Airzound - best safety thing I ever bought

Levi_501

I have one, fitted it to the bike, but realised when you want to activate it, you are to busy pulling on the anchors, transfer the weight back, gritting your teeth and closing your eyes and thinking oh sh1t to press the button.

Apart form that it is great !

MikeParkin65

A large part of my commute involves shared cycle/walking paths. I find a cheery toot (not a prolonged blast!) from about 70yards allows dog walkers to tether their hounds and joggers chance to move to one side. I follow this with a smile and a greeting when I pass. Old ladies love it! I think it's the same as a bell but louder - used appropriately on the road it is a safety device.

gaz545

I got one. Great for usig against cars as they think you will be a lot bigger than you are. Bell vs car LOL

rich_e

Levi_501 wrote:

I have one, fitted it to the bike, but realised when you want to activate it, you are to busy pulling on the anchors, transfer the weight back, gritting your teeth and closing your eyes and thinking oh sh1t to press the button.

That's what I was saying when I used mine.

In a car, your first reaction is to hit the horn, while obviously breaking or such, which you can do at the sametime.

On a bike, I always instinctively go for the brakes, even if I don't need to use them, and try to take evasive action to move clear of the danger. Reaching for a bike horn isn't instinctive and is not going to help. So you are basically then just sounding it off afterward as the driver sails away to vent your annoyance.

So it becomes quite pointless.

MikeParkin65

A horn or a bell shouldn't be used to 'express' anything - it's a warning to those who might not gave seen you of your imminent presence. As such, in modern urban settings the horn is more likely to be heard than the bell. Both give you options before braking if used appropriately. [/quote]

gtvlusso

A pillock with one of these woke up my beautifully asleep little 5 month old daughter and made her cry.....

Worst of it was, I could see no reason for using it - voice/bell would have sufficed if he needed to warn anyone of anything, he seemed to be wanting to clear a path for himself.

I was bloody annoyed!!

el_presidente

jibberish wrote:

Voice and Airzound aren't mutually exclusive - you can still speak to pedestrians / joggers etc. The thing has properly saved me a couple of times when I've had drivers pulling into the cycle lane without looking....

For all the people who think that cars "aren't looking out for a bike with a horn" - get one and use it and you'll see that's simply not true.

I'm surprised this has turned into such a contentious issue....thought I'd just mention the thing coz it genuinely has saved me a couple of times.

It's a very polarised spectrum of people on this forum.

Ho hum....I'm glad I've got one of these and you can give me an asbo for it if you want - but I only use it when I have to....and there are times I believe it's saved my life.

If that's genuinely true then take a look at your riding, you shouldn't be putting yourself in situations where only a horn can save you

woodford2barbican

Levi_501 wrote:

I have one, fitted it to the bike, but realised when you want to activate it, you are to busy pulling on the anchors, transfer the weight back, gritting your teeth and closing your eyes and thinking oh sh1t to press the button.

Apart form that it is great !

Same here. I sold mine for exactly this reason.

mrc1

Sewinman wrote:

I saw a bloke with a whistle in his mouth the other day. Any remote incovenience to him and he would be whistling away.

Air horns are the kind of things that make people dislike cyclists IMHO. Anti-social in London.

There was a seasoned veteran looking bloke on a tourer going down highgate hill with a whistle in his mouth a few days ago. Blowing it as he approached crossings, cars the lot. I found it hilarious. It was like something out of Brasseye.