Seems like there are always inventors coming up with new materials to make bikes from. There is the bamboo bike and the Schwinn prototype flax fiber bike. There are multiple examples of wooden bikes including one using old-time "wood bending" technology that costs $70,000.
So why not cardboard?
With a universal association with shoe boxes and pizza boxes, an Israeli inventor is putting a new spin on the lowly cardboard using it to build a line of inexpensive bikes that he says could retail for as low as $20.
Izhar Gafni, 50, said the biggest challenge he faced was to develop cardboard that could be shaped and folded yet still maintain its structural integrity. And the concern about the soggy cardboard bike falling apart after a brief rain shower or even an inadvisable riding through a puddle? Gafni figured out a way to treat the frame with an organic coating that makes it both waterproof and fireproof. A final coat of lacquer paint and it's ready to go.
The bike weighs about 20lb/9kg and can carry a ride weighing up to 485 lbs (!)/ 220 kg, according to Gafni.
Links:
- Reuters news report: Cardboard bicycle can change the world.
- Pedaling to their own beat: Bikes that don't fit the mold.
- Das Bierbike: a bar on wheels you can pedal
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