Di Blasi folding bike - engineering nightmare or genius?

dylanwinter

dylanwinter

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www.keepturningleft.co.uk
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sailorman said:
we have 2 ss ones with the 20" wheels. they dont fold as small as the dahon but are certainly better to ride
Click to expand...

How long have you had them? How have they stood up to the rigours of life aboard.

As for folding down very small..... Last summer we had the Brompton and it fitted perfectly under the forward berth....

on a small boat there is no choice with where they go and at night they have to go out in the cockpit otherwise there is no room to move so as long as they can fit through the hatch and go forward to allow access to the bog and the galley then folding down tight is not that crucial.

Yesterday I did fifteen miles on the Carrera and it was fine



The seat supplied with the bike is a real prostate crusher

So I put the saddle from "The Vicar" on and it is much better so I have ordered another "Fat arse" saddle

p0OIjWil7WdoMG33e9BNqHZPCooj_vS6qFPNM_jwviopqkf9Msdb6laP0Ra-b1gOwpjBTxGBNIuD5JW0k1Wac13bME4ZH4hyStU0HY9btQ70=s0-d-e1-ft
 
Dylan
According to the useful folding bike guide site http://www.atob.org.uk/ its a bag of nails

A 16-inch Italian folding bike, the Di Blasi R24 is now out of production, but may still pop up new or second hand. Don’t buy it. It folds very quickly (about 12 seconds), but it’s a heavy machine and a horrible lump to ride. It has been replaced by the more practical R22 with 20-inch wheels, but this is still a big, heavy machine compared to the 20-inch Dahons and other more conventional designs, and at £740, it’s much to expensive. The R32 folding trike is an astonishing machine, but even heavier and more expensive. For some reason, the Di Blasi remains popular with the yachting fraternity.

What you need with a large seat is the recumbent folder: http://www.toxy.de/1_Produkte/FLITE_en.html

http://www.atob.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/toxy-flite-295x157.jpg
 
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seumask said:
Dylan
According to the useful folding bike guide site http://www.atob.org.uk/ its a bag of nails

A 16-inch Italian folding bike, the Di Blasi R24 is now out of production, but may still pop up new or second hand. Don’t buy it. It folds very quickly (about 12 seconds), but it’s a heavy machine and a horrible lump to ride. It has been replaced by the more practical R22 with 20-inch wheels, but this is still a big, heavy machine compared to the 20-inch Dahons and other more conventional designs, and at £740, it’s much to expensive. The R32 folding trike is an astonishing machine, but even heavier and more expensive. For some reason, the Di Blasi remains popular with the yachting fraternity.

What you need with a large seat is the recumbent folder: http://www.toxy.de/1_Produkte/FLITE_en.html

http://www.atob.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/toxy-flite-295x157.jpg
Click to expand...

Oh my giddy aunt

FLITE_main_en.jpg


as for the little di-blasi I can see that as soon as a fault appears it is destined for the skip

it felt and looked really badly finished
 
If there is any way of fitting it in dismantled go for a full size mountain bike. INFINITELY better to ride if you are a big bloke. I am just a tad larger than you. Mine ferried gas cylinders, outboards, groceries, sails etc.

I needed wheels when doing Florida and the ICW up to the Chesapeake. $50 for a used MB was the going rate then.

For an engineering bit of genius/lunacy look at the 50 cc folding m/c Di Blasi made.
 
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TQA said:
If there is any way of fitting it in dismantled go for a full size mountain bike. INFINITELY better to ride if you are a big bloke. I am just a tad larger than you. Mine ferried gas cylinders, outboards, groceries, sails etc.

I needed wheels when doing Florida and the ICW up to the Chesapeake. $50 for a used MB was the going rate then.

For an engineering bit of genius/lunacy look at the 50 cc folding m/c Di Blasi made.
Click to expand...

two people, two bikes, 22 feet
 
Don't know it but from the small video I would say it looks too flimsy to me

A bike needs to be rigid - and that is hard to achieve with folders
 
We've been using our Di Blasis since 2001. Apart from the odd replacement tyre and gear cable, they are as good as new, whereas out previous Dahons, 1988 vintage were knackered when they were stolen in 2000.

The Di Blasis have been very handy and give a tolerable ride, though the short wheelbase means that it is possible to do an inadvertent wheelie on a steep incline in low gear. The five gears are lower than our old Dahon Sturmey-Archers but reasonably well suited to general use. They cost us something over £400 each at the time. There may be bikes that are better for some people's purposes and tastes but the Di Blasis are well made and the speed of deployment handy. They pack up into a generally larger but slimmer space than some other bikes.
 
We've been using our Di Blasi's since 2005. We did an intensive 'ride test' on all the ones we could find at the Southampton boat show and picked the Di Blasi over all the others (including the more expensive Brompton) solely on the ride comfort. 2 of them go into our cockpit locker along with the dinghy and all the other tat no problem. They are better than they look. We've got one painted one and one stainless, but the painted one has never rusted.
 
TQA said:
If there is any way of fitting it in dismantled go for a full size mountain bike. INFINITELY better to ride if you are a big bloke. I am just a tad larger than you. Mine ferried gas cylinders, outboards, groceries, sails etc.
Click to expand...

We bought two of these

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Stowabike-Folding-Dual-Suspension-Mountain/dp/B0073CGA16

They are not tiny folded up but manageable and eat up the miles (well downhill they do!!!)

They were cheap enough not to worry about corrosion but are keeping well so far (normally stowed out of any weather - we are not 22' though). Only downside is that I am finding it hard to source a decent rack to go on the back...
 
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don't know about De Blasi's but seeing as peope are recommending alternatives, how about a Strida. Light, seemingly fairly resistant to the rigours of the rope or wet locker and not expensive. OK for short trips rather than cyclingtours.
 
We don't do cycling tours but have been known to burn up a few kilometres, including the odd hill under protest, so bikes need to be reasonably competent, which was a weakness of the old Bickertons. Although most us will be using bikes for shopping, there's always the odd occasion when you want to see that castle or visit a pub and are feeling too mean to pay for a bus.
 
Bought 2 stainless steel Di Blassi's with 3 speed gears about 12yrs ago. Had no problems except with small wheel size they are not as comfortable as full size mountain bikes that also have more gears.

We enjoy cycling around the Ports we call at and last year after a similar thread bought Montague folding mountain bikes. As Richard Shead insisted they are the DB's! Not cheap but various versions from £700 to £2,500. At present IMHO they are the best folding bike available.

The stainless steel Di Blasi's are now relegated to Centre Parc weekends with the Grandchildren.
 
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