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Here's the Prototype of a $9 Fully Ridable Cardboard Bike

So it turns out that building a fully ridable bicycle out of cardboard costs about 9 bucks. Israeli designer Giora Kariv should know, since he's just put the finishing touches on a prototype of what is probably the world's first bike to be made out of...

So it turns out that building a fully ridable bicycle out of cardboard costs about 9 bucks. Israeli designer Giora Kariv should know, since he’s just put the finishing touches on a prototype of what is probably the world’s first bike to be made out of the same material as cereal boxes.

Cory Doctorow points us to Cardboard Bikes’ home page, where you’ll ostensibly soon be able to buy one of these contraptions for yourself:

The Cardboard Bicycle Project is a new, revolutionary and green concept that produces bicycles which are made of durable recycled cardboard …The first commercial model of bicycles is designed for large companies as a vehicle for the employees and to large cities as a cheap, light-weight vehicle and parallel to it the electric model is being developed. The Cardboard Bicycle can withstand water and humidity, coated with a strong layer of brown and white material, making the finished product look like it is made of hard lightweight plastic and can carry riders weighing up to 220 kilograms. The cost to make the bicycle is around $9-$12 and the manufacturer expects that the cost to the consumer would be around $60-$90 depending on what parts they choose to add on.

Seems weird that it’s “designed for large companies” instead of the niche, hardcore bike-loving crowd, but hey—cardboard bikes. Neat.

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