BikeHacks

U-Lock Pump Bracket Repurposed

Reader Joe sent us a couple of small hacks he came up with. The main hack is securing a pump to the frame and the bonus hack involves a zip tie. Enjoy!

I bought a large seat bag recently so I could leave the water reservoir pack home on rides to shed some weight and give me some freedom. My repair kit turned out to fit well in the seat bag except my mini pump. The pump was one I found on the trail so it didn’t have a mounting bracket that comes with new ones so I made one from an unused u-lock mounting bracket.

I basically just inverted the u-lock bracket and mounted it to the seat tube and inserted the pump in the quick release opening where the u-lock bar would occupy . The pump doesn’t move around at all and doesn’t rely on the velcro set up that usually accompanies new mini-pumps.

As a bonus – a tie-wrap tightened loosely around you hubs will keep mud off (see the end of the green arrow).

Bicycle Frame for Frame: Artistic License

This news gets filed under two categories for me:

1 – Why didn’t I think of that!?

2 – Why have I never seen something like this in the many art exhibits I have seen over the decades?

Major props to Jack Wilhoit for coming up with the idea of using bicycle frames as art frames. Via Quad-Cities Online and Worldly Views Studio comes the following:

Jack Wilhoit, known as “the Door Guy” has been using bicycles to frame his bicycle photos. In the past Jack has used old doors for framing his door photos, so why not re-cycle and use bicycles for his bike photos.

The bicycles he uses are old thrown away ones he picks up at sales, junk piles or from individuals who give them to him. The bikes range from Trex, Schwinn, Raleigh, and Huffy only to name some of the manufactures. Jack uses mostly men style bikes as they are easier to work with due to the cross bar. Jack”s photos show bicycles from many different countries to include, China, Greece, France, Ireland and the USA only to mention a few.

Photo and quote credit to Quad-Cities Online

DIY Bike Trailer: Woodworker at Work

Thanks to a reader stumbling upon an old dead link, we are reposting this great Bike Hacks classic. Christopher also has a request, if you have leads feel free to leave comments.  Christopher writes:

BTW, if you know anyone in central NC (near Chapel Hill of UNC basketball fame) looking to get rid of a trike that doesn't say "little tykes" on it, I might be interested ;) gots to be super cheap or free though. I'm *really* poor, and my mobility is limited, but I can try, right?

If other readers stumble upon dead links, let us know and we will seek to resuscitate.  Enjoy!

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Reader Toby from Tennessee reached out to us and shared a great hack he came up with to haul stuff, along with a DIY repair stand to boot.  Take it away Toby!

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I made this trailer out of wood as I am a woodworker. I used metal electrical junction box covers cut in half to make my plates for the wheels. The fenders are made out of the middle of a piece of vinyl gutter that I bought at Lowe's. A 10' piece of gutter was only about $7.00 and you score it with a utility knife and then just snap it off. Flexes nice and Krylon fusion paint will stick to it well if you let it dry overnight.

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The arm for attaching it to the bike is made from a piece of electrical conduit and it attaches using a clevis. The black box that it attaches to is made from some 3/4" ply and some 1/4" luan and has a key lock to keep people out. The box is bolted to my rear rack.

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My repair stand is 2x4 feet and black pipe. The clamp is one of my wood clamps with some innertube taped over the metal parts to keep from scratching the bicycle.

DIY Bag: Recycled Tetra Pak Saddlebag

I get jealous when I see that someone has come up with a cool use for a product that I consistently find myself throwing away or recycling.  I was supremely jealous when I received an email from reader Jo, detailing how he turned a Tetra Pak drink carton into a saddle bag.  All text and pictures below are credited to Jo, and be sure to check out his blog (link below) for even more pics and details.

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Hi guys, being alot cash poor, whenever I need something for my bike I'm always looking for the cheapest (preferably free) way to get it.  I used to have a lovely leather Brooks tool bag that sat quietly under my saddle and carried a little tool kit (just in case)...but as with most things age got the better of it and after making a few repairs to the straps I've decided to retire it.

What I now have instead is this fab tetrapack saddle bag made from a recycled milk carton a couple of spokes and a whole heap of duct tape. If you'd  like to have a go a making one yourself have a look at my blog page where you'll find loads of pictures and a how to.

The Future of Bicycles: Grow Your Own?

How cool would it be to point at your bike one day and say that you grew it yourself? I think that would be one of the dopest things ever. Imaginary conversation with Matt sometime in the future . . .

Inquisitive Stranger: “Wow, that’s a cool ride you got there.”

Matt: “Yeah, I remember when my bike was just a little seedling. It really took to the soil in my backyard and went from a cute little shoot, to a strong stalk, to the frame you see today.”

Thanks to a group of students at the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), this imaginary conversation might be a reality. The Earth Institute at Columbia University has been looking into developing the bicycle as a sustainable form of transportation in Africa.

The following comes from the Bamboo Bike Project Blog:

Kisumu, they explained, is an area rich in both bamboo and imported Chinese bicycles. Not only are bikes a primary means of personal transportation for many local Kenyans, but Kisumu also lays claim to a massive boda boda taxi industry (boda bodas are essentially bicycle taxis).

Kat, Michelle, Riham, and Young are exploring the possibility of phasing out the heavy metal bikes currently used by boda boda drivers with stronger, locally made bamboo ones. “When we met with the heads of the Boda Boda Association,” Kat explained, “they indicated that bamboo bikes would sell if they were perceived as being stronger and more attractive than what is there now.”

And when local metal bikes register a weight of over 48 pounds (as Kat discovered when she weighed one by the side of the road), it’s easy to communicate the advantages of using a lightweight, well-made bamboo cargo bike. A bamboo bicycle would weigh about half as much, with a tensile strength greater than steel. “There is also great pride to be had in local construction,” Michelle continued, “especially in business ownership by ethnic Kenyans.”

I was actually in Kenya a few years ago and saw some local bike culture myself. Here’s a shot I took in a village:

Here is what I wrote on my personal blog:

I was looking at his bike and he asked me if I had ridden a bike before. I told him I did not drive but rather rode to work every day. He said, “Oh, a motor bike, correct?” I said, “No, a pedal bike.” With a look of skepticism he reached down and grabbed my left calf. He squeezed a few times, stood up and with a big smile said, “I doubted you, but now I believe it.”

In the age of steel, aluminum, carbon fiber, and titanium . . . perhaps it will be the organic bamboo tree that is the future of the bicycle frame.

DIY Bike Trailer Hitch Upgrade

Saddle up for a BikeHacks.com classic written, and performed, by Brendon. 

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I've been disenchanted with our old generic bike trailer's hitch. It's a clamp-style hitch that's a total PITA to get tight. I was ogling used Burley trailers when I started wondering whether I could hack my own Burley-style hitch onto my old generic trailer.

The way the trailer hitched onto a bike always bugged me. The clamp tends to slip if you don't really crank on it. I actually wear gloves when turning the crank handle, just to get it on there so it doesn't move. It moved once on me while I was riding and one of the clamps slid into my disc brake. The brake cut through the rubber, and into the aluminum of the clamp. Ouch. I've kinda been done with that clamp since then.

The other day I was browsing Craigslist and ogling some Burley trailers. Nice trailers. As I stared at them, I thought the trailer body tubing looked familiar. So I started digging around the web, looking for how Burley hitches work. What I learned led me to this little bike trailer hack.

Rather than spending a couple hundred bucks on another used trailer, I spent $20 on a couple of parts and hacked a new hitch for the trailer (okay, in truth I spent $60 because my bike has breezer-style dropouts and I needed some special doo-dad to accommodate 'em.

Anyway, instead of pictures, this time I made a little video that shows the hitch bits and, I think, adequately demonstrates my dorkiness. Enjoy. 

 

Olympic Bike Tribute?

While running an errand recently I stumbled upon this golden bike.

It made me wonder if this was a "golden" tribute inspired by the Olympics.  As far as hack paint jobs go, this definitely gets the Bike Hacks Gold Medal - Podium! 

Whoever painted it did not let concern for moving parts get in the way of the spray.  Funny that some care appears to have been paid to keep paint off of some areas, but the drivetrain did not garner special attention.

Bike Shop Love Fest Winners

 

Thank you to the over 100 people that submitted information on their favorite bike shop(s) as part of our Bike Shop Love Fest initiative.  It was a truly global effort as we had submissions from eleven countries. Kind of like a mini-Olympics of Bike Shop sharing =)

I am working on formatting the submissions and will find a place to post the list on the site soon for public consumption.  The form will also remain open so if people want to submit their favorite shops please do.  Now for the winners and the prizes. 

I decided to randomly choose 10 individuals from the submission list and in order they are -

1. Noah - Walt's Bike Shop

2. DanOnRans - bikes@vienna

3. Nick - Defiance Bicycles

4. Garrett - Competitive Gear Bike Shop

5. faf1967 - Birmingham Bicycle Company

6. Tyler - DG Bicycles

7. Evan - Century Cycles

8. John - Pat's Bike Shop

9. Owen - Bike Line

10. Pandoheas - To Podilato

The top four, in order, will get to choose one product provided to us by companies that have sent us stuff.  I guess I should say the top three will get a choice, and the fourth will get what's left =)

I did not put it in the original entry, but my hope is that these four recipients will do product reviews for posting on BikeHacks.com.  If you are in the top four wait for an email from us, we will walk you through the selection process. 

The rest of the six who were selected will receive a new BikeHacks.com product fresh off of the Sticker Robot presses, stickers! 

Here are the other products the top four will be choosing from.

BikeCommuters.com has supplied us with a stylish, bright green heavyweight cotton t-shirt.  The only catch is that the only size available is either a small or an XL.  BikeCommuters.com encourages people to submit their profile for posting so check them out if you have not already done so.  For an example profile, click here =)

Next up is the Cobra Tire Tool

The folks at Scicon Techincal Bags sent along the Aeronaut bike saddlebag

And we have a bottle of century riding cream from Sportique

We are already working with another company on a product giveaway and if you are a company that wants to participate in a BikeHacks.com review or giveaway feel free to contact us!

Bike Chain and Cassette Phone Dock

Patrick, who sent along the DIY Roof Suction Bike Rack, sent along another hack that repurposes some bike parts into a nice little phone dock.  Text and pictures credited to Patrick.

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Pretty easy hack, just take an old chain and cassette soak them in degreaser and rinse/ dry. Then I used a chain tool to wrap the largest and smallest cogs in the chain.

On the bottom you need to pick 4 spots to make the "feet" which is just 3 links of the chain large/small/large you attach the feet by pushing the pins down on the chain that wrapped the largest cog just make sure you don't push the two pins from the same link.

I had an extra cog from another cassette that I anchored on top using a paperclip pulled tight. The feet are optional but I put them on mine to allow me to pull and push the cable down as needed.

Bike Maintenance - madegood.org

DIY repairs can fun but scary at the same time.  Your bike is meant to be an object in motion and if a repair is not done right, there are possible negative consequences.  One way to make sure you do things correctly is to watch someone do it prior to going at it on your own.

Bike Hacks is a big fan of the BicycleTutor.com and we were recently contacted by the organizers of a similar site meant to provide riders with help in making repairs and taking care of bike maintenance.  Will from MadeGood.org contacted us as said the following:

I own a small not-for-profit organisation that provides a free educational resource for cyclists wishing to fix their bike. All our content includes video, images, and text written by a professional bicycle mechanic. We have recently finished our first installment of repair guides and you can see them on the site.

The mission page states that the site is in the beta phase right now but there is an extensive library of tutorials, a forum, a web site directory and a blog.  It is definitely worth checking out and using as a resource when you are considering some DIY repairs. Thank you to Will for contacting us.