# Recumbent financing



## Peter Kelly 835 (15 Dec 2021)

Can I please get help with finding someone or somewhere I can turn to for help with getting a recumbent bike or trike?
I have muscualskeletal problems as well as kidney problems (still not got to the bottom of that problem).
I can't ride a two wheeler for much more than an hour.
I live in Fleetwood Lancashire. I would like to get hold of a recumbent but would like help about finances.


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## numbnuts (15 Dec 2021)

Hi a bank loan would be the cheapest, then you can go down the secondhand market, have a look on ebay. If you want brand new the cheapest is the KMX Cart (trike), that's what I've got


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## steveindenmark (16 Dec 2021)

Talk to LaidBackBikes.

https://laid-back-bikes.scot/


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## annedonnelly (16 Dec 2021)

There are organisations who have bikes for people with various disabilities that they can loan out or advise on purchase. There was one attended an event in Newcastle a few years ago and I got to try out a hand bike. I have a feeling they were based in the NW.

@mickle might be able to help. I think he used to work in that line of business.


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## T4tomo (16 Dec 2021)

http://charlottestandems.weebly.com/other-organisations.html

there are quite a few links on the charlotte tandems -other organisations links page above to work your way thru..


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## Cycleops (16 Dec 2021)

I’m sure that @mickle will have some advice on this.


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## mickle (16 Dec 2021)

Place marker for a proper response.


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## Oldhippy (16 Dec 2021)

Peter Kelly 835 said:


> Can I please get help with finding someone or somewhere I can turn to for help with getting a recumbent bike or trike?
> I have muscualskeletal problems as well as kidney problems (still not got to the bottom of that problem).
> I can't ride a two wheeler for much more than an hour.
> I live in Fleetwood Lancashire. I would like to get hold of a recumbent but would like help about finances.


Check out the mobility scheme that provides cars. I believe it has been done before in Oxfordshire where the customer was referred to a similar charity or organisation. I do not know how accurate this is but you've nothing to lose.


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## numbnuts (16 Dec 2021)

Oldhippy said:


> Check out the mobility scheme that provides cars. I believe it has been done before in Oxfordshire where the customer was referred to a similar charity or organisation. I do not know how accurate this is but you've nothing to lose.


 
I remember that some one wanted a electric motor for their trike as they were disabled the answer was no, but they could get a car


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## Peter Kelly 835 (16 Dec 2021)

Oldhippy said:


> Check out the mobility scheme that provides cars. I believe it has been done before in Oxfordshire where the customer was referred to a similar charity or organisation. I do not know how accurate this is but you've nothing to lose.


Thank you


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## mickle (16 Dec 2021)

Peter Kelly 835 said:


> Can I please get help with finding someone or somewhere I can turn to for help with getting a recumbent bike or trike?
> I have muscualskeletal problems as well as kidney problems (still not got to the bottom of that problem).
> I can't ride a two wheeler for much more than an hour.
> I live in Fleetwood Lancashire. I would like to get hold of a recumbent but would like help about finances.



First you need to establish what format of trike will best suit your needs. You have several parameters to consider. The single most important consideration is seat height. Low trikes are easy enough to get into - but getting out of them might prove challenging or even impossible if you have physical problems. Low recumbent trikes *tend* to be tadpole format (two wheels at the front and one at the back). Trikes with higher seats *tend* to be delta format (one front wheel/ two rear). The perceived wisdom is that low / tadpole trikes are more stable and go around corners faster thanks to their lower centre of gravity. However, well designed delta trikes which place the rider's mass close to the rear axle, like HASE's Kettweisel, are pretty good. Your best option at this early stage of your quest is to try as many machines as you can, to get a feel for what's available, how they differ and start to build up a picture of the trike you need.

The market for second hand recumbent trikes is small. New ones sell in very small numbers in the UK. Demand for second hand units far outstrips supply, and so it's a sellers market. You'll be extremely lucky if you manage find a machine which meets your requirements at a decent price before someone else snaps it up. You could be waiting years.

New quality machines like the HASEs and ICE trikes are very expensive because they are low volume. There are a few entry-level options in the UK: KMX trikes are acceptable for the money but they are clanky and heavy. Mission Cycles in Kent import a range of delta trikes from Taiwan. They're not terrible. Many people buy these entry level trikes to 'prove the principle', it's a relatively low cost way to explore living with a recumbent before splashing out on a posh one. And, of course, the market being what it is, if you look after it, you'll get a decent pc of your investment back when/if you sell it on.

Finance. A bank loan, as has been mentioned, is an inexpensive way of borrowing money. But I'm no expert.
And then there's *funding*. The whole disability equipment industry is almost entirely dependent on charity or government funding. There are hundreds of charities which fund this sort of purchase. But be aware that they are very unlikely to fund a second hand trike.

Many moons ago, when I was looking at setting up my own disability bikes retail business I compiled a list of charities and other agencies which fund this sort of purchase. Plus a guide to fund seeking/ I shall see if I can dig it out.


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## mickle (16 Dec 2021)

So, decide what it is that you want and, when you know how much dosh you're going to need, formulate your funding strategy. You're more likely to get a grant from some bodies if they know that you'll be putting some of your own money towards the purchase. Something like 90% of charity funding goes to kids. It's not easy to find funding for adults, but it's not impossible.


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## 404 Not Found Anywhere (19 Dec 2021)

Don’t know if this might be of any help, but Get Cycling in York advertise regularly in the CTC ( or Cycling UK as it has rebranded itself) as helping with mobility issues and they might be able to give help or advice on funding issues…

https://www.getcycling.org.uk/


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## Time Waster (22 Dec 2021)

It's probably not good news getting funding I reckon. For cars government of UK helps through motorbility. I doubt they do similar for healthy transportation like trikes.

BTW I read once that the private company that runs motorbility scheme for UK government has a surplus of money because they don't spend all the money they receive. Can't remember the details but it's apparently a profitable company that's running the charity. If the UK government helped people get trikes or handbikes for healthy transport in a similar scheme to motorbility I think it would be very positive. 

There was a shop in Morecambe a few years back that sold various bikes and other equipment for physically disabled people. From high end, competitive hand cycles to those that attach to a standard wheelchair for slower transportation. Amazing shop IMHO but last time I visited it shutdown. It wouldn't surprise me if they didn't spec and source trikes for less mobile people who don't need the handcycle.

All recumbents are expensive new. I looked how much a new SMGTe would cost if I needed to replace my SMGT with a new one. It shocked me but they're a very good bike for what they're designed for.


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## Roseland triker (9 Feb 2022)

Best get a go fund me page going
Decent used trikes are around£2500


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## numbnuts (9 Feb 2022)

Roseland triker said:


> Best get a go fund me page going
> Decent used trikes are around£2500


 
But not so expensive, but a hell of a lot of fun, six years and still smiling 
https://www.kmxkarts.co.uk/Recumbent-Trikes.aspx


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## Roseland triker (10 Feb 2022)

Yeah Kmx are cheap enough but not for the taller riders judging by the dimensions


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## numbnuts (10 Feb 2022)

Roseland triker said:


> Yeah Kmx are cheap enough but not for the taller riders judging by the dimensions


I'm 6 foot and my boom is not right out 32 inch leg


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## Roseland triker (10 Feb 2022)

numbnuts said:


> I'm 6 foot and my boom is not right out 32 inch leg


6"6 and 122kg will be too much on that so I have a modified sprint with 700c and slicks
I've moved the seat back too


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## byegad (10 Feb 2022)

They are a long term investment, my two are both over 10yrs old and as good as new. I sold my ICE QNT which had lived in a damp shed when it was 11yrs old for little money, it had been in regular use over those years, to a lady who wanted to ride at the same height as her hand-cycling husband. While cosmetically tatty it was in perfect working order.


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## Roseland triker (10 Feb 2022)

byegad said:


> They are a long term investment, my two are both over 10yrs old and as good as new. I sold my ICE QNT which had lived in a damp shed for little money when it was 11yrs old for little money, it had been in regular use over those years, to a lady who wanted to ride at the same height as her hand-cycling husband. While cosmetically tatty it was in perfect working order.


Some ice trikes on eBay ranging from £1700 - £4500....
Add a few hundred to that price for personal comforts and I reckon it can be done to a high standard for around £2500 in the used market...


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