Wheel-Cover materials and fixtures

Discussions Equipment
#1

Hello everyone,

I’m new to the game and love the bike building part about polo. I started playing a few month ago and already build like 3 1/2 bikes - 28“ wheel base, 27,5“ wheel base and 26“ wheel base.

Currently I am looking for a strong but flexible material that I can customize as a wheel cover.
I saw some cool designs and materials out on the court but would love to get more input 🫶

The last wheelcover I made was out of a sport floor mat, a little „heavy“ but definitely very absorbing on hits and ball contact. I might go with a thinner mat to see if there’s any difference.

When commuting to the court, I definitely get that „aero“ wheel feel… and look! :grin:

On the 28“ wheel set I used the same material in a different design. Currently the mat is „taped“ to the sporks which is fine for now but definitely needs an update soon.

Let me know what you think and hit me up with some suggestions :v:

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4 Likes
#2

I think polycarbonate is common, and coroplast signs are the lower tech version but very cheap and customizable. I like the spiral covers though.

1 Like
#3

We use choroplast (election signs are the best and cheapest or Home Depot sells 4’x8’ sheets for $20) we also use plastic garden mesh. It’s lightweight and lets airflow through so on windy days your bike doesn’t become a sail.
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#4

I wish I could show you a video of them in distraction… I mean in action 😵‍💫

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#5

I used thin HDPE from a plastic supply shop. It’s about ~140g. The material is $9 per sheet and enough to make a pair.

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#6

i use estate signs i loot in the streets and black tape to protect them from water and UV . the best part of this set up is the attachements : plastic bolts. i tried velcro straps (annoying to undo when dirty) and plastic zip ties ( fragile , break when shot at , also can be cutting edges) . the fact that plastic bolts go through both face is important and give tension to the cover , keeping your spoke tension intact longer ( thats my experience at least) , usually people use drive side covers only to save weight and just prevent scoring through wheels, it kinda create a vibration spreading device that impact all spokes each shots blocked. not to mention its still not protecting against pedal strikes trough your spokes.

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the rear ones are a very thick type and weight the same amount of a tyre for each face (300grm x2) its cut to the rim to protect nipples as well

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the front ones are thinner and cut differently to drop the weight but still fully prevent balls to get lodged and give other teams free balls ,150grm x2

tape add roughly 30g

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#7

Looks good! Does it break easily? I tried some different plasti-like materials before but they all started to break when I started to cut them.

I think something “foamy” absorbs hits and ball strikes a little better than a plastic-like material

#8

No doesn’t break. They’re very strong. Same material used for kitchen cutting boards but much thinner. But I’ve stopped using them and switched to mesh gardening fence. Doesn’t have as nice of a bounce but at 50g each they’re way lighter.

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#9

Gardening fence is such a good choice! that will be what i use when these polycarb things I currently have die.