Okay so last Tuesday I’m riding my bike to work when I start hearing this crazy rattling noise coming from behind me. Like something metallic was clanking around loose back there. Every bump, every little shake – bang, rattle, clank! Sounded like I had a bucket of bolts loose in the tailpipe. Super annoying, and honestly, kinda embarrassing pulling up at lights with that racket.
Finding the Culprit
Got home, parked it, and immediately started poking around. Grabbed the rear fender near the license plate and gave it a solid wiggle. Boom! There it was. Whole dang piece of plastic felt like it could fall off any second. Yanked harder on different spots, and sure enough, the noise was spot on. Figured it had to be the mounting points.
Got my toolbox out – just a basic socket set and some wrenches. Flipped up the seat to get better access to where the fender bolts to the frame underneath. Found the main bolts first. Gave one a try with the 10mm socket. Spun it without hardly any effort! Tightened that guy down snug. Moved to the next bolt, same thing. Finger-loose practically. Tightened that one too. Happy dance started in my head – easy fix!
But wait. Still felt some wiggle lower down near the tail light area. Traced my fingers along the edge and found two more smaller bolts kinda hidden behind the light assembly. Found the right socket (an 8mm this time), went to tighten… stopped dead. Felt crunchy, like something wasn’t right. Backed the bolt out completely.
Missing Washer Surprise
Here’s the kicker: one of the bolts was missing its damn washer entirely. Seriously? And the rubber washer that should have been on the other bolt? Cracked and crumbling. Zero cushion left. That was the noise culprit right there – metal bolt head rattling directly against the plastic fender and the metal frame bracket underneath, with nothing to quiet it down.
- Problem: Missing washer on one bolt + crumbled rubber washer on the other
- Issue: Metal-on-plastic/metal direct contact = LOUD RATTLE
Now it was like 8pm. No hardware store trip happening tonight. Time to improvise.
Get Creative in the Garage
Rummaged through my random nuts and bolts drawer. Found a spare metal washer – a little smaller than the original, but it would do for the bolt missing one.
For the bolt with the dead rubber washer? Improv mode: All I could find rubber-like was… an old ballpoint pen. Yeah, you read that right. Chopped a small section of the plastic tube from the pen barrel – like maybe half an inch long. Jammed it onto the bolt shank behind the metal washer. Not perfect, but it was slightly softer plastic than the bolt. Figured it might absorb some vibration if it touched the bracket inside.
Tightened both bolts back down good and tight, making sure the metal washers were sitting flat.
Did It Actually Work?
Nervous time. Hopped on the bike the next morning for the commute. First bump… silence. Hit a bigger pothole I usually avoid – braced for the rattle… nothing! Just the normal suspension sounds. Seriously, that pure quiet felt amazing. Rode all week since, over all my usual bumps and crappy roads. Rattle is 100% gone.
So yeah, sometimes it’s stupid simple – just bolts loosening off. Other times, you gotta get crafty with your junk drawer until you can hit the store properly. That little pen tube spacer actually held up! Coffee tastes better without that dang noise following you everywhere.
