Bike Friday

[blackrat]

Absolutely. People who don't need a folder should think real hard before they buy one. My original reason to have a folder was "truck bike", Montague was o.k. for this, but I switched to Bike Friday because I was cycling farther and sought performance, which it delivered in spades, but the fold lacks.
When I was re-entering the military, I decided I wanted a bike I could take anywhere and fly with, without the 20 minute fold time, Brompton.
FWIW I very rarely folded the Bike Friday, it acted like a mini velo fitting into a little less overall space, which was adequate at the time.

I suspect it is more a case of; "wouldn't it be nice" rather than; "I really need this" for the pocket rocket, as cute as it looks.
I real enjoy riding my Scott carbon and I realise now that the inconvenience of packing it away in a bike box and rolling that around between airport/train station/bus depot to hotel to start a ride for the sometimes-maybe air flight is a small price.
Military where? South Korea?

 

[Drago]

It looks racy, but there are even racer folders out there with disc brakes, 9, 10 or 11 speed, 2mpiede deanks, all the trimmings, some for a lot less, some for a lot less and a lifetime frame warranty.

 

[brommieinkorea]

I

I suspect it is more a case of; "wouldn't it be nice" rather than; "I really need this" for the pocket rocket, as cute as it looks.
I real enjoy riding my Scott carbon and I realise now that the inconvenience of packing it away in a bike box and rolling that around between airport/train station/bus depot to hotel to start a ride for the sometimes-maybe air flight is a small price.
Military where? South Korea?

I'm a yank. But I did get stationed in Korea, and it's one of the earlier places that I used the Brompton. I enjoyed Korea immensely.
Funny thing, buying a folder to save on airline fees doesn't really work. Only a couple will go into a small enough box, and they ain't cheap, so the fees aren't so bad when you consider some folding bike prices..

 

[Kell]

It rather begs the question of the best or preferred use or even a 'why' of a folder. I can see the convenience for a train commuter - ease of folding and quickness of doing so of a Brompton, for instance - and the relative collapsing to a smaller profile for air transport rather than lugging a full sized bike box around and to and from an airport. But other than that, why a folder?

The original use for a Brompton wasn't commuting. It was for storing it on your yacht.

So storage is another consideration. Friend of mine bought two folders because he didn't have storage space in his flat.

 

[blackrat]

The original use for a Brompton wasn't commuting. It was for storing it on your yacht.

So storage is another consideration. Friend of mine bought two folders because he didn't have storage space in his flat.

Aren't there homes on islands in the middle of the Thames somewhere upstream where you have to row a boat to get to the mainland? That would be a good use for a folder so you could take the bike on the boat and cycle off to the shops.🚣‍♀️🚣‍♂️

 

[wakemalcolm]

Wrong thread.

 

[u_i]

I have a Bike Friday and a Brompton. Bike Friday is hardly foldable. You gain a little compared to a regular bike when putting it in the trunk of a station wagon. Forget about taking a Bike Friday as a folding bike on a bus or train. With accessories, my Bike Friday takes 2h to dismantle for a suitcase and a similar time to reassemble. I hate even thinking about the process. It rides better than a Brompton and maybe closer to a regular bike than to a Brompton. When going on a trip, I used to take the Bike Friday if the stay at the other end lasted 2 weeks or more, but now I just take the Brompton and put up with a bit of inconvenience while riding.

 

[blackrat]

I have a Bike Friday and a Brompton. Bike Friday is hardly foldable. You gain a little compared to a regular bike when putting it in the trunk of a station wagon. Forget about taking a Bike Friday as a folding bike on a bus or train. With accessories, my Bike Friday takes 2h to dismantle for a suitcase and a similar time to reassemble. I hate even thinking about the process. It rides better than a Brompton and maybe closer to a regular bike than to a Brompton. When going on a trip, I used to take the Bike Friday if the stay at the other end lasted 2 weeks or more, but now I just take the Brompton and put up with a bit of inconvenience while riding.

How would you categorize the Bike Friday, good product but not so good as a convenient folding bike?

 

[blackrat]

Wrong thread.

Do you need some help with a screw?

 

[Seevio]

Do you need some help with a screw?

I'm sure the offer will be appreciated but this is possibly not the the forum for amorous advances.

 

[u_i]

How would you categorize the Bike Friday, good product but not so good as a convenient folding bike?

As a product, good, but not as finished as bikes from higher volume manufacturers. After you pull the handlebar stem of my New World Tourist, it just hangs there on cables, with no place to stick it or attach it when the bike is deemed folded or disassembled. The clamp securing the stem to the assembled bike is slightly oversized, making the securing awkward. Over time, you can smooth out the wrinkles, such as adding a shim for the stem and attaching a velcro strap for the handlebars permanently, etc. To categorize its folding, I also have a steel Dahon. It is generally lower quality than BF, but folds into a slightly more manageable entity. I was able to take it folded on trains occasionally, but not BF. Brompton, of course, beats both in folding.

 

[Kell]

I have a Bike Friday and a Brompton. Bike Friday is hardly foldable. You gain a little compared to a regular bike when putting it in the trunk of a station wagon. Forget about taking a Bike Friday as a folding bike on a bus or train. With accessories, my Bike Friday takes 2h to dismantle for a suitcase and a similar time to reassemble. I hate even thinking about the process. It rides better than a Brompton and maybe closer to a regular bike than to a Brompton. When going on a trip, I used to take the Bike Friday if the stay at the other end lasted 2 weeks or more, but now I just take the Brompton and put up with a bit of inconvenience while riding.

Just out of interest - are all Bike Friday's this difficult to 'fold'? Or just your particular model?

I've never really looked seriously at one in enough detail.

But a quick look at their website seems to suggest a fold time of 30 seconds.

 

[tinywheels]

part of the joy of Brompton ownership is the sadistic thrill you get from riding stupid distances.
Im heading south in April and mine will be packed into the Volvo, ready to hit the road in sunnier climes.

 

[u_i]

Just out of interest - are all Bike Friday's this difficult to 'fold'? Or just your particular model?

I've never really looked seriously at one in enough detail.

But a quick look at their website seems to suggest a fold time of 30 seconds.

I have not checked all their models, but they seem similar. I treat my experience as an insight into the company's practices. Larger companies, in my experience, put out more finished products. There is a difference between folding and taking the bike apart to pack for travel. The latter is a lengthy process. The folding, of my New World Tourist, their mainstream bike, can be quick, too, but leaves you with a chaotic entity of which reduced size is not of much use for anything.

 

[brommieinkorea]

As a product, good, but not as finished as bikes from higher volume manufacturers. After you pull the handlebar stem of my New World Tourist, it just hangs there on cables, with no place to stick it or attach it when the bike is deemed folded or disassembled. The clamp securing the stem to the assembled bike is slightly oversized, making the securing awkward. Over time, you can smooth out the wrinkles, such as adding a shim for the stem and attaching a velcro strap for the handlebars permanently, etc. To categorize its folding, I also have a steel Dahon. It is generally lower quality than BF, but folds into a slightly more manageable entity. I was able to take it folded on trains occasionally, but not BF. Brompton, of course, beats both in folding.

Mechanical spaghetti is how I've described the Bike Friday quick fold. But the weld and assembly of mine was top notch.