Folding bikes for non commuting use?

tangled_metal

Does anyone own a folding bike that they bought specifically for a purpose other than commuting by train or other public transport? I'm looking at a folding bike that's suitable for cycle touring via a flight out somewhere. I'd be interested to know if anyone has such a bike and use it like that??

swjohnsey

I just bought an old Brompton to put in the back of my airplane. I've been riding it around town and it would be suitable for cycle touring. Most even come with a rack. It will even fold small enough to go as carry-on 2"x2'x1'.

mercia_man

I owned a Bike Friday Pocket Rocket until recently. This was a foldable performance road bike with drop bars and 20in (451) wheels, custom built in Eugene, Oregon, to replicate the riding position of my favourite regular bike. I sent them the measurements and they built the steel frame and assembled it with my choice of components. I had a mix of Shimano Ultegra, 105 and RSX components with a single chainring and a Sachs three-speed hub with seven-speed cassette giving 21 speeds and a gear range of 25 to 109 inches. I ordered it through a British Bike Friday dealer but they no longer have a UK agent as far as I know.

It was really nice to ride, a bit faster than my steel touring bike and a bit slower than my carbon road bike on my regular training route. It was well able to maintain pace on group rides and was great for touring. I enjoyed surprising traditional roadies who could not believe that a bike with small wheels could keep up with them or even overtake them. Small wheels do have more rolling resistance than 700c but you can minimise this by fitting fast tyres. Wind resistance is quite a bit less than a regular bike - the aerodynamic advantage of small wheels was one of the reasons why Moultons were banned from racing in the 1960s.

The bike had a quick fold so that you could carry it in a bag with shoulder strap - handy for public transport or for storing it in your room at night on a B&B tour.

It would also dismantle so it could be carried in a standard sized Samsonite suitcase, along with trailer kit and wheels, plus lightweight tent, tools and camping stuff. It was a question of folding the frame, removing the front wheel, swan neck stem, pedals, saddle and post, and splitting the drop bars into two pieces and arranging everything in the case in dedicated bags in a particular order. Very clever. I could comfortably get under the then usual 25kg luggage limit and could just about get under 20kg if required. The case travelled as regular hold luggage, so no sporting goods surcharge. It was about a 20-minute job to reassemble the bike and trailer kit in a quiet corner of the airport when I arrived at places like Nice and Geneva after cheap EasyJet flights. The suitcase acted as a trailer and it all handled really well. I took it on many touring holidays in the Alps and Pyrenees between the mid-1990s and approx 2005, tugging the trailer up and down lots of high road and off-road passes (with 25mm tyres) and got loads of attention from bemused French people. I tended to stay on a campsite for a couple of days so I could enjoy unladen day rides up big climbs like the Cormet de Roseland and the Col de la Bonette.

I know I’ve gone on a bit but I had a lot of fun on that Bike Friday. It was not as handy for quick and small folding as a Brompton but it rode far better, like a good regular bike, and was a brilliant bit of kit for combining air, bus and rail travel with touring.

orraloon

I seem to recall Kajsa Tylen, the ultracyclist and record holder, did some stuff with an Airnimal a few years back. A google will probably dig out the info. I had a Chameleon in the '00s which I had originally bought for commuting by train but after I stopped that commuter life I used as a road bike and on weekender type trips for a while. It was good to ride, and I agree with MM above that the smaller wheels didn't really have any downside for what I was doing. Did create some interest from others though 😊

Mad_Malx

mercia_man said:

I owned a Bike Friday Pocket Rocket until recently. This was a foldable performance road bike with drop bars and 20in (451) wheels, custom built in Eugene, Oregon, to replicate the riding position of my favourite regular bike. I sent them the measurements and they built the steel frame and assembled it with my choice of components. I had a mix of Shimano Ultegra, 105 and RSX components with a single chainring and a Sachs three-speed hub with seven-speed cassette giving 21 speeds and a gear range of 25 to 109 inches. I ordered it through a British Bike Friday dealer but they no longer have a UK agent as far as I know.

It was really nice to ride, a bit faster than my steel touring bike and a bit slower than my carbon road bike on my regular training route. It was well able to maintain pace on group rides and was great for touring. I enjoyed surprising traditional roadies who could not believe that a bike with small wheels could keep up with them or even overtake them. Small wheels do have more rolling resistance than 700c but you can minimise this by fitting fast tyres. Wind resistance is quite a bit less than a regular bike - the aerodynamic advantage of small wheels was one of the reasons why Moultons were banned from racing in the 1960s.

The bike had a quick fold so that you could carry it in a bag with shoulder strap - handy for public transport or for storing it in your room at night on a B&B tour.

It would also dismantle so it could be carried in a standard sized Samsonite suitcase, along with trailer kit and wheels, plus lightweight tent, tools and camping stuff. It was a question of folding the frame, removing the front wheel, swan neck stem, pedals, saddle and post, and splitting the drop bars into two pieces and arranging everything in the case in dedicated bags in a particular order. Very clever. I could comfortably get under the then usual 25kg luggage limit and could just about get under 20kg if required. The case travelled as regular hold luggage, so no sporting goods surcharge. It was about a 20-minute job to reassemble the bike and trailer kit in a quiet corner of the airport when I arrived at places like Nice and Geneva after cheap EasyJet flights. The suitcase acted as a trailer and it all handled really well. I took it on many touring holidays in the Alps and Pyrenees between the mid-1990s and approx 2005, tugging the trailer up and down lots of high road and off-road passes (with 25mm tyres) and got loads of attention from bemused French people. I tended to stay on a campsite for a couple of days so I could enjoy unladen day rides up big climbs like the Cormet de Roseland and the Col de la Bonette.

I know I’ve gone on a bit but I had a lot of fun on that Bike Friday. It was not as handy for quick and small folding as a Brompton but it rode far better, like a good regular bike, and was a brilliant bit of kit for combining air, bus and rail travel with touring.

I'm intrigued by all this. Convertible case/trailer is something I'd vaguely thought about but didn't know that it actually existed. So it had proper wheels and beaings?

darrell1967

swjohnsey said:

I just bought an old Brompton to put in the back of my airplane.

Gotta be quote of the year.

mercia_man

To answer Mad Malx - here’s a pic of trailer kit package. The case sits on top of the S-shaped and T- shaped interlocking arms, secured by thumb nuts on threads protruding through holes in the bottom of the case. The 12in wheels have tubeless tyres and run on smooth cartridge bearings. The trailer arm fits onto a quick release male/female nipple on left chainstay with a short piece of flexible hosepipe to enable you to go round bends. Works great - even on high speed descents down alpine passes. Handling with trailer was as good or better than my touring bike with four panniers - but you have to adjust to the extra length. The suitcase trailer can hold a vast amount of gear and it has a very low centre of gravity although you have to put up with a few rattles and drumming.

https://www.freedomfoldingbikes.com/copy-of-bike-friday-trailer-hitch-axle-mount-15842.html

Mad_Malx

Cheers MM, very interesting

ugo.santalucia

Airnimal seem to be what you are looking for