Christmas Festivity

Its Christmas Eve & an hour til Christmas. Here's my festive bike mod:

Using some "magic wire", known as EL wire or Electroluminescent wire & some clear tape, I made my bike look like a light cycle from the movie Tron. Many people use this stuff to mod their bike as they come in a variety of colours. 

How did I do it?

• I Bought 2 2m long EL wire which came with their own battery packs from ebay for a couple of pounds.
• Tape the end of the wire to the middle of the rim. 
• Go between the spokes, taping it down as you go along.
• Once you make a full circle, keep following the line so the EL wire goes on top of itself.  
• At the end, tape it down and tape the connector wire to the spoke (make sure the battery pack and its connector can reach the EL wires connector when the battery pack is placed around the hub).
• Using tape, velcro straps, string or elastic bands, tie down the battery pack to the hub and connect the wires.
• Voila, one light cycle.

You don't have to do it like this but just wrap it around the frame of the bike. You can buy EL wire made for bikes which are waterproof but cost much more from US websites. Other methods are using zip ties to tie them down to the spokes rather than taping it to the rim. 

Have some fun & personalise your bike.

& a Merry Christmas!

A London Cyclist

My Bike

I currently own one bike which I use regularly. It shall be the velocipede I use to review accessories and parts.
It's a Create bike, specifically the "Limited Edition Grey Create Freestyle 52cm Fixed Gear/Single Speed Bike". It's discontinued but sturdier than the current models (& a whole lot rarer). 


A Small Review
I've owned this bike for over 7 months and its never let me down. So why have a single sped? Having a single speed in the city makes a lot of sense, no gears to make a whole load of mess & they need less maintenance. Simply convenient, a Create bike does the job. It has a tall ride so the pedals avoid hitting the curb and a good gear ratio. The thicker tyres & stronger forks mean I worry less when mounting/dismounting the pavements or jumping some steps. Its in the free wheel option as there's a few large gradients I have to climb regularly & having it fixed (although being major fun) does get annoying. It has a very good, stiff steel frame allowing the rider  to judge surfaces & best of all, it looks amazing. I have never seen the same model on the road & this bike gets the heads turning. 

- my bike + red create saddle (more comfortable) 

Some minor quibbles: could be lighter, cheap brake pads & rim tape
All in all I would rate it at 4.5/5. For more details on the bike click here.


A London Cyclist

A Introduction

Welcome to my blog, a haven for the everyday cyclist. 

What should be expected soon: reviews, news, innovations, cycle routes, tips, guides (what the people want) etc. I'll update as often as I can so keep an eye out

Thank you for having a look and hope you enjoy. 

(Comments & requests are welcome )

A London Cyclist