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Attaching Wheel Arches


nelmo

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After a spirited run today, one of my front wheel arches flew off.

 

I had attached it with lots of black gunk (the stuff used to attach the panels) as well as some thin (too thin by the looks of things) wire mesh. I'm still very surprised it gave... seemed so solid.

 

I'm tempted to just try bolt it on this time and live with the visible bolt heads but it's been suggested this can create cracks in future as the wing vibrates round the bolt.

 

Another alternative is a piece of ally bent into a U shape and then more gunk but I'm wary of trusting the stuff now.

 

Any other suggestions?

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Yes, it did come away at the front first - and the rear only lasted a couple of seconds before that went as well.

 

Very possible I didn't get the gunk in the right place but it was left for several days untouched with weight on it, so the gunk must have cured.

 

I thought about different bolts but, as you say, I don't think there is space between bracket and tyre to fit one and I doubt I'll get a nut inside the tube (and anyway, I'd need at least 2 and one far inside).

 

I think I'm going to go with a large sheet of ally, bent into a '-U-' -shape with wide and long wings and lots of gunk.

 

Ironic that these wings are sold as 'sport' wings and supposedly provide some downforce - that can't be happening at all otherwise surely there should be much less (if any) upward force on the gunk to make it fail like this, no?

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I um'd and ah'd about glueing mine on and eventually just accepted the holes and bolted it. You are right though i do have little cracks around the holes but i think if i used bigger headed bolts it would help. I tapped the tubular arch bracket for 6mm bolts so there is no nut on the wheel side. The arches are sat on silicone to give it support as they don't match the shape of the bracket 100%.

 

Another thing that might work better is bolts/nuts like these https://www.screwfix.com/p/joint-connector-nuts-m6-x-17mm-50-pack/83521?tc=GT1&ds_rl=1249481&ds_rl=1245250&gclid=CjwKCAiA4vbSBRBNEiwAMorER5avzsnuQATiaGaIJgZQHa7_0cQeDtQXEkzsdqoTq9K9wHVZweDTBRoCYeYQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CM3ohqSW3NgCFYvhGwodGokAAgif you welded a threaded bar up from the arch bracket these would screw down tight to the bracket. If you were careful with the measurements these would stop the arch moving but wouldn't be tight on the grp as they would be tight against the bracket. The advantage being that you aren't stressing the grp. haven't tried it just thinking outloud.

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