Review: The Knog Oi Bike Bell (of dreams)
I, hands down, did not know that you could get a bike bell that was cool. I don't mean cool in a Fresh Prince attire way, I mean cool in the 'I wish I had invented that' way. Enter the Knog Oi - aka the Bell of Dreams.
I feel like I'm giving away the end result of this post. But whatever, you're a busy person, I'm not going to get all mysterious on you.
This bell is going to turn your life around.
At least, it will if you often ride on cycle paths and bridleways riddled with *gasp* other people blocking your way to freedom. Which, where I'm living near a human/canine-based obstacle course, is a constant challenge and not one I've always navigated successfully.
The Knog Oi
I got this bell for Christmas 2020 or, rather, I bought myself my first ever brand new bike in late November and then my bike got lots of things for Christmas 2020.
I haven't had a bike bell since I was twelve because I don't look like this:
Bell, anyone?
Yeah, exactly.
Instead, I have a noisy hub on my mountain bike which does the job for me or a steady tone of voice, which I occasionally utilise. But frankly, it's hard to be 100% sure that what comes out of your mouth when there are four pedestrians walking abreast in the cycle path, will be socially acceptable.
So I was understandably excited to receive a bell for Christmas that not only didn't look like a bell, but it didn't really look like anything at all because you can hardly see on it your handle bars.
Ding dong
The Oi bell comes from the Australian company, Knog. I'm assuming it's called 'oi' because it achieves the same result as if you were to shout, 'oi!' but more politely.
I have it in jet black, which is handy, because I also have black handlebars on my gravel bike. The entire bell is circular, hugging the handlebars and generally keeping out of everyone's way. The hammer is small with a little dip for your thumb to just pull it back a little and let it go, chiming against the circular metal top.
The world's most polite chime
The other thing that has traditionally put me off being a bell owner is the sound. The vast majority of bells have a sound that jars, that sounds a little aggressive and not at all musical.
The Knog Oi sounds like an angel has taken up the triangle.
It rings out at exactly the right volume and with a genuinely beautiful chime. Like a friend tapping you softly on the shoulder and saying, 'hey dude, you're walking in the middle of a cycle path, why not move across and let these lovely two-wheelers pedal on by, eh?'
Yeah, but what about my cables?
Nobody wants to smush their cables. That ends badly.
Luckily, the Oi bell has two little sort of cutouts that allow you cables to sit happily against the handlebars, no smushing required.
The pros and cons of Knog's Oi bell
Pros:
- It's affordable at around £15 depending on where you get it from
- It comes in different colours
- It sounds like Pure Unadulterated Goodness
- It's incredibly easy to fit and comes with a spacer
Cons:
- Inexplicably, not everybody knows about this yet, so you can't hear delightful chiming on every cycle path
If you've cleaned your glasses today you might spot that the spring on my bell is a little bent. New, the bell's spring is more upright and the hammer is closer to the bell. Unfortunately, I had a mishap that was not bell-related but did result in me bending the spring back without realised and screwing it royally.
I am lucky to have a persevering partner though, who not only gave me the bell in the first instance but also then bought some Araldite and combined it with pliers to glue and crimp the hammer back into place. Which worked.
Pedal with abandon with the Knog Oi
I don't have anything negative to say about the Oi bell, it's a dream. It's funny, because I've never considered that a bike bell could ever not sit on top of or underneath handlebars, looking bulking and getting in the way. I supposed that's the thing about innovations though, they solve problems nobody else can be bothered to and then everybody realises they shold've done all along.
Huh.
Anyway, if you spend too much time trying to get around others on cycle paths and would rather not be yelling every five minutes, do yourself a favour and buy Knog's Oi bell. People respond to it well. Dogs still don't give a shit. Sorry. But at least it's half the battle.
Get it in the UK from:
And other bike businesses that recognise a good thing when they see one.
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