Brompton tyres sucking the life out of me

[Pale Rider]

Thing is my commute is broken up by a train journey hence being forced into buying a Brompton. I may start to look at other options like 20"ers

Mate of mine has a couple of old Moultons, not sure of the wheel size, but on the one he has with drop bars/derailer gears he seems able to keep the pace with road bike riders.

 

[jefmcg]

Well, exactly

View: https://youtu.be/Pb5e46nDg5Y?t=110

 

[ianrauk]

Well, choice of bars isn't much of an advantage once you've chosen them, as you're (relatively) stuck with them.
I have M type. I find if I ride it for more than an hour or so I'm yearning for new hand positions. If I ever make a habit of doing long rides on it I'll experiment with bar-ends probably.
But this is all a bit off topic.

I've actually got bar ends for my handle bars - S-Type. Though as I only do a short daily commute I haven't bothered to fit them yet.

 

[Kell]

I'm not sure the wheel size is the major problem.

I moved to a Brompton from a full size folding Dahon with 26" wheels. The Brompton is neither faster nor slower in the grand scheme of things.

It does suffer on poor road surfaces however as the smaller wheels are more affected by potholes, bumps, dips etc.

Mine is a standard six speed and I use 4th for setting off, 5th for most pedaling up to about 20mph and 6th for downhills and tailwinds.

I average about 10-12 mph on my Brommie, but then I am old and fat

Just for the record, I'm 45 and 16 stone, so I think I'm also in that camp.

 

[Kell]

OH. PS - I also fitted a Joseph Kuosac firm block - much less bouncy.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxeEln3X2qs

 

[Jason]

Thing is my commute is broken up by a train journey hence being forced into buying a Brompton. I may start to look at other options like 20"ers

Yes mine to - a 5 mile ride to the nearest Oyster station and then the same from mainline station. Flat/folding pedals also made it harder as i'm used to SPD on all the other bikes, but the requirement for office shoes means i can't/don't have the luxury of swappng them over.

Edit: The underground states the bike must be folding and under 20" wheel size, so you're not limited to just Bromptons. Never had an issue using mine all over London

 

[Salty seadog]

Non-folding Kojaks currently on sale at SJS Cycles £14 each. https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/tyres-16-349/ - looks like the best of a very limited range to me.

I've recently slicked up my old redundant mtb as I have a new one for the trails. It will now be a town/crap weather bike. I put 26x 2.0 kojaks on it. They have a running range of 30 - 70 psi iirc. The most uncomfortable ride I've ever had. At 60psi like concrete, at 40psi better but still way harsh.

 

[Salty seadog]

Nut - head

Bonce? Swede?

Loaf? Noggin?

 

[Kell]

Loaf? Noggin?

Northumberland = Nappa.

 

[ianrauk]

OH. PS - I also fitted a Joseph Kuosac firm block - much less bouncy.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxeEln3X2qs

Thanks for that @Kell , I'll look at getting one of those. Even though the block I do have is a 'firm' one, it still is a little bouncy.

Though, one thing I will say about the Brompton is that it is a nice comfy ride. The saddle seems to suite me too.

 

[Kell]

I find it especially useful at higher RPMs where the short cranks and bouncy ride contribute to a lot of bobbing.

I have to say that I was expecting the ride to be much harsher, but to be honest I can't really tell the difference and I certainly don't miss the old suspension block. For anyone that wants to make their Brompton a little quicker I'd definitely recommend one.

 

[subaqua]

Foodie nails it in the first reply .

HTFU .... as per Rule 5.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Well, choice of bars isn't much of an advantage once you've chosen them, as you're (relatively) stuck with them.
I have M type. I find if I ride it for more than an hour or so I'm yearning for new hand positions. If I ever make a habit of doing long rides on it I'll experiment with bar-ends probably.
But this is all a bit off topic.

Ergons on my S type B

 

[alicat]

Thing is my commute is broken up by a train journey hence being forced into buying a Brompton. I may start to look at other options like 20"ers

Keep a bike at both ends?

 

[ianrauk]

Keep a bike at both ends?

No chance. If I did then it would have to be a clunker to leave overnight locked to racks. I do not do clunkers and leaving a bike overnight in SE London, well...