DIY Fork Bike Light Mount

Editor's note: This article was originally published in September 2014 and has been updated in August 2022 for accuracy and comprehensiveness. 

I've been diving deeper into adventure travel by bike lately—whether it's an all-day ride, a casual tour, an S24O, or even a full-on bikepacking adventure. If I'm hitting the road, I've realized that adding lights to my bikes is a must. Not only does it ensure my safety, but it’s also the law where I live.

In Virginia, state law requires cyclists to have a white front light and a rear blinking red light if riding on public roads between sunset and sunrise where the speed limit is 35 mph or higher. For more details, you can go here for more bike laws in Virginia. With the increasing traffic and distracted drivers, it’s just common sense to ride with lights anytime you're on the road, regardless of the time of day.

When I ride, I prefer to keep my hands free to move around the handlebars. A cluttered setup just doesn’t work for me. Plus, I want a light mount that integrates seamlessly with the bike, so it looks like part of the system rather than something I threw together.

After spending more time browsing the internet than I’d care to admit, I came across all sorts of setups, but none of them really clicked with me—until I stumbled upon the Problem Solvers website.

Their blog section was a goldmine, offering practical solutions for a variety of bike-related issues.

For this project, I had a few options to choose from. One route could’ve been using the Gino Light Mount by Paul Components. But Problem Solvers offered two solid alternatives: the Brake Stud Light Mounts and Quick-Release Nut Light Mounts.

Since I ride different bikes, I needed a way to easily move my light between them. The Gino Mount would’ve worked on my MB-1, but not on my Waltworks CX bike. I wasn’t sure if the Brake Stud Mount would fit with my Paul Neo-Retro brakes, and I was hesitant about using a Quick-Release Nut Mount as part of my QR setup.

Instead, I found two DIY hacks on the Problem Solver Blog that caught my interest. The first was a fork crown light mount, and the second was a fork light mount—both utilizing the QR Nut Light Mount. I liked both options because they met my criteria of blending seamlessly with the light system.

Now, I needed to figure out how to mount lights on two bikes. The crown mount hack would only work on my Bridgestone, but both the Bridgestone and the Waltworks could use the fork mount setup. Since both bikes could use the same system, I only needed to make one mount that I could swap between bikes. So, my two main requirements were: the mount should look integrated with the light system, and it should be easily transferable between bikes. The fork mount hack fulfilled both.

If you decide to make this same mount, there are two things I’d like to point out. First, the cost—this project totaled $36 to complete.

Here’s the supply list:

• Cateye FlexTight Bracket #533-8827N
• Problem Solver QR Light Mount
• M5 bolt
• M5 nut
• M5 tap

Below is a photo of the final setup.

Side view of the DIY fork mount.

Rearview of the DIY fork mount.

Close-up view of the QR light mount.

Front view of the QR light mount.

I used a light I had on hand to give you an idea of what the final setup will look like, but I’m planning to use a Princeton Tec PUSH on this mount for the actual build. I’ll also test how well a GoPro fits on the mount, just to see if it can handle that as well.

Overall, I’m really happy with how this project turned out. If you're looking for a bike mount solution, just make sure it fits your needs and that you have the right skills and tools to do the job properly.

Now, it's your turn—

Drop a comment below and share how you’ve mounted lights in different places on your bike. Have you done any DIY hacks yourself? I’d love to hear about them! Navigate over to our related post at:

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