Changing handlebars on H3L

[Littlewheels]

I recently purchased a 2014 H3L (secondhand for £700 - only ridden once by an elderly gentleman so it's practically new). I was looking for an M3L but it was too good a deal and I'm 5'9'' so figure I can live with a slightly more upright position. But I wondered - could I put on the new, lower M handlebars without having to tweak the brake cables? Or would this cause problems? I was also thinking about getting a standard seat post (for storage reasons as the H doesn't push down as far when folded). Again would this be problematic given the front riser stem is slightly higher? Or I could just embrace the more upright steed! Thanks

 

[berlinonaut]

You can run the newer (lower) bar on the older stem - this has been my standard setup since the new bars exist. You also can leave the cables uncut (ran mine for a long time this way) but longterm I would recommend cutting them to appropriate length as the uncut cables tend to get caught by the knob of the stem hinge from time to time when folding/unfolding.
Regarding the seatpost I do neiter understand the possible issue nor you motivation for change. You can w/o issues use all seat post lengths on all Bromptons.

 

[Shreds]

If your seatpost isnt descending far enough, check the front wheel where it hooks over the chainstay to lock it all together. Is that closing together snugly otherwise your seat post may be catching on the back of the circular rubber junction section. Or is the bung in the base of the seatpost projecting too far? Bromptons have always been finicky if none standard and its incredible how these issues crop up. Andrew Ritchie was not just an engineer and an inventor, he also knew how to keep the bike folding and operating only to his designs. Thats a genius at work and why Bromptons have held their own.

 

[Kell]

I specifically bought an H type as I wanted to fit low risers to it and figured it was better going H > lower rather than S > Higher.

As @berlinonaut mentions above the cables work fine. Cables are cables - even if they're too long. The problems only arise because of the fold and if neatness is your thing.

This is mine (2016) with low-rise Ritchey bars fitted before I got around to shortening the cables.

And this is quite a useful chart to have to hand when looking at the height you want. On my test ride before I bought a bike, I found the M felt too high, and the S felt too low. I did some searching on line (that's how I found this forum) and saw that some people had modified their bikes. Though most went from an S type to low risers. I went the other way as I want to fit bar ends, and figured the additional height of the elevated hinge on the H type stem would give the clearance I needed when the bike was folded.

This is what I ended up with as a folded package. It's close, but then the bars are probably 2-3cm wider (each end) than standard M bars.

 

[chriscross1966]

That looks like the long seatpost. It sticks up even when fully down. If it isnt a ling post then you'll need to adjust the fold-licking mushroom that is acting as the nut on the rear brake caliper

 

[Kell]

If you're talking about the lime green one - that's mine, not the OP's.

But it does demonstrate how much the longer seatpost sticks up. And my one is a few millimetres lower than it would normally be as I cut the end off the bung in the bottom so it would sit a little lower to fit in my car (see below).

I found that the telescopic seatpost actually sits lower as a folded package than the long one - when correctly adjusted to my height by pulling the thicker part out fully then raising the telescopic bit. Even if I just dropped the thicker part down to fold, the final package was smaller overall.

(I never measured it, but when I hired a Brompton, it would go into the back of our car without having to be forced, whereas when I ordered mine, I really have to jam the seat in to get it through the opening.)