The location at which I start work is shortly to be changed. Where I finish work will remain the same and I'll be blowed if I'm going to use public transport to get back from where I end to where the bike would be if I carry on as now and use my road bike commuter to get to work. So I'm in the market for a folder. The thing is I'd like to kill two birds with one stone and get one that will be OK on roughish tracks in a Sustrans-towpath-Scottish-Hill-Track stylee as well as commuting in London.
So I think I can discount the Brompton, that seems to have two things against it in my book: small wheels and lack of stiffness in the frame. I am leaning towards either a Birdy Red or a Mezzo D9
Comments? -- Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"
So I think I can discount the Brompton, that seems to have two things against it in my book: small wheels
Though small wheels aren't the best thing off the smooth they're not nearly as bad as some people would have you think as long as you're not dealing with chunky rocks or monster holes.
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and lack of stiffness in the frame. I am leaning towards either a Birdy Red or a Mezzo D9
No experience of a Mezzo, but the wheels look like the same size as the Brom, if that's still a worry. The various Birdies are pretty good for frame stiffness, the wheels are 2" bigger and the suspension is (a) very good and (b) makes the small wheels less of a problem than they may otherwise be.
The Green is a good option if you prefer a hub, the Blue gives you a bigger range with a DualDrive which you might appreciate for the "Scottish Hill Tracks" thingy. The 10th anniversary special has 20" wheels so a poorer fold but slightly better ride. You choose, you lose...
Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
The location at which I start work is shortly to be changed. Where I finish work will remain the same and I'll be blowed if I'm going to use public transport to get back from where I end to where the bike would be if I carry on as now and use my road bike commuter to get to work. So I'm in the market for a folder. The thing is I'd like to kill two birds with one stone and get one that will be OK on roughish tracks in a Sustrans-towpath-Scottish-Hill-Track stylee as well as commuting in London.
Quoted message said:
So I think I can discount the Brompton, that seems to have two things against it in my book: small wheels and lack of stiffness in the frame. I am leaning towards either a Birdy Red or a Mezzo D9
The location at which I start work is shortly to be changed. Where I finish work will remain the same and I'll be blowed if I'm going to use public transport to get back from where I end to where the bike would be if I carry on as now and use my road bike commuter to get to work. So I'm in the market for a folder. The thing is I'd like to kill two birds with one stone and get one that will be OK on roughish tracks in a Sustrans-towpath-Scottish-Hill-Track stylee as well as commuting in London.
Quoted message said:
So I think I can discount the Brompton, that seems to have two things against it in my book: small wheels and lack of stiffness in the frame. I am leaning towards either a Birdy Red or a Mezzo D9
Quoted message said:
Comments?
I managed to get my groceries home off-road on a Brompton.
I also managed a 100km ride round New Forest cattle grids on it.
It folds so well that I wouldn't consider faffing with anything else at a station.
I like the Brompton so much I bought another one just over a fortnight ago.
I managed to get my groceries home off-road on a Brompton.
Coming out of B&Q with a pannier full of DIY goodies once, I met some pals off for a ride, wondering if I'd like to come along. Sounded good to me... we did some disused railways, and on the way back through Templeton Woods a fully enlycrad MTBer joined from a connecting path just in front of us. A couple of hundred meters later when he looked over his shoulder he was /very/ surprised to find me still right on his tail!
Did bugger it up a few minutes later going across the grass in Camperdown park, letting the front wheel down a bank onto the road, to find a ditch there almost /exactly/ the same diameter as a Brom's front wheel. Oops. Exit over handlebars as back wheel folder under. Well, we all make mistakes, said the dalek climbing off the dustbin.
Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
On Tue, 02 Aug 2005 12:08:49 +0100 someone who may be Phil Cook <[email hidden]> wrote this:-
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OK so it has probably been covered before.
Many times.
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I'm in the market for a folder. The thing is I'd like to kill two birds with one stone and get one that will be OK on roughish tracks in a Sustrans-towpath-Scottish-Hill-Track stylee
Two possibly very different things. Folders will cope happily enough with the former, but not do so well on the latter.
Quoted message said:
So I think I can discount the Brompton, that seems to have two things against it in my book: small wheels
In the absence of reliable folding wheels, most folders have small wheels to reduce the folded size.
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and lack of stiffness in the frame.
Compared to what?
-- David Hansen, Edinburgh | PGP email preferred-key number F566DA0E I will always explain revoked keys, unless the UK government prevents me by using the RIP Act 2000.
On Tue, 02 Aug 2005 12:08:49 +0100 someone who may be Phil Cook <[email hidden]> wrote this:-
Quoted message said:
Quoted message said:
I'm in the market for a folder. The thing is I'd like to kill two birds with one stone and get one that will be OK on roughish tracks in a Sustrans-towpath-Scottish-Hill-Track stylee
Two possibly very different things. Folders will cope happily enough with the former, but not do so well on the latter.
The latter is going to be an occasional thing I was thinking mostly of the tracks regularly used by vehicles rather than the really rough ones but given the state of London's roads they're not all that different.
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So I think I can discount the Brompton, that seems to have two things against it in my book: small wheels
In the absence of reliable folding wheels, most folders have small wheels to reduce the folded size.
Yes I was under the impression that the Brom had really small ones but they are 16 the same as the D9 and my favoured Birdy has 18 only a smidgin larger.
What is the folded size of the Brom?
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Quoted message said:
and lack of stiffness in the frame.
Compared to what?
Yeah I know, I need to go and get a few demonstration rides in, luckily there are plenty of oportunities for that in London without making a trip to Bath. -- Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"
I like the Brompton so much I bought another one just over a fortnight ago.
I can't ride a bike any more...
I must confess to being intrigued. Are the two statements above linked? Are you prevented from riding altogether, or is the Brompton better than a "normal" bike in some way?
Ignore me if this constitutes a request for more detail than you wish to give.
On Tue, 02 Aug 2005 20:12:30 +0100 someone who may be Phil Cook <[email hidden]> wrote this:-
Quoted message said:
Yes I was under the impression that the Brom had really small ones but they are 16 the same as the D9 and my favoured Birdy has 18 only a smidgin larger.
The outside diameter of Birdy wheels is little greater than those of the Brompton, far less than the difference between the claimed 16" and 18" wheel sizes.
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What is the folded size of the Brom?
They have a web site, which I believe contains such information.
-- David Hansen, Edinburgh | PGP email preferred-key number F566DA0E I will always explain revoked keys, unless the UK government prevents me by using the RIP Act 2000.
The location at which I start work is shortly to be changed. Where I finish work will remain the same and I'll be blowed if I'm going to use public transport to get back from where I end to where the bike would be if I carry on as now and use my road bike commuter to get to work. So I'm in the market for a folder. The thing is I'd like to kill two birds with one stone and get one that will be OK on roughish tracks in a Sustrans-towpath-Scottish-Hill-Track stylee as well as commuting in London.
So I think I can discount the Brompton, that seems to have two things against it in my book: small wheels and lack of stiffness in the frame. I am leaning towards either a Birdy Red or a Mezzo D9
Comments?
Have a look also at the Airnimal Joey or Rhino also.
-- Tony
"I did make a mistake once - I thought I'd made a mistake but I hadn't" Anon
I like the Brompton so much I bought another one just over a fortnight ago.
I can't ride a bike any more...
I must confess to being intrigued. Are the two statements above linked? Are you prevented from riding altogether, or is the Brompton better than a "normal" bike in some way?
DKUATB. Helen suffers a progressive degenerative disease, and can't ride a bike any longer. She recently bought a Brompton for her partner, who can.
-- [email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/ Copyright (c) Simon Brooke; All rights reserved. Permission is granted to transfer this message via UUCP or NNTP and to store it for the purpose of archiving or further transfer. Permission is explicitly denied to use this message as part of a 'Web Forum', or to transfer it by HTTP.
DKUATB. Helen suffers a progressive degenerative disease, and can't ride a bike any longer. She recently bought a Brompton for her partner, who can.
Apologies Helen. I did recently clear huge swathes of news, by marking as read, and I have tended to avoid Brompton related threads (Apparently there's a regular here who was intending to get one... do we know what happened?).
(Apparently there's a regular here who was intending to get one... do we know what happened?).
AIUI He's given up cycling. Now to be found on uk.rec.origami
Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
"Tony Raven" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...
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The Darkside was strong in young Guywalker but eventually he folded ;-)
Perhaps the rate at which he was folding the frames of his Streetmachine gave him the hint that what he really needed was the relaxation of fold -- unfold -- fold -- unfold -- fold -- unfold -- fold -- unfold -- fold -- unfold -- fold -- unfold --
On Tue, 02 Aug 2005 20:12:30 +0100 someone who may be Phil Cook <[email hidden]> wrote this:-
Quoted message said:
Yes I was under the impression that the Brom had really small ones but they are 16 the same as the D9 and my favoured Birdy has 18 only a smidgin larger.
The outside diameter of Birdy wheels is little greater than those of the Brompton, far less than the difference between the claimed 16" and 18" wheel sizes.
6 mm difference in rim diameter. Depending on the tyres fitted, the Brompton may even have a larger overall whel diameter than the Birdy.
Perhaps the rate at which he was folding the frames of his Streetmachine
Point Of Order: Guy has been folding Optima Stingers, not HPVelotechnik Streetmachines. Just don't want people going away thinking SMGTs aren't built like rather strong tanks...
Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
"Peter Clinch" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...
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Tony W said:
Perhaps the rate at which he was folding the frames of his Streetmachine
Point Of Order: Guy has been folding Optima Stingers, not HPVelotechnik Streetmachines. Just don't want people going away thinking SMGTs aren't built like rather strong tanks...
He's quite big and powerful though, he might be quite capable of bending an SMGT too. :P
He's quite big and powerful though, he might be quite capable of bending an SMGT too. :P
He might... Darth Ben managed to slightly misalign the rear triangle on his original Streetmachine by taking it stunt-jumping Big Air on a few occasions, so it's /possible/ to bend them. But *breaking* them would be a whole different ball game. Compared to the Stinger the frame is CroMo steel, which is easier to weld well, and there aren't so many bends in it, which should help with integrity too. And HPVel have a reputation for stereotypically German over-engineering while Optima (without wishing to suggest they have a reputation for weak building) don't. So I won't rule it out, but I've seen a lot of bikes I'd expect to get borked a lot quicker than a Streetmachine.
Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
Jon Senior <jon_AT_restlesslemon_DOT_co_DOT_uk>typed
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Helen Deborah Vecht said:
I like the Brompton so much I bought another one just over a fortnight ago.
I can't ride a bike any more...
Quoted message said:
I must confess to being intrigued. Are the two statements above linked? Are you prevented from riding altogether, or is the Brompton better than a "normal" bike in some way?
Quoted message said:
Ignore me if this constitutes a request for more detail than you wish to give.
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Jon
I have multiple sclerosis & can't ride anything. I bought the Brompton for boyfriend when full-size bike in bag seemed unmanageable for forthcoming holiday.
