Dirt cheap bikes for kids!

[GaryA]

I spent a few weeks looking in vain for a decent bike for the young un.
Local papers, e-bay even newsagents windows; they awere all too pricey, too nasty, too heavy or just plain crappy (read halfords)

A relative mentioned that they sold them at the local tip-aka recycling village shop so popped along on my day off.
hey presto lots of refurbished semi-decent bikes in all sizes which folk (with more money than sense) had chucked out.

Pounced on this Giant Animator when I seen it just the right size, nice condition and cost £10, that right a tenner.

Apart from missing the front bit of the mudguard its just about mechanically perfect with proper bearings, brakes etc...the stabilisers I fitted cost more than the bike.


There was also a number of old but servicable adult bikes for £30-£50 ideal for a winter/commuting hack

so...save the environment and beat the system, by popping down to your local tip. you know it makes sense.


Owner Customised with dandilions ;

 

[Arch]

Well done!

Of course, it's not every tip that will let you buy stuff.

Here in York, all bikes brought to the tip go to Bike Rescue, who do them up, or if they are past that, salvage what parts they can, and then sell them on - not dirt cheap, but at decent secondhand prices.

http://www.bikerescueproject.org.uk/

 

[threebikesmcginty]

Nice one. Right grotty area you live in though, all those fields, trees and stuff.

 

[GaryA]

Well done!

Of course, it's not every tip that will let you buy stuff.

Here in York, all bikes brought to the tip go to Bike Rescue, who do them up, or if they are past that, salvage what parts they can, and then sell them on - not dirt cheap, but at decent secondhand prices.

http://www.bikerescueproject.org.uk/

That looks like a upmarket version of the scheme ours does....
.
BTW Arch; how is your nephew these days; Oli? I know he's the same age as James.

 

[GaryA]

Nice one. Right grotty area you live in though, all those fields, trees and stuff.

Thats about a mile from the house..... if only you could see the dump we come from less than a year ago.

 

[Arch]

That looks like a upmarket version of the scheme ours does....
.
BTW Arch; how is your nephew these days; Oli? I know he's the same age as James.

Currently recovering from a faceplant over the handlebars of a nursery tricycle, but otherwise, brilliant. A genius, of course, and far too good looking for his own good. An expert on sealife, thanks to Octonauts, and also on astronomy, and 'the name of the man who designed the Boardman/Lotus bike, due to Auntie Sue knowing him'.

He goes to Big School in September, I can't believe he's nearly 4 already.

And coping well with the presence of Max, now 1 and just starting to walk, being a demon crawler.

 

[GaryA]

Currently recovering from a faceplant over the handlebars of a nursery tricycle, but otherwise, brilliant. A genius, of course, and far too good looking for his own good. An expert on sealife, thanks to Octonauts, and also on astronomy, and 'the name of the man who designed the Boardman/Lotus bike, due to Auntie Sue knowing him'.

He goes to Big School in September, I can't believe he's nearly 4 already.

And coping well with the presence of Max, now 1 and just starting to walk, being a demon crawler.

He sounds great..its some responsibility being able to influence their behaviour and interests for the rest of their lives...Ive always believed the first 10 years are the most formative. James is a budding naturalist, cyclist, long distance walker , and slightly worringly a steam train nerd with a unquenchable curiosity, which can be tiring because every other sentence involves "why" and "whats that called"

Like oli he starts infant school in sept and is massive for his age, I mean even I blink in disbelief when I see some photos of him..
3ys 9 months or 7?

 

[Arch]

Gosh yes, he's a big lad!

I haven't heard Oli do the 'why' thing much, he just seems to absorb anything he's told, or hears. And he claims to be the 'expert' at most things.

Here he is being expert at Fuzzy Felt:



And here, expert at gurning in a hat:



Apparently, today he was going to the Nat Hist with his Dad to see the dinosaurs...

 

[cyberknight]

Well done!

Of course, it's not every tip that will let you buy stuff.

Our tip is run by a private company who sell stuff on for profit, you cannot take anything from it even if it is in the general waste skip or offer to buy it.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Like oli he starts infant school in sept and is massive for his age, I mean even I blink in disbelief when I see some photos of him..

I blink in disbelief now I've spied Mrs GaryA

 

[GaryA]

I blink in disbelief now I've spied Mrs GaryA

Tut tut

 

[Fab Foodie]

Tut tut

Yep, that's me to a Tee!

 

[atbman]

Congratulations - looks great.

Unfortunately you have comitted the cardinal sin of leaving the stabilisers on. This is a baad thing as having to unlearn them in order to learn to ride, nipper will be scarred for life.

Remove them at once, or, since this is a cycling site, a flame war will start (oops!, I think it already has).

 

[MacB]

good pick up there Gaz, our local tip is the same, all quite formal now and the going rate is £10 for a good un and £5 for a wreck. Strange though, when it was just adhoc I could go and browse, snaffle individual parts, do deals, etc, but most of the bikes ended up scrapped. Now, they're selling like hotcakes and hardly any are being scrapped. All they've done is move them from a heap in between two big skip units into the formal sales 'shed'.