New/unused ofo bikes?

Just seen today there is quite a lot of yellow ofo bikes, with shipping packaging still on them, for sale.

I’m aware of the companies demise but can’t find any info on the legality of the bikes being sold.

I’m guessing they got sold in an auction somewhere (found a similar story for Singapore)

Anyone clued up on the story?

FWIW, bike radar reviewed one, or similar. By some stretch, it was the worst bike they ever tested. Freewheel lasted half an hour (edit, 30 seconds…). I almost got one for a laugh, but seems I’d get more benefit from setting fire to the money.

Edit, wasn’t ofo, but getB, another failed Chinese bikeshare scheme bike…

https://www.bikeradar.com/features/britains-cheapest-bike-is-officially-terrible/

From the quick look I had today they are definitely not the same bikes. Nexus 3 speed and Nexus dynamo hubs on the ofo and it all seems well put together. It’s even got a dropper post😂

To be clear they are afailed bike sharing company. These are the bikes

They were truly appalling bikes even when new, fell to pieces really fast…

They weren’t that bad, they were in Sheffield for a bit and I used plenty of them. If any were really wonky, you reported it on the app and some dude on a bike with a huge trailer came and picked it up.

its when they started appearing in the river in Millhouses Park that I realised the venture was probably destined to fail.

For £110, bargain.

Nexus hub and dynamo alone pays for that. Stick them on a fixie if you don’t want a cargo bike.

Where have you seen them for sale?

The Ofos we had in Cambridge were cheap and crappy (no geared hubs). They were all knackered after a couple of weeks. I wouldn’t touch one as a private sale.

They’re on eBay

My commute has dropped from 26 miles to 2 so I’m really tempted!

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F202722922207

According to that ebay ad they have 25″ wheels – a new niche?

Local 2nd hand emporium had a fleet for sale, I had a look, for £120 they look good value. Proper sturdy basket and a shimano hub gear.

Might even be a dynamo as well.

Well I liked the look of them enough that I’ve bought one!

Offer of £90 was accepted.

Well I liked the look of them enough that I’ve bought one!

Just don’t leave it anywhere or someone will probably try and “hire” it!

I rode the mobikes a couple of times in Manchester (never paid for one, never even signed up but if I found one with the lock smashed off it, I’d ride it to the station) and oh my God they were shit. A mile to the station is as far as I’d ever want to use one.

Haha. I’m not expecting greatness, I’ve used boris bikes a lot. Shimano hub gear and drum brakes should mean the important bits are likely to last.

My commute is now only a couple of miles and this will save me having to swap flat pedals onto one my mountain bikes for it (or down gear the fixie) as it’s not worth getting sweaty and showering.

I did wonder about its theft magnetism, I’m sure the average scote wouldn’t be seen dead on it. But it’s the kind of middle class “scanning steak as an onion at the self checkout” type criminal that might think it’s a freebie hire bike left away from a station!

These bikes were designed to be very difficult to disassemble. Pentagonal wheel nuts, security torx bolts etc. There’s not a single traditional fastener on the whole bike. The workshop in Sheffield had a small fortune in custom made tools for repairing the bikes.

The one piece bar and stem is guaranteed to snap at the join, the wheels have no tension so will immediately bend, the wires on the dyno/front light are thinner than human hair, the cranks bend if you lie the bike down, etc etc etc….

For £110, bargain.

Unit price, on the ground in the UK was about £17 iirc.

Unit price, on the ground in the UK was about £17 iirc.

We can’t be talking about the same bike, i know a few of these hire schemes used BSO’s but a Nexus 3 speed hub is £60! The fronts another £40 even before you get to the rest of the bike those bits are worth cannibalising for commuters. Even allowing for trade / bulk pricing there’s no way the bike in the photos could be £17.

Anyway, I’m off to pick it up later so will post up some more pics and a review later.

We can’t be talking about the same bike

Believe me when I say, I know an Ofo when I see one.
Personal picture from March 2018…

@sharkattack

Thanks. Now I’ve got that annoying Katie Melua song stuck in my head!

Well I’ve got it.

First impressions:

It’s very yellow, like hurts your eyes if the sun reflects off it shiny metallic yellow. It makes number plates look dull.

Good bit’s and stuff I was expecting to be worse:

Surprisingly light
Fittings are all security torx so most people probably have a set if not they’re cheap enough to get from screwfix.
Only bolt that isn’t is the quill stem which is a 3-lobe security head (not sure what it’s called and google isn’t helping). Had me stumped for a bit but a 6.5mm flat blade screwdriver head mounted into a 1/4″ driver fit perfectly well to loosen and tighten it with the bars straight.
Dropper post, with less play in it than a reverb!
Front light isn’t one I recognise, but the front hub is a shimano nexus dynamo so should be good for tens of thousands of miles. Rear is a nexus three speed and was even correctly indexed!

Bad bits:

Spoke tension is good and even, but the build is shoddy, spoke heads aren’t seated properly in the hubs so it’s obviously just been through a machine.
Puncture proof tyres, they feel fine until you hit a kerb and realise they’re CX width. Might give them a couple of months just to see how they hold up.
Chain is bone dry, not even the factory grease.
Dunno how well the solar rear light will like being kept in a bike shed.

So far I’d happily recommend it.

At least they’re designed to hang nicely on a rack..

Ofo premium collection by Ben Freeman[/url], on Flickr

Haha! I think that might explain how the wheels and cranks get bent!

Ohh. And I seem to have broken the forum

MODS!

Cheers for the heads up on fasteners and wheels. I’m sure that can be sorted.

I’ve found a few half the price of the eBay ones so worth it just to see how long it lasts…

£17 per bike. That’s quite a surprising figure but I guess these were built in ridiculous quantities going off the China bike mountain pictures

Are the Sick guys involved?
https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/2178850/nearly-12-million-users-are-waiting-deposit-refunds-chinas-ofo

It’s like an opposite of sick bike co. The non smoking, t-total, vegan relative who’s probably going to get a telegram from the queen. Quite unstable but in a really boring way.

Also opposite, I got a bike but barely paid for it 😂

Did a bit of googling and there was a sale of ofo bikes in Singapore by the shipping company for $50 when they didn’t get paid so there probably are even cheaper bikes potentially out there.

Ohhhhh. And the left ‘gripshift’ is a bell 🔔🔔🔔🤣

Went for a bit of a ride on it. The gearing feels much higher than a Boris bike, I’m moderately fit and on the flat spent most of the time in 1st so might get a bigger sprocket for the Nexus hub (or a smaller chainring).

Picked a couple of them up today 😂

Agreed the gearing is too high and those odd fasteners on the stem and seat post are a faff but I’ll swap them out for normal ones.

I also failed to appreciate what a massive **** I look like when riding the thing

Toolstation have a draper security bit set for £5, has all the security torx and 3-lobe bits you need. Not exactly a small fortune in custom workshop tools!

Second impressions after a couple of days commuting:

The tyres are still horrible, but I did drill the rivets out of the “hire me” qr code on the rear mudguard without taking the wheel out and juat drilled straight into them which was novel!

Grips are really comfy for 10 minutes, then they’re too short and fat. I think a bmx bar (and stem and quill adapter) might be a good upgrade. But then again I only bought it to ride to work (15min) and errands (lidl is a 10min detour at most).

If you’re taller than 6ft you will probably want to raise the seatpost a bit more than the dropper allows. Also the seatpost isn’t greased in the frame so that is worth doing if you plan on commuting over the winter. Easy enough, just requires the aforementioned 3 lobe bit.

The bolt upright position does make you feel like a tit. Own that feeling and ride down the middle of the lane with a queue of cars behind you like a a badass.

Haven’t found a source for a pentagonal wrench, but the hubs are 3/8x26tpi threads and replacement nuts are about £5 for 4 which is cheaper than a spanner. But being puncture proof this is probably something I’ll address circa 2022 when a tyre wears out.

Other than that, apparently I grin when I ride it 😀

Good find on the security bits. I’ve swapped out the stem and seat post bolt but couldn’t shift the saddle rail bolt. I’ll get those bits tomorrow though.

I’m a tall one so had to raise the saddle which unfortunately then clamps on the dropper in the wrong place and binds it a bit. No bother though as it’s not needed if just I ride it.

Haha…. Love your description of the ride…. That’s exactly what I ended up doing as well, felt quite empowering 😂

I’m wanting a ” They see me rolling, they hating sticker” to go over the front plaque thing now…

I think a dirty DIY respray would suit them, hide the yellow, and stop them attracting any unwanted attention.

Just thought Id pop back and report on how its getting on after a month and 150miles or so.

Nothing to report. It’s been used every workday for the two miles to work and back. Trips to supermarkets, screwfix and kebab vans. It just works. Nothings fallen off, cracked or worn out, the spokes look to have beaded into the flanges a bit and overall its doing well.

I’ve even stopped locking it up and no ones nicked it yet. I need to get a horseshoe lock for the rear wheel. That or put an old innertube across the basket to hold a d lock without it rattling.

The lights are great, the front dynamo is plenty bright enough for riding unlit roads as fast as the gearing/wind resistance will let you. And the rear blinks away as soon as it starts moving at night. My only gripe is it has to be quite dark for it to come on. I might put a bit of black tape over the sensor so its on more of thr time and see how the solar charger copes. Its left in an underground car park all day so might have to get a b+m secula or similar.

Still bad bits:
I really need to drop the gearing, 3rd is pointlessly high as the upright riding position means wind resistance keeps your speed low on downhills anyway. Same on the flat, i end up in 1st as soon as there’s a hint of a headwind.

Brakes are interesting. They’re powerfull enough for a commuter, but if you grab a handful you can feel them build power, release a bit and build again. Not sure if perhapse they have the daft shimano power limiting clutch doddahh? Or its just the grease getting hot. Not a problem, but you would struggle to pull an endo.

And the yellow picks up black marks from my work shoes.

About the only serious temptation was a surly 1×1 i was offered. I could transfer all the bits across and get past the wind resistance issue. But wouldnt want to leave it unlocked so not a great idea.

Great aren’t they 😂

I’ve been bombing about on mine as well.

Agreed. The gearing is odd. I can’t put my finger on it though. Feels like a lot of power loss in the hub. I’ve described it like pedaling through gravy. Effort doesn’t seem to equal output but for the short trips I’m using it for it doesn’t matter.

I’ve upgraded mine with a rear rack and a handwritten in Sharpie letter M in front of the ofo 🤘

9 month review, because Im bored.

Added a rear rack so now it is trully a beast of burden with panniers for shopping.

The right angle behind the front basket cracked, so I bolted it back together with a bit of 1″ box section. I laugh in the face of the 5kg limit 🤣

2020-05-10_07-04-59 by thisisnotaspoon[/url], on Flickr

After a few hundred miles the tyres look a bit flatter, might just be in my head though. I think I’ll replace them with some schwalbe marathons or similar. Possibly the only time that will ever result in an improved ride quality!

Next plan is to see if I can attach the trailer to it. The “hitch” is a set of nodules that replace the hub nuts but obviously the nexus “mech” is in the way. Im wondering if Something could be bolted through a pannier rack to accept them.

Also seriously tempted by an electric mid drive kit (cant do hubs on account of drum brakes and gears). Would make it a propper utilitarian “moped” for running longer errands on. Unfortunately there’s a plate/ gusset under the BB which might preclude that too.

I’ve been looking at these on eBay quite often recently.
I need something to replace a station /shopping / short errand bike.
The previous bike was a £75 Gumtree special, ladies step through job with front basket and rear pannier rack, but after having been not looked after too well and kept outside for five years is starting to get a bit knackered. To fix everything wrong with it would be close to £100 and lots of my time.

I’m considering either an Ofo or an Elephant Bike.

I’m considering either an Ofo or an Elephant Bike.

It’s heavy and the Shimano hub is like cycling through custard, but for anything <5 miles I’ve not touched a different bike since getting it. It just lives outside by the front door ready to do errands on. chain just gets soaked with chainsaw oil and that’s the only routine maintenance I’ve given it.

Given 10x the budget you could probably build something a lot better around alfine hubs, nicer dynamo, half the frame weight, better racks, less weird fastenings etc. But when you consider the whole bike cost less than a “branded” front rack it’s amazing!

As I said, I made a ‘best offer’ of £90 and that was accepted. A bit of googling suggest they were being sold by the container load for about £20/bike so if you find someone selling 10’s of them then there’s scope to make cheeky offers.

I’ve got 2 of the Ofos!! Got them about 8 months ago..
Bought one from the shop Pictonroad was on about for £95, and another for £75 off eBay.

I really should get the security bolt kit as my kickstand has come loose and just rattles.
in fact, everything has a rattle!

But..it’s a great ‘shite bike’ and I can lock it through the wheel… so it’s an Ofoing winner from me..

DrP

Thanks.
I’ve put a low offer in with an eBay seller who has lots of them to get rid of. Will see what happens.