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Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

kwigglebike.com

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Re: Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

#311

Post by iso1631 »

Al-Khwarizmi wrote: post #306
laurieg wrote: post #24

I've spent a long time with folding bikes over the years. My advice: bite the bullet and buy a Brompton[1]. Yes, Bromptons are expensive. But they ride like a bicycle, have gears, a stiff enough frame, luggage racks etc. There's very little compromise. The fastest I've done on mine is 45 kph and I've ridden 70km in a day. I carry it on and off buses and trains multiple times a day without issue. In the past I had an…

Since you have experience with folding bikes (but anyone's help will be welcome). Do you know if folding bikes are viable at all for a tall person? (about 197 cm / 6 ft 5.56 in) It would be convenient for me to have one due to lack of space in my apartment, but from an external observer perspective they all look like too small and like I would need to ride hunched and uncomfortable, so I haven't really looked into th…

The easy answer is go to a bike shop and do a test ride. I guess it will depend more on your build - how much height is in your legs vs body for example.

Re: Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

#312

Post by hgomersall »

yupper32 wrote: post #16

I don't think I could ever get over the look of the small wheels. It seems like the fanny pack of bikes: pretty useful but you gotta look dorky if you want to use it. It's vain but I'd find it hard to believe I'm alone here.

Genuine question, do you seriously worry about that? I mean, what are you concerned about? That people would think you uncool? What sort of people would think that? People you want to think highly of you? Your position seems so strange to me, I'm just trying to understand it.

Re: Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

#313

Post by necovek »

laurieg wrote: post #252
ridehelix wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A discussion about folding bikes would not be complete without mentioning Helix. Helix folds almost as small as a Brompton but has 24” wheels and standard bicycle components such as disc brakes, Shimano/SRAM drivetrain etc. Also the fold is the most compact possible, even more compact than Brompton in terms of maximizing the use of space. It also fits in a standard airline luggage without any disassembly which few ot…

I haven't had the pleasure of riding a Helix but I would love to try. Can you clarify what you mean by “the fold is the most compact possible, even more compact than Brompton in terms of maximizing the use of space“ The Brompton's folded size is 585mm high x 565mm long x 270mm wide The Helix is 580mm x 635mm x 230mm.

Going by those dimensions, Brompton takes 89l of space, whereas Helix takes 85l, so I guess they meant the overal volume when rounded up to a containing box.

Re: Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

#314

Post by MrKwiggle »

Thank you for having us here to discuss Kwiggle. I am the inventor and owner of Kwiggle and would like to give you some insights:

We have been developing Kwiggle for 10 years and producing Kwiggle for almost 3 years.

Every detail has been carefully designed to create a 10kg lightweight folding bike that can even be folded into hand luggage and still go as fast as a normal bike. We have selected materials and manufacturing processes for the drive unit and rims with the highest wear resistance in the bicycle market. We use high-strength aluminum and stainless steel parts for the frame and have extensively tested the stability of the frame and drive unit dynamically and statically.

Our 35 suppliers for material, components and parts manufacture according to our requirements with highest precision, because precision is another important factor for stable and durable components of a folding bike.

In the meantime, our greatest motivation is the many enthusiastic feedbacks from our many customers, who at the moment still come mainly from Germany. We are already shipping the Kwiggle all over the world and Kwiggle already is ridden on every continent.

So we are happy if you take a close look. Please assume that we have already thought about almost every little critical detail that is discussed.

So if you are looking for a very compact folding bike, feel free to take a close look.

The movement on the Kwiggle is new, but very close to your natural walk. And when even a 85-year-old man writes to us, "I can only do two things: ride a rollator and ride a Kwiggle, but I enjoy the Kwiggle more." Then you can assume that you can ride the Kwiggle very well, too.

Re: Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

#315

Post by _jstreet »

ridehelix wrote: post #168
laurieg wrote: post #24

I've spent a long time with folding bikes over the years. My advice: bite the bullet and buy a Brompton[1]. Yes, Bromptons are expensive. But they ride like a bicycle, have gears, a stiff enough frame, luggage racks etc. There's very little compromise. The fastest I've done on mine is 45 kph and I've ridden 70km in a day. I carry it on and off buses and trains multiple times a day without issue. In the past I had an…

A discussion about folding bikes would not be complete without mentioning Helix. Helix folds almost as small as a Brompton but has 24” wheels and standard bicycle components such as disc brakes, Shimano/SRAM drivetrain etc. Also the fold is the most compact possible, even more compact than Brompton in terms of maximizing the use of space. It also fits in a standard airline luggage without any disassembly which few ot…

> is the lowest cost complete titanium bike on the market, folding or not.

Do you have sources to back that up?

In the UK, the price on your website lists it as £2,025 (or £3,003 for the higher-end model). I can get a PlanetX titanium gravel bike for £1,799 - granted it's not folding, but you specified "folding or not"!

Re: Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

#316

Post by necovek »

iso1631 wrote: post #311
Al-Khwarizmi wrote: post #306

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Since you have experience with folding bikes (but anyone's help will be welcome). Do you know if folding bikes are viable at all for a tall person? (about 197 cm / 6 ft 5.56 in) It would be convenient for me to have one due to lack of space in my apartment, but from an external observer perspective they all look like too small and like I would need to ride hunched and uncomfortable, so I haven't really looked into th…

The easy answer is go to a bike shop and do a test ride. I guess it will depend more on your build - how much height is in your legs vs body for example.

I guess Al-Khwarizmi comes from the near East and from 9th century or thereabouts, so there are no local stores for them to try out, but online shopping works perfect since they deliver to all places and to all times.

Being similarly tall with longish legs (especially my thigh bone, important for eg. legroom in cars, airplanes...), I'd be extremely weary of jumping on a bike that's not suitably sized, no matter what claims people make how a smaller bike can fit you.

But what matters just the same is your arm length, body length and such: basically, how far down and in the front you can reach when properly seated above the pedals? I've only got "average" arms (my wingspan matches my height), so smaller frames mean hard to reach handlebars.

When you can't easily try a bike out, if it's not rated for at least 2-3" (5-8cm) taller riders than you are, I wouldn't get it because your balance and posture will suffer.

Re: Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

#317

Post by MrKwiggle »

anonymousiam wrote: post #129

These small bicycles have one major disadvantage: The wheels are too small to provide much of a gyroscopic effect while riding, so they are far less stable than a traditional bicycle. https://www.exploratorium.edu/snacks/bicycle-wheel-gyro

For a proper judgment of the riding characteristics a look at the practical use when riding downhill could be helpful:

https://www.kwigglebike.com/en_US/faltrad-vs-rennrad-am-berg

This ride felt absolutey safe.

Re: Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

#318

Post by rkagerer »

MrKwiggle wrote: post #314

Thank you for having us here to discuss Kwiggle. I am the inventor and owner of Kwiggle and would like to give you some insights: We have been developing Kwiggle for 10 years and producing Kwiggle for almost 3 years. Every detail has been carefully designed to create a 10kg lightweight folding bike that can even be folded into hand luggage and still go as fast as a normal bike. We have selected materials and manufact…

Question: Why the trolley? Was it an afterthought, or was it not possible to make the bike wheel(s) perform that function when folded?

Re: Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

#319

Post by brutus1213 »

littlestymaar wrote: post #293
gmac wrote: post #288

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm sure Bromptons are great, but the prices are just ridiculous, and their marketing grates. I really don't need my bike to be handmade in London. I have a Decathlon foldable. It doesn't fold quite as small as a Brompton, so I wouldn't want to be regularly taking it on public transport. But it's light and solid, folds easily and rides well at about one third the price.

£850 / 1090€[1] sure it's a bit expensive, but ridiculous really? I find it really funny to find such a comment on a forum where a big chunk of users are fine paying more than twice the price for a laptop . [1]: https://fr.brompton.com/shop/bikes/a-line?color=white&handle...

Yes .. for me, it sounds expensive. A macbook is a rocket ship in terms of complexity vs. a bicycle. If copyright/patents went away, how cheap do you think you can produce a macbook? a folding bike?

This line of thinking is why everything was stupid expensive in the bay area (mattresses, bicycles, etc.) In Canada, I never paid more than 300 for a bicycle or more than 500 for a mattress. As OP said, I don't care if it is made in London, the price needs to be accessible to the masses for these things to solve our transport crisis.

Re: Folding bicycle small enough to fit in hand luggage

#320

Post by iso1631 »

ideamotor wrote: post #35
histriosum wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've been looking at folding bikes like this.. in my case, I'm a private pilot, and I'm looking for ways to solve the last mile issue of getting from my destination airport to somewhere fun to go - ie a nearby beach, or into town for dinner, etc. Size and weight are important in my use case, since general aviation aircraft don't have alot of cargo space. This bike looks like it would be a decent fit, but I'm not sure…

Why not take an rideshare/taxi? It seems you'd be able to even optimally schedule the rides in advance. I wouldn't want to ride this thing on car-only roads.

Very unreliable in my experience
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