How to stop my bell tinkling on the move

[p_pitstop]

I recently bought a smart new bell - the traditional style. It looks great but every time I go over a sharp lump/hole it gives a half hearted ring. Around town its kind of annoying but more than 10 miles will drive me mad. Any ideas how to stop it apart from getting a different one ?

[Brucey]

if you look carefully at the outside you may see where the peg or bump on the inside of the bell would be located. Make a note of this position, then remove the top of the bell. It should unscrew, or (for those with a plastic centre) just pull off. Now compare the position of the clapper with the original position of the peg or bump. If the two were coincident, then the moving parts of the clapper may well have been rattling on the peg.

You can usually remove the clapper (or the bell itself), and replace it in another orientation so that the peg and the clapper don't touch any more.

Occasionally you will encounter a badly made item where the clapper can touch the bell all the time. In these cases you can often replace the washers that sit on the clapper with slightly smaller ones that only touch the peg, not the bell.

While you are in there it isn't a bad idea to oil the gears.

hth

cheers

[Indeboat]

Take it to the loo before going for the ride.

[mrjemm]

Don't get a bell with a spring clapper, like one of the darn silly Sogreni things we got on a weekend in Copenhagen! If you do, make sure it's not flat side level or you'll go nuts. From experience (on madame's old bike). And they cost silly money.

http://sogrenibikes.com/index.php?main_ ... ducts_id=2

[Ayesha]

http://compare.ebay.co.uk/like/32084018 ... pla&crdt=0

[xpc316e]

If you remove it completely, you will never again be troubled by its unwanted tinkles. Bells have no options: I can vary between a soft 'excuse me, please', through a discreet cough, right up to a leather-lunged bellow, according to what is needed for that particular occasion. Other than weighing you down, what purpose do they perform?

[Brucey]

Don't get a bell with a spring clapper, like one of the darn silly Sogreni things we got on a weekend in Copenhagen! If you do, make sure it's not flat side level or you'll go nuts. From experience (on madame's old bike). And they cost silly money.

http://sogrenibikes.com/index.php?main_ ... ducts_id=2

that is quite a lot of money for a washer on a stick...

cheers

[mrjemm]

Don't get a bell with a spring clapper, like one of the darn silly Sogreni things we got on a weekend in Copenhagen! If you do, make sure it's not flat side level or you'll go nuts. From experience (on madame's old bike). And they cost silly money.

http://sogrenibikes.com/index.php?main_ ... ducts_id=2

that is quite a lot of money for a washer on a stick...

cheers

Yup, think we got carried away and started overlooking the Danish prices. And otherwise it's a bit of plumbing pipe bracket and galvanised spring. Mine's (copper) sat on the shed windowsill ever since. So a lot of money for an ornament! Should put it on ebay I guess.

[Mike Sales]

I can vary between a soft 'excuse me, please', through a discreet cough, right up to a leather-lunged bellow, according to what is needed for that particular occasion.

You forget the terror stricken scream. Or perhaps that is somewhere on your scale, a lesser warning device than a bellow. Myself, I put it at the extreme limit, more attention grabbing than the bellow.

[Brucey]

Yup, think we got carried away and started overlooking the Danish prices. And otherwise it's a bit of plumbing pipe bracket and galvanised spring. Mine's (copper) sat on the shed windowsill ever since. So a lot of money for an ornament! Should put it on ebay I guess.

-could've been worse; you might have sprung for an 'old shatterwallet' bicycle....

still, good luck to 'em....

cheers

[mrjemm]

I think it's the chainguard at 47E that is the crazy one-

[Mick F]

If you remove it completely, you will never again be troubled by its unwanted tinkles.

Yep.
This is the main reason I don't have a bell.

[pyruse]

Little 'pinger' bells don't make unwanted noises and are much better at alerting pedestrians than shouts.
I have one on each side of my handlebars, so I'm bound to be able to get to one of them in an emergency, and if both hands are free, I can make a pleasing two-tone 'ding,dong' sound by pinging left then right.

[Brucey]

I think it's the chainguard at 47E that is the crazy one-

surely it's a 'bargain' ? There is at least two bell's worth of 'stuff' in there....!

BTW if the Sogreni bell tinkles over bumps when set flat, is the spring rather different from other 'pinger' springs?

cheers

[mrjemm]

I couldn't tell you Brucey. It's a bit flimsy. I think a possible difference is the length- most of the flicky type bells with a normal spring (as opposed to a rotary one) have small diameter bells, maybe 1", but this is more like that in radius, so maybe just under an inch long spring.

I tried bending it back a bit near the bracket, but it made little difference. Far better now it's mounted vertically on the old MTB. Still does it, but not maddeningly.

As for the chainguard, I guess you're right, but at least I know the bell works (oh my, it works), and I have suspicions that 'guard' won't guard much of anything.