake-hoods.

If you make something like this, but wider, it will be good/better.

I really liked the first one, hotbike and it gave me some ideas...thanks.