There are other folders out there..................

[jefmcg]

pop star David Byrne takes a folding bike with him on tour. and uses it for site seeing when on tour in a major city.in which he plays.using it to .visit parks , museums or whatever.

I believe he stopped doing that. Now he buys cheap Walmart bike and leaves it behind when he moves on.

 

[shouldbeinbed]

Indeed. It's the default option for many without trying the alternatives. Comments above indicating they would only consider Bromptons as folders speak volumes. And for a lot of people they're almost a fashion accessory first and a bike second.

I wanted a full size 26" folder myself which is why I went for the Tern Joe P24. It's fantastic in black and red and at first glance it doesn't look like a folder. It's size can be awkward on packed trains but it's not too bad and is remarkably compact given it's size when unfolded, and unlike some other full sized folders, it doesn't require a wheel to be removed, the pain of which negates the point of a folding bike somewhat for me. In terms of the ride, it's in a different league to anything with 16" or 20" wheels. Important for me as I do a lot of miles.

I spent years on other folders, love my now defunct Birdy with a passion and if you look far enough back on here and other bike forum you'll find me unimpressed and in the emperors new clothes camp, based on frequent but short test rides, a weekend borrow and playing about in shops, but the triple whammy of dead sram dualdrive & other bits I'd been putting off, smashed knee and Metrolink going to my hometown made a Brompton almost inevitable (mainly Mcr Metro's banning of any bike not a Brompton).

Living with one does endear it to you, as does the recent brake upgrade, and I've become a convert, day in day out riding does give a different perspective on what you can do and where you can take it, how much more it belies its looks in terms of the quality and comfort of the ride. Yes they are hyped up to an aggravating degree and it can be hard to believe they are all that, but largely with good reason in hindsight they deserve the reputation and praise they get. If I had a wee ££ windfall I'd love to get my Birdy back in fettle but not with the urgency and desperation I would have when first buying the Brompton.

I also have a Dahon Getaway from.back in their early days and albeit a bit more flexy in use, it is the only other folder I've come across that matches the Brompton for compactness. I can see why later Dahons give a bigger package offset by a more solid feel to the frame tho.

I had a 26 wheel folder too many moons ago but found it more a gimmick in terms of being foldy than a genuinely useful feature, it helped being able to dump it in the back seat of the car folded occasionally but there weren't many opportunities when being foldable was a key feature of it.

 

[Kempston]

I don't find 26" folders a gimmick at all. It's all about getting it on the train. The simple truth is that a non-folder isn't allowed but folders are, or at least on London Midland which is all I use. They don't specify how small it has to fold so my bike is perfect. I had a Tern Link with 20" wheels prior to this, and there is no comparison with ride quality and comfort. And I had a Brompton for a test ride for a few weeks before I went with the Link. I simply found the frame too flexible and, thanks to the 16" wheels, the ride on anything bar a perfectly smooth road or cycle path a pain in the arse, literally.

I can imagine if I had a Brompton long enough I'd endear to it. But I also imagine a lot of that would be forced thanks to the price I'd have paid for it (Over £1200 for a 6 gear folder?) and a determination to make the best of it.

 

[anothersam]

While there's a lot to like about Bromptons, I didn't get along with mine. Ended up with a Dahon Presto Lite, which I converted to singlespeed (with a Brommie hub, so it wasn't a clean break), making it even lite-r. It's fast – I have to hold onto the bars for dear life. I take no credit; it's pulled along by some unseen force. Or else it just seems like I'm going fast because it's so small.

Dahon are rubbish for spares, the fold isn't terribly neat (though it is marginally quicker), and the build quality of my model doesn't inspire confidence for the long term,* but it's been a blast to ride these past 8 or 9 years and I'll really miss it if it bites the dust.

* even as it keeps going, with two casualties doubtless abetted by my riding style: the bolt holding the handlebars snapped, depositing me unceremoniously in traffic one day

and a hinge developed a crack and had to be replaced

 

[clid61]

I have this. Fit a rack and basket, and I should make a hefty profit in Chorlton

 

[shouldbeinbed]

@clid61 I was in Chorlton last night, it always makes me happy to see so many bikes and so many utility types and people just riding in normal clothes doing normal things. I'd love to have room to make you an offer for that but I'm juggling so much space for bikes already I'm stuffed.

 

[clid61]

@clid61 I was in Chorlton last night, it always makes me happy to see so many bikes and so many utility types and people just riding in normal clothes doing normal things. I'd love to have room to make you an offer for that but I'm juggling so much space for bikes already I'm stuffed.

Totally agree . Imagine turning up at the Horse and Jockey on that lol . If I was a female ( which Im not ) , straw hat, summer dress, small dog in basket etc.......

 

[nz6666]

Brompton is best in terms of foldability but maybe not in other areas. The biggest problem is it not using standard components, which makes upgrading and customizing limited. For example, I put schwalbe one 23mm (0.9 inch) width tyres on my 20 inch folder, which is a big improvement in terms of speed. The other day I cycled along college road in south London and decided my gear was not low enough so planned to order a Shimano shadow RD and a 12-36 T cassette to lower my gear inch. Things like these can be easily done with Dahon and other folder using standard components. And the 16 inch wheels on brompton are just too small for any serious speed except the road condition is really good. For me 20 inch is the lower limit, 22 inch maybe better but I can live with 20 inch at least in London area.

I understand many people using brompton are not performance oriented but I believe some people do care about performance. One thing is people often compare 1000 £ brompton to 500 £ Dahon or similar. Why not compare 1000£ or even 2000£ Dahon/Tern/Pacific reach etc? Those premium models are not only lighter (under 10 kg, some even under 9 kg), but faster (sleek tyres, top tier road bike components). Some of these can seriously contend with mid ranged road bikes, such as Dahon speed pro TT/vector 27, Tern verge 30h/verge 18x, Pacific reach. The difference with road bikes? They fold in 10 seconds (not Pacific reach) while it takes half an hour to detach a road bike for travelling. These are performance bikes that can fold easily while brompton is a bike for folding.

And regarding the folding, brompton is the best no question (size and looks better). But a Dahon/similar flat bar model is not that bigger. They are similar in thickness and height and only about 10-20 cm longer. If a train is really that packed, a Brompton will cause the same inconvenience as a Dahon/similar (or a suit case). If it's not that packed, both will be fine.

 

[jay clock]

my train is packed and my Dahon will not fit behind the seat, whereas my Brompton will

 

[Bodhbh]

I understand many people using brompton are not performance oriented but I believe some people do care about performance.

I'm just flying by this thread and don't own a Brompton, but if you need to fold and carry a bike often enough then that becomes part of the performance. While I don't think a Brompton is the bee all and end all, it certainly has a niche. I took my clunky R20 folder on a pub crawl on Saturday (after a 70 mile ride). Jesus Christ that was hard work - banging open doors, knocking things over, bumping into people - I would have killed for a Brompton.

 

[Kempston]

my train is packed and my Dahon will not fit behind the seat, whereas my Brompton will

The line I use only has Southern and London Midland (Virgin trains too, but I don't count them as they don't stop at my station), neither of which have the facility to store bikes behind seats. I've never had an issue with my bike on a train, despite it being a full size 26" folder. I simply use my velcro strips to attach the folded frame to one of the floor to ceiling hand rails near one of the doors.

I'm not going to lie, the bike is clearly more cumbersome to move around when folded, I know this as I spent two weeks with a Brompton and then 18 months with a Tern Link. But that's easily made up for with how much better and easier it is to ride than any smaller folder out there. And getting from A to B is still the primary purpose of a bike, be it folding or non-folding.

 

[TheDoctor]

Dahons would be fine if they folded nearly. Which they don't.
And if they didn't keep breaking. Which they do.
Bromptons just work. Dahons just don't.

 

[Kempston]

I can't speak for Dahons as I don't own one, but I've never had an issue with my Tern. And it folds nicely considering it's a full size.

 

[TheDoctor]

Yes, but most trains won't accept a 26" folder as a folder. Virgin, First Great Western, Great Northern and Eurostar don't, so that's why I use a Brommie.
And I've just had a quick Google, and breakages of Tern frames seem just as likely as with Dahons.
Unsurprising, considering there's very little difference...

 

[Kempston]

Yes, but most trains won't accept a 26" folder as a folder. Virgin, First Great Western, Great Northern and Eurostar don't, so that's why I use a Brommie..

Most trains? You have named a mere four, and I have had my 26" Tern on two of those (Virgin and FGW).