Cardboard bike for £12.50

Kendal Black Drop

Do you fancy a nice cheap bike? How about one made of cardboard?



See the article in the Daily Telegraph.

No metal, a refurbished car timing belt instead of a chain, and solid tyres.

Once the shape has been formed and cut, the cardboard is treated with a secret concoction made of organic materials to give it its waterproof and fireproof qualities. In the final stage, it is coated with lacquer paint for appearance.

In testing the durability of the treated cardboard, Gafni [the inventor] said he immersed a cross-section in a water tank for several months and it retained all its hardened characteristics.

Once ready for production, the bicycle will include no metal parts, even the brake mechanism and the wheel and pedal bearings will be made of recycled substances, although Gafni said he could not yet reveal those details due to pending patent issues.

Elmish [the business partner of the inventor] said the business model they had created meant that rebates for using “green” materials would entirely cancel out production costs and this could allow for bicycles to be given away for free in poor countries.

Producers would reap financial rewards from advertisements such as from multinational companies who would pay for their logo to be part of the frame, he explained.

“Because you get a lot of government grants, it brings down the production costs to zero, so the bicycles can be given away for free. We are copying a business model from the hi-tech world where software is distributed free because it includes embedded advertising,” Elmish explained.

“It could be sold for around $20, because (retailers) have to make a profit ... and we think they should not cost any more than that. We will make our money from advertising,” he added.

The bicycles are not only very cheap to make, they are very light and do not need to be adjusted or repaired, the solid tyres that are made of reconstituted rubber from old car tyres will never get a puncture, Elmish said.

“These bikes need no maintenance and no adjustment, a car timing belt is used instead of a chain, and the tyres do not need inflating and can last for 10 years,” he said.

A full-sized cardboard bicycle will weigh around 9kg (about 20lbs) compared to an average metal bicycle, which weight around 14kg.

Edit: Picture added

PHILATHAM

and Im sure that there will still be loads of weight weenies looking to upgrade !!

MisterMuncher

An average metal bike weighs 14kg?

Far be it from me to suggest the Telegraph is living in the past.

asprilla

MisterMuncher wrote:

An average metal bike weighs 14kg?

Far be it from me to suggest the Telegraph is living in the past.

They count BSOs.

The Rookie

Second thread on the topic.....