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 Shay on March 18, 2010 at 8:41am

I don't use my bell as an "on your left" warning or anything very often...I've tried using it to warn pedestrians in the bike lane to get the hell out of my way, but they never hear it.

I mostly use my bell as a friendly greeting....especially after a few beers. The more beers I've consumed, the more I ring my bell. I once rode home from Kuma's and embarrassed the hell out of a friend I was riding with by ringing my bell all the way down California and all the way across Armitage to Central Park.

Him: Why are you ringing your bell at pedestrians on the sidewalk?

Me: Bitches best know I'm coming, yo!

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Permalink Reply by Chris B on March 18, 2010 at 10:00am

That is so awesome that I just ordered one for my S.O. who drinks tons of tea and doens't like coffee. It will go great with the old 3-speed i bought her. Sadly she won't go on any tweed rides with me, wtf is up with that?

Trachea said:

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 Eric R on March 18, 2010 at 2:41pm

Power of the Bike Bell

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Permalink Reply by Curt H Moore on March 18, 2010 at 3:23pm

bells are nice but air horn is better..curt

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Permalink Reply by John on March 19, 2010 at 5:43am

Not only are bells great, TIRE BELLS are fantastic. I don't know if they are mandatory or just very popular in Germany, but that is where they are available. They attach to your front fork and are actuated by a cable and trigger on the handlebar, which swivels the bell wheel against your tire, like a bottle dynamo (but without resistance):

At less than walking speed it sounds like a loud bike bell. At even moderate riding speed, it sounds like a bank alarm going off. They are inexpensive (about $7 plus shipping); the $/dB ratio probably second only to an air horn. Last night a "pedestrian in the roadway" (goof standing in the road not paying attention to traffic) literally leaped out of the way when I warned him of my approach. Even effective with drivers whose car windows are closed, unlike most bells.

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Permalink Reply by mike w. on March 19, 2010 at 6:08am

Where did you find it? Anyone over here carrying them?

John said:

Not only are bells great, TIRE BELLS are fantastic. I don't know if they are mandatory or just very popular in Germany, but that is where they are available. They attach to your front fork and are actuated by a cable and trigger on the handlebar, which swivels the bell wheel against your tire, like a bottle dynamo (but without resistance):

At less than walking speed it sounds like a loud bike bell. At even moderate riding speed, it sounds like a bank alarm going off. They are inexpensive (about $7 plus shipping); the $/dB ratio probably second only to an air horn. Last night a "pedestrian in the roadway" (goof standing in the road not paying attention to traffic) literally leaped out of the way when I warned him of my approach. Even effective with drivers whose car windows are closed, unlike most bells.

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Permalink Reply by Joe Studer 8.0 mi on March 19, 2010 at 7:19am

mike w. said:

Where did you find it? Anyone over here carrying them?

You can get them from Amazon.

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Permalink Reply by Moc Artsy on March 19, 2010 at 10:42am

I love my bells, but today the aging one on my road bike would issue only a dull thump and refused to ring on the LFT, where one most needs a bell. Any tips on maintenance from any long-time users? A quick assessment revealed that the dome of the bell was pushed down into the housing, and freeing it helped considerably, but the spring is also stretching and this causes the striking pad (tongue?, clapper?) to hang limply and strike poorly. I assume the spring can be replaced, but it seems a little more delicate an operation and I don't want to rush into it until I hear from someone who has done it. Thanks. It's this bell:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000UV07WU/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?p...