That's quite worrying U-I especially hinge clamp bolt snapping as I feel mine are due for replacement after 18 years service and don't want this critical part to fail ON ANYONE.... you mention aftermarket parts ..are they from Brompton ? Did you complain ? Rogerzilla also mentions poorly assembled and non lube in this thread so what is happening to quality control overall ....(sorry if I have gone off topic a bit but it is a safety issue pull me back in line any time you like )
No, none of these replacement parts were from Brompton, but the above have been quite typical experiences when diving into parts that others manufactured for Brompton. I just mention this to illuminate the issue that when you operate within the realm of relatively safe environment of responsible manufacturing and look at other options that look shiny and are more lightweight and maybe cheaper, you think why not, but they can turn quite sour in practice. I speak up after losing my own money to gain these experiences.
Are all aftermarket parts bad? No, but you roll the dice when you go there. Most are actually more expensive than the original, claiming to be superior. This is not the case with 3Sixty - their products usually cost similar. I once wrote to them asking whether the particular component is supposed to work better and they wrote back that just about the same. I.e., at least they did not make inflated claims, but I have not tried anything from them in practice. Am I eager to do so? Not really, but I will gladly hear about experiences of others there, particularly about practical everyday use - very bad associations there with Facebook photos in the context of the aftermarket parts.
