DIY Fork Mount for Lights

I really like the convenience of having a handlebar bag.  It is a wonderful place to keep snacks, a camera, sunglasses, maps, and anything else that I might want close at hand while riding.  But, there is a downside to this convenience--they tend to prevent the use of handlebar mounted lights.

There are ways around this problem, but they generally cost more money than I am willing to spend.  One such idea is the Paul Components "Gino" Light Mount this clever little device mounts to any M5 threaded hole e.g. the fender mounts on dropouts, or the mid-fork braze-ons for front racks, and allows you to mount your light just as you would on handlebars.

My issue with this guy is that it costs, on average, $15.00.  Since I like to use two lights that means $30.00 just to mount my lights.  Since I already spend a good bit of my money on my bike; this was unacceptable.

Enter DIY and Lowes.


Taking the "Gino" as inspiration I headed to Lowes.  After a bit of playing aound in the plumbing section I walked out (after paying) with a 1/2 inch inside diameter PVC cap and an M5-80 x 20 Socket head cap screw (see picture left).

I drilled an 11/64 inch hole through the center of the cap for the screw.  I chose this diameter hole so that it would be small enough to "screw" the screw through it.  This threads the hole and thus keeps the cap from rotating around the screw if it were to loosen up which would cause the light to move.  If you drill a larger hole you could probably just use super-glue or something similar to hold the screw in place.

Next I primed and painted the whole thing black, so it went better colorwise with my gray fork.  You could obviously paint it any color you wished, or just leave it white.

Then, with the ever-present lock-tite I screwed my new gadget into the midfork braze-ons on my fork and mounted the light wahlah--fork mounts for lights that cost a grand total of $1.15 a piece.

The Ron Fork Light Mount in Action

You could also use a 1/2 threaded PVC plug with the same result, but I think the cap looks cleaner when the light isn't mounted to it.  And, if you don't have mid-fork braze-ons you can also mount this gadget to the fender-mounts on the dropouts, but you may need to use a nylon spacer between the "Ron Fork Light Mount" and the hole due to the axle bolt or quick release.  If you don't have mid-fork or fender mounting holes then this idea won't work for you, but there is another gadget that I saw using a type of hose clamp, and another one that used what is basically a zip-tie.  Either of these just might work for you, or give inspiration for your own DIY.