Folders! Foldable bicycles; love or hate? do you own/use one? Minivelos and demontables added

grantoury said:
Do you still have it?
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Yes, I still have it. As I didn't want a folder, but needed one, I went to town with it after buying it.

It came specced with mid range Shimano stuff. This didn't cut the mustard for me, so gearing was upgraded to xtr m980, wheels hope pro 2 on sun mtx 24 inch rims. Some custom made pace rc31s made for 24 inch wheels, stem and bars upgraded, crank bros iodine 11 saddle, crank bros grips to match saddle, formula disc brakes replaced the vs.bFSA bb386 cranks. I can't remember if I got round to it, but bought some crank bros split qrs for wheels and all the qr points for the folding parts. The only original parts are the frame, seat post and headset (which I was going to replace with a hope). I do still have the original forks. I can't remember what pedals it ended up with, or if I borrowed them for another bike.

It is absolutely mint, everything was new when I swapped it over and it's probably done a few hundred miles in its life.

I should really sell it. I also have some nice 24 inch knobbly MTB tyres, as it is a really capable bike, looks like a small grove innovations X link (I think that's what it was called).
 
ishaw said:
Yes, I still have it. As I didn't want a folder, but needed one, I went to town with it after buying it.

It came specced with mid range Shimano stuff. This didn't cut the mustard for me, so gearing was upgraded to xtr m980, wheels hope pro 2 on sun mtx 24 inch rims. Some custom made pace rc31s made for 24 inch wheels, stem and bars upgraded, crank bros iodine 11 saddle, crank bros grips to match saddle, formula disc brakes replaced the vs.bFSA bb386 cranks. I can't remember if I got round to it, but bought some crank bros split qrs for wheels and all the qr points for the folding parts. The only original parts are the frame, seat post and headset (which I was going to replace with a hope). I do still have the original forks. I can't remember what pedals it ended up with, or if I borrowed them for another bike.

It is absolutely mint, everything was new when I swapped it over and it's probably done a few hundred miles in its life.

I should really sell it. I also have some nice 24 inch knobbly MTB tyres, as it is a really capable bike, looks like a small grove innovations X link (I think that's what it was called).
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Wow, you really went to town with it. Really nice. I have considered a Joey, I like it a lot. The fold is a bit less convenient I think?
 
greencat said:
I learned to ride on a Raleigh folding bike back in the 70s, and it quickly became my first off road bike too.

Used to use a Brompton regularly at both ends when I was commuting to London from N.Wales. Mine is pretty old now (dates from the early 90s), They are an amazing piece of design, but not always great engineering. Parts have an unpleasant habit of fatiguing then snapping. Admittedly, expecting a 25+ year service life from a part might be a stretch, but equally no-one expects a break lever to snap while going downhill either. Even so, I often used to think - if I could have only one bike, it would be a Brompton.

As well as the Brompton, I have a Fiido D1 electric folding bike. It's almost never folded. But has largely been an excellent bike considering it's relatively cheap price. It proved to be an essential recovery tool. I was riding it within two and half weeks of major abdominal surgery, before I could barely walk 100 yards.
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Interesting story. Fiido doesn't really look that comfortable. The pedal assist makes it easy going I guess?

Brompton as the one bike, does it go off road as well?
 
Raleigh something something and a generic that was sold by every bikeshop in the world at one point or another. Not saying that folders aren't good, saying I dont get on with them. Borrowed a Brompton in nodnol once, didn't get on with that either. Preferred having a full size bike and not using the tube.

The Raleigh was a IKEA staff gift. Both are 20" wheelers with 7 of eight gears.
 
grantoury said:
Interesting story. Fiido doesn't really look that comfortable. The pedal assist makes it easy going I guess?

Brompton as the one bike, does it go off road as well?
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Yes, I wouldn't want to ride the Fiido very far without pedal assist. Even on the flat it isn't much fun due to the drag. With it, however, it's fun enough. Handling is not as good as a Brompton.

The Brompton isn't really designed for off-road, but I would certainly take it on some mild gravel/XC bike type stuff eg canal towpaths. At the time, I was living in an area where there wasn't much else.
 
I rode a similar Dahon for 40km, they are not really made for that, I guess.

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I like folders and would love to own one, but at my weight I'd need something pretty bulky anyway, which I feel would defeat the purpose of a folder, that is why I'm not getting one. Even most heavy duty steel folders seem to be aimed at 250 lbs and below.
 
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