Brockster

The most basic form of cargo bike: a department/big box Roadmaster bicycle with a milk crate on the back. Spotted at the local McDonalds one weekend morning.

bjjoondo 

This is my utility/All purpose set up!

Frogbutt

My ancient Trek 900 hybrid with a milk crate attached for grocery and beer runs.

Niloc

My Xtracycle with kids and cargo at a summer festival:


Lengthy spiel about building the bike: https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...g-an-Xtracycle

leeinmemphis

This was my first true outing with hauling something on the cargo bike. About 10 minutes later I was hit by an SUV in the shopping center parking lot where my bike shop is located. I was carrying the Cross Check in to get a wheel trued.....now it needs some touch up paint. :madman: .......and she didn't even stop!!!!!

Reynolds 

Sorry to hear that, such a bad start! But I assume you weren't injured, that's what really counts.

ocsawdust

hit and run is serious stuff, hope you got a plate number. glad your chating about it in a rather upbeat way. guessing there were no injuries on your part.

leeinmemphis

no injuries and it all happened so quick I didn't get a tag number. The bike got a few scratches but I didn't fall down or anything so I was VERY lucky. The bike went in to get the front wheel trued and I'm changing it from bar end shifters to flight deck brake/shifters. I asked them to give it a look over to make sure there wasn't anything damaged.

bent4me

Great for hauling whatever

Sixty Fiver

Going into our 4th winter together... "Stretch".

Singlespeed92

Still LOVE that

troysmith80

Needs more straps!! ;-)

skreee

I live in Tokyo and don't have a car. There's a Costco about 10 minutes ride from the university I work at that carries a lot of items that are hard to get for the price/quantity (cheese, olives, pickles, nuts, bagels, whole wheat bread, etc...) and so my office mate (who is also a bike enthusiast) ordered a Flying Pigeon from a guy down south in Japan who orders them from China to make a classic looking delivery bike. The double top tube is the thing that makes this bike look really unique. I've read that more of these have been made than any other vehicle in history. I've also read these sell for $37 USD new in China (I paid about $150 shipped). When it arrived, it was really pretty, but total junk. The original cranks were cotter pin and felt like they were made out of a tin can. The bike originally had solid rod brakes, which I thought would be so cool, turned out to be non-stopping garbage. the insides of the rims were so unfinished that they were slicing holes in my tubes, and the center stand was so weak, it bent on the first day. I rode the bike up a steep hill and I bent the pedals. The seat was falling apart within the first two weeks. It was basically unrideable after 8 weeks. It sat in my office for a full week while we decided we were going to try to ressurect it. The second of the photos shows the new and improved Pigeon. The bike underwent quite a transformation. My office mate built the box out of scrap wood he found outside (maybe a discarded futon frame?) I stenciled the Flying Pigeon logo on the box. The tire puncturing rims were replaced with a pair of used-but-nice 36 spoke mountain bike-type rims and tires we found on Yahoo auctions for 8000 Yen. We had to do a LOT of fiddling to make the tires fit in the fenders without rubbing. I was surprised, but the tires look quite good on the bike. The tread isn't modern looking and fits the aesthetic of the bike very well. The rear hub is a coaster brake connected to a 22T rear cog that's much lower and better for hauling. I've removed the rod actuated brakes, but left the rods and levers because they look badass. Notice there are no brake pads in the photo of the front brakes. Rear coaster brake only now... When riding this bike it's very important to keep reminding yourself the brake levers don't work if you don't want to crash. The cranks/46T chainring and sealed cartridge bottom bracket are the cheapo-but-decent Lasco set that originally came with my Fuji commuter single speed that I upgraded recently (I felt very lucky when I discovered that the bottom bracket shell was standard 68mm English otherwise the project might have been a no-go). When I removed the original cup and cone cotter cranks, the bearings were virtually ungreased... I'm suprised a pile of iron filings didn't fall out when I took it apart! The seat is off a Japanese shopping bike that someone had thrown away, and the pedals are these huge, black toothy double cage things that I found on clearance for 1700 Yen. They're so obnoxious that when I first saw them, I thought, "Who in the #*$% would buy these?" an then I realized... I would, for the Pigeon! The new centerstand was bought at a local Home Depot-type store, and is meant for delivery bikes. I'm not sure how much the bike weighs now, but I figure it might be 50ish pounds with the box, but it could be more. The newest addition not pictured is a black dual-hole pattern chainring that looks very tough. The final photo shows it loaded (but before the addition of the new center stand and pedals) the rear end is really squirly, and it's pretty difficult to control the bike unfortunately. Slow and steady wins the race on this bike. We had meant to build the box so it didn't extend out past the rear fender, but when we finished, and began mounting the box, we saw that it was a few inches longer, we must have measured wrong. It would have been better to sacrifice a little space in the box by building it a little shorter to improve the handling. The final touch will be a stencil on the back of the box. I'm thinking some kind of kitchy 60s style Chinese propaganda image. Not sure exactly yet, I still need to design it. In any case, we're very proud of it and feel we've managed to make something unique and functional. It get's a lot of attention here, especially from old men. I get excited every time I go to ride it!

VanTiki

I just realized the last pic of this bike was posted nearly 2 years ago on the day I picked it up! I swear, each and every day I ride it I say out loud, "man, I LOVE this bike!"

We use it 2 to 3 times a day, usually with Ms. VanTiki on the back. It is faster than a car for any errand around our town, and always more fun

Here she is:


Let's see - I've done quite a lot of modifying over the years. Here is a list of everything I can remember from tip to tail:

Jeff Jones Bar
Ergon Grips (I sawed one down to make room for the Rholoff shifter)
planet bike fenders
felt cupholder
loud copper bell
thudbuster under the saddle
Rolling Jackass Stand
custom stoker bar made from hacked up kid bike parts (with bell and felt cupholder)
custom padding for xtracycle snapdeck made with foam floor tiles and a bit of love
xtracycle running boards - I love these things! Great support for passenger feet, and heavier cargo loads
Big Apple tires
and last (but not least) the Rholoff hub with a new beefier rear rim

All of this has been dialed in over the past 2 years. I waited a year before springing for the Rholoff, as it is a HUGE purchase, and I wanted to make sure I'd be using the bike enough to justify it. I am quite glad I got it! I think the only upgrade I'd like to make from this setup is possible hydraulic brakes - as I am constantly stretching out my rear brake cable (I ride with a passenger more often than not, so brakes get lots of action).

My other ride is a Surly Disk Trucker - and I'd say my riding is 80% big Dummy and 20% Disk Trucker.

Love the cargo forum!
Henrik "VanTiki"

Sixty Fiver

It got a little better yesterday... now it has all wheel drive.



Also trimmed away the straps that I just had no purpose for although I did after testing the e-drive.

kiltedcelt

Still gotta say it, "Damn that is a cool bike!" Also, gotta love those mil-surp panniers. They were the inspiration for some that I'm making to go on my almost-complete Xtracycle. I'd love to see some photos of how your rear section was built and attached. I was considering the possibility of something like a Stokemonkey for my bike, but they're currently not in production. I've seen those front wheel drive hubs but haven't read much about them. How do they work and how much did yours cost if I may ask? Do you ride only this bike during winter, and if so, why?

hsbandit

My happy hauler. I mainly use it for short trips for groceries, library, etc. I've done 25 miles without a load, but limit load rides to 5 miles. I tried a front basket, but it didn't feel stable steering so I took it off. Trek wsd '07

bjjoondo 

I was using my 2012 Jamis Coda Sport for a "utility" machine but decided I prefered the "ride" of a steel frame for longer distances so I swapped bars and wheels, ect. and now my 2011 Allegro 1 is my "utility" machine, has coupler and kickstand due to pulling a utility trailer, stronger wheels and more treaded tires for hardpack dirt trails that make up 50% of the rail trails in our area.

Sixty Fiver

I use the extra bike all year round for all kinds of utilitarian purposes as it is such a capable hauler... it really is an outstanding winter bike due it's great tracking and stability on snow and ice and the front drive made it even better.

Monster Pete

Here's my orange donkey in 'pickup truck' mode. The box is a former Schweppes lemonade crate that I think goes well with the style of bike. It's mounted to the rack with two bolts and pieces of an old saddle so can be removed without too much hassle. I really should swap the tyres back to slicks now the snow's gone.

dramiscram

It's my winterbike as well as my utility bike.

The side pannier made from an old cat litter box, nothing new there but I'm quite proud of my anchoring system, with the wing nuts it takes about 10-15 seconds to put on or take off the pannier and it holds on great.
The whole rear rack is home made from steel bought at the hardware store and the rear pannier is a rubbermaid basket.
It's cheap, lightweight and waterproof!


It's ugly but effective.

This week end i'll start the build of my future home-made bike trailer, pics comming soon!

nubeli

I built this up from an old Norco MTB.


It's got a new fork since I wrecked the braze-ons while trying to remove the old brakes. I've installed a Velo Orange porteur-style full chainguard (can't live without it). The handlebars are from an old cruiser. Nitto stem. All new wheels, cranks, canti brakes, rack, fenders. Converted to a single speed for simplicity. Since this photo was taken I lost my u-lock (which banged around on the rack) and attached an Abus Bordo to the bottle carrier.

The bike started out as a winter beater bike when my Bianchi fell apart while I was riding it (came apart at headtube lug). But I really liked the simplicity and the way it handled so I used it all the time for city riding. I like putting on nice parts but to still have a bike that looks old and decrepid. I like to think it reduces chance of theft while still making it a great ride.

Youaintgotjack

Recently moved to the Netherlands and got two new (to us) bikes for me and my husband. I really love the batavus- it's compact, strong, holds a ton of stuff and should just keep going and going according to our LBS.

bikecopXXX

i like that x-frame design. looks strong. i think several manufacturers use it over there.

Youaintgotjack

Yes, this one is a BSP made in Holland. You don't see that many of them as you'd think, my husband loves it.