Bells are great!

They don't weigh much, are charming, less rude than "on your left" and make people smile. I think all bikes in Chicago should have one. Two of my bikes have bells (including my road bike) and I can hardly believe I used to ride in the city without them.

Who agrees with me? What's your favorite kind of bell?

Mine are the Japanese brass ones, though the ones with a built in clock and others in the shape of a tiny teapot are rad too.

Go out to your LBS and get a bell for each one of your bikes!

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Permalink Reply by Active Transportation Alliance on August 6, 2009 at 4:57am
Permalink Reply by vxla on August 6, 2009 at 5:21am
Permalink Reply by El Duke on August 6, 2009 at 5:33am
h3 said:

HELL YES!

GONNA SPREAD THE WORD!
Permalink Reply by Joe TV on August 6, 2009 at 5:49am
I'm a bell ringer! I rock the Incredibell, Kids love it!
Permalink Reply by Trachea on August 6, 2009 at 6:07am
Here's a pic of my teapot bell on my new (vintage) british bike. It was a birthday gift from a friend a couple years back. I'm glad that I now have the perfect bike for my bell!
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Permalink Reply by Tank-Ridin' Ryan on August 6, 2009 at 6:25am
I respectfully disagree with you.

I hate it when someone comes up from behind ringing his or her bell. I always say, "Doesn't tell me what side you're on." Ring your bell, then pass me on the right, and I'll be more pissed than if you said, "On your right".

Going across Iowa a couple weeks ago, many exchanges went like this:
"On your left"
"Thank you"
"You're welcome"

No one getting pissed off. Even saying "On your right"(which happened frequently with 20000 riding across IA) lets the person in front of you know that you're on his or her right, even though you shouldn't be if possible.

A major part of it is delivery though, like the way a car horn can sound friendly or like the most important person in the world is behind you.
Permalink Reply by vxla on August 6, 2009 at 6:58am
h3 said:
I think those of us advocating for bells would most like to see them used as friendly greetings rather than "outa my ways."
You're creating a false dichotomy . . .
+1. It's also a nice way to let pedestrians and motorists know "hey i'm here!".
Permalink Reply by vxla on August 6, 2009 at 7:01am
El Duke said..
Mine are the Japanese brass ones, though the ones with a built in clock and others in the shape of a tiny teapot are rad too.

By the way, do you notice your bell ringing when you hit bumps? Mine seems to like to ring quite a bit (the spring they put on those bells is pretty weak).
Permalink Reply by Tank-Ridin' Ryan on August 6, 2009 at 7:41am
Ok. I didn't get the drift of the post then. I have however been dinged at from behind which set of my "rant" about bells.

I'm all for a friendly "Hello!" ding. If someone could mount a gong on a bike, even better. Travis's cymbal is a start.

h3 said:
I think those of us advocating for bells would most like to see them used as friendly greetings rather than "outa my ways."
You're creating a false dichotomy . . .

Tank-Ridin' Ryan said:
I respectfully disagree with you.

I hate it when someone comes up from behind ringing his or her bell. I always say, "Doesn't tell me what side you're on." Ring your bell, then pass me on the right, and I'll be more pissed than if you said, "On your right".

Going across Iowa a couple weeks ago, many exchanges went like this:
"On your left"
"Thank you"
"You're welcome"

No one getting pissed off. Even saying "On your right"(which happened frequently with 20000 riding across IA) lets the person in front of you know that you're on his or her right, even though you shouldn't be if possible.

A major part of it is delivery though, like the way a car horn can sound friendly or like the most important person in the world is behind you.
Permalink Reply by Lee Roy on August 6, 2009 at 8:12am
I love the Incredibell too, but my favorite is the Ding-Dong style on my 2-Speed.
A friendly ring of the bell and a "Thank you" are what I try to pratice.
Please pass on the LHS.
Permalink Reply by El Duke on August 6, 2009 at 4:16pm
Yeah, it doesn't bother me too much though. Only the big bumps seem to make it ding. You can add washers between the spring-dinger and the bell threads to increase the space and avoid the bump-dings. You probably already knew that, though.

Doesn't the brass sound fantastic?

vxla said:
El Duke said..
Mine are the Japanese brass ones, though the ones with a built in clock and others in the shape of a tiny teapot are rad too.

By the way, do you notice your bell ringing when you hit bumps? Mine seems to like to ring quite a bit (the spring they put on those bells is pretty weak).

Really I think bells are the friendliest way to let others know you're there in the city. Though I imagine the dinging could be abused.
Permalink Reply by Tony Adams on August 6, 2009 at 4:23pm
How important is it to know which side someone is approaching on really? Someone was kind enough to let you know that they'll be overtaking you in second or two and you see fit to complain about it? Just hold your line for those two or three seconds while your getting passed and everyone will fine.

And unless you are hearing impaired can you really not tell from which side you hear a bell?

I agree though that passing on the right is extremely bad form and should be avoided whenever possible.

Tank-Ridin' Ryan said:
I respectfully disagree with you.
I hate it when someone comes up from behind ringing his or her bell. I always say, "Doesn't tell me what side you're on." Ring your bell, then pass me on the right, and I'll be more pissed than if you said, "On your right".
Going across Iowa a couple weeks ago, many exchanges went like this:
"On your left"
"Thank you"
"You're welcome"

No one getting pissed off. Even saying "On your right"(which happened frequently with 20000 riding across IA) lets the person in front of you know that you're on his or her right, even though you shouldn't be if possible.

A major part of it is delivery though, like the way a car horn can sound friendly or like the most important person in the world is behind you.

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