Commuting - What's the coolest/most useful accessory you've ever bought?

We all love buying accessories and gadgets for our commuter bikes - just wondering what is the coolest or most useful accessory you've ever bought for your bike??

A cable lock, use it everyday sometimes twice.

Bento Bag for my mountain bike. It makes me eat more since I see the food whenever I look down.

take a look mirror

tail lights

big ass lock and chain sets

We all love buying accessories and gadgets for our commuter bikes - just wondering what is the coolest or most useful accessory you've ever bought for your bike??

FSA K-Wing Handlebars

A large police-grade pepper spray can and holster because it looks cool on my black bike, like I'm a velocop or something.

A large police-grade pepper spray can and holster because it looks cool on my black bike, like I'm a velocop or something.

Sprayed any dogs or bad guys yet?

not very cool, but I love my Freddy Fenders -- talk about useful!!

Used to have this cool little electric horn that strapped to my bar, and was opperated by a remote bar mounted push button. Ran of a 9V battery, and sounded just like a police whistle. It was loud enough so that you could scare drivers with it, I think 115 dB @ 1m. Man, I miss that thing...don't think they are available any more.

SRAM chain. I love the powerlink!

Except when I drop half of the link on the floor and it disappears, thus leaving me with no chain right before I leave for work in the morning. Not that this happened today or anything :)
(Fortunately I had an old chain lying around)

SRAM chain. I love the powerlink!

Except when I drop half of the link on the floor and it disappears, thus leaving me with no chain right before I leave for work in the morning. Not that this happened today or anything :)
(Fortunately I had an old chain lying around)

Cool: I just bought one yesterday and I'm putting it on tonight. (must remember not to drop the link...)

1) Chrome messenger bag

2) Pearl Izumi Balaclava (for cold weather & wind)

Bar-end shifters!

My Garmin GPS with built in map software. I can now explore the universe without fear of getting lost.

www.garmin.com

my rack!

my rack!

most unuseful: mIraq

My kryptonite u-lock. I bought it last year, and still use it everyday.....

My kryptonite u-lock. I bought it last year, and still use it everyday.....
...and the great thing is if you forgot the key you can just open it with your handy bic pen :D

So far, my topeak bar-end mirrors have been great. They look like regular mtb bar-ends when closed and do a good job when open.

But i guess my Arkel panniers and Chrome messenger bag have proven to be just as useful and are probably my favorite addition.

I commute on a mtb..but I have no 'gadgets'.
My favorite item purchased was ODI hex collar bar grips.
2 screws undone and they are off, and they never slip.

If you run flats or risers, take a look @ them.
When the grips wear, you keep the collars and just buy a replacement grip pad.

http://www.balleracing.com/Odi/OdiLock-OnRuffianBlkBP.htm

Wheels. Love 'em. Makes riding much easier.

my cateye computer is the most useful. also useful is the reflective strap that goes around my ankle. i feel safer everytime i put that on. it's very reflective.

The two most useful things I have on my bike is the rack and baskets. I know they are not very cool, but they are quite useful when you have a couple bags of goceries to get home or need to carry a change of clothes for work.

SRAM chain. I love the powerlink!

Except when I drop half of the link on the floor and it disappears, thus leaving me with no chain right before I leave for work in the morning. Not that this happened today or anything :)
(Fortunately I had an old chain lying around)
I got a shimano chain with the Craig masterlink on it, and I'm completely phobic about losing one of the links.

Shimano Ultegra pedals and Pearl Izumi Vagabond road shoe, so much better than speed play frogs.

...and the great thing is if you forgot the key you can just open it with your handy bic pen :D
Not the new ones. http://img50.exs.cx/img50/9360/deadhorse.gif

Sprayed any dogs or bad guys yet?

Not . . . YET. But I got an itchey trigger finger. :)

Cool: I just bought one yesterday and I'm putting it on tonight. (must remember not to drop the link...)

Oh ya, I dropped my powerlink once and it landed on the very edge of a drain in my basement floor. My hands trembled as I picked it up from the brink :)

I agree that the powerlink chain is a great idea. I love my mini-pump, and my performance rack trunk is also extremely useful. Gonna upgrade to some big panniers soon so I can carry everything but the kitchen sink.

Crank Brothers Speed Lever. Makes mounting / unmounting tires a dream.

Every other accessory I ever bought only made me realize how much I enjoy an accessory-free, unfettered bike.

Take-a-Look mirror
Dynamo lighting system
Fenders
Rack
Basket
Reflectors

Goggles. Snowboarding helmet.

hasta be fenders. first thing I get after bike and lock setup. I can watch the bike, but fenders, I just hate mud in my face.

Rear rack. I want to get some fenders on my new bike.

Without a doubt, my two Carradice saddlebags. I have a small one and the largest size. Perfect for commuting, touring, shopping. I rarely ride without one of them on the bike.

We all love buying accessories and gadgets for our commuter bikes - just wondering what is the coolest or most useful accessory you've ever bought for your bike??
A 100,000 candlepower yellow strobe light. The ultimate blinkie, even in the daytime.

Oh, and of course, my $3 whistle.

Supersized Wald basket (only on one bike!). Sprung Brooks saddles. Blinkies. Multitool.

I got an even better one than what I said before, A BIKE!!!!


Good night all!

I love my combo SPD/platform pedals. And my fenders. And my messenger bag.

I just installed Shimano pedals with SPD on side, platforms on the other. They are great! I would be lost without my rack/basket combo and fenders.

Wheels. Love 'em. Makes riding much easier.

Guess riding would be harder without wheels.

Do quality riding shorts classify as an accessory?

i would think so. theres no law or rule that says you have to wear the shorts, therefore i think it counts as an accessory.

-- My SERFAS AIRBONES floor pump has a built-in air pressure gauge. Makes it easy to keep my tires inflated to their proper pressures for fast easy rides. No more blow-out fears from gas station high pressure hoses.

Fenders!!!

And a very close second are the Discovery waterproof pannier liners I recently bought. My panniers are old and leaky as an open window. The liners allow me to leave the panniers on the bike and just pull out the liner when I head for the shower. They keep my work clothes dry too. Nashbar item. They have some left.

Goggles. Snowboarding helmet.

Dam Snowboarders!

Just keep out of my way on Whiteface! Johhny's Way to fast for you! :D

Skiing helmet.

$3 callico grocery bag from the fruit shop at Cronulla. I'm cheap, so I've no rack and I hate the back pack for groceries. This is much better.

I stole my roommate's yellow messenger bag and my party blinky with like six modes of blink.

Okay, i got the sram chain and a park tools chain tool. I'm a chain fixin' fool now. I also forgot, I love my Push fullfinger gloves.

Crank Brothers Speed Lever. Makes mounting / unmounting tires a dream.

AMEN!!! Why did it take so long to come up with this for bicycles? Auto shops used power versions for decades.

I also love the Morph Road pump.

CetmaRack