Thinking of a folding bike for 8 mile each way ride to the station. Semi rural roads with a decent hill on the way in (guess about 1 1/2 miles, 250 feet elevation or so).

Need a folding bike to avoid tube at the other end (saves time and £60 / month), plus leaving a bike at the station it would just be nicked anyway

Is there a folding bike that would be okay for this? I've seen Dahon's with bigger wheels than Bromptons with Drops, but can't find on t'web. Or would a Brompton type thing be okay – can't help but feel it would be a right slog but I may be wrong.

STW – I prostrate myself at the foot of thy collective wisdom……..

I think you on about a dahon with 20" wheels.

I have managed to ride it 20 miles one day but I'd never want to do this everyday.

or are you on about this

http://www.chamberlainecycles.co.uk/products.php?plid=m7b9s19p1011&rs=gb

Which would seem more appropriate for 8 miles each way

I still think 24" would be a good size wheel for folding bikes.

Dahon have started doing one

http://www.fudgescyclestore.com/index.php?p=96249

but they need to get a fair bit cheaper/lighter yet.

Dahon MU UNO

cracking little bike, singlespeed and coaster brake

The dahon your thinking of is the Speed TT (i think) also you could look at the more expensive moultons

a mate of mine has a brompton and rode 15 miles with me a week or two ago. It rides like a small wheeled bike but otherwise fine. 6 speed gears on it. He regularly rides it that sort of distance.
I love the way bromptons fold – so easy and so small and neat

Try the 16" bikes (Brompton/Mezzo) first – a flatmate would often get the train into London and ride the 17 miles home on one. If it's on a train then a compact fold is crucial – Bromptons will fit in the luggage compartments or under/between seats so much better for busy trains.

A 3-speed hub geared Brompton will give about 45-84 gear inches – compare that against the gears you'd normally use for the trip.

yep – looks like it is that Dahon Speed TT I was thinking of

If you are getting the tube at the end of the journey then the quality of the fold, in terms of speed and ease, and the portability of the bike when its folded counts for more than the ride. 8 miles isn't a hellish long ride on any bike, you'll be fine on a brompton or a birdy, but wrestling to fold your bike as the train pulls off into the distance isn't too pleasant a prospect.

Its the speed of the fold that really should be the deal maker, some, like the Brompton or the Birdy fold in under 10 seconds, some take a minute or two (and in rail commuting terms thats an eternity as other passengers are tripping over you in rush hour, 4 times a day), some can take half an hour to get them down to a small pack size.

Anyone try one of those Hummer paratroop folding bikes? There were a few on ebay a while ago. F/S 100mm travel?? V brakes

Dahons ride like fast steering proper bikes.

I've got a couple and I've done quite long rides on them.

If you want gears, try to get a hub gear. Derailleurs can get bent when getting bashed about when folded.

The simpler and the lighter, the better for a folder.

The current pick of the crop is the Uno IMO.

There's been a bit of negative press about spoke breakages (similar to Brompton's problems), but it generally seems confined to numpties who buy over the internet and the bike has never had a proper PDI or been back for the first service for the wheel truing.

The Brompton has a faster fold, but I prefer the ride of the Dahon. (A bike you like to ride is a bike you use).

What Shep said- Dahon Mu Uno. Excellent fun and weighs nothing!

As a mechanic, I despise Bromptons with a passion.

I have a Dahon Vitesse P18 and it would be fine for that commute (I sometimes do a 12 mile commute on it)

As for folding speed yeah it takes longer than a Brompton, but it still only takes 20 seconds max to fold up so its not a problem

However the wheels aren't built to a very high standard, so you will need to get a bikeshop to retension them after the first couple of rides and then they will be fine.

Brompton works fine, did the coast to coast on mine. with tyres at 100psi and decent bars (SType) they are cool.

Lots of gear choices on a Brompton as well. And the fold is so good you can slide it under a desk or under a coat stand meaning you do not have to leav it outside work… also they fit nicely in the space under a pub bar as well..

but how about an Airnimal Joey?

They do ride better that a brompton (feel more like road bike) though the fold is no way as good as a B, but if you are not going on the train much would be fine.

this guy likes his joey + it has drops
http://philwigglesworth.net/BlogEngine.NET/post/2007/02/08/The-Airnimal-Joey.aspx

The joey is more of a travellers bike than a commuters bike – in that pic above the bike is partially dismantled to get to that size, rather than folded. The idea is you travel to your destination with them packed in a bag or case, then assemble and ride (all day) when you get there.

What are the roads like?

If they are anything like the cobbled streets of York the Bromptons small wheels would be nightmare.

The fold should be the least of your worries you spend more time riding it than folding it, They all pretty much fold small enough.