Too many people can’t hear me bellowing “Excuse me please” and then shout abuse telling me I should get a bell. So maybe people hear a bell more easily?

So, my only “must have” requirement is a quick on / off mechanism. I guess it needs to be loud – but that is a given for a bell, right?

Spur Cycles Better Bell.

I like my Trigger bell
Very light and unobtrusive. Nice loud ring. Not quick release though.

Trigger bell looks almost unobtrusive enough to leave on all the time (I don’t have a dedicated commuter).

Spur, wowser, $50 for a bell. Who’d have thought?

Spur cycles bell = $39 cost + $20 shipping + $10 handling fee + local taxes, and it still only goes ‘ding ding’ 😆

Good way to spot a hipster though 😉

only €69 😉

If you do need a designer bell the PDW ones are pretty good
http://www.charliethebikemonger.com/pdw-king-of-ding-ii-brass-bell-1136-p.asp

You’ll like the bell(end)effect -where people tend to jump out in front of you in surprise.(as in surprised theres a bike on a bike path)

You just cant win 🙁

(Air Zound is quick release 🙂

The one that came with the bike from the shop has never failed. As long as it’s not raining.

Light, tiny, loud, nothing to rust or degrade, can’t accidentally “ding” and can fit to any shape of handlebar.

They’re also a beautiful piece of design and engineering.

Yes. I can see why the cost-conscious wouldn’t splurge on one, but the Spur-cycle ones are glorious.

🙂

bought the cheapest on on chainreaction

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/nc-17-alloy-bell/rp-prod96020

held on with an o ring. works pretty well. has been on my bike for a few years…

“Where’s you Bell?!”

yelled the grumpy sour face cow on the path the other day after I went past at about 5mph when there was a safe space

“right here on my bars, where I’ve been dinging it and saying ‘excuse me’ for the last 30 yards”

says I

vs ———————————

“ding ding”

rings I

*silence*

“ding ding”

rings I

*silence*

“excuse me, can I come past please”

says I

“harrrrumph! thats better, I was waiting for you to ask instead of ringing that silly little bell”

says the other grumpy woman

😯

Both experiences I have had, you can’t win, grumpy people will be grumpy, they’ll make up a reason if they have to.

The Spur Cycles ding is very nice though.

ok, seems like there’s plenty of love for the spur. Are they a US order only or is there anywhere in the UK to get one from?

Brick Lane Bikes are the UK distributor

you can’t win, grumpy people will be grumpy

You can’t win them all. A happy-sounding bell plus a courteous greeting gives you the moral high ground every time though.

🙂

Brick Lane Bikes in London

[too slow]

amedias – Member

“Where’s you Bell?!”

yelled the grumpy sour face cow on the path the other day after I went past at about 5mph when there was a safe space

“right here on my bars, where I’ve been dinging it and saying ‘excuse me’ for the last 30 yards”

says I

vs ———————————

“ding ding”

rings I

*silence*

“ding ding”

rings I

*silence*

“excuse me, can I come past please”

says I

“harrrrumph! thats better, I was waiting for you to ask instead of ringing that silly little bell”

says the other grumpy woman

Both experiences I have had, you can’t win, grumpy people will be grumpy, they’ll make up a reason if they have to.

You need an Airzound.

yeah, I had that — I got a Spur Cycle bell after being on a shared path with no bell.

So last month I’m out in the ‘gorms, along a path, ring my bell vigorously, no response e- “you should have rung your bell – all we heard were your tyres” WTF ??!!

You need an Airzound

While it might be amusing, I think i’ll lose the moral high ground rather quickly

While it might be amusing, I think i’ll lose the moral high ground rather quickly

That won’t matter as they’ll likely have had a heart attack!

http://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/london-life/londons-best-bike-bells-9675542.html

This looks amazing!

If you’re anywhere near Hebden Bridge, Blazing Saddles have a box of PDW bells at the moment. Two types, £12 and £15.

The other day, an old man shouted at me for not having a bell. Bike was stationary, I’d done everything I could to be considerate and alert him. Some people are just pricks, I rode away rather than try and reason with him.

+1 for PDW. Am eyeing up one of these headset spacer-mount ones to keep the bars free and do like shiny things:

I love my bear bell, just release the magnet when I get to somewhere with lots of people.

another great thing about the spur cycle bell is how long it continues to ring. I’m guessing there’s a nice Doppler effect as I leave bovine peds in my wake.

Ok can’t get links to work but wilkos do several cheap but serviceable potions from a pound. The single ting ones work for me but I’m slow and shout if the pedestrians don’t seem aware.

NC-17 one from CRC, only one I could find to fit on 31.8 handlebars

I like the Orp. Flashy light to help the blind-as-a-bat drivers on the road sections of my commute (thankfully it’s mostly off road).
I wonder if there’s a UK importer?

I don’t like bells that go DING, it’s quite aggressive and just basically not that good at the job imo since it’s over as soon as it starts. So I got a big oldschool ratchet type that goes rddidididiigniningninginng-kadingidgidingidngdiiidinggggggggg. It’s more generally useful as it goes on for ages with a single flick which makes it easier to hear and locate, but also it’s just so cheerful, and sounds like it should be on a pink tricycle, so people seem to respond to it better- I’ve literally not had a single person grumble about it in years of yse, I used to get probably one a month with the standard DING bell. Also, it has a picture of a lemon on it, I know not why. Perfect bell.

But i think it wouldn’t be popular here, because it was £2 from Halfords, and not handshaped by a tibetan monk using a hammer made of meteoric iron.

handshaped by a tibetan monk using a hammer made of meteoric iron.

Where can we get this bell NW? Does it come with a beard mount option?

nach – Member

Where can we get this bell NW? Does it come with a beard mount option?

That’s the ONLY mounting option.

If you want a ‘friendlier’ sound, the Pashley bell is great. Bloody huge though.

I have a Spurcycle one. It’s ace.

APF

It has to be a Honka Hoota. Group of us fitted them to our bikes a year or two ago for an Alps trip. The guys working the lifts found them to be very amusing when lifting the bikes on and off! Ebays your friend.

ebay

I like my Trigger bell
Very light and unobtrusive.

Not like the Stringer Bell. Much bigger and heavier, deeper tone, and excellent business acumen.

…handshaped by a tibetan monk using a hammer made of meteoric iron.

And tuned to a frequency intended to harmonise with your chakra?

On the same note (!) I more often have not fitted a bell, so call out “ding-ding”*. Followed by a confused look over their shoulder, followed by my cheesy grin and “I forgot my bell”. Followed normally by smiles, laughs or polite laughter and silent scorn/hatred, I can’t always discern which, so remain polite and cheerful! This country needs polite and cheerful.

*Is free so doesn’t cost the same as a Tibetan monk’s meteoric iron thingummy – so posssible downsides for them wot’s spendy by nature for whom I’d suggest maybe a clipped *ahem* to sharpen the ice followed by (expensive) ‘ding’ on said device 😉

+1 for Spur Cycles Better Bell.

Never thought of myself as a hipster but do like nicely designed and engineered stuff 🙂

I recently fitted a ‘normal’ bike bell (the type that comes with the bike) in my own ‘stealth’ way 😆 as I didn’t like the look so fixed it upside down where you’d find a front shifter (I run 1x).

Still find that a large number of people have headphones in though so don’t hear a bell or a polite call out!