Here is a collection of 10 DIY bike projects that you can do in your free time. Each one contains links to different ways of implementing the project. The reason for I put this collection together is because I couldn’t find anywhere else on the internet that brings all these great projects in one place so make sure you bookmark it! I hope you enjoy the list and getting creative. Let me know if there are any more great DIY projects you are aware of.
1 DIY bike stand
When you get into your bike repairs you will soon get sick of standing the bike upside down. At that point you will want a bike repair stand. There is no shortage of articles about how to build your own so I recommend starting with the roundup by Bikehacks.
- 8 bombproof DIY bike repair stands (Bikehacks)
- PVC bike repair stand (Instructables)
2 Make your own bike camera mount
Thanks to most cameras having a standard mount screw it is very easy to hook up your camera to your bike and share your cycling adventures. The two articles below offer an easy way of doing this.
- Attach a camera to your bike using a reflector mount (Photojojo.com)
- Build a bicycle camera mount using a cheap bicycle light (Camerahacker.com)
3 Bright Bike
Help yourself be seen at night by using so called retro-reflective materials. The guys behind Bright Bike have all the kit you need and the easy to follow steps to implement it on your bike.
- Bright bike project the kit
- Bright bike project how to (Instructables)
4 Store your bike on these DIY bike racks
In a small house in London the bike can be the cause a lot of clutter. These racks help to keep your bike out of the way and leave more room to enjoy your home.
- Wall hanging bike rack (Lifehacker)
- Stolmen bike rack (Ikeahacker)
5 Make your own bike trailer
In the quest to go car free the bicycle trailer is an essential tool. How else are you going to get all that shopping from the supermarket? By re-purposing some old bike parts you can make your own trailer and save yourself a lot of money.
- Single wheeled bike trailer (Instructables)
- Bicycle cargo trailer (Instructables)
6 LED bike wheel
If I saw this on the road I would be nothing short of amazed. The guide in Instructables shows you how you can turn your wheels into fantastic digital displays.
- Spoke POV (Instructables)
7 Give your bike a healthy neon glow
Further amazement is provided in this guide in Instructables about how to “boy racer” your bike with a neon glow.
- DIY Glow: Ground Effects Lights For Your Bike (Instructables)
8 Ugly your bike
Here is another interesting DIY project we have discussed before on London Cyclist. Uglying your bike to make it unattractive to thieves. If you couple this with our bike lock tips you are good to go!
- Ugly your bike (Make Digital)
9 Make your own super bright bike light
Sometimes you just get the urge to go out and bike late at night. When this happens your standard bike light will probably not be enough for you to feel comfortable. What you need is the ultimate in bright bike lights. The guides below will show you how to modify standard bike lights and save a lot of money when compared to top of the range bicycle lights.
- Bike light 500 lumen “Mt.Bike” for under 10 bucks (Instructables)
- Ultimate night vision headlamp (Instructables)
- How to make the ultimate 18volt mountain bike light (Make Digital)
10 DIY bike panniers
Carrying a bag around on your bike is irritating and causes your back to sweat. Panniers solve this problem. The two below guides show you how to make your own.
- How to make bicycle panniers out of recycled materials (Instructables)
- An inexpensive pannier you can make (Crazyguyonabike)
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Love this compilation – thanks for assembling these in one convenient place!
If anyone knows where to get the:
# 2″x1/4″x20 thread screw
# Nut for said screw
# 1/4″ wing nut
(Needed for bike camera mount)
in the UK I am happy to hear it!
Try http://www.yelp.co.uk/biz/clerkenwell-screws-london
Extremely valuable source for nuts and bolts, etc…
You’re looking for the 1/4″ Whitworth thread. Any building supplier should carry these. Homebase and Jewson certainly do.
This is awesome. Some projects look quite DIY intensive but some of the neon tubes look worth it! I get the funny feeling we may see more of these around london soon…
@Bikejuju – glad you enjoyed the list – always good to have it in one easy to find place isn’t it?
@thegirlinthecafe – any DIY store should have these – best to go to a small local store that has builders supplies. E.g. Wing nut: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nut_%28hardware%29
@OMW – its true some look more time intensive than others but I wanted to cover loads of them. I found ever more but thought I should limit to 10 for now!
Yes! I was trying to figure out how to mount the camera to my bike. I will be doing it this weekend! Check me out on Monday to see if I was successful! (Oh, I can just see my camera smashing onto the road on Highland!)
I don’t ride at night, but I really want a neon bike! Keep the DIYs coming please!
No DIY bike post is complete without Kent Peterson’s essential guide to DIY fenders, “Fend For Yourself.”
http://www.carsstink.org/peterson/FendForYourself.html
@danceralamode – took a look at your blog very cool. Please you find the article useful
@N thanks for the link to DIY fenders – had not seen that before now!
Crap, I guess I won’t be trying these anytime soon. Bicycle stolen today! ARG! I hate bike thieves!
Oh no! It is probably covered under your house insurance have you called up to check?
What happened?
The screw required for camera mounting is 1/4″ whitworth thread. Very easy to obtain in the UK and they are sold on ebay
Wow what a great list! I made my own panniers, check them out
http://www.bicycleprojects.com/images/oziogallery2/913103916_xfkL5-XL.jpg
I like your site,,,BUT.. when I see the word “Instructables” I am no longer interested.. Their photo’s are to small to make out and they expect you to pay to make them larger.. I feel it’s a rip off.. To much free stuff on the net to be paying for this and that.. I liked their site a long time ago before I had to pay.. Someone got Greedy I guess.. can you list ONLY free sites that don’t gouge people? Thanks
I am baffled by your comments about instructables. Indeed you do need to be logged in to enlarge the pictures but you only need to sign up for their free account, then double clicking the photos makes them full size. What you don’t get if you don’t pay is the ability to see the whole instructable on one page, or to download in one go as a .pdf. Or at least that is what I have been doing happily for years.
Perhaps you should have another try?
Thanks.. I must have become confused. I clicked on a photo and they said I needed to up grade to pro or some sort of thing… I thought they meant I had to pay due to the fact I am seeing a LOT of pay stuff now when not that long ago there was a lot of good info for free.. I will TRY to join and see if I can join for free. Thanks again for the enlightenment…As they say,, Live and learn, Smile..
Well I went there again. I tried to sign up and they DID want money..Something has changed for sure.. Sadly..
I had a look at Instructables sign in page. The first three options have a price tag and it may seem at the first instance that all options are for pay accounts. But then if you scroll down, there is a big green button that says”no thanks, I’m happy with a free account for now”. Press that one!
Perhaps the layout is misleading to the point of cynical but fortune favours the persistent.
Finally got it.. Many thanks.. Bless you,,
Great ideas for DIY bike gear.
I’m going to try and make one of those repair stands out of PVC.
I designed and built my own DIY bike racks and made this tutorial on how anyone else can duplicate them.
Both of those bike racks cost a grand total of $80 and only took about 2 hours to build them both.
Check it out,
http://www.texasmountainbiketrails.com/diy-bike-rack/
Hope you enjoy!
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