I recently had the opportunity to visit the Katanga cycle factory in Brno, Czechoslovakia. They manufacture various types of recumbent cycles, including my favourite cargo bike, the PONY4. It may seem like a very simple design, but appearances can be deceiving. The PONY4 is a well-thought-out design that ingeniously combines light weight with a large cargo capacity and suspension on all four wheels. The seating position is the same as on recumbent bikes, which makes cycling very comfortable. The seat used instead of a saddle also makes it possible for people with certain mobility disabilities to cycle with a large load. This bike is available in many different variants, but above all it is used as a basis for those who want to adapt the cargo bike to different purposes.
Before the actual assembly of a PONY4 is done, many parts have been prefabricated, and the actual assembly takes a day and a half of work. Here you can see in detail how Josef ”Pepa” Londa puts together a PONY4 long frame with a simple cargo platform.
I would like to thank the Katanga factory for letting me follow the assemblage and document it with the camera in my mobile phone.
Image on top: Josef Londa, called Pepa with the PONY4 that you are about to see being built.
