I'd never paid too much attention to child seats since we don't have children ourselves, but JJ's comment yesterday prompted me to take a closer look.
In the parking lot behind our building, there seemed to be mostly 2 types of seats.
One is the metal caged seat that sits on the rear rack.
This one is in its basic state.
This one has cushions and a head rest.
This brown one has a slightly different cage design.
This has patterned fabric and a Hello Kitty bell for the child.
The other popular one is the handlebar integrated basket/seat.
This one has a handle bar lockout dial on the back.
This one even has a wind shield!
This bike has both seats. Until recently, it was actually illegal to carry more than 1 child on a bike, but the law changed so that specifically designed bikes are permitted to carry 2 children. I don't think this is one of them, but I don't think the law is enforced too much, at least not in this part of Kawasaki.
They really seem to change the look of the bike. If I was designing a bike with these seats, I think I would want to paint them to match the bike. Maybe painting it all blue like the Pereira Oregon Manifest bike would be cool.
The seat in the top picture was one in its intended use. That's yet another design as well.
It's cool to see that so many people use the bicycle for all kinds of everyday transportation needs.
Posts
Very cool! Thanks for this post. There are so many options! Here it's pretty much a Topeak or Bobike and that's it (and there's a new seat by Xtracycle that works with their bikes too though I haven't seen one in person yet)
ReplyDeleteI like that they all have handlebars for the kids too. My Bobike doesn't have that - it'd be nice to have a place for a bell for my son. Though it'd probably drive me crazy in reality! :)
Glad you liked the post.
ReplyDeleteThe one in the top picture, I found id made by Hamax which I think is a Norwegian brand. I think it's attached to the seatpost and is easily removable.
http://www.hamax.com/?CatID=1157
Hi, I am a Norwegian who is aiming for a child seat different from Hamax. I really fell for the shots you took of especially the brown and the patterned cage design.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I have been searching the web endlessly without finding any manufacture like it. It is so cool and vintage and seems both comfortable and secure. Do you know which japanese brand it is, and if they have an internation webshop?
All the best
Andreas/Norway
After looking for months to an alternative to the molded plastic ones that are common here in North America, I just found the white metal basket-style child seat shown above for sale on the Bicycle Hero website. It comes with a cushion for the bottom and a seatbelt that looks like it's a three-point harness. They do ship internationally and also sell through eBay. I have ordered it and I'll let you know what I think!
ReplyDeleteI found this old post and I would be very interested about this type of model http://www.flickr.com/photos/mumblion/4063494736/
ReplyDeleteCould you help me to find it, I'm in Finland and Bicycle hero has only the basket for babies.
hi palsta, I think that one is made by Bridgestone.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bscycle.co.jp/root/catalog/option/childseat.html
I'm not sure if you can buy it in Finland, but I hope you find a good one.
We lived in Korea and used our bikes for transportation daily. The white basket that converts to a kid seat is a staple there, and made in Korea. BicycleHero.com is a Korean company and the only place online I can find that ships these. They also have an ebay presence. good luck and great post!
ReplyDelete