Items you will need:
1) mesh trash can from Staples or Office Depot
2) 4 feet of 1/4" black tubing
3) safety wire/pliars or small zip ties
4) matte board from local art store or just plain cardboard
5) dremel with carbon cutoff disc or other cutting tool (hacksaw, tin snips, HD scissors, etc)


I wanted to put a screen over my Docking Engineering race radiator, but I couldn't find the right combination of lightweight metal and thin mesh. One day while walking around in my local Staples, I saw a round trash can for sale, in both silver and black. The mesh was light but strong.

First thing, you need to make a template of what you want to make. I bought several pieces of matte board from my local art store for a few dollars. You can cut it with scissors, and it makes a nice, sturdy template.

There's a limited amount of mesh on the trash can, so cutting the top and bottom off as closely as you can to the metal end caps is important. I used a dremel with a carbon cutting wheel to trim the top and bottom.

Once you have your raw mesh material, lay it out and place the template over the surface. Use a black marker (Sharpie) to trace the outline of the template onto the mesh. Remove the template and cut out the pattern. You can use numerous tools to cut and trim the mesh including the dremel or tin snips, but you can actually cut this mesh with a pair of heavy-duty scissors.

When your raw screen is cut out, test fit it to the radiator. Take your time and be patient. Nothing screws up a piece of mesh material faster than an ill-placed cut. Make small trim cuts. When done, you want an 1/8th" gap around the whole screen. This gap is for the tubing that comes next.

Time to lay the tubing around the screen. Cut the tubing to the correct lengths for each side of the mesh. Take a pair of long, sharp scissors and cut each piece of tubing open. You want one, long cut lengthwise. Begin at one end of the tubing, and begin sliding it over the mesh. This is so the sharp edges of the screen are protected from damaging your delicate radiator, and it also gives the screen a finished edge.

Cut small 2" lengths of safety wire, and "tie" the tubing to the screen. About every 2 inches is more than adequate.

Once done, lay the screen on the radiator and make sure it fits. If it doesn't, it's a snap to cut the safety wire off, and trim the screen again. Again, if you rush it, it will look like a rush job. Lay the screen down with the curve as seen in the last pic. With the edges flared up, the screen will look much nicer when fastened to the radiator.

Begin "tying" your screen to the radiator. Cut 6" lengths of safety wire, and thread them thru the screen, then the radiator core. WARNING: be careful to get the wire as close to the edge of the radiator core as possible. If you run the safety wire thru the core 4 or 5 fins out into the body of the radiator, you run the risk of ripping those core fins out as you tighten the wire.

Place wire about every 3 inches around the screen. Finish one side first, then move to the opposite side.

Spin and tighten the safety wire, trim the end, and bend flat against the radiator. When all the wire ties have been installed, check to make sure the screen is secure and nothing is loose.

Install the radiator, and enjoy your ride! :mrgreen

nice write up mang:yes

Very nice how-to bro!! :thumbup

Nicely done. :yes


Ride safe.

very sweet