thenewone

Member
Sep 13, 2007
5
0
I want to get a bike. I know i can only afford a used one but i am only 14 and can't drive so i don't have a job. So i need some ideas on ways i can make some money.
 

Okiewan

Admin
Dec 31, 1969
29,555
2,237
Texas
Walk to work?
Cut grass/yard work?
Beg?

A new bike is a lot of $$, but if you REALLY want it, you'll find a way to make the money. You could always start out with a nice used bike like the VAST majority of us did.

Good luck to ya.
 

XRpredator

AssClown SuperPowers
Damn Yankees
Aug 2, 2000
13,510
19
I have a 14 year old nephew who's been mowing lawns since he was ten. He has enough banked to buy a car.

It can be done.
 

oldguy

Always Broken
Dec 26, 1999
9,419
0
We lived outside the city in an area with 4 acre lots and my son raised chickens and sold the organic eggs to raise money to get started. As Okie said he started on a 14 year old bike then kept saving until he could upgrade to a 5 year old bike as his first race bike.
I made the agreement with him if he could save 1/2 the cost I would pay the other half and then he got whatever he sold his old bike for to start his fund for the next bike. It took him 3 times before he could afford 1/2 of a new bike.
In addition to selling eggs he also did just about anything someone was willing to pay him some money to do around the neighborhood including babysitting.
BTW he got his first bike at 9 and his first brand new YZ80 at 11
 

thenewone

Member
Sep 13, 2007
5
0
yeah, i am not going to get a brand new bike. that is alot of money. but is sometimes alot just to get a used bike.but yeah i also live kinda out of the city i have 5 acres and my friends all ride so yeah.I can't really walk to work. Thanks for the ideas.
 

loudandproud

Member
Jul 29, 2006
314
0
Start mowing near your house...

You can rack in some serious dough...

This summer i worked a landscaping jobs (private, not in a business) and set my price at $17.50 cash. I never once had anyone turn me down on that price. Plus i stipulated that they were responsible for cost (i.e gas, fertilizers, tanbark, fencing materials) on top of the labor cost.

I also did some businesses with a friends Scag which i paid him $40 a day to rent.

I could make an easy cool $400 a day over this summer on mowing lawns.


The problem with that is ... i spent it all on motorcycles and now i only got a couple bucks to last me until the grass starts growing again....
 

JD_MXRacer

Member
Nov 27, 2006
411
0
search google for get rich quick scams. theres millions of them. i have tried some of them lol. most dont work but every so often u will find one that will... not get you rich but some money
 

HhawkK1292

Member
Aug 24, 2006
71
0
i made over $900 in half a year from mowing lawns and umpiring little league baseball.. (I'm only 14) :)


Edit: I am supposed to have a confirmation party in may, after i receive confirmation, but..i talked to my parents and instead of having a party, they are going to chip in more than half to pay for a bike =), so I'm happy =))))
 
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poisonrain87

Member
Sep 13, 2007
23
0
No sympathy

Hey man, i'm sorry but i had to wait till i was 19 to get a bike bc my parents wouldnt allow me 2. if ur parents approve, youve already completed the first step. if you really want a bike bad enough, youll find a way to get it, either by buying a used one, or doing odd jobs to save up for a new one, or if at worst, youll have to wait until you have a job. just remember that its never too late. good luck.
 

Patman

Pantless Wonder
LIFETIME SPONSOR
Dec 26, 1999
19,774
0
Lot's of reasons (i.e. excuses) to not work. If you REALLY want it you'll figure out a way to earn some cash. It's called work because if it wasn't it would be called easy and everybody would do it. Like has been pointed out almost all of us started out with old bikes and worked our way up.
 

sigurd

Member
Jun 24, 2007
77
0
I think he? said that twice- that he or she is buying a USED bike. The good news is, he/she's not spoiled and even the cost of used bike "seems like a lot of money". Unfortunately not all kids his/her age have that kind of perspective. ;-) (Read carefully before rapping those teenage knuckles with a ruler!)

Do you have a bicycle to get places? I've seen people around here towing lawn equipment behind them on a bicycle. It can definitely be done.

Most of these have been covered:

Mowing lawns, cleaning gutters?, newspaper route, shoveling driveways, landscaping cleanup, weedpulling, washing cars, washing house windows?, babysitting is a great one you might not have considered, buying and selling used stuff (refurbishing maybe along the way), or just selling used stuff if you have things you can sell. Old fashioned Kool-Aid Stand, Cookie/Bake Goods sale. Sweeping floors. You'll be old enough to start bussing tables or washing dishes very soon.

Good luck. You have a great attitude. You are looking for ideas, and you have a work ethic. It doesn't take much more than that, except a little energy to boot!
 

sigurd

Member
Jun 24, 2007
77
0
Okie- Is the forum no longer indicating when a post has been edited? As I read it (both yesterday late in the day and again this a.m.) it read as it reads now. His second post repeats "I know I can only get a used bike".

It just seemed a little rough, IMO, if he hadn't edited it, and had said TWICE that he was going to buy a used bike, to say "grow up kid, we all started with used bikes" and not offer any constructive suggestions. If he or she has edited it, then I apologize. But, as it reads right now two posts say the same thing.

My comments were largely directed at the repetitiveness of "you'll have to buy used" (since he knows that). Once was certainly plenty. Concrete ideas and positive support are always ideal.

Please clarify?

Thank you.- Sig
 

Okiewan

Admin
Dec 31, 1969
29,555
2,237
Texas
Yes it will, but it give you 10 minutes (after you originally post) or so to edit without that message. I actually DO read posts before replying, as the post reads now, I would have never suggested a used bike. :cool:

BTW, I didn't think the replies seemed "rough" at all...? Different ways of seeing the same thing I suppose.
 

JD_MXRacer

Member
Nov 27, 2006
411
0
a paper route is an awesome idea. i had like 2 or 3 paper routes in my town at once and i made some serious money. its a lot of work though.
 

Patman

Pantless Wonder
LIFETIME SPONSOR
Dec 26, 1999
19,774
0
sigurd, I don't see anything harsh about pointing out that success is something that takes work. In this day of "everybody wins sports" just because somebody doesn't want a kid to get their feelings hurt for being a LOSER and most kids expecting to get the newest of everything a little bit of reality can't hurt. Sure most of us old meanies walked to school, up hill, in the snow, both directions and barefoot so maybe we are a bit more real than some think we should be. Too bad, I along with others that posted EARNED the right to tell it like it is, it wasn't something we got to make us all feel equal or equally special. Trust me I'm not alone and hope more people can celebrate American Success Day and not just tag along for the ride on the coat tails of a WINNER!

http://www.tednugent.com/hunting/news/2007/default.aspx?PostID=230640

:)
 

alexhack

Member
Sep 9, 2007
10
0
I bought my second bike, a KDX 200, when I was 12. The first bike I got was for my 7th birthday and was a DS 80. I was getting tired of a small bike but my parents said I was on my own. So I saved all my allowance, lawn mowing $, snow shoveling $, odd job $ till I had enough. Put your mind to it and it can be done. The hardest part is not spending all that coin. :)
 

Moparman1539

Member
Sep 9, 2006
804
0
i told my parents i wanted a dirt bike for along time... i always told them every time i saw one i would stop and look at it...

And i told my parents i woud work to pay it off (ex. I would polish the trucks ($60 a truck $40 a trailer, 3 trucks 3 trailers) And do a lot more work around the house...

So one day we found a used bike 1983 KX250 for $600.. We stoped and looked at it and liked what we saw... So i convinced my parents i would pay it off.. I gave them $100 in cash up front (my parents) and they wrote the check.. and the bike was mine.. That was 2 months ago.. I'm still paying off the bike and i have $100 to go.. and i worked hard for every cent of it... and im still working...

So if you can find the rite bike for the right price and you can convince your parents its a good thing...

And my mom didn't see the bike before we bought it.. so i brought it home with my dad and she saw it.. she was mad.. Saying "Did you have to buy the biggest bike you could find and stuff like that and she woulden't let me ride unless she or my dad was watching.. but it all got better now...

shes happy, im happy and im almost payed off..

(My 1983 KX250 is 24 years old.. it was being ridden before i was BORN.. And it still rips.. I can stand her up in any gear...)

Moral of long story is : You parents can help, you just have to persuade them. and show them its what you REALLY want.. it took my over a year.. and extra work around the house helps.
 

Java

Member
Sep 13, 2007
7
0
I love the fact that he is willing to earn it. New or used is not really the question, he came in with a question about ideas on how he can earn money. He is willing to work for whatever bike he gets.

At 14, most of the ideas for earning cash are listed here. I think the most lucrative ones are Mowing Lawns, Washing Cars, and Baby sitting. Paper routes are nice, but the amount of time it takes to complete the rounds and the collections is way too long for the money you earn.

You need to look at the ratio between earning money and the time taken to earn that money. That breaks down to $ per hour. Use your time wisely, don't waste it on lower paying jobs if you can earn money faster with other odd jobs. I don't know what the going rate for paper routes are but as I recall, they were never the fastest way to make money, but it was stable work. However, if it takes you 10 hours of folding, delivery and collection to earn $50 but in 10 hours of detailing a cars you can earn $100, obviously spend that time detailing cars.

By the way, a good detail job costs over $100 easily and can be done in 4 hours with practice. I know people that pay professional detailers $300 for a complete detail job. However, even washing/waxing a car can earn you a fast $30 in some areas and can be done in about 1.5 hours depending on the size of the vehicle.

Mowing lawns is another quick way to make some cash. Most kids in my neighborhood charge $10 per lawn to mow/edge the lawn and it takes them about 30 mins per lawn to complete. $20 an hour aint bad money and these are typical residential lawns, not big acreage.

Babysitting can be pretty good as well. My daughter charges about $5/hr per child. If she has a family of 3 kids to watch, that is an easy $15 per hour. Obviously, the key here is to land families with multiple kids. Evening sitting jobs can be great because if the kids are young, they often go to bed early leaving you time to work on school work, etc.

Don't forget, you still have school work and responsibilties around the home to take care of. Don't sacrafice school work to raise money to buy a bike. Education is the key to your entire future. With a good education, you can land great jobs that will afford you many nice things including bikes.

In the end, you have a great attitude, keep it up and you will have a bike before you know it and be out enjoying the fruits of your labor!

Go get em!
 
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