Dahon Speed Pro vs Birdy

Trealaw Boy said:

The Dahon spec, reviews and price are very tempting. I've ridden Birdy and like it, and am aware
that its got a more compact fold thatn the Dahon. Aluminium frame and suspension too.

IIRC the Dahon's aluminium as well. Also note that they do quite a big range, and you can spend up
to 4 figures on their hotter models (the Helios is very well specced).

Quoted message said:

Is the Birdy worth the extra 100s of pounds though?

Depends what you have in mind for it. I regard the Birdy as a truly great "do everything" bike form
the couple of test rides I've had. I bought a Brompton because I didn't need to do everything, the
smaller fold suited my needs better *and* it was a fair chunk cheaper. The Dahon is a capable bike
and very good value for money. Question is do you want to do stuff the Birdy is unquestionably
better at (rough paths, fitting into smaller spaces folded), do you want more bangs per buck or just
more bangs? Is the bike a supplement to others, intended for big trips, short hacks, or what? If
it's just a short range convenience machine I'd say a Brompton is quite possibly a better bet than
either (which is why I run a Brom as a short range convenience machine!).

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch University of Dundee Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Medical Physics, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden]
dundee.ac.uk~pjclinchOpen ↗

Peter Clinch said:

Quoted message said:

Is the Birdy worth the extra 100s of pounds though?

Depends what you have in mind for it.

[snippage]

Quoted message said:

Is the bike a supplement to others, intended for big trips, short hacks, or what? If it's just a
short range convenience machine I'd say a Brompton is quite possibly a better bet than either
(which is why I run a Brom as a short range convenience machine!).

I am looking at high-spec folders, too. I would be looking at mainly road use, day rides or light
touring. I currently use a Thorn Brevet, but am looking at something I could take more easily on a
plane, or pack in the boot of a hire car.

The Airnimal Chameleon is attractive to me, particularly as they show dropped-handlebars as an
option, whereas most of the others have mainly MTB-style bars.

Does anyone know if drops can be fitted to the Dahon, Birdy or Bike Friday models?

Thanks,

Mike

Thanks for the response.

The Dahon is 4130 cro-moly. 3x7(or8) SRAM.

I've tried a Brompton. Great machine, but not suited to my riding style. Its too upright, and I
won't be comfortable enough for me on longer rides. The compact fold is not a issue for me.

The Dahon or Birdy will go in the boot of a car, to take for a nice long ride somewhere. The Dahon
will be fast, the Birdy will permit some off-road riding. That's a dilemma I need to resolve.

Mulit-modal commuting will be a secondary consideration.

What's I'm really after is a view on quality or value for money.

Regards

TB.

PS: A Bike Friday NWT or Llama would be nice, but then we're into another price zone altogether.
Peter Clinch <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Trealaw Boy said:

The Dahon spec, reviews and price are very tempting. I've ridden Birdy and like it, and am aware
that its got a more compact fold thatn the Dahon. Aluminium frame and suspension too.

IIRC the Dahon's aluminium as well.

Quoted message said:

Also note that they do quite a big range, and you can spend up to 4

figures on their hotter models (the Helios is very well specced).

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Is the Birdy worth the extra 100s of pounds though?

Depends what you have in mind for it.

Quoted message said:

I regard the Birdy as a truly great "do everything" bike form the couple of test rides I've had. I
bought a Brompton because I didn't need to do everything, the smaller fold suited my needs better
*and* it was a fair chunk cheaper. The Dahon is a capable bike and very good value for money.
Question is do you want to do stuff the Birdy is unquestionably better at (rough paths, fitting
into smaller spaces folded), do you want more bangs per buck or just more bangs? Is the bike a
supplement to others, intended for big trips, short hacks, or what? If it's just a short range
convenience machine I'd say a Brompton is quite possibly a better bet than either (which is why I
run a Brom as a short range convenience machine!).

Pete.

Mike K Smith said:

Does anyone know if drops can be fitted to the Dahon, Birdy or Bike Friday models?

Bike Friday certainly. I've ridden with a couple of people with dropped bar Bike Fridays.

Colin

Mike K Smith said:

Does anyone know if drops can be fitted to the Dahon, Birdy or Bike Friday models?

There's a Bike Friday ad in an issue of VeloVision showing one Mr. Phil Ligget and his drop bar
BF... A quick trawl of bikefriday.combikefriday.comOpen ↗ reveals they appear to be standard kit on at least
some models.

As to the others, they're not standard options AFAICT, but in the end a handlebar is just a
handlebar. On something like a Birdy you'd stand a good chance of compromising the fold putting
drops on, but "compromising" and "rendering totally hopeless" aren't quite the same thing. You'd
probably need to arrange a different gear shift (the Birdies I've tried had gripshifts).

But if it's something to take somewhere, put together in not *too* long a time, and then have a
serious blast once you're there I'd say the Airnimal or BF are the way to go, or possibly one of the
hot Moultons. There's a review of the Airnimal in issue 7 of VeloVision, reproduced in PDF form at
their website: take a butchers here... velovision.co.ukairnimal.pdfOpen ↗

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch University of Dundee Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Medical Physics, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden]
dundee.ac.uk~pjclinchOpen ↗

Trealaw Boy said:

The Dahon or Birdy will go in the boot of a car, to take for a nice long ride somewhere. The Dahon
will be fast, the Birdy will permit some off-road riding. That's a dilemma I need to resolve.

Birdy will go fast as well. The Black is particularly well suited there, though the blue will do
better off road (more gears, but heavier).

Quoted message said:

What's I'm really after is a view on quality or value for money.

AFAICT one's good, the other's good... If the Dahon will do what you want it's probably better value
in a bangs/buck sense, but the Birdy will do more.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch University of Dundee Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Medical Physics, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email hidden]
dundee.ac.uk~pjclinchOpen ↗

Peter Clinch said:

Mike K Smith said:

Does anyone know if drops can be fitted to the Dahon, Birdy or Bike Friday models?

[ Much helpful info from Pete snipped ] Many thanks for the ideas, and the links. Thanks also to
Colin Blackburn.

Mike

Peter Clinch said:

Trealaw Boy said:

The Dahon or Birdy will go in the boot of a car, to take for a nice long ride somewhere. The
Dahon will be fast, the Birdy will permit some off-road riding. That's a dilemma I need to
resolve.

Birdy will go fast as well. The Black is particularly well suited there, though the blue will do
better off road (more gears, but heavier).

And the grey is just indulgence!

Colin