Well over the weekend I managed to get hold of my first real folding bike. The impression so far has been good, but many of my concerns about these small bikes are still there.
My only experience with folding bikes in the past was a sub-NTD2000 ($60) bike which was kinda fun, but so flexy and small that it was no good for any distance further than the end of the block. That gave me the impression that they’re all like that.
I was wrong. Here’s why.
First Impression
The first thing I noticed is that the bike is pretty light, with everything smaller than a normal bike it ends up being on the light side. It’s not as light as a well-specced road bike, but for a small frame made from 4130 chromoly and a seatpost to match, there is a good balance.
I was going to talk about body position and setup on such a small bike, but will save that for a later post.
All that I need to say for now is that for commuting it is a comfy position. I’ve set the handlebars to the same height as the saddle, which is a little more relaxed than my main bike.
Overview
The bike features the following bits and pieces:
- folding frame (made of Chromoly 4130)
- foldable pedals
- double chainring (39/56)
- eight speed rear cassette (with MTB ratio)
- grip shift (three speed front shifter for only two chainrings? odd.)
- 16″ wheels
- front and rear fenders
- straight-pull brakes
- dia-compe levers
- ergonomic grips
- curvy downhill-style handlebars (with less width)
- massive, long seatpost
- saddle with beam
- rear rack
- front/rear reflectors
Gearing
With two chainrings up front and an 8-speed MTB cassette at the rear, you get 16 gears to choose from. Plenty for city riding and commuting. These give a lot of range for climbing some smallish hills and moving along at cruising pace of up to 40km/h.
But I have a gripe. Of course I do.
Through the city I usually maintain a 20-25km/h pace, which is a balance between not going too slowly and not breaking into a torrential downpour of sweat. At this speed I am firmly in the bigger chainring and shifting amongst the middle cogs at the back.
But the mountain bike cassette has too much range. The lowest combination on this bike would be suitable climbing very steep hills, and I mean spinning the cranks while going at 5km/h sort of hills.
Just not necessary.
I’d rather have a road cassette with much closer gears for a lot of variety in the 13-28km/h range. The gaps between gears at the moment are just a bit too big.
With that said, the gearing all works as advertised. The front shifting is very stiff and takes a heavy twist to get to the big chainring. The rear shifting is smooth and precise.
Handling
There is inherently less stability when using smaller wheels. That’s one of those scientific things that teams of people in lab coats have spent years analyzing and found to be true.
Larger wheels roll better, roll over bumps better, give slightly better power output and are more stable at speed. Smaller wheels are lighter and more maneuverable.
I was actually expecting the steering and handling to be worse than it turned out to be.
My unscientific test (I should get a lab coat for authority) of stability is riding hands free. That balancing turned out to be very difficult, but doable. On an MTB or road bike you can keep riding without hands until you run out of road or trail. The effort to stay upright was almost not worth it as the constant counter balancing was very tiring. It is still doable however.
It should also be noted that one side effect of the small wheels is that although the overall size can okay after adjustment you are still perched very high the wheel hubs, which might be a contributing factor in the lowered stability. But that is inherent in the design, so I can’t really fault it for that.
Bumps are not fun and the super long stem and seatpost amplify the effect of stutter bumps on roads. Even at a measly 25km/h I felt something would break or I’d lose control. The leverage makes those bumps very much bigger and I’d warn you to ride them carefully, something akin to the lightweight riding style for cross-country mountain biking would do fine.
Braking
Well, I stopped. Good enough?
Not quite. The little wheels are not perfectly round which is not unusual for many wheels. They take a pounding over time, they’re not built quite right and they just end up slightly unround or not straight.
Unfortunately the same leverage that comes through when hitting bumps also comes through when braking. Just a small imperfection in the rims makes the braking very stuttery. This is mostly solved with a good wheel truing. If you can do that yourself, great, if not, it might be worth having a decent wheelbuilder tension the spokes correctly and work out any slight imperfections in the wheels before putting the bike into heavy use.
Having become accustomed to the feel and power of disk brakes, these do feel a little less powerful, but great for the slower speeds the bike is intended for.
Folding
I still haven’t figured it out.
I tried without the manual and was a little confused. “It’s not really that small,” was my first thought.
Well, as it turns out I’ve only had to fold it twice so far. Claimed folding time is less than two minutes.
I still have a soft spot for the Strida folding bike simply because of its super foldability. This doesn’t fold up as easily as the Strida’s 15 seconds, nor as small, but does give a range of gears that the Strida doesn’t.
Comfort
The ergonomic grips were good on my hands, giving support where needed.
The saddle is soft enough and well designed. Softer than a race seat, but not a big cushion. I’d say it’s a racing-shaped seat with cushion-like padding. Comfortable after and hour of riding.
The riding position is relaxed. If it doesn’t feel relaxed, get your local bike shop to help you out with that.
Who is this bike for?
Considering the makeup of the components and the price and quality of the bike, it would be ideal for a regular commuter who covers up to 10km on their daily commute.
It’s not a cheap bike, which puts it out of the bargain bike range, but it won’t be suitable for longer riding like touring. Big bikes are always more comfortable for longer rides, but if regular folding and transporting on public transport is required, this bike would do the trick and do it comfortably.