A barely maintained bike, ready to breathe a new life

Depending on how good you are with bicycles, you could repaint a bike with your hands tied behind your back, or you’ll find out that you are not all that familiar with bicycles after all.

I wasn’t familiar with bicycles after all. All these years riding and being seen as the “bike guy”, I realized that I couldn’t take a bike apart completely. It would take me days struggling with never-before-seen tools, the wits of some of the top bike mechanics in Guelph, and numerous trips to different bike shops before I could finish repainting my bike.More...

There are a couple of ways to move photos taken on my Canon 20D to my computer out of the box; none of which I like. I can install the software that came with the camera, but it is clunky at best. I can plug the memory card into a reader and move the files manually, but it’s time consuming to select files from multiple folders.

Instead, with a little time invested, I came up with a tool to copy the files over. I call it the Canon Copier.More...

I bought a pair of DMT RS3 cycling shoes when I was in a 3 month summer vacation in Malaysia back in 2004. Specialized cycling shoes help a lot to keep the feet properly aligned to the pedals and have stiff soles to reduce the flex on the feet. They hook onto the pedals so you get to use an additional muscle group by "pulling" the pedals.

But it wasn't until the spring of 2006 that I actually started wearing them. The bike I rode did not have a standard crank, which means I could not screw matching pedals onto the crank. At 1/2" in diameter, there were no compatible pedals in the market that could screw in. They were 9/16" to 1/2" adaptors available, but they cost too much.More...

Since moving from Windsor to Guelph, I needed to buy furniture for my new home. Wanting to dress my apartment with unique, one-of-a-kind decoration, I set off to build a coffee table that uses a bicycle frame. More...

After moving to a new apartment, the first order of business was to cover the bedroom window. The apartment did not come with any curtains, and I needed to sleep undisturbed in daylight.

I was also tired of standing naked behind an uncovered window.More...

I had a computer desk that was made purely for working at the computer. I loathed the slide out keyboard tray and found the surface too high. It was uncomfortable to do simple things like reading a book.

I went to a furniture store to look for one that is more suitable. A saleslady there talked about her days as a student and how she hung a door under a window to make a table. I decided to make my own along the same lines.

To go on a cycling tour on real cheap, I devised a tent made out of a tarp and a rope. By stringing my camera tripod and bicycle together, then laying a tarp on top, I thought I could keep myself warm and dry during the trip.

To test it, I set it up in my backyard. It worked really well, although it was really warm inside.

I used it on the 12-day trip around Lake Erie. I dropped the idea the second day when I found that tarps were completely unbreatheable - my breath condensed inside the tent when it was cold outside, soaking everything from my tripod to clothes.

Not a good way to save a couple of hundred bucks. 

The camera mount in its final form

I have always wanted to share my cycling experiences with others. Showing a video of what I see on a bike will do the job the best, but being able to mount a camera safely and securely on a bike can only be achieved by building a custom made mount.

So I went ahead and designed one.More...

Backpacks as bicycle panniers can work really well. They are cheap, plentiful, and of good quality. You could even dismount them and carry them on your back.

It was an easy decision for me to get backpacks instead of shelling out some money for proper panniers, but there are concerns. Since they are not designed as panniers, how could I mount them on the bike? They are also usually tall, likely disturbing the rear derailleur.More...

One project outline for an art class I attended read:

Suitcase Project: Find a suitcase (any size) or it can be a typewriter case or any other case with handles etc. You are to alter/transform/change/perform with/document/whatever you want, it’s up to you. It’s your idea. Create an environment inside/outside do something strange/silly/unusual/new/great/stupid/OK.

Ideas began to pour through. While sorting through my trash, one idea caught on – to convert egg trays I collected for another project into a suitcase. I decided to paint each side of the egg tray wells in different colours. I thought it was worth exploring what was possible when one applies a chaotic combination of colours onto an organized pattern. More...