I have a brompton… used it everyday for 5years, most of the original has been replaced, if you use a busy train everyday that you can not beat a brompton it folds the best, it stands up, it has a decent luggage system etc, but they are a bit pricy… but brompton service/warranty is ace.
also very capable bikes, just done the C2C on mine with my mate,
both owning 2 speed bromptons … on the whole route we only had to get of and push for 200m of one hill, though it took some grinding up the others! and despite that we maintained a better that 10mph average speed for the whole trip
Winlatter on the c2c:
Cool chatting to the mtbers from Newcastle we came across at Winlatter
Just into Northumberland
Giant 1/2way is good value for £400-500 if you want a folder for occasional use though, neat etc see: Google shopping results
Kirstie has an Airnimal chameleon, it's actually (i'm embarrassed to say) alright. She says it rides really well, she didn't want the smaller wheels of a brompton as her commute is a bit long/bumpy. She's done short tours on it too with a seat post mounted pannier rack.
downsides are that you can't really fit mudguards and she's not allowed to ride it anywhere whithin a 2 mile radius of me
and she's not allowed to ride it anywhere whithin a 2 mile radius of me
Well I could understand you saying that about isnilloc's example up there 😯 but I reckon the Chameleon look's great – good to hear a couple of positive reviews too. Waay out of my price range though. Maybe it's time to save 😕 – I think I've looked at every BSO folder on ebay but just can't bring myself to pull the trigger.
My current commuter – Airnimal Joey with rohloff, royce, maguras etc. I'm doing 30-50 miles a day on it (and have been for nearly two years now) and would thoroughly recommend one, yup it's not cheap but they come up on ebay etc at under your budget. The last Elite that appeared went for about £700 I think which is rather bargaintastic given the hub alone would cost nearly that new.
The wheel size (24" ETRO520) is a slight p.i.t.a when it comes to tubes etc, you can't just walk into your LBS and get replacements, but you can get a reasonable choice of tyres if you're willing to shop online. I use Schwalbe Duranos.
As far as folding goes; it's better than the chameleon – just whip the front wheel out, undo a couple of QR's and the frame pivots at the b/b. I can get it down in no time at all. Yes, it's not the smallest when folded but it's more than sufficient for the train (I commute from Sussex up to London every day). Not as fast as a Strida (great but you wouldn't want to do 12 miles on one) or Brompton but certainly better than my old Dahon MU XL.
Along with some of the other more 'niche' folders like Bike Fridays I think Airnimal make the closest you can get to a 'proper' bike for doing decent distances regularly. I have to say it's 100% better put together than the Dahon which I started with – after a couple of months of 12 miles a day it started to rattle alarmingly and needed an awful lot of maintenance and tinkering to keep running nicely.
woffle – Member
…I think Airnimal make the closest you can get to a 'proper' bike for doing decent distances regularly. I have to say it's 100% better put together than the Dahon which I started with – after a couple of months of 12 miles a day it started to rattle alarmingly and needed an awful lot of maintenance and tinkering to keep running nicely…
I've looked at the Airnimals a few times. Lovely bikes and very tempting. At the price it's probably unfair to compare them to Dahons 🙂
The problem with folders is that old cliche – cheap, light, strong, pick 2.
Quick update. I went for the cheap ebay option – cute little bike, alu frame, solid rear rack, Sturmey 3 speed and folded plenty small enough for public transport but one thing I'd overlooked was the fact that the handlebar height was fixed . . . cue extremely comical riding position with the seat low enough for me 🙄 . I've looked at every option out there at getting the bars down to a decent height without any luck (steerer extender/stem raiser with a separate hi-rise stem is still gonna be too low, similarly BMX bars and stem) and I really don't want to throw any more money at it. If anyone's interested in a cheap folder for £150 you know who to call 😉 . Reckon my best bet is to get myself down to somewhere like this and see a few in the flesh. You live and learn, eh? 😉
my brother had a brompton and it was really useful… one thing I wouldn't recommend is going really fast round corners and really leaning them over as they can slide out from underneath you especially if the road surface isn't perfect 🙄
one thing I wouldn't recommend is going really fast round corners and really leaning them over as they can slide out from underneath you especially if the road surface isn't perfect