Loudest bike bell below $15CAD/$10USD
 

Looking for recommendations on bike bells below $15CAD/$10USD. I heard a spurcycle and fell in love but $50 ($80CAD)??? Really???

So now I'm just looking for any bike bells that you know of that aren't super soft for the low low price of $15CAD/$10USD

EDIT: To be clear I'm not looking for a loud bike bell and being cheap about it, I'm looking for the loudest one amongst the multitude of $10 bells.

Go with a Horn as most Bells are not loud enough as many wear ear buds that block the bell sound.

For that kind of money, just go to Canadian Tire and buy the CCM Deluxe Bell for $12 plus tax. We have seven Spur Bells in this household and yes they are expensive, sound great and take up little real estate on the bars.

Depending on your province a bell may be legally required so that may play into my next suggestion. For years I used a Fox 40 whistle that I tied to my helmet. That thing was loud and got people's attention quick where even the best bell would have been drowned out by the traffic noise.

Knockoffs of that Spurcycle are available for not much money. I'll never find out if mine is as good as the Spurcycle because there is no way I'll ever spend $80 CAD on a bike bell.
:)

Not sure how useful that would be in an emergency unless you have it in your mouth. :)

If the Spurcycle was priced reasnably, I would buy it. There's no way the cost should be more than $20 or so. It's simply an overpriced boutique item - the Gucci bag marketing model at work: charge a lot more and empty-headed, status-conscious people will want it.
And, there's nothing very unique about that design either.

Please report on how you like your Spurcycle bell and why it is worth the price.

When I commuted, it was always in my mouth on one side. I cycled in downtown Toronto, so you always had to be prepared. You would think it would be uncomfortable but I just got use to it. I used that system for at least five years. Now I don't commute by bike, so no need for the whistle.

I didn't come up with this idea on my own, I saw/heard someone else use one and thought that this was way better than using a bell.

About bell designs-
I have a no-name bell that I bought with the hybrid bike at the LBS years ago. It has a little handle I push (sideways) with my thumb, and it goes: "RRRRRRRINNNNNNNG" It's like the bells of the olden days - there's a spinning ringer inside.
I've bought-online- a couple of bells recently that I don't think will be nearly as useful, so I still haven't put them on my other (bell-less) bike.
Both of those bells are the type where you move a lever and release it and the bell goes: "DING".
One is a 'SAFER' (Made in UK) bell and the other is the Spurcycle knockoff. I wouldn't recommend either unless you enjoy flipping a lever again and again with your thumb.

Are they any good?

Got it. No whistles for me but I have shouted when in a pinch and it worked pretty well (cars obviously)

The last time I was in a local (Victoria BC) LBS, they had a few bells under $20. I agree with Blakcloud that in-person buying is better than online - a 2 second test of a bell will tell you more than a big description at a website.
It can be complicated. In BC, a bell (or sound device??) isn't required by the provincial Motor Vehicle Act, but some municipalities have bylaws requiring them.
But the cops never seem to enforce the bike laws that are part of the MotorVehicle Act (no riding on sidewalks, stop at stop signs, ride single file) so I don't think you are likely to be ticketed for not having a bell.
However, if you are involved in a collision with a pedestrian and don't have a bell, you will have a major problem. And sometimes the pedestrians without earbuds/headphones do react when I ring the bike bell, so I'm glad I have it.

Yelling. Loudly.

I use one of those too... The brand name is "Charge" and it was about $6.99 at Dick's Sporting Goods. It is really loud and the familiar sound it makes is recognized by everyone as a bike bell.

I owned a Spurcycle bell for a couple weeks and hated it, so I returned it. Not because of the price, but because I didn't like the stupid thwackDingggggggggg!! sound it made, the unnecessarily too-long sustain, the weird high pitch tone that same/many people don't recognize as coming from a bike... etc, etc. Sure, its a magnificent piece of craftsmanship made with great care in Oregon by men with beards, but when a cheap bell from a big-box store is LOUDER than the boutique bell, I have to go with the cheap bell.

My advice would be just to try the ones in the store and pick the loudest one. Any of the cheap stuff is likely to be rebranded anyway, and whatever is recommended here might not be the same bell that you buy under the same label.

I already do that, and quite effectively I might add. But it gets tiring on trails so ringing is much less energy consuming.

I would agree just that in person is very diffcult right now in TO, as most if not all bike shops are pickup only.

Most of my bells are cheap and loud, but I admit to really liking the Spurcycle sound, and will sometimes ring it just to hear it. :)

My Spurcycle bells (all 6 of them) are made in the U.S. from quality materials with more decent labor practices and has a lovely tone. Yeah it costs money but sometimes good things cost money. Yeah maybe slightly boutique but there are no logos on the bell and it is pretty small so I am not buying it to show off I am buying it because it works well and cuts through unlike other bells. I have seen and used all the other different cheap bells and they are OK but aren't exceptional loud or as well made.

I get it some South East Asian kid can be forced to make a cheaper product and some billionaire can sell it on his website for pretty cheap while the kid gets nothing and you can buy it for more than it is really worth and that is the cycle you want to perpetuate. I do like support more localized business and not have to ship as much as far and potentially support better labor conditions which isn't a bad idea.

No matter what you use, there's always going to be someone who won't notice it.

Bike bell: Once on a path through the park, I rang my bell as I was approaching a pedestrian from behind. She looked up at the sky thinking it was a bird. Many times, elderly people also can't hear it.

A few weeks ago, riding along a separated bike lane, I rang my bell at a guy who was crossing without looking. He didn't even hear the bell until all his friends yelled at him.

Air Zound: Riding along a protected bike lane, I sounded my Airzounds at a guy standing on the bike lane staring up at the building or something on the other side of the street. He just couldn't hear it until I stopped my bike right beside him and yelled "Hey!".

Loud Bike Car Horn: Just yesterday in a protected bike lane, I was almost right-hooked by a commercial van. I sounded the car-horn but I guess he was determined to race through the turn and to hell with the cyclists and pedestrians.

Sometimes I think the best thing is to keep your caliper breaks squeeky.

Veganbike:I prefer to buy from domestic companies (though not much is 'Made in Canada' any more) and support better working conditions, so I accept your arguments.
I also know that while globalization has been a disaster for Canadian manufacturing, it has raised hundreds of millions of people in Asia out of abject poverty.

If I thought the price wasn't so far out of line that I'm just being foolish to buy, I'd have 'the real thing'. I already paid about my limit for that 'Made in UK' bell, and it was a mistake.

Further info:
Spurcycle now has a 'Compact' bell that's 100% Made in Taiwan. MSRP:$39 USD

The Chinese knockoff costs $4.75 USD including shipping.

I'd also be surprised if all the Spurcycle sub-contractors employed only US citizens or legal immigrants in shops with good pay, job security and benefits. But it's certainly a possibility.
Not a bunch of hippies in Seattle or SanFran hand-building those one at a time - more like 'entrepreneurs' with a great business model.

An article about the Spurcycle bell mentions the Mirrycle bell https://www.mirrycle.com/product-category/bells/ as 'competition' (inspiration?) when the Slone brothers were developing the Spurcycle bell.

I like my Spurcycle and Incredibell Adjustabell 2 bells. Both only ring once per strike, so I generally ring them twice (not a postman) when passing. Easy to do because I mount my bell under the lever of my drop handlebars, so it's within reach even when I'm on the hoods. The Spurcycle sounds better (*chef's kiss*) but the Incredibell is about as loud, a lot easier to mount and move, and works better when it rains. Oh and it's generally under $10.

For flat handlebars pretty much anything under $10 seems to work the same in my experience.

Can you post a pic, please?
I'm still trying to figure out where to put the bell on my road bike, and how to orient it so it will be easy to operate..

Anybody try the compact version of the Spurcycle?
https://www.spurcycle.com/products/s...2-compact-bell

I don't really have a need for a bell that much and this one looks good for basic needs and won't take up to much handlebar room. The other thing is that it's for 22.2mm max handlebar area only. My bars are 31.8 in the clamping area but in the area where I would put the bell, it looks like it would work?
https://sqlab-usa.com/products/302-s...ar-version-2-0

Anybody know for sure?

It is veganbikes just FYI and to get it linked up so the that poster will see it you will need to use the (AT) symbol @

I don't know that it has raised them out of poverty it has certainly created a lot more sweatshops and really low cost labor but I know poverty hasn't been alleviated because of it. Certainly there are some more rich people over there or they have gotten richer but the poor don't really change that much and even a tiny increase is not super sustainable for living.

As a Canadian would you buy Chinese Maple Syrup because it is $4 instead of $12 (or whatever) for Canadian Maple Syrup? I know Saskatoon would have to turn into a tropical paradise year long before I did that, if I was Canadian (Me I prefer it from Vermont).

They do now have the compact bell and I am not happy but they still make the original bell in the U.S. so I am ok.

I could see the complaints for the bell if it didn't do it's job well and was just a bunch of logos but honestly I don't believe it even says Spurcycle on the bell or on my tool either so unless you knew what it was already you wouldn't know whose stuff it is so clearly not a marketing ploy or some Guchi stuff!

Have just the bell for you

https://velo-orange.com/collections/...s-striker-bell

Just put this on one my ebike. Loud, well made, looks great and only $14.

The ad says it has been made in the same small factory for decades. Not sure how that plays with the xenophobes because they don't mention the color of the people working in the factory. Can only tell you it is a very good bell, you won't be disappointed.

Touch large however, plus it didn't fit on the 31.8 mm portion of my bar.

does anyone else think it is ironic that people start bashing Chinese made stuff in a thread started by a guy with a Chinese sounding screen name?

I can whistle really loud without having to move my hand to ring a bell that most people are not going to hear. My shrill, shrieking, high pitched whistle always gets attention.