Folding Bicycles?
- Thread starter Overload
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Not For Hire
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I bought one last year. Ended up with a Dahon. The Downtube brand looked good, even better than Dahon for my purposes, but the Dahon was immediately available, etc. These manufactureres and others make a wide range of choices. They make full size bikes that fold up. Mine is called the Mariner and has 20 in wheels. I stowed it in the cockpit. Others secure them to the front rails. I have no complaints, rode it quite a bit. Lots of info on the web if you poke around. Check out the Downtube and Dahon websites. Then check for sellers, etc.
Regards,
Mark
Regards,
Mark
I am planning to visit the Bike Friday factory in Eugene, OR when I am down there next week. They are spendy but may be worth it, especially because they build to order and can provide heavy-duty components, necessary for big guys like me.
Warren
Warren
West Marine has their Port Runner bikes on sale right now for $199. No experience with these. We did have a set of Dahon bikes that we RVed with that worked fine... but did get some rust on them. The Dahon Mariner should eliminate that problem, at a higher price.
My concern about folding bikes on our boats is where to put 'em when underway and getting them to shore in the dinghy. Joan suggested that we could put them in the dinghy on top of the boat while underway. Our dinghy is a slat floor WM/Zodiac; I have some concerns about the pointy bits of the bikes wearing on the dinghy. Anyone dealt with this situation?
There are certainly times when bikes would be good to have on shore.
Best wishes,
Jim B.
My concern about folding bikes on our boats is where to put 'em when underway and getting them to shore in the dinghy. Joan suggested that we could put them in the dinghy on top of the boat while underway. Our dinghy is a slat floor WM/Zodiac; I have some concerns about the pointy bits of the bikes wearing on the dinghy. Anyone dealt with this situation?
There are certainly times when bikes would be good to have on shore.
Best wishes,
Jim B.
We have used full sized mountain bikes, the 20" wheeled folding Releigh (English--good quality) 3 speed bikes, 50 cc and 90 cc motor bikes. If you are used to a quality bike (either road or mountain) the folding bikes will give a rough ride. I would go for one of the larger bikes which also fold up. The 20" wheels are OK for short distances, but for long trips they were not confortable.
I have an eight-speed Dahon. I like it very much. It's reasonably priced, well made, easy fold and carry, fun to ride and practically indestructible. My son has both a Brompton and a Bike Friday. They are cuter, fold up smaller, lighter, and much more expensive. When we ride together his bike gets all the looks. I did however hear a young kid tell his mom "Mommy, look at the old guy on the funny bike"
Hi Guys, Marty's son here.
I'm a bit of a bike nut. There is a wide range in folding bikes depending on what you want to use them for and how much you want to spend.
At one extreme in compactness and quick fold is a Brompton. They fold to a very compact package in about 15 seconds and are a nice ride. They are all the rage for trips to work in London and other cities that mix bus, train, and bike to get to where you are going. They range in price from $600 to over $2000. They are little works of art. While people have ridden all over the world on Bromptons, they would not be my choice for big miles. I think of them as a little errand runner. You can check them out on the web. Trophy Bikes in Phili is a big dealer, and the guy Mike who owns the store is sort of the "Les at EQ" of folding bikes.
At the other end of the spectrum are Bike Fridays. While they do fold down a bit, they don't fold nearly as small as a brompton, nor do they fold as quickly. A Bike Friday is really a bike that you can disassemble into a suitcase. It takes me about 45 minutes to take apart or put together my Bike Friday. Now the advantage is that a Bike Friday is just as fast as any of my expensive full-sized bikes. It is a quality capable bike that happens to fit in a suitcase. I would not hesitate to ride a Bike Friday on a 200 mile day or on any ride I would take any of my other bikes. They also have fantastic customer service and a range of options. Call them up, and they can talk you through the options. I'd bet if a Brompton were a better bike for your mission, they would tell you that.
Now, as my dad, Marty, said he has a Dahon -- Boardwalk 8 speed I think. So, why is that? Well he didn't need an ultra quick or small fold like the Brompton or a "serious" bike like a Bike Friday, and the Dahon is just a serious value. I think it costs about $300 new, and they are, I think, the biggest seller of folding bikes.
Google Brompton, Dahon, Bike Friday, and you can get a ton of info. If you want to know more, google "folding bike forums" and you will find the equivalent chat group full of folding bike nuts.
Hope this helps. Joe
I'm a bit of a bike nut. There is a wide range in folding bikes depending on what you want to use them for and how much you want to spend.
At one extreme in compactness and quick fold is a Brompton. They fold to a very compact package in about 15 seconds and are a nice ride. They are all the rage for trips to work in London and other cities that mix bus, train, and bike to get to where you are going. They range in price from $600 to over $2000. They are little works of art. While people have ridden all over the world on Bromptons, they would not be my choice for big miles. I think of them as a little errand runner. You can check them out on the web. Trophy Bikes in Phili is a big dealer, and the guy Mike who owns the store is sort of the "Les at EQ" of folding bikes.
At the other end of the spectrum are Bike Fridays. While they do fold down a bit, they don't fold nearly as small as a brompton, nor do they fold as quickly. A Bike Friday is really a bike that you can disassemble into a suitcase. It takes me about 45 minutes to take apart or put together my Bike Friday. Now the advantage is that a Bike Friday is just as fast as any of my expensive full-sized bikes. It is a quality capable bike that happens to fit in a suitcase. I would not hesitate to ride a Bike Friday on a 200 mile day or on any ride I would take any of my other bikes. They also have fantastic customer service and a range of options. Call them up, and they can talk you through the options. I'd bet if a Brompton were a better bike for your mission, they would tell you that.
Now, as my dad, Marty, said he has a Dahon -- Boardwalk 8 speed I think. So, why is that? Well he didn't need an ultra quick or small fold like the Brompton or a "serious" bike like a Bike Friday, and the Dahon is just a serious value. I think it costs about $300 new, and they are, I think, the biggest seller of folding bikes.
Google Brompton, Dahon, Bike Friday, and you can get a ton of info. If you want to know more, google "folding bike forums" and you will find the equivalent chat group full of folding bike nuts.
Hope this helps. Joe
I was excited about getting a couple of bikes for the boat but then reality intruded. All of these bikes take up a considerable amount of space and our boats are small. Given that many of us use the rooftop for transporting our dinghies, what other solutions to this conundrum have been found?
Warren
Warren
Hey all,
No, Bike Friday isn't manipulating anything. I wasn't clear. The deal with a Bike Friday is that they can fold in a few seconds. That gets the size down some, but if you want to make it really small to fit it into a suitcase, then you need to take it apart, and that takes some time. It just depends how small you want to make it.
No, Bike Friday isn't manipulating anything. I wasn't clear. The deal with a Bike Friday is that they can fold in a few seconds. That gets the size down some, but if you want to make it really small to fit it into a suitcase, then you need to take it apart, and that takes some time. It just depends how small you want to make it.
I used to travel quite a bit. I have a 3 speed Dahon with 16" tires. It folds up quite small, quickly, and easily. It is good for probably up to 25 mile trips on not too hilly roads. A very pleasant reasonably priced bike. I have ridden it over 2000 miles without any breakdowns. I do keep the chain lubed.
Marty,
With the small tires, I have also gotten the comment, "Mommy, look at the (funny) old guy on the funny bike."
Joe,
My real bike is a Campy equiped Lightspeed.
Dave
Marty,
With the small tires, I have also gotten the comment, "Mommy, look at the (funny) old guy on the funny bike."
Joe,
My real bike is a Campy equiped Lightspeed.
Dave
A bicycle is a fun and healthy addition to a boating trip. Power boating requires little physical exertion so going ashore and exercising while exploring is a good compliment to the fun of boating. The only attribute of a folding bike is its ability to be stored in a slightly smaller space than a conventional bike. Folding bikes, however, are poor substitutes for fixed frame bicycles when employed for their intended purpose....to ride over roads to and from destinations. I have used my bicycle as transportation back to my tow rig when launching from one location and retreiving from another. My fixed frame bike fits snugly in the cockpit against the transom and is nearly invisible until it is needed for exploration, exercise, or as transport.
Mike 'Levity'
Mike 'Levity'
Mike-I agree with what you say about the value of having a bike available. I ride my folding bike much more than my 'real' bike because I almost always have it with me, folded up safely in the far back of our Ford Escape. And it fits nicely in the cockpit of my 16 footer. I don't know what your experience has been with folding bikes , and I am not a bicycle expert. However, I would like to say that just because they are 'funny looking', the folding bikes discussed here are not toys. They are real bikes. Whether one is used to a full size Raleigh, Trek, Cinelli or Roberts, you might be pleasantly surprised by any of the folding bikes described here. Yours is certainly a nice Trek. And give my regards to Scrappy Knutelsky at Knute's Sports Bar.
Dotn Marty,
Your comment about the folding bicycle has hit the vulnerability of my argument. I have not ridden a folding bicycle. I have ridden many bicycles and though not an expert have a fair amount of bicycling experience. (about 1500 miles/year over 25 years). I am confident that a frame that is free to articulate cannot be as rigid as a frame that is well....rigid.
The less rigid the frame, the less efficient the frame is at transfering energy to the driving wheel.
Your point about ease of transport is well taken as any bicycle that is available due to its convenient size is much better than any state-of-the-art bicycle which is not at hand. Thank you for responding to my post.
Mike 'Levity'
Your comment about the folding bicycle has hit the vulnerability of my argument. I have not ridden a folding bicycle. I have ridden many bicycles and though not an expert have a fair amount of bicycling experience. (about 1500 miles/year over 25 years). I am confident that a frame that is free to articulate cannot be as rigid as a frame that is well....rigid.
The less rigid the frame, the less efficient the frame is at transfering energy to the driving wheel.
Your point about ease of transport is well taken as any bicycle that is available due to its convenient size is much better than any state-of-the-art bicycle which is not at hand. Thank you for responding to my post.
Mike 'Levity'
Wayne McCown
New member
Take a look at the photo on my album cover. This picture was taken while boating the Erie Canal. (After taking the photo I went for a nice bike ride along the canal trailway.) Our folding bikes are Dahon 8-speeds, which I bought used at a garage sale.
I transport the boats as pictured, both when trailering as well as boating...where they are out of the way, yet easily accessed. I put a piece of (camping) foam underneath to protect the fiberglass surface, and hold them in place with a bungee cord pulled up tight against the rail. Pretty simple, but quite effective.
I transport the boats as pictured, both when trailering as well as boating...where they are out of the way, yet easily accessed. I put a piece of (camping) foam underneath to protect the fiberglass surface, and hold them in place with a bungee cord pulled up tight against the rail. Pretty simple, but quite effective.