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The BOM for this wheel chair is probably 200-300 of just wheels and bearings maybe more. People who say this can be bought for 200$ are completely out of touch.

The BOM for this wheel chair is probably 200-300 of just wheels and bearings maybe more. People who say this can be bought for 200$ are completely out of touch. You can’t even buy a decent bike for much under a grad new and bikes have much better scale.

andybak 2y ago
My bike cost £75
- unreal6 2y ago
  was it new?
- r0fl 2y ago
  A decent bike for a child costs more than that these days in North America. You either bought this bike used, stolen, in 1989 or are trolling.
  - andybak 2y ago
    I bought it used. Why does that discount my statement?
  - geerlingguy 2y ago
    Even a cheap Walmart kids bike costs more than that now. (Even the toddler bikes are reaching up there in price.)
  - hug 2y ago
    This thread is bonkers. I'm not even American and it took me all of two minutes to find a bike for $118 USD (or about 90 GBP) available from Walmart. Here it is: https://www.walmart.com/ip/1121295 https://www.walmart.com/ip/1121295 It looks like a perfectly serviceable bike, if not the most amazing experience. I bet you with proper maintenance it could last you decades and thousands of miles. People in this thread who are claiming a new bike is nearly $1000 are on another planet. I get that this isn't a wheelchair, doesn't have anything to do with wheelchair prices, and I would certainly not want to rely on this thing in the way a wheelchair user must rely on their chair, but c'mon, guys, stop with the wild hyperbole about bike prices.
    - inferiorhuman 2y ago
      https://www.vice.com/en/article/mechanics-ask-walmart-major-bike-manufacturers-to-stop-making-and-selling-built-to-fail-bikes/ https://www.vice.com/en/article/mechanics-ask-walmart-major-... https://old.reddit.com/r/MTB/comments/z2d5h5/walmart_bike_unsafe_out_of_store_repair/ https://old.reddit.com/r/MTB/comments/z2d5h5/walmart_bike_un... So for $118 you get a really poor quality bike that you probably can't repair. Or perhaps you'll end up with one that's just unsafe. $400–500 is probably a reasonable price point, but that'll get you something that's adequate at best. Heavy, clunky, and unpleasant to ride.
      - lostlogin 2y ago
        That ‘Heavy, clunky’ bit is key. A good bike is addictive to ride. It’s like a sharp knife through butter.
      - hug 2y ago
        Yes, the $118 bike is not going to be much fun, and may be assembled dangerously. It's still a bike, though, and a little TLC and attention to assembly before riding will prevent a significant number of problems. Even the reddit thread you linked just required some screw tightening and replacement of a derailleur -- and a cheap Shimano derailleur is $20 from my local bike store. Even if we completely discount the $118 bike (plus a $20 part), though... > $400–500 is probably a reasonable price point This is a far cry from "much under a grand". Yes, it will be heavy and clunky, but it will function in all of the ways that it is important for a bike to function.
        inferiorhuman 2y ago
        Yes, the $118 bike is not going to be much fun, and may be assembled dangerously. No, it'll be built dangerously. A cheap Shimano derailleur won't fix cracked welds or a broken frame. TLC won't make the frame true. Doubtful it'll last more than a few miles really. Yes, it will be heavy and clunky, but it will function in all of the ways that it is important for a bike to function. Ehh it'll be the bare minimum that you probably won't want to use.
  - nothercastle 2y ago
    A good Kids bike is easily 300-400. If you want one that weighs less than your kid that’s what you have to pay.
    - deleted 2y ago
      [deleted]
    - dsego 2y ago
      And it makes a world of difference for a small kid as I've experienced recently, totally worth it if you can afford a lightweight bike (eg 5kg 16" vs standard 8-9kg).
      - nothercastle 2y ago
        Absolutely, some of these bikes are the adult equivalent of 150lb bikes for kids. No wonder the kids hate them. Even a light weight bike is like a 70lb bike.
        meowster 2y ago
        They do? I don't remember hating my bike when I was a kid, and I had the cheap kind. I also don't remember it being too heavy or anything. Of course if I wanted to ride my bike, I had to lift the heavy wooden garage door up (elementary-school-age). Kids that I volunteer with all seem weak and have issues that I never had. There's a parable about helping a butterfly out of a cocoon: https://paulocoelhoblog.com/2007/12/10/the-lesson-of-the-butterfly/ https://paulocoelhoblog.com/2007/12/10/the-lesson-of-the-but...
  - ndileas 2y ago
    You say used like it's a slur. There are many fairly high quality bikes to be had used for a reasonable price in most areas of the us. With a few tools and a can-do attitude, you can make almost any bike fit for use. My current daily bike cost about $50. I replaced maybe $100 of bearings and other wear parts. Going on year 4 of medium use now; still works great. Obviously not everyone wants a new hobby of fixing bikes. But its a great time for almost any hacker or maker.
- dghlsakjg 2y ago
  Would you be willing to spend all day every day on it? Would you be willing to pin your entire ability to leave home on it?
  - deleted 2y ago
    [deleted]
- rtkwe 2y ago
  This isn't a bike though... It's a nearly custom fit medical device they'll use most of their waking hours where bad fits can cause permanent damage to their bodies. Their configurator has ~25k options just for the frame fit ignoring colors and all the other parts of the wheelchair.
- amiga386 2y ago
  My bike cost £30 (because I got it from a bike charity that sells excess donated bikes to the public to raise funds) As of today, the cheapest adult bike-shaped-object in Halfords is £116. It's another £35 if you want them to assemble it, although Halfords are infamous for having pictures of incorrectly assembled bikes in their own catalogue
metadat 2y ago
https://bikesdirect.com/ https://bikesdirect.com/ Lots of good bikes in the $300-500 range. I've had one for more than 12 years and thousands of miles without issue or drama. I paid $300 for a single speed road bike from BD in 2012, it looks fancier than it is with a carbon fiber fork. Added some Gatorskin tires and it's worked ever since, I only clean and lube the chain every 5 years so far. Made in Canadia.
- ProllyInfamous 2y ago
  To second this: I've owned three "Motobecanes" [Bikes Direct] and one of them is still going strong, since 2014. The purchases from 2009 was stolen, and the 2011 bike didn't survive a gnarly crash — to no fault of BikesDirect.com
- lostlogin 2y ago
  Please clean the chain more! The feel of riding it after makes it worth it, and a decent degreaser makes the job trivial.
  - metadat 2y ago
    I wait until it's noisy >..< Agree, after a fresh cleaning it's silky smooth!
- nothercastle 2y ago
  Most companies have a basic of the basic bikes in the 400-500 range but these are built with cheap parts that won’t last more than a season. A step up from that would be a 700-100$ bike that’s more likely to last. For daily wheelchair use don’t expect the 500$ level parts to be good enough.
  - Tepix 2y ago
    You're replying to someone who just stated they have such a bike and it has already lasted 12 years.
    - 2y ago
pkphilip 2y ago
[dead]

andybak 2y ago

My bike cost £75

unreal6 2y ago
was it new?
r0fl 2y ago
A decent bike for a child costs more than that these days in North America. You either bought this bike used, stolen, in 1989 or are trolling.
- andybak 2y ago
  I bought it used. Why does that discount my statement?
- geerlingguy 2y ago
  Even a cheap Walmart kids bike costs more than that now. (Even the toddler bikes are reaching up there in price.)
- hug 2y ago
  This thread is bonkers. I'm not even American and it took me all of two minutes to find a bike for $118 USD (or about 90 GBP) available from Walmart. Here it is: https://www.walmart.com/ip/1121295 https://www.walmart.com/ip/1121295 It looks like a perfectly serviceable bike, if not the most amazing experience. I bet you with proper maintenance it could last you decades and thousands of miles. People in this thread who are claiming a new bike is nearly $1000 are on another planet. I get that this isn't a wheelchair, doesn't have anything to do with wheelchair prices, and I would certainly not want to rely on this thing in the way a wheelchair user must rely on their chair, but c'mon, guys, stop with the wild hyperbole about bike prices.
  - inferiorhuman 2y ago
    https://www.vice.com/en/article/mechanics-ask-walmart-major-bike-manufacturers-to-stop-making-and-selling-built-to-fail-bikes/ https://www.vice.com/en/article/mechanics-ask-walmart-major-... https://old.reddit.com/r/MTB/comments/z2d5h5/walmart_bike_unsafe_out_of_store_repair/ https://old.reddit.com/r/MTB/comments/z2d5h5/walmart_bike_un... So for $118 you get a really poor quality bike that you probably can't repair. Or perhaps you'll end up with one that's just unsafe. $400–500 is probably a reasonable price point, but that'll get you something that's adequate at best. Heavy, clunky, and unpleasant to ride.
    - lostlogin 2y ago
      That ‘Heavy, clunky’ bit is key. A good bike is addictive to ride. It’s like a sharp knife through butter.
    - hug 2y ago
      Yes, the $118 bike is not going to be much fun, and may be assembled dangerously. It's still a bike, though, and a little TLC and attention to assembly before riding will prevent a significant number of problems. Even the reddit thread you linked just required some screw tightening and replacement of a derailleur -- and a cheap Shimano derailleur is $20 from my local bike store. Even if we completely discount the $118 bike (plus a $20 part), though... > $400–500 is probably a reasonable price point This is a far cry from "much under a grand". Yes, it will be heavy and clunky, but it will function in all of the ways that it is important for a bike to function.
      - inferiorhuman 2y ago
        Yes, the $118 bike is not going to be much fun, and may be assembled dangerously. No, it'll be built dangerously. A cheap Shimano derailleur won't fix cracked welds or a broken frame. TLC won't make the frame true. Doubtful it'll last more than a few miles really. Yes, it will be heavy and clunky, but it will function in all of the ways that it is important for a bike to function. Ehh it'll be the bare minimum that you probably won't want to use.
- nothercastle 2y ago
  A good Kids bike is easily 300-400. If you want one that weighs less than your kid that’s what you have to pay.
  - deleted 2y ago
    [deleted]
  - dsego 2y ago
    And it makes a world of difference for a small kid as I've experienced recently, totally worth it if you can afford a lightweight bike (eg 5kg 16" vs standard 8-9kg).
    - nothercastle 2y ago
      Absolutely, some of these bikes are the adult equivalent of 150lb bikes for kids. No wonder the kids hate them. Even a light weight bike is like a 70lb bike.
      - meowster 2y ago
        They do? I don't remember hating my bike when I was a kid, and I had the cheap kind. I also don't remember it being too heavy or anything. Of course if I wanted to ride my bike, I had to lift the heavy wooden garage door up (elementary-school-age). Kids that I volunteer with all seem weak and have issues that I never had. There's a parable about helping a butterfly out of a cocoon: https://paulocoelhoblog.com/2007/12/10/the-lesson-of-the-butterfly/ https://paulocoelhoblog.com/2007/12/10/the-lesson-of-the-but...
- ndileas 2y ago
  You say used like it's a slur. There are many fairly high quality bikes to be had used for a reasonable price in most areas of the us. With a few tools and a can-do attitude, you can make almost any bike fit for use. My current daily bike cost about $50. I replaced maybe $100 of bearings and other wear parts. Going on year 4 of medium use now; still works great. Obviously not everyone wants a new hobby of fixing bikes. But its a great time for almost any hacker or maker.
dghlsakjg 2y ago
Would you be willing to spend all day every day on it? Would you be willing to pin your entire ability to leave home on it?
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
rtkwe 2y ago
This isn't a bike though... It's a nearly custom fit medical device they'll use most of their waking hours where bad fits can cause permanent damage to their bodies. Their configurator has ~25k options just for the frame fit ignoring colors and all the other parts of the wheelchair.
amiga386 2y ago
My bike cost £30 (because I got it from a bike charity that sells excess donated bikes to the public to raise funds) As of today, the cheapest adult bike-shaped-object in Halfords is £116. It's another £35 if you want them to assemble it, although Halfords are infamous for having pictures of incorrectly assembled bikes in their own catalogue

metadat 2y ago

https://bikesdirect.com/ https://bikesdirect.com/ Lots of good bikes in the $300-500 range. I've had one for more than 12 years and thousands of miles without issue or drama. I paid $300 for a single speed road bike from BD in 2012, it looks fancier than it is with a carbon fiber fork. Added some Gatorskin tires and it's worked ever since, I only clean and lube the chain every 5 years so far. Made in Canadia.

ProllyInfamous 2y ago
To second this: I've owned three "Motobecanes" [Bikes Direct] and one of them is still going strong, since 2014. The purchases from 2009 was stolen, and the 2011 bike didn't survive a gnarly crash — to no fault of BikesDirect.com
lostlogin 2y ago
Please clean the chain more! The feel of riding it after makes it worth it, and a decent degreaser makes the job trivial.
- metadat 2y ago
  I wait until it's noisy >..< Agree, after a fresh cleaning it's silky smooth!
nothercastle 2y ago
Most companies have a basic of the basic bikes in the 400-500 range but these are built with cheap parts that won’t last more than a season. A step up from that would be a 700-100$ bike that’s more likely to last. For daily wheelchair use don’t expect the 500$ level parts to be good enough.
- Tepix 2y ago
  You're replying to someone who just stated they have such a bike and it has already lasted 12 years.
  - 2y ago

pkphilip 2y ago

[dead]