Knog Oi Classic Bell

This bell is not very rugged.  I have purchased three (3) of the classic bells.  All have failed.  It always has to do with the hammer.  On one it completely parted from the bell.  On a second somehow it got majorly twisted and has never been the same.  on the third, the little springs hiolding the bell off the frame failed, which resulted in a bell that just goes "thud." Not at all rugged and will not stand up to even casual daily use.  I'd say it is a throw-away purchase and will be out of service within a year.  Too bad, because the aethetic is perfect for a road biike.  

Will Knog fit on bar tape?

Thank you for detailed reviews.
I have suggestion regarding some standard of bike bell testing.
Usually bell is required in emergency situation.
Having in mind rider's safety (the same applies to other road users) first thing to do is to engage brakes to avoid collision.
From this standpoint any bell is useless if it can't be accessed from the same place as brake levers are (either drops or hoods).
It would be nice to have information if particular bell can be installed on bar tape and how convenient it is to trigger in such position.
So far I saw such info only in review for Trigger Bell.
The other bells tend to be tested in more MTB friendly positions.

I got one last weekend, and bought another one for my other bike as soon as I could (both from Evans). It's not an acoustic weapon, it won't be heard by people listening to loud music on big headphones or schoolboys engaging in tomfoolery on cycle paths in Acton (the 2 major failings I've discovered so far, horseplay in other locations may also be distracting for the participants), but apart from that, it does the job perfectly

I've hammered it down the grand union canal coming out of London , bunny hopped on and off pavements, no false dings whatsoever. I keep it under the brake lever on my left, where I can flick it with my thumb without changing position, either from the hoods or on the drops

highly recommended

I really want to like my Knog Oi but 2 things stop me.

1) it just isn't loud enough.

2) It sounds exactly the same as an i-phone notification ping, no-one associates the sound with bikes anymore!

I now have to repeatedly ding it every time until I see a reaction. A real shame as it's the neatest, least obtrusive, most streamlined bell I've ever seen.

I too was sucked in by Kickstarter eventually received a bell. Beautifully packaged, looks great, but utterly useless at actually making any noise that would warn a pedestrian. Far too quiet. Regretfully I took it off and put the old CatEye bell back on. It's ugly as hell but also loud enough. If you're required to have a bell fitted by law go for it, if you need a bell (eg commuting in London) get anything else.

Oh, and they didn't realise that road bike drop bars are 23.8mm so you can only get it in 22mm (for MTB bars) or 31.8 (so it has to go jammed up against your stem where you're never going to get to it in time).

Definately the best looking bell out there but I agree with most of the other posts- way too quiet and dings every time you ride over road imperfections which can get rather annoying.

somewhat disappointing and seems too quiet. Kickstarter: you win some you loose some

Its still got a tiny steel spring like all other 'ping' bells that prove to be their achilles heel, unless this ones made of titanium or some exotic hi tech metal. 

Agreed,  Knog know perfectly well who they sold a 1st model to, and if they have a recall of it the least they can do is to send out an email to the affected customers, rather than keep it quiet and hope that not too many of them get pro-active about it themselves.

Bit of a pish move by them, and following a pretty pish bell, that doesn't exactly make me want to buy anything else from them, to be honest.

If I have the first model, I'd be disappointed not to have had a recall, since I was a Kickstart backer and Knog should have all the pertinent information. My sentiments echo that of the poster two above, the appositely-named Mike Bell.

Whilst I admire the concept and final design, I was completely underwhelmed by my Knog when it finally arrived and can only advise people to compare it against other products before purchasing one.

Mine's fine - straight on the busy bars of my CX/commuter, slightly concerned I was going to snap something when I was tightening it, but it's on and has stayed on.

Not the loudest but loud enough, no unwanted rattling or ringing, no adjustment necessary.

I spent 3 and a half hours listening to this bell ding with every poor surface, which in Surrey is pretty much all of them. Looks great, not great as a bell though.

My current bell cannot be used when wearing thick gloves (god knows why), and sounds weak and muffled when it is raining. How does this bell perform in these circumstances please?

Got mine via their Kickstarter campaign. Was pretty annoyed when retailers started getting stock of the bells before all Kickstarter orders had been fulfilled. Not great. Build quality is not as good as it should be, and installation is a fine line between being too tight and ringing over every bump, or too loose and moving. Hammer is flimsy. Sound is not loud but I haven't needed it to be louder than it is. I guess it's main advantage is the small amount of bar real estate it occupies. It's a legal requirement where I live to have a bell installed, and the Oi is the most streamlined and practical option.

^ Nice Rohloff Shand. Isn't the bell a bit tricky to reach there?

I have one (Oi) and find it disappointingly quiet; my Poundland dinger is louder, but not as discrete on the 'bar.

I like this bell. It's quite neat on the handlebars.