Good Value Extras for Bikes

The plastic gloves are to the right.

With bikes, you can spend as much money as you like, there’s always some carbon fibre bottle cage (18g), which will set you back £120 if you really want to spend as much money as possible. But, as the old cheesy saying goes, sometimes the best things in life are free.

Here is a list of things which are free or very good value for money and makes cycling more enjoyable.

Plastic Disposable Gloves from Petrol Stations. The next time you fill up with petrol from a major petrol station take a few of the free plastic gloves. These are great for when you have to mess around with an oily chain. It means you can change your chain without getting hands and bike all oily. I also keep a pair in  my bike bag – can be useful for keeping hands warm from unexpected rain and again gloves can be kept clean.

Car Wash Brush. Since I started using this car wash brush on my bike, it’s halved the time taken to clean my bike. It’s much better than the washing up brush I used to use. Also, it’s soft touch is good for delicate paintwork.

Old Water Bottle cut in half. This helps provide a useful storage for a rain jacket.

Small Thin Lock which fits in back of saddle bag. You often need to lock your bike at unexpected moments. Having a lock, even if small, gives much greater peace of mind when you sit inside a cafe. Could save your bike from being stolen. For some reason, people often think if they go out into the beautiful countryside thieves won’t be there. But, it’s alas often not the case.

Puncture Resistance Tyre. The best value purchase you can make is to buy a really top of the range puncture resistance tyre. You could try the Armadillo or Schwalbe Durano Plus

Cheap Cereal Bars like Frusli and Kellogs Nutri Grain. Much better value than buying ‘proper’ energy bars. But, similar effect.

Related

• Simple Tips to Increase Efficiency of Cycling