Inventor Who Built ‘Wheelchair’ Out of Electric Bikes for Girlfriend Starts Mass-Production
They named the fully electric off-road vehicle “Not a Wheelchair”.
Pieces of what we call “wholesome engineering” always manages to warm our hearts. About a year ago YouTuber JerryRigEverything, aka Zack Nelson, used his DIY skills to weld two e-bikes together with a seat in the center and created an “off-road wheelchair” for his then-girlfriend who is paralyzed and got around in a slow wheelchair.
Now, they are happily married and they’ve announced that they are selling the base model with no suspension and one battery for $3,750, offering the same relief Cambry got from the bike to everyone.
They’ve named the vehicle “Not a Wheelchair”, and the duo built upon the original design making it an even more reliable off-roader.
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Zack has a video on how he build this innovative piece of engineering, and he says making the fully electric wheelchair was “super fun and surprisingly simple.”
‘Super fun and surprisingly simple’ to do
He shows the entire process starting from the e-bikes to tieing a few bars of metal to the already existing supports and holes on the bike to make seat supports.
He says that his goal was to preserve as much of the structural integrity of the bikes as possible since protecting the rigidity, safety, and the security that is already built into the frame is important.
Has a top speed of 20mph
The end product has a top speed of 20mph. While it may change depending on terrain, the weight of the rider, and the weight of the cargo, it has a range of 25-35 miles with two batteries.
And the best part is that his DIY wheelchair cost a lot less than what’s out there in the market right now.
Half the price and twice the performance of other off-road wheelchairs
The bikes he used for the build cost $1,400 each, and he spent another additional $50 dollars on metal and random odds and ends, and in the end, the whole thing cost him about $3,000.
He wrote that it is “less than half the price and twice the performance of other off-road wheelchairs on the market right now.”
A typical off-roader might cost as much as a car or are super slow. In contrast, their electric bike is lightning-quick and light with a super long range.
He also added a rear rack mounting system for coolers, camping gear, or a picnic basket.
The best part of the project is that Cambry absolutely loved the vehicle since it didn’t tire out her shoulders and was much faster than her old wheelchair.
If you’re interested in picking one up, you can do through here.
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