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Actually this is not accurate and somewhat bad advice. A normal bicycle frame is designed for... normal use. No need for ebikes but child seats should be used

Actually this is not accurate and somewhat bad advice. A normal bicycle frame is designed for... normal use. No need for ebikes but child seats should be used on reenforced frames such as what the Dutch call "Moederfiets", you can also use a 'Transportfiets' frame. You are adding an extra 5 Kg to your front steering tube and another 20 kilos to your back cargo loader. That is not what most frames were designed for. Secondly things like double leg kickstands and steering stem lock are really important to load kids in and out of seats safely, which again don't exist in 'normal' bikes. My point is you don't need an ebike but you should definitely not be using an off the shelf thin frame to carry kids around everyday.

mrob 4y ago
Exactly. Weight distribution makes a big difference to how the bike handles. If you put a lot of weight on the back without balancing it with weight at the front you'll lose grip on the front wheel easily, which can be dangerous. Front wheel skids are almost impossible to control.
- uoaei 4y ago
  That would be a good example of something we call "user error". I am also not surprised that the first instinct of the risk-averse is "make it heavier", but look where that's got us with cars?
uoaei 4y ago
I regularly load 40kg+ on a steel touring frame (a remarkably "normal" bike by all accounts) and it's lasted 12 years so far. Yes, you shouldn't use a department store bike. I (mistakenly?) assumed this is obvious to this reading crowd. You sound like you have never worked on a bike before. It is not difficult to add different kinds of kickstands to existing frames. I believe you are quite under-informed on bicycle capacities.
- DoingIsLearning 4y ago
  Your regularly sounds like something that happens on the weekends. My regular is taking 2 kids to school everyday and leaving my bike parked out in the rain year round. Not all bikes have enough trail room to fit a double legged kickstand and I have never seen a stem lock fitted on anything other than a moederfiets/transportfiets (not a lock smith 'key and lock' but a 'twist' lock to lock the stem to take your kid out of the front seat without the front wheel spinning around on you). My point is just that if you're planning on replacing a car with a bycicle there are already solved problems for kids transportation.

mrob 4y ago

Exactly. Weight distribution makes a big difference to how the bike handles. If you put a lot of weight on the back without balancing it with weight at the front you'll lose grip on the front wheel easily, which can be dangerous. Front wheel skids are almost impossible to control.

uoaei 4y ago
That would be a good example of something we call "user error". I am also not surprised that the first instinct of the risk-averse is "make it heavier", but look where that's got us with cars?

uoaei 4y ago

I regularly load 40kg+ on a steel touring frame (a remarkably "normal" bike by all accounts) and it's lasted 12 years so far. Yes, you shouldn't use a department store bike. I (mistakenly?) assumed this is obvious to this reading crowd. You sound like you have never worked on a bike before. It is not difficult to add different kinds of kickstands to existing frames. I believe you are quite under-informed on bicycle capacities.

DoingIsLearning 4y ago
Your regularly sounds like something that happens on the weekends. My regular is taking 2 kids to school everyday and leaving my bike parked out in the rain year round. Not all bikes have enough trail room to fit a double legged kickstand and I have never seen a stem lock fitted on anything other than a moederfiets/transportfiets (not a lock smith 'key and lock' but a 'twist' lock to lock the stem to take your kid out of the front seat without the front wheel spinning around on you). My point is just that if you're planning on replacing a car with a bycicle there are already solved problems for kids transportation.