There’s something mind-boggling about the prices that get charged for these things. $2k-$3k for a not particularly complicated array of steel and plastic. I bought my (used) car in that price range, a big intricate machine with way more engineering and way more physical mass. Isn’t bicycle design is a mostly solved problem problem by now?
The Joy of Folding Bikes
171–180 of 199 posts
Re: The Joy of Folding Bikes
#172They're obviously great for commuting. For general use, they are in theory thief-proof because you can take them everywhere with you. The downside is they're expensive so you HAVE to take them everywhere with you. Leave them out and they'll get stolen. For that reason I think the happiest I've been is with a dirt cheap bike in Japan. Didn't even lock it properly (just a key built into the frame) and could park it out…
> For that reason I think the happiest I've been is with a dirt cheap bike in Japan. Didn't even lock it properly (just a key built into the frame) and could park it outside any old shop or restaurant for hours.
I didn't see a single bike locked up when I visited Japan. I was told that this is because of the high conviction rate and mandatory bike registration process that they have. Was I just in especially low-crime areas? Do most Japanese cyclists lock theirs up?
Re: The Joy of Folding Bikes
#173I don't fault OP for this, but it's pretty frustrating to me as someone who's quite attached to his non-folding bike that the main benefit of folding bikes is that, unlike regular bikes, they aren't banned from pretty much all public transport
Full size bikes on public transport doesn’t work well when crowded though. I briefly took a bikee recumbent (really small) on BART and it was great for me but pretty annoying for others for 1 stop (sorry if you went between Ashby and Oakland in 2011!) Even in the Netherlands you need to pay €8.50 to bring your bike on, perhaps so the trains aren’t overrun.
I think that is a very valid criticism. Equally, in the UK there is a sense of providers having tried nothing and then given up concluding that it hasn't worked. Some services that ban bikes legitimately cannot accommodate them safely, some can. Some services legitimately are too busy at peak times to accommodate bikes, and some ban them anyway because making granular policy is hard. In a similar vein, some of those same services that ban bikes due to how busy they are running eight of a possible 10 carriages because they claim not to need the space.
I think a lot of the rules turn out to be reasonable but the rulemakers should be less gung-ho about restricting bikes when they don't really need to
Re: The Joy of Folding Bikes
#174I used to catch a train with a cheap folding bike every day. I was always envious of this other guy with a Brompton who took the same train. The worst thing about mine was that by carrying it by the only convenient place, you got oil on your cuff from the chainring!
And that’s why you get one with a carbon fiber belt instead!
https://www.montaguebikes.com/product/allston/
or get a kit for your Brompton: https://www.kinetics-online.co.uk/folding-bikes/brompton/bro...
Re: The Joy of Folding Bikes
#175Earlier quoted context omitted.
Decathlon btwin one second has been praised for its design and easy unfolding; it’s relatively cheap and still being produced. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XX2VSaXmAoo
I have consistently heard that the bikes by decathlon are very poor quality and fall apart easily. Is it a case of you get what you pay for?
Skill issue/maintenance issue.
Re: The Joy of Folding Bikes
#176The article touched on it, and I agree, the biggest benefits for me are the portability and storability. I can easily fit my folding bike into my car trunk, and very easily fit another one in the back seat. This enables you to drive to the start of a distant cycling route without having to deal with bike racks behind or on top of your car. So much less friction to you just going somewhere and cycling around. And the…
> " You can't really use them for hauling heavy loads, so forget bicycle touring or pulling a little trailer for kids or other things " Eh? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzRqKP0XmhQ - Brompton with Burley Travoy trailer while the guy moves house. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocMRuUBUFrU - Bromtpon with Cyclone trailer while grocery shopping. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvBA1K8oFmQ - Brompton with child trail…
Did the guy in the grocery video just leave his bike outside? That's so beyond naïve it's rude.
Re: The Joy of Folding Bikes
#177Earlier quoted context omitted.
Full size bikes on public transport doesn’t work well when crowded though. I briefly took a bikee recumbent (really small) on BART and it was great for me but pretty annoying for others for 1 stop (sorry if you went between Ashby and Oakland in 2011!) Even in the Netherlands you need to pay €8.50 to bring your bike on, perhaps so the trains aren’t overrun.
I think that is a very valid criticism. Equally, in the UK there is a sense of providers having tried nothing and then given up concluding that it hasn't worked. Some services that ban bikes legitimately cannot accommodate them safely, some can. Some services legitimately are too busy at peak times to accommodate bikes, and some ban them anyway because making granular policy is hard. In a similar vein, some of those…
Yeah, among other things I thought it was odd I've only seen bike racks on buses in the US, but not in Europe (having looked for them in Ireland, the UK, and the Netherlands)
Re: The Joy of Folding Bikes
#178Surprised more people aren’t aware of Montague. https://www.montaguebikes.com/
When I was looking I found many full-sized folding bikes but they are solving a problem for an overlapping but different niche. They make it possible to fold and load it into a vehicle or make it more compact for storing at home, but they aren't very good at multi-modal commuting nor are they particularly compact. I remember someone with a folding Tern that struggled to carry it onto the train - it really isn't well…
The Helix I believe strikes a better balance (I bought a Montague Swissbike X50 before the Helix was available).
Re: The Joy of Folding Bikes
#179The first time I went to the US I saw a foldable electric bike, in target, I think. Being someone who likes to explore the city (burning calories) I thought to myself: I can cover a way bigger area by bike than by foot. I can carry this with me to my travels and goodbye Uber. Thankfully I called United before buying it to ask If would be able to bring it home with me. The answer was no, of course. No eletric vehicles…
My understanding is that battery capacity is the issue; it's usually above the max allowed on the plane. This company makes a snap-together battery https://ebikes.ca/product-info/grin-products/ligo10x-battery... where each individual module is below the limit and so the pack can be broken down and shipped individually and separately.
That's very interesting, thanks.
Re: The Joy of Folding Bikes
#180Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've always wondered about that. It sacrifices much for portability. Seems great for a certain kind of commute or short trips, but I'm not sure I'd want to tackle seattle hills on it. That said, I've certainly seen a few around.
You can get them with gears to handle the hills. They also make an electric one too. I chatted up someone putting an electric one in their trunk and they love theirs. More gears, more dollars, and the electric adds considerably to the price too. For my money, the sweet spot for a Brompton is 1-5 mile rides as part of a commute. Upthread there's links to people who tour on them, which is cool. I've done a 7000 mile bi…
Yeah i've been taking a lot more road trips up the family cabin and my bigger foldable electric bike generally means a serious bike rack (it can kinda wedge it in the back seat but.. it's a rad expand 5 I picked up around covid, first bike in 20 years). Considering the brompton g series or the bike friday 'all packa' for some forest service road/bikeable trail riding. I like a fatter tire even in the city. Much easier to stick in the trunk.