Homemade Bike Rack


(PVU, 2016, Jan 15)
In my last unit of the STEAM elective, Rapid Prototyping, we learned about safety and tools. For my final Action Project, the class and I were looking at any needs for our school’s new building. On one of our FE’s, we went to the Rebuilding Exchange where I met Bryant Williams who is the Executive Director. He shared some words of wisdom that stood out to me, but the coolest statement he said was, “recycling is not the answer, reusing is the answer.” With that quote in mind, I was able to take pipes and a broom handle that were going to be recycled and used them for my project. I was browsing the internet for some inspiration for my project when I stumbled upon Wirecrafters, a company that makes and sells bike racks. Their website inspired me to build a bike rack. Taking inspiration from Wirecrafters, I decided to build my own bike rack. I came up with an idea for a bike rack but then I decided to go with a much simpler because it's a very time consuming project. I met with another teacher and came up with doing something that requires less time. I started by using flange, a t pipe connector, and a 3/4”X5” pipe, a wooden rod, and screws. I am very happy with the way it turned out. I am very pleased that it looks modern and unique, unlike my original idea. The piece was super easy to make and only took a total of one hour to create. I built my bike rack in the James Dyson Foundation Design and Engineering Lab. The only drawback of this project was that it wasn’t as sturdy as I had hoped. There was only one safety hazard but I solved it. The only safety hazard I ran into while I was working was drilling and having the material that I was drilling fly at me. I used protective glasses to prevent my problem. Some of the lessons I learned were:

  •       "Measure twice cut once" so that you don't cut anything by accident
  •       Use a metal bar instead of a wood bar for a more supportive structure
  •       Use more screws to create more strength
  •       Use a lighter weight metal for easier installation
  •       Paint the bike rack for a different look

Making this bike rack was really fun. I really liked doing this project because I love making things with my hands and I got to do this whole project with my hands. This project also inspired me to make an original and better bike rack, which I hopefully get to make in the future. I also learned about torque which is the twisting force that tends to cause rotation. I had a great amount of torque when I was using the drill. By using electricity to create a bigger amount of torque, it was easier to drill my screw into the drywall, as opposed to using a screwdriver with a smaller amount of torque. Making this bike rack was really fun. Although it had some flaws in the beginning, it went smoothly in the end. I filmed a time-lapse video of me constructing the bike rack. The video I filmed was about ten minutes of regular time. For every two seconds of time lapse it was seventeen seconds of real time. I made a thirty-five second time-lapse to show how I constructed my project.
See my Instructables blog for the full instructions.



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