Kids bikes and chain guards
 

In retirement I have taken up collecting unwanted bikes and repairing them to be given away through the local Soup Kitchen or the local Boys and Girls Club. As you can guess the bikes I get are not in the best shape and are often beat up, rusted, and missing parts. Often I will take 2+ trash bikes to make 1 useable bike. Suffice it to say I put far more time and funds into these bikes than can ever be justified on a balance sheet.

I am currently working on a 16 inch pink Barbie bike - single speed, and in really good shape except it is missing the chain guard.

So, my questions are - does anyone know of a source for chain guards that would fit a small bike like this?

Or failing that how much danger will a rider of this bike be in without a chain guard. I certainly don't want to see anyone get hurt riding one of the bikes I work on.

This bike can be bought new at a big box store for under $70 so I don't want to spend a lot of time chasing this.

Thanks for your thoughts.

If you go to your LBS you can order a chain guard(s) for the bikes thou QBP , most LBS have a account with them for parts and supply . The chain guards are genic but will work with any bikes cost 7 -10 dollars a pieces . The chain guards will keep pants legs out of the chain and also a peace of mind for you .

The chain guard question is tricky. Obviously (or maybe not so obviously) there's a very real risk of removing a finger with non derailleur bikes, especially fixed gear bikes. When I teach repair I remind folks of the hazard by demonstrating with a carrot. Years ago, before derailleurs were dominant, you could often spot a bike mechanic by the missing finger tip.

OTOH, chainguards typically only cover the upper loop, so it's still the same hazard on the lower. However a kid can't get his finger caught while riding, so he hazard is limited to kids who undertake to work on bikes themselves.

If it's a concern, possibly you can improvise a chain disc attached to the chainring. Done right, this eliminates the worst of the hazard.

BTW- looking back o my childhood, chainguards were always getting caught on the crank arm and bent, eventually they were removed, and most of the heavily used kids bikes in my neighborhood were without halfway through the firs season.

+1. When I was 12 or 13 I had a J.C. Higgins (Sears' house brand, actually made by AMF) balloon tire, single speed bike. I remember the chain guard being nothing but a PITA. It never aligned properly and the first upgrade I made was to remove it and throw it away.

As a rule, kids (girls in this case) small enough to ride a 16" Barbie bike are almost certain to wear shorts while riding it so pants legs getting caught are unlikely. A chainring mounted disk is a more useful safeguard but these cranks are often riveted or one piece so mounting one is problematic at best.

Without even looking I will tell you for sure that no "generic" chain guard is going to work on all bikes.

Maybe you should look before you post , the generic chain guard I am referring to does come with hardware to work on any bike , you just need to know the size of the frame to order the right size chain guard .

New BMX bikes come with them (plastic) in the Box , but are discarded .. Check in with the LBS and you may intercept the Dust Bin.