How Would You Like a $20 Bike...

[BabySinclair]

Made entirely out of hardened cardboard? Israeli inventor Moshav Ahituv is finishing up his patents on just that. For $9 worth of cardboard and other recycled materials his invention is rather remarkable. The cardboard itself is treated with an organic component (still trade secret) that hardens the cardboard and makes it water resistant (inventor's claim is waterproof but that term does occasionally get misused.) The chain is made from recycled car belts and there are no metal parts in its construction. Set to hit the markets in Israel next year, he and his business partner are looking at multiple models of the bike, more than one with government funding allowing them to give the bikes to those needing them for free. Ahituv is even planning on making wheelchairs out of his cardboard in order to make them more accessible.

So Escapists, if his cardboard is capable of being high strength and easily produced, what else would you like to see built from it?

[Source] Yahoo News

 

[Dags90]

Awesome.

Lets see how many "BUT WHAT IF IT RAINS" comments we get on this one.

BUT WHAT IF IT RAINS...organic solvent! You know, it could happen.

You're riding your cardboard bike home with your fresh jug of dichloromethane and fall down, breaking the jug. Not only do you have to pick up more methylene chloride, your bike has melted in several important places.

For $20, I'd probably buy one though.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

I'd buy one if I lived somewhere where it almost never rains. In Florida, we practically have a monsoon season, so it wouldn't really work. Although at $20 I could afford to buy a new one every few months...

 

[Scarim Coral]

Well I guess the most likely product to be made next from that material is the Scooter and Unicycle.
As from me I guess I would like to see clothing rack or table etc made from that material. It will make my job alot easier (when I have to carry the product to the back at the store during work).

 

[DugMachine]

My fat arse would probably squash the damn thing. Cool idea though. And Water resistant eh... we'll see when it gets out in public and swarms of sweaty asses put it to the test.

 

[DoPo]

Nope - I don't think I would get it. But then again, I can't ride a bike, so I may not be the best judge for its value.

So Escapists, if his cardboard is capable of being high strength and easily produced, what else would you like to see built from it?

Happiness, world peace, the feeling of being loved, and the memory of my grandmother.

More seriously (and mundane, and boring), though, I can totally go for wardrobe, drawers, desks, chairs, beds and other furniture. Cheap and light, why not? I have 4 wooden chairs in this flat, one is almost completely broken, another is on its way to this state, the other two are fine for now but it's just a matter of time (and being used for, well, sitting. They are not exactly designed good). I don't want to be paying massive amounts of money to replace them, especially since I'm renting the place. I'd like to have a cheap and easy option.

 

[Rawne1980]

Blue Peter popped into my head reading this.

"Buy you a bike son?"

"No need, here's one I made earlier".

 

[Slayer_2]

Think of how light that bike could be... Less weight = greater top speed and acceleration. Just take my money!

 

[Shaved Apple]

I'd still like a $120 dollar bike please.

 

[DoomyMcDoom]

Considering it's low price, and the fact that I only have my feet for transportation at the moment if I could buy one where I live, I would.

 

[Owen Robertson]

But what if it rains? I'm still not clear on that.

 

[BabySinclair]

But what if it rains? I'm still not clear on that.

Organic sealant makes it fire and water retardant. They apparently put a cross section of the material in a water tank for a month and it hadn't degraded so rain shouldn't be a problem.

More seriously (and mundane, and boring), though, I can totally go for wardrobe, drawers, desks, chairs, beds and other furniture. Cheap and light, why not? I have 4 wooden chairs in this flat, one is almost completely broken, another is on its way to this state, the other two are fine for now but it's just a matter of time (and being used for, well, sitting. They are not exactly designed good). I don't want to be paying massive amounts of money to replace them, especially since I'm renting the place. I'd like to have a cheap and easy option.

Furniture would be awesome, I'm renting too and having to move all my furniture in a few months is going to be a pain. If it was disposable though it would solve that.

 

[gigastar]

I wouldnt call something fireproof until you leave in in the hands of a pyromaniac such as myself, theres the fires used for material testing and quality control then theres the fires i put down when im bored.

 

[Kae]

Nice idea, I'd love this, my bicycles always get stolen, so this would be great as replacing them would be inexpensive enough to do it, or maybe people wouldn't steal it because it's dirt cheap, in any case I definitely approve of this.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

But what if it rains? I'm still not clear on that.

Organic sealant makes it fire and water retardant. They apparently put a cross section of the material in a water tank for a month and it hadn't degraded so rain shouldn't be a problem.



Furniture would be awesome, I'm renting too and having to move all my furniture in a few months is going to be a pain. If it was disposable though it would solve that.

Okay, now that's different. When I hear "water resistant" I think of things that aren't quite water proof. Usually "water resistant" cardboard would get destroyed if you left it out in the rain, it just wouldn't fall apart on the walk from the driveway to the house if it happened to be raining. I was thinking of this as something for climates where it doesn't rain much, like much of the middle east.

Well I guess the most likely product to be made next from that material is the Scooter and Unicycle.
As from me I guess I would like to see clothing rack or table etc made from that material. It will make my job alot easier (when I have to carry the product to the back at the store during work).

More seriously (and mundane, and boring), though, I can totally go for wardrobe, drawers, desks, chairs, beds and other furniture. Cheap and light, why not? I have 4 wooden chairs in this flat, one is almost completely broken, another is on its way to this state, the other two are fine for now but it's just a matter of time (and being used for, well, sitting. They are not exactly designed good). I don't want to be paying massive amounts of money to replace them, especially since I'm renting the place. I'd like to have a cheap and easy option.

Most cheap furniture is already essentially made out of cardboard. Go to Ikea sometime and look for furniture with veneer that doesn't cover the back. You'll notice the "particle board" they use is made of sandwiched layers of paper, not the usual glued together chunks of wood. In other words, it's cardboard.

 

[White Lightning]

Nope - I don't think I would get it. But then again, I can't ride a bike, so I may not be the best judge for its value.

So Escapists, if his cardboard is capable of being high strength and easily produced, what else would you like to see built from it?

Happiness, world peace, the feeling of being loved, and the memory of my grandmother.

More seriously (and mundane, and boring), though, I can totally go for wardrobe, drawers, desks, chairs, beds and other furniture. Cheap and light, why not? I have 4 wooden chairs in this flat, one is almost completely broken, another is on its way to this state, the other two are fine for now but it's just a matter of time (and being used for, well, sitting. They are not exactly designed good). I don't want to be paying massive amounts of money to replace them, especially since I'm renting the place. I'd like to have a cheap and easy option.

What do you mean "Can't ride a bike"?

Cardboard bikes eh? I'll stick with mine but thanks for asking.

 

[DoPo]

What do you mean "Can't ride a bike"?

I never learned how to ride one. I know, shocking, isn't it. If I try, I'll most certainly fall over without getting too far.

Don't worry, I already feel like a lesser person for it.

 

[recurve6]

Just looking at it makes me want one; the design is some pretty cool pseudo-future stuff. I'm worried that the seat is going to be super uncomfortable though.