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Israelis invent bicycle of cardboard
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The finished bike

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50

October 25 • 2012

zhar Gafni, 50, has invent-
ed a bicycle made almost
entirely of cardboard. He
told the Jerusalem Post his
invention can transform trans-
portation across the world.
The bicycle will include no
metal parts, even the brake
mechanism and the wheel
and pedal bearings will be
made of recycled substances. Once
the shape has been formed and cut,
the cardboard is treated with a secret
concoction made of organic materials
to give it its waterproof and fireproof
qualities. In the end, the bike is coated
with lacquer paint for an attractive
appearance.
The bicycles are not only very cheap
to make, they are very light and do
not need to be adjusted or repaired.
The solid tires made of reconstituted
rubber from old car tires will never
get a puncture. A full-size cardboard
bicycle will weigh around 20 pounds
compared to an average metal bicycle,
which weighs around 30 pounds.
In testing the durability of his inven-
tion, Gafni said he immersed a cross-
section in a water tank for several
months and it remained completely
hard throughout. Top-of-the-line bikes
cost thousands of dollars each, but this
cardboard bike should cost no more
than about $20.
Gafni said, "When we started a year
and a half or two years ago, people

The shapes and forms come like this.

laughed at us, but now we are get-
ting at least a dozen emails every day
asking where they can buy such a
bicycle..."
Nimrod Elmish, Gafni's partner,
said that initial production was set
to begin in Israel in a few months on
three bicycle models and a wheelchair,
and they will be available to purchase
within a year.
"In six months, we will have com-
pleted planning the first production
lines for an urban bike that will be
assisted by an electric motor, a smaller
bike for children in Africa, a balance
bike for youngsters learning to ride
and a wheelchair that a nonprofit
organization wants to build with our
technology for Africa:' Elmish said.
Aside from all the other benefits,
countries that cannot afford regular
bikes will now have access to this form
of transportation. 0

Story furnished by United With Israel.