Compass Folding Bike

In article <[email hidden]>

MartinM said:

I've ordered one; at £69 you can't really go wrong, and I won't mind
cannabalising my non folding folding Giant (don't buy one, their after
sales is non existent)

The Giant distributor is not responsible for providing service - that's
the retailer's job.

Rob Morley said:

In article <[email hidden]>

MartinM said:

I've ordered one; at £69 you can't really go wrong, and I won't mind
cannabalising my non folding folding Giant (don't buy one, their after
sales is non existent)

The Giant distributor is not responsible for providing service - that's
the retailer's job.

it's not his job to make spare parts that are unobtainable from the
distributor after 18 months (even though they still make the bike in
question)

In article <[email hidden]>

MartinM said:

Rob Morley said:

In article <[email hidden]>

MartinM said:

I've ordered one; at £69 you can't really go wrong, and I won't mind
cannabalising my non folding folding Giant (don't buy one, their after
sales is non existent)

The Giant distributor is not responsible for providing service - that's
the retailer's job.

it's not his job to make spare parts that are unobtainable from the
distributor after 18 months (even though they still make the bike in
question)

So order the bike, rob the required parts then send it back to the
distributor as faulty - they'll get the message. What's so special
about this part anyway?

Rob Morley said:

In article <[email hidden]>
MartinM <[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted message said:

So order the bike, rob the required parts then send it back to the
distributor as faulty - they'll get the message.

and I'll get a refund?

What's so special

Quoted message said:

about this part anyway?

it holds the two halves of the frame together ;-)

In article <[email hidden]>

MartinM said:

Rob Morley said:

In article <[email hidden]>
MartinM <[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted message said:

So order the bike, rob the required parts then send it back to the
distributor as faulty - they'll get the message.

and I'll get a refund?

I meant that's what the dealer should do - either that or not stock
bikes for which he can't get the parts.

Quoted message said:

What's so special

Quoted message said:

about this part anyway?

it holds the two halves of the frame together ;-)

What happened to it?

MartinM said:

Rob Morley said:

What's so special about this part anyway?

it holds the two halves of the frame together ;-)

Still, that still makes it a better two for one offer than Sterling House
manages. 😉

A

Rob Morley said:

Quoted message said:

What's so special

Quoted message said:

about this part anyway?

it holds the two halves of the frame together ;-)

What happened to it?

it borked on the bottom fulcrum (?) and is only made of alloy; I
currently have the bike secured (but not Southern Railway foldee
stylee) with two tent pegs and two long bolts and two 13mm spanners in
rear pocket as the folding mechanism ;-)
The other promble is the seat pin is bent, so combine those two and
it's nearly the cost of the Compass bike (which folds properly unlike
the Giant which does not have a collapsible stem) although for the
purposes of getting on the train they just look for small wheels and
wave it on.

Ambrose Nankivell said:

MartinM said:

Rob Morley said:

What's so special about this part anyway?

it holds the two halves of the frame together ;-)

Still, that still makes it a better two for one offer than Sterling House
manages. 😉

Shirley with SH you get 10 frames for the price of one (in weight terms
at least)

MartinM said:

I've ordered one; at £69 you can't really go wrong,

unless of course you're not happy to make do with just 2 of the 3 words
(it says Compass on the frame and it folds). What a POS, the back pedal
brake is a death trap (as I'm not Dutch), and none of the remotely
bicycle type bits off the old one will fit. Oh well, perhaps someone
will stroll off with it.

MartinM said:

MartinM said:

I've ordered one; at £69 you can't really go wrong,

unless of course you're not happy to make do with just 2 of the 3
words (it says Compass on the frame and it folds). What a POS, the
back pedal brake is a death trap (as I'm not Dutch), and none of the
remotely bicycle type bits off the old one will fit. Oh well, perhaps
someone will stroll off with it.

Take the shoes out of the back pedal brake to convert it into a regular
single speed (if a bit heavier). If you really can't fit a back brake, you
could pour epoxy into the freewheel and make it into a fixed. As for it
being a POS, what did you expect for £69?

Tom
--
Return address is dead. Real address is at
http://toomanybikes.com/address.jpg

Tom said:

Take the shoes out of the back pedal brake to convert it into a

regular

Quoted message said:

single speed (if a bit heavier).

thanks; will have a look, presumably if I just remove the arm it will
have the same effect?
actually it has a proper brake tube thingy rather than just a mudguard
bracket so I could fit a caliper

Yes for £69 you can't expect much but as Proper ones are in the 5-600
region I can't complain; it should do the purpose for which it was
purchased; folders are so specialised that it only takes one part
failure to render them useless. And it saves me 500 squid pa in not
having to add the travelcard to my season ticket and of course endure
the 40oC and asbestos ridden Tube.

MartinM said:

Tom wrote:

thanks; will have a look, presumably if I just remove the arm it will
have the same effect?

No, the torque arm is just there to stop the whole hub rotating when you
brake. you'll have to take the shoes out. It's not a difficult job, I took
them out of a Stumery Archer 7 speed hub on my pub bike and I've had no
problems since. If you really don't like the idea of delving into your hub
you could always just buy/acquire a 406 (assuming that it is a 406 and not a
451) back wheel for it, like these:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Pair-of-BMX-Wheels-and-Tyre-20-x-1-95_W0QQitemZ200016419188QQihZ010QQcategoryZ58089QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

or these Sun Tour alloy ones

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Old-School-Chrome-Araya-20-x-1-75-wheels-Rims-Suntour_W0QQitemZ140016390761QQihZ004QQcategoryZ58089QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Tom
--
Return address is dead. Real address is at
http://toomanybikes.com/address.jpg

Tom said:

MartinM said:

Tom wrote:

thanks; will have a look, presumably if I just remove the arm it will
have the same effect?

No, the torque arm is just there to stop the whole hub rotating when you
brake. you'll have to take the shoes out. It's not a difficult job, I took
them out of a Stumery Archer 7 speed hub on my pub bike and I've had no
problems since. If you really don't like the idea of delving into your hub
you could always just buy/acquire a 406 (assuming that it is a 406 and not a
451) back wheel for it, like these:

thanks; but the hubs on the Compass are very narrow; not sure if any
others will fit, the old ones off the Giant won't. Perhaps I'll wait
until my oldest gets bored with his BMX

MartinM said:

thanks; but the hubs on the Compass are very narrow; not sure if any
others will fit, the old ones off the Giant won't. Perhaps I'll wait
until my oldest gets bored with his BMX

Standard width for a BMX rear is 110mm, I seriously doubt that your hub is
narrower than that, why not try your oldest's back wheel in your bike to see
if it will fit?

Tom
--
Return address is dead. Real address is at
http://toomanybikes.com/address.jpg

Tom said:

MartinM said:

thanks; but the hubs on the Compass are very narrow; not sure if any
others will fit, the old ones off the Giant won't. Perhaps I'll wait
until my oldest gets bored with his BMX

Standard width for a BMX rear is 110mm, I seriously doubt that your hub is
narrower than that,

Compass is 110 rear, 70 front
BMX is 110 rear 100 front

Think I'll rip the back pedal apart for the mo (once I can rig up a
calliper brake), thanks. Anyway changed the front brake lever to the
LHS (curiously despite being for the German market with orange wheel
reflectors it was on the right) and removed the rack/propstand; feels
much lighter already. I saw one of the bikes on eBay a few weeks ago;
claimed it was made by Dahon.

Tom wrote:

you'll have to take the shoes out. It's not a difficult job, I took

Quoted message said:

them out of a Stumery Archer 7 speed hub on my pub bike and I've had no
problems since.

FSVO "not a difficult job";
don't try this at home kids; what a 'mare of a job; on the Compass the
freewheel is "attached" to the hub via a thrust bearing which pushes
against two shells (the brake drums) and locks the freewheel against
the hub. When you back pedal it does the same thing somehow but has a
cone type thingey which pushes the two shells outwards so they engage
the inside of the hub. This I found out by a several of hours trial and
error and holding various grease coated bits in one hand and two
spanners in the other two. Now orft to H****ds to find a child's single
speed wheel assuming I CBA and have not mastered the back pedal method
by then. BTW the calliper brake was as effective as; well a single
pivot calliper brake

MartinM said:

Tom wrote:

you'll have to take the shoes out. It's not a difficult job, I took

Quoted message said:

them out of a Stumery Archer 7 speed hub on my pub bike and I've had
no problems since.

FSVO "not a difficult job";
don't try this at home kids; what a 'mare of a job;

I'm sorry that you found it difficult Martin, but I did specify that I took
mine out of an S.A 7 speed hub. In that hub there were three shoes
http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/7311/sabrakeshoesgu3.jpg and that was all
I removed. Ten minutes in total, though I did have a manual to show me how
it all works http://www.hadland.me.uk/spr7c.pdf

Tom
--
Return address is dead. Real address is at
http://toomanybikes.com/address.jpg

Tom said:

I'm sorry that you found it difficult Martin, but I did specify that I took
mine out of an S.A 7 speed hub.

no probs; in fact a salutary lesson in IIWDFWI. The hardest bit was
trying to find the third shoe on the garage floor (there are only 2)
Actually the Sturmey seems the same basic principle as mine, same width
too? that could be an idea; could be worth getting on old one off a
17th century shopper and having the wheel rebuilt chez Darth Ian.