Bicycle Wheel Yard Art

Kelly-n-Tony
by Kelly-n-Tony
5 Materials
$3
2 Hours
Easy
I saw my first bicycle wheel yard art a few years ago but couldn't find a how-to. My husband loves bikes so was onboard for this project and figured it out. It's actually pretty easy and inexpensive.
Recently we put a bunch up on the fencing.


And yes, they all spin! For this fencing version I've been considering painting a stem and leaves on the fence .
Here we put a trio up against the house . ..
They really do kinda look like flowers so we put the next grouping out in the yard in an area we were working on. ...
Once you gather some old bike rims you need to loosen the bolts on the axle. The image above on the left is how a bike rim axle normally looks and the image on the right the axle has been threaded through so it extends out on one side. Both sides require their bolts be put back on.
Wipe the bike rim down completely with mineral spirits so your paint will stick.
This is the fun part- choose your spray paint colors. I love the new colors Rustoleum makes!
Put down cardboard or something and spray the wheel on both sides and edges.
Buy a few rods of electrical metal conduit at your local hardware store. One for each wheel.
The image on the left is how it comes new.
The image on the right is what you end up with after the steps shown below...
Hammer one end of the metal conduit to flatten it.
Use a Dremel on the flattened end to cut a wedge out. You'll be attaching the wheel here.


Wear goggles!
Tighten the bolt onto the axle with the metal conduit in place.
If you're putting the wheels with poles into the ground you'll need to dig some holes for them. Using a post hole digger is the easiest way to make small holes.
We had leftover pieces of PVC pipe so that's what we put into the ground. I think ours were about 18 inches or so in length. Once you've dug deep enough for yours drop it in, replace the dirt around the PVC pipe and drop your metal pipes into the PVC pipes. This holds them firmly in the ground but also allows you..or the wind...to swivel them around.
If you're attaching bicycle wheel yard art to a fence it's even easier because all you need to do is drill a hole through the fencing, slide the axle through and bolt it on the other side.


It really brings some fun color to our yard!


It will cost you about $3 each in materials for the ones on rods and only the cost of spray paint for the ones on the fencing.
Resources for this project:
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Frequently asked questions
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3 of 7 questions
  • Nancy Moody Nancy Moody on May 19, 2018

    How did you accumulate all those rims? I want to make these and haven’t found one rim😪

  • Chantel Bauer- DeBord Chantel Bauer- DeBord on Oct 03, 2018

    Love it but did u ever think about painting them white placing lighys and hanging them from a tree or plaing loghts around them so at night they would be even more cute..just a suggestion

  • Denise Denise on Oct 22, 2018

    Do you seal them last? I have a pallet fence each a different color, the wheels are easy to find, thank you for the great idea!

Comments
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2 of 56 comments
  • Patty Patty on Mar 10, 2022

    Looks great! Love the fact they spin. The idea of painting stems on the fence is a good idea

  • Donna Bates Donna Bates on Mar 12, 2022

    I’m going to do this this year, if I can find a bicycle tire. I love it and it’s colorful

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