Catalyzt
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
The main reason I joined this forum was because in 2021 I stumbled across an Indiegogo project for (I think) a 39 pound aluminum hardtail for about $1,700. I think it was called Avarax.I don't know if @Katrina92 is still around, but there is a Kickstarter project for a Superbike weighing less than 20 lbs. Apparently, they will achieve this low weight by making it all carbon fiber with a small hub motor and small integrated battery. Not my cup of tea, but this may be the way to get below 20 lbs on an ebike. I am not endorsing this project at all. Just posting the link for the community's information.
I came SO close to buying it. My finger hovered over the 'buy' button for weeks. It was a very convincing project with a great website that showed bikes being assembled in the factory. They listed all the parts! And the physics almost checked out...
But not quite. I spent hours and hours adding up the numbers and looking at the costs, and finally realized: Not quite. This bike could not exist for this price.
Then I looked at the reviews for Indiegogo itself. I know lots of people will disagree with me, but I think the platform is, basically, a scam, and so is Kickstarter. They shouldn't be allowed to exist, or not to market directly to consumers. Just because some of the projects make it to market does not excuse having such a large percentage of revenue come from brazen thievery.
Of course, the bike did not exist. No bikes were ever delivered or ever existed. A Facebook group formed for disgruntled buyers and I followed it for months. Seems like about 20-30% of the buyers got some money back from their credit card companies, the rest were just out of luck.