Why are Brompton folding bikes so expensive?

[Tim Hall]

A blue one,

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I think @Flying Dodo has a Bickerton. A serious amount of reengineering/pimping has been carried out to make it into a rideable machine.

 

[Alan O]

Hmm, resurrected thread indeed...

The price of a Brompton, like the price of anything, is set at what the market will stand. And as there are a lot of people out there who really like them and there's relatively little competition (Is there any competition at the top-end of the folder market?), the price the market will stand is relatively high.

 

[srw]

Is there any competition at the top-end of the folder market?

There are Airnimals and Terns, which make the Brompton look cheap.

 

[PaulM]

And Birdys ...

 

[alicat]

Trains in the UK carry full size bikes, don't they? Or have locking up places. Both ends?

What prompted me to get a Brompton was the experience of having to rush to jam my bike in a normal carriage after I realised that nobody was going to open the bike carriage on the Pendolino for my bike reservation.

 

[Kell]

You could lock up a bike at both ends of your journey. I see several people on my train that do that. But then you're maintaining two bikes rather than one - arguably each would go twice as long before a service though. The biggest worry of that for me is wondering whether or not your bike will be there when you come back to it.

Most train companies only allow folders during rush hour - and mine was going to introduce a new rule about those too. At the time I had a full-size Dahon and they said they were going to bring in a rule which meant only those bikes with 20" and less wheels would be allowed. Or only those that had a two-fold system rather than a single fold.

That was the final nail in the coffin for me thinking about getting another full-size folder. They weren't cheap and I didn't fancy the idea of buying one and then being told I couldn't use it.

 

[Julia9054]

I wanted a cheap (<£500) folder and got Evans to get a Dahon in for me to look at. It wouldn't even fit in the back of my car. Went to Cycle Heaven and the guy did the whole Brompton hard sell on me and it made perfect sense. It was a frivolous and extravagant purchase (I didn't really need a folder) but it makes me happy.

 

[srw]

You could lock up a bike at both ends of your journey. I see several people on my train that do that

You could. But in the case of your (and my) London terminus station you need a season ticket issued by the National Rail operator to do it inside the station. Which excludes both those of us who don't commute five days a week and those of us who travel from an underground station.

The security point also excludes anyone who doesn't have secure parking at their final destination. In my 20+ years of Brompton commuting I have literally never locked it up. I suspect that if I'd been using a full-sized bike I'd have lost about one per year to a thief - which even if I bought gaspipe specials means that the three Bromptons I've bought have paid for themselves - even discounting the fact that my first one paid for itself within a year in a cheaper season ticket, and the next two years of commuting paid for the second one.

 

[doginabag]

I must say, I don't understand people getting so up tight about the existence of a product they neither want or need.

Makes me wonder if I should be signing up on www.coffeechat.net and having a moan about fancy coffee machines because I'm happy enough with a jar of instant.

 

[Julia9054]

I must say, I don't understand people getting so up tight about the existence of a product they neither want or need.

Makes me wonder if I should be signing up on www.coffeechat.net and having a moan about fancy coffee machines because I'm happy enough with a jar of instant.

See also the currently running smart phone thread!

 

[Kell]

You could. But in the case of your (and my) London terminus station you need a season ticket issued by the National Rail operator to do it inside the station. Which excludes both those of us who don't commute five days a week and those of us who travel from an underground station.

I did not know that. I knew you had to apply for a permit, but hadn't realised you had to be a season ticket holder to do so.

 

[Flying Dodo]

I think @Flying Dodo has a Bickerton. A serious amount of reengineering/pimping has been carried out to make it into a rideable machine.

Replacement stem, fork & handlebars, plus Brompton front wheel and the Kinetics Brompton 8 speed rear wheel. Zooms along very nicely and with velcro dots in strategic places, the bars stay folded when I fold the frame.

Bizarrely, it's had a new lease of life since recently moving to the seaside, as I use it all the time for popping along the promenade to the shops. Prior to that, it's done nothing for 2 years after going up a little hill in the south of France.....
.

I overtook quite a few people going up!

 

[TheDoctor]

You did Ventoux on a Bick? Hat!
I thought I did well doing (most of) it on a Brompton!

 

[Flying Dodo]

Going downhill, I had to brake to keep below 38 mph, as above that speed I started to get front wheel wobble.

 

[jay clock]

You could. But in the case of your (and my) London terminus station you need a season ticket issued by the National Rail operator to do it inside the station. Which excludes both those of us who don't commute five days a week and those of us who travel from an underground station.

The security point also excludes anyone who doesn't have secure parking at their final destination. In my 20+ years of Brompton commuting I have literally never locked it up. I suspect that if I'd been using a full-sized bike I'd have lost about one per year to a thief - which even if I bought gaspipe specials means that the three Bromptons I've bought have paid for themselves - even discounting the fact that my first one paid for itself within a year in a cheaper season ticket, and the next two years of commuting paid for the second one.

Waterloo has dozens of free racks and open to anyone. And as long a your bike is (or looks) a bit crap it will be fine. Mine is a £300 hybrid with the frame wrapped in electrical tape.