John Deere riding lawnmower cheaper than a kite!!

[driveonthebeach]

Yesterday as I was walking into Lowe's (store like Home Depot), I happened to see some green and yellow John Deere riding lawnmowers sitting outside on display. The price tags on them were $1299, $1399 & $1499US. I got to thinking, How the hell can something so mechanical, with so many machined parts, metal, plastic, rubber......all this stuff that goes into making something so complicated as a riding lawnmower be cheaper than a new kite?
Isn't it mind-boggling? What is wrong here?

[Toby]

I would think a kite needs more manual work...a machine is just parts put together?

But would be interesting how much the comparison of the materials used would look like

[L0KI]

Kites cost three times what they should.
$499 for kites and $300 for boards is about right.

[Craz Z]

What a great question I find it absoulutely hilarious how unbalanced this world is. If you don't laugh you get mad and wanna break something.

Look at just about anything and ask why. Why does the poor farmer get .02 on the dollar and frito lay that makes the potatoe chips get the other .98$

Why does apple monopolize the mp3 player and phone market heck the whole tech market and everyone else sells theres at a fraction of the cost.

Why does cars cost 20,000 and one miniscule part for the car cost 5,000 dollars?

Why do surgeons get paid 300,000 a year and mechanics get 30,000 a year same profession really i guess the risk of life warrants 10-30 times more then the car even tho they use the same tools.

Look at bicycles. why is the pretty one at walmart 100$ with shimano and all the bells on it while the specialized starts at 500 for the same stuff. (not really but still you get the drift.) It says shimano it says mongoose or schwinn but it aint the real thing. Why are there 5,000$ pedal bikes?

It all boils down to simple economics supply and demand. Once the demand for kiting exceeds lets say 50-100 million kites per year watch out walmart will have kites for 99.99 and trainers for 9.99

Its still small even tho we think its growing and growing its not fast enough to really spit out the volume. Also once you get to the big time the suppliers are much more abundant keeping costs low. Kiting doesn't have that luxury yet. there are only a few players and patents that all the companies have to rely on.
Also its a demand sport its a buyers sport like paragliding you buy high and sell for nothing when that time comes.

The JD's at lowes aren't even real they just have green paint on them. A real JD costs about 5-8K for a regular mower. What you see isn't really what you get. Go to a farm dealer and see their tractors. Plus just so you know they problably make more tractors in 15 minutes then all the kite companies in the world could make in 10 years.

[ktouhey]

...because the product itself is only a small part of everything that it takes to manufacture and put it in your hands.

[Craz Z]

...because the product itself is only a small part of everything that it takes to manufacture and put it in your hands.

so your saying kites are more complicated then a lawn mower to put together. I doubt it.

Its all volume volume volume. less demand specialized market= high prices
Extreme demand generalized market=Low prices

[Toby]

there are no pro lawnmowers!

[Laughingman]

I can buy a car with a 5 year warranty
Your lucky if your kite has a 3 month warranty

[BWD]

Hey, it's true, kites are for the most part 1970's technology.
The price is high, because it's a toy.
Nobody needs it, so the question is how much will you pay for pleasure....
There is a lot of handwork in kites, and that is the other important part of it.
Sooner or later someone will figure out a different way to make them faster or cheaper and kill the category. For now, at least we have good kites.
Some day we may be able to get new kites for half the current price, but don't hold your breath!
And you can't loop a lawnmower!

[zerogee_ca]

there are no pro lawnmowers!

ha...ha... sure there are...
Riding mower racing

and professional mowers like this Lazer Z XS from eXmark, cut 72" wide at 12mph, turn on a dime, air-ride and cup holder. A buddy sells them and I remember thinking that is way more than my new car.