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I decided to try a few of the parts that are available cheap from China to see what they’re like. It might take a while to get it all sorted, it’s getting cold out in my garage! I thought I’d post a few things as I go, though.
First up is a radiator grill. Looks nice enough out of the box.
Rather than bolt anywhere at the bottom, it hooks round the radiator. It might rattle a bit, but I’ll sort that if it does.
Undoing the left bolt (as I look at it) was a pain, with the rubber mounting block twisting a fair bit. It did come out, but was a pain to get back in and the rubber looks a bit odd now. Ah well, the new grill is mounted now.
The plastic outer covers for the radiator won’t quite fit now, so next job will be to trim some off. Seems a Dremel might be the tool to use.
I’ve just taken some of the plastic off the side covers with a Dremel and fitted them back on. It’s all tight enough that the radiator cover shouldn’t be able to rattle.
I’m pretty happy with the quality of this radiator cover.
Unfortunately, the seller only sent 7 screws (not bolts as you get with the proper ones) for attaching them and no screws for attaching the outer covers. I could knock up a spacer and get a bolt/screw, but the little screws seem to be a strange thread. Hole is around 5mm, but an M5 won’t go in. Maybe UNC or UNF, but hard to tell as I can’t get a thread gauge on there. Hopefully the seller will get the replacements to me pretty quickly.
The replacement parts finally arrived, so I tried to fit the engine protection to the bike yesterday with mixed results.
The picture below shows the left side fitted loosely. With the supplied spacers, it wouldn’t sit against the engine case at all, more so with the outer cover screwd on properly. I tried it as best I could and estimated it needed another 2.5mm gap, which happens to be the same as the spacers. So I now have the correct 4 spacers, then an extra one behind each. I’ll post another pic to hopefully show this clearly.
On the right side, things seem worse. The supplied spacers are uneven sizes, but I thought I’d be able to do the same trick. With the spacers in place, the protector won’t bolt to the bike. I think they’re too wide and won’t sit comfortably in place, so I might need to take some material off.
These were incredibly cheap compared to the official ones, but something seems to have gone wrong in the planning. I’ll provide feedback to the seller and hopefully they can resolve this in future. I do still think I’ll be able to have them on there as temporary protection against chips from stones.
Hopefully this shows how I’ve used the extra spacers to make this fit and also how it now sits fairly tight against the engine case. I’m not sure if there’s supposed to be a slight gap or if they tighten up against the engine, potentially scratching it if there’s any movement.
On the assumption that the right side would need the same spacers, I’ve tried again. The main bracket needed some persuasion, but with a bit of force, I was able to align the holes and fit it. The front 2 holes have different sized spacers by default, but I’ve used 2 of the standard size spares, meaning I had to remove the left side first. All seems to fit nicely.
Last thing for now is it with the outer cover. Doesn’t look too bad for now.
I’ve no skill with a lathe, so will 3D print a couple more spacers for the left side and see how they get on unless I can think of something else to use. A bunch of washers doesn’t seem right, but an M5 nut might work.
Thanks for the detailed pictures !
I got a set of these and am scratching my head about the fit until I saw this thread.
Where did you get the extra spacers from ?
After just watching the latest Bennetts bike social YouTube video about cheap crappy Chinese knockoff parts like this, and especially seeing an Evotech radiator guard clone on here, I have a newfound dislike for threads such as this, seeing how upset the guys at Evotech were. Shame on shills like the OP here. All the Evotech parts on my bikes are genuine and I’ve no qualms about supporting a homegrown UK company.
Bit harsh, no? That’s not to say you don’t have a point, I’d have to admit I was just looking to save a few quid, then let others know how it went. You mention it being a newfound dislike and that you’ve taken this stance after watching a video? Wouldn’t it be better to educate me & anyone else that might read this on the issues?
Calling me a shill suggests I benefit from this, which I certainly don’t. Surely the issues with the protectors make that clear?
For the spacers, I’d mostly used the spare ones that I’d received, so doubling up on most mounting points. I then used washers to fill in the gaps. I’ve now removed the protectors, measured the extra spacers. Mine needed roughly another 5 or 6mm at each point, but no idea if they’re all identical.
Choices are to buy something & use these or go for the genuine parts, but that requires money I don’t have right now. Either way, I don’t think I’d keep these on long term with spacers (and longer bolts). At best, they might provide a little protection from stones, but little else, I’d think.
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