Osobike

This may interest some people on the forum. I have developed a new bike that is kind of a mix between a crusier and a road bike. The frame is a road/track bike frame, but it is single speed and has a coaster brake like a crusier. So you get the low maintenence benefit of a crusier (no gears, derailers or calipher brakes to adjust), but the bike is light wieght and fast like a road bike. Also the bike has a modern look to it. You can see the bike at http://wwww.osobike.com.
Also if you go to youtube there are two videos under search word "osobike". The Osobike should be ready for sale in August.
Shane Stock
Laredo, TX

 

So, you're too cheap to use legitimate advertising, so instead you use SPAM?

 

Alligator:

Why don't you let somebody from administration deside what is spam and what isn't?

 

Your link is wrong in the initial message (an extra W)

I think the bike has some potential market, but not for me in the current configuration...

But, I do have a few comments. Some of the information may be on your site, but I did not see it on a quick look through.

I would be hesitant about buying the paired spoke wheel with a coaster brake due to the torque applied during braking. If this is indeed a non-issue due to your own engineering or testing results, you should address it on your web site for peace of mind of potential buyers. At least it isn't a low spoke count wheel.

On your web site, in the area helping to guide sizing based on inseam, the word "is" repeats itself in each line.

The frame sizing for a traditional non-sloping top tube seems very limited... Your target market seems to be everyone from about 5' 9" to 6' 1" (probably a little more range, but not much). In fact, the total size range is from slightly below my usual frame size to my upper limit of frame size.

Many riders that would buy based on performance will want to see more on the frame geometry than just the seat tube length.

I assume reflectors will need to be included on bikes that you actually sell, although they are not pictured on the bike on the site. You may want to include them on the site's pictures to avoid potential liability issues.

Also, many adult bikes with coaster brakes have traditionally had a front caliper brake since the front brake is very useful for panic stops. It would be nice to at least have it available as an option, or at a minimum ensure that the bike is set up to easily add aftermarket brakes (and let potential buyers know that the bike is ready for brakes if desired).

I would personally like to see a model set up for use with an internally geared hub of some sort for those of us that live among hills. I know this goes against the simplicity element, but just in case you branch out.

Good luck on your endeavor.

EDIT:

Just looked again at the sizing... I remembered wrong. 52-56 seems a little small It must have a pretty high BB. Anyway, I did notice you do have a little more info on sizing as well, like top tube. You may also want to include angles, which mean nothing to me, but some people care about such things.

Again, looks like the start of something good.

 

Edit:
I couldn't find an edit tab so I will have to just write this here-- the link is http://www.osobike.com.
Shane

 

Gregory,
1. I have been test riding the paired spokes for a couple of months, and have not had a problem. The design is patented by Rolf Dietrich
2. Thank you for noticing the extra "is". I will fix that
3. The frame sizing is based on looking on an other website and noticing which sizes sold out first.
4. If anybody is interested in more geometry, they can email me and I can give them angles to the 1/10 of a degree and tube sizing to the mm. I didn't put it in the website becuause my guess it that most people don't care or don't understand the difference.
5. Yes the bike comes with reflectors. I just didn't put them in the pictures.
6. The front caliper brake WILL be an option.
7. I don't like internally geared hubs. Actually, I haven't tryed one for about 30 years. The last one I tried didn't work very good.
Thank you for your interest and comments about the osobike.
Shane

 

Why should I buy this bike and what makes it so different from all the other boxed up single speeds available. Coaster brake will not be a strong selling point unless you targeting a beach crowd but with the skinny road tires this rig would be useless anyway good luck. Can I order one with a flip flop hub?

 

To me the coaster brake DOES make a big difference. The general conception that coaster brakes are only good for beach crusiers and kids bikes is one that I am trying to shake. Why do you think that? The skinny road tires is one of the features that makes this bike very easy to pedal.

There are people interested in the low maintenence features of a crusier, but they don't like the old fashioned look and weight of a cruiser. The Osobike has a modern look and only weighs 20 pounds. 20 pounds is light for a bike with a chome-moly (steel) frame.
Shane

 

Spam with built in anti-spam.

 

I recon there's a huge (well maybe not HUGE) market of wannabe fixie riders... 'cos it looks brakeless.

If you made one in black I'd buy it... how much ship (surface insured) to Fiji?

 

Do you think this bike would work for amateur track races? Unfortunately, I cannot trust your reviews, because they are all written similarly, especially the context and repetition of the word "real" was used in it.

 

Well, all I can do is tell you that they are real reviews from real people. If you don't want to believe it, that's up to you. Once the bikes get here people will put some comments on the forums, so hopefully that will help you.
Shane

 

I think that for some amateur track races, they will let you ride on almost anything [contact the track you plan to race at ... you can contact [email protected] to see what THEIR limitations and/or restrictions are ... the Northbrook Velodrome is probably only a couple of hours from where you live], but ...

IMO, you would be much better off buying a USED track bike from someone ... OR, ponying up a little extra for a starter-level BIANCHI PISTA bike (if you want a 'new' bike) ...

BECAUSE if you were to buy the OSO bike then you would, minimally, need a new rear wheel [a coaster brake hub will have MORE resistance/drag than a "regular" ROAD hub]... plus, new handlebars.

Real TRACK hubs are generally LESS sealed than ROAD hubs -- a TRACK hub will be seemingly open to the world when compared to a ROAD hub because you are theoretically only going a short distance & any maintenance (e.g., lubing ... heavy oil instead of grease is probably more common than not) can be attended to, immediately. You would, therefore, also want a new front wheel. If you were to use a TRACK wheelset on the roadway, you might need to repack the bearings after almost every ride if you encounter inclement conditions.

AND, the handling will presumably be significantly different with the OSO bike which has an unknown headtube angle ... if the OSO bike was truly designed for the road, then its headtube will be probably be between 73º & 72º whereas a steeper angle of 74º would be more common on a PISTA/(TRACK) bike's frame ... also, a TRACK frame will generally have a fork which has less rake ...

Plus, a "true" PISTA frame will probably have a higher bottom bracket to facilitate pedal clearance when on the banked portion of the track.

What works on a track isn't the best for the road, and vice-versa.

If you can't find a used PISTA bike for a reasonable price, then I would suggest you be on the lookout for a used, "English"/"diamond" framed, 26" 3-speed bike which has an ENGLISH THREADED bottom bracket (optional ... you can just put a new, square taper spindle in the cups) that is in fairly good condition (i.e., limited-to-zero rust) ... strip the parts off, put on a pair of TRACK WHEELS + a new crankset/chain + stem-and-handlebars + alloy seatpost & your saddle.

A 26" frame will give you the higher BB that you'll want when you mount 700c wheels in the frame.

Changing the crank is optional, but something you would want to do at some point to knock some weight off the bike. Et cetera.

The drawback to using an old 26" frame (and, definitely NOT a Schwinn Varsity or OTHER American frame!) is that the headtube will probably have a REALLY SLACK angle -- it will be no steeper than 72º; and, possibly slacker ...

The advantage is that if you do reconfigure a 26" bike for your amateur track races AND get a good TRACK wheelset, you can always use the wheelset on a "real" TRACK frame at some point in the future ... regardless, you should be able to cobble something together BETTER for 'track races' for less than the retail cost (plus, shipping!) of the OSO bike.

 

Shane, I like the bike and the concept. The Osobike is simple, it looks good, and it doesn't cost too much. I imagine it rides a lot more comfortably than my fixie based on a 40-year-old track bike. Are you looking for dealers?

 

What does the bike weigh?