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First Useful Part

Written by: Kimberlee Model, posted: 2024-02-28. Tags: I Made a Thing, bicycle, transportation.

I've had a 3d printer for a while, and printed a few downloaded parts, but I've reached a milestone and printed my first part that I designed myself. It's a quick-release mount for an action camera on my bike.

An action camera attached to a green mount on a bike basket.

I've had the cam for a few months, and used it on a helmet mount. I found the helmet mount to be a bit cumbersome and insecure, also I felt like an idiot with a camera on my head. I thought it would be better and less conspicuous on my bike, so I'd been meaning to work up a bike mount. Anyways, a few close calls and one incident in which someone drove their car full beans through my group ride (nobody was hit, thank the gods), and I finally got around to working something up.

New Helmet Day

Written by: Kimberlee Model, posted: 2022-11-10. Tags: transportation, bicycle, Identity and Politics.

This week saw Election Day in the US, however for me, the more impactful event was New Helmet Day on Monday. For those of you who aren't in the know, this isn't quite the joyous occasion which I make it out to be. Helmets are disposable and must be replaced after a crash. They will crush and crack and deform to prevent these occurrences from happening to your head.

Red Helmet placed on the handlebars of a blue bike. On the ground next to the bike's front wheel is a waste basket containing another red helmet.

Bontrager Road Lite Build

Written by: Kimberlee Model, posted: 2021-11-04, last modified: 2022-05-08. Tags: bicycle, I Made a Thing, transportation.

Back in April I saw a bike frame on craigslist which really caught my eye. It was a 1994 Bontrager road lite.

A matte-purple bicycle with sparkley clear-coat posed on a fence in front of a river. It has drop-bars with purple tape, moderately aero wheels with tan-wall tires, and a large brass bell affixed to the stem.

I, for one, didn't know until then that Bontrager ever manufactured bike frames. Certainly that they made wheels, tires, etc. but I'd never seen a bontrager frame and it really caught my eye. A few days later I borrowed my brother's subaru and drove out to meet the seller. The frame didn't look like it was in great condition, a chipped and fading paint, rust spots in a few places, and it had a quill stem stuck in it. But it was absolutely beautiful. every weld on it was gorgeous, and the extra gussets at some of the joints were absolutely intriguing.

(Fair warning, this post is download intensive)