The 2011 Boxbike (sold out for 2011)

As of October 2011 we’re sold out of the Boxbike and are moving forward to a better model with a Portland-made frame, due out in spring 2012. Pre-orders are being taken now with a 50% deposit.

Some of the changes:

Frame production is moving from China back home. No, we’re not dyslexic.

We’re using higher-grade, stronger, lighter steel: American-made 4130 cromoly.

Powdercoating, box construction, fabric work, wheelbuilding, and assembly will remain local. The price will go up, but the money will stay right here. By the way, don’t shop at Walmart.

The geometry will be closer to that of the ShuttleBug for better hill-climbing and control, less fatigue, and the ability to stand up and pedal.

E-assist, dyno hub, smart phone charger, speakers for your music, and many other options will be available.

Entry-level versions start around $3000. That’s what it costs to make this bike in America.

Shipping: We ship the Boxbike within the US and Canada. The bike ships nearly 100% assembled and on a pallet. Shipping dimensions: 96 x 32 x 40″, 150 lbs.

Indianapolis Cycle Specialists, a Joe Bike dealer, still has one or two Boxbikes remaining.

Farewell to our former Boxbike model. You’ve exceeded expectations, former Boxbike model! Here’s what it was…

The 2011 boxbike ($1699) is nimble, well-spec’d, and powdercoated and assembled in Portland. It’s incredibly easy to ride. A new, made-in-Portland wooden cabin (photos below) is now standard with no price increase over last year’s model. This new box, made of premium marine-grade plywood, carries up to 200 lbs. To see how one family uses their Boxbike, check out this review with plenty of photos.

Standard features include quick-adjust seat height so that you and your partner can both ride, a Shimano dynamo hub that powers a light-sensitive Shimano front light, a rear-wheel, a very steady four-point kickstand, a folding bench with two sets of safety harnesses, and a sturdy rear rack. The standard drivetrain is based on Shimano’s premium Redband 8-speed internally geared hub matched with Shimano’s best roller brake (it’s not a coaster brake!), the amazing IM-80, which in this application is superior to a rear disc brake. (The older IM-70 is shown in photos below.)The rollerbrake stops heavy loads with better modulation than a disc brake and with less likelihood of locking up. The IM-80 is also maintenance-free in that, unlike disc brakes, there are no pads to replace, there’s no rotor that can get bent, you can’t contaminate it with misplaced oil and, versus hydraulics, there are no lines to bleed.

Shown below is our new standard box, handmade in Portland. The bench folds up and out of the way for cargo.

Even the safety harnesses are handmade in Portland.

Made-in-Portland rain canopies that cover your hands as well as your kids are available ($200).

Add an Avid BB7 front disc brake with a Shimano Alfine dyno hub and Planet Bike light with capacitor, $300 (or the same brake without a dyno hub or light, $195). Schwalbe Marathon tires with Kevlar belt and reflective sidewalls, $79 for the pair.

Options available now:

Planet Bike fenders ($50 pair), Portland-made Sykes Wood Fenders ($150 pair), Crane brass bell ($15) or Portland Design Works King of Ding brass bell ($20), rear light ($20; front dyno light is standard). For sunnier regions of the US, a Portland-made shade canopy is available for $250.

Optional Nuvinci N360 hub (shown above with Shimano IM-80 roller brake; add $200 for the n360) for extremely low-end gearing–great for getting up hills (we gear the standard drivetrain low, but the n360 has a somewhat wider range, allowing you to climb even steeper grades with weight in the box). The n360 is much lighter than the first-generation Nuvinci, has a wider range, and gives you precisely the feel you want–no gears! In fact it feels more like a muscle and gives you precisely the feel and torque that you want.

Colors available now:

none. sorry.

Origin: Over 90% of all bikes sold in the US are made, painted, assembled, and packed in China. After a few stops along the way, the bikes arrive in US bike shops in about 90% assembled condition and require maybe 30 minutes of local labor before they’re on the sales floor. Our boxbike is based on a frame made in China, and everything else is done in Portland: powdercoating/liquid painting, the box, the optional canopy, and full assembly. There is thus as much domestic input with the boxbike as there can be, short of making the frame in the US. Likewise, there is significantly more domestic input with this boxbike than with any factory-made cargo bike on the market. This also allows us to customize the bike for you to a much greater extent than with any factory-made bike.

For our fully handmade-in-Portland ShuttleBug, please click here.