Folding bikes

[doris]

Survey up on the next hole in the water this wednesday. If all goes ahead I will be looking for a pair of folding bikes.
I know Bromptons are best but at a huge price.
Has anyone already done the research into the cheaper manufacturers, if so which ones should I be looking at??

Thank you chaps.

 

[Sandy]

I have a couple for sale listed, quite far down, in the For Sale sub-forum.

 

[stranded]

I was going to go for a Halfords carerra city based on reviews but they are all so clunky that I have given up and bought a carry case for my road bike and traded off bigger storage size in exchange for lower weight and greater pleasure on long rides. We do also have my wife’s old Brompton for just popping to the offie.

 

[westhinder]

Much will depend on the place where you intend to store them. We didn’t want to put them in the aft cabin, as many seem to do. We have a cavernous cockpit locker that easily swallows them and much more, but the restricting factor were the dimensions of the locker lid. Bromptons are the most compact and were the only ones that fitted.
They are great bikes too, we are very pleased with them, they added a new dimension to our cruising.

 

[dunedin]

Can’t comment on the latest models of Halfords bikes, as they change regularly, but perhaps on the principle.
We bought a £200 (reduced from £260) folding bike from Halfords about 10 years ago - when I had back problems which prevented walking but discovered that could cycle! This was a rebadged Dahon or similar, and has been brilliant.
Next year bought another one, again reduced to £200, but the model had changed and it was not quite as good quality - but still perfectly fit for purpose, which in our case is going sight seeing trips from the boat.

Bike snobs wouldn’t approve, but they have been a great buy. We don’t do huge mileages, but perhaps 10-15 miles at a time on country roads.
A Brompton would be nice, but beyond our budget. And we initially bought cheap in case never used, or got dropped in the water transferring by dinghy - but never felt the need to upgrade. Things to consider
- Wheel size is important for staying on when hit bumps - think ours might be 20inch wheels.
- Weight - check carefully if looking at cheaper end of the market
- Folding mechanism and size - again check carefully, ideally self folding in the shop to see how easy in practice
- Get a good bag - ideally padded to protect the boat. Ours were about £25 on Amazon
Enjoy.
PS. We have better full size bikes at home but nothing would tempt me to try to fit them on the boat.

 

[Lightwave395]

A proper bike fits nicely across the stern of my boat. I admire the build quality of Brompton but for me, as one of the non rich, the prices are somewhat laughable.

 

[fredrussell]

You can get a half decent Dahon 2nd hand for under £200. Good bikes, but don’t fold nearly as small as a Brompton.

 

[mrming]

Not a bike, but a folding electric (or even manual) scooter is easy to stow and could be a good solution for short trips.

 

[Irish Rover]

We bought 3 folding bikes from Decathlon in 2018 and they've served us well and still in good condition. Not the most compact but not that bad either.

 

[johnalison]

In broad terms, the more you pay the smaller they fold. Many people are very happy with cheap ones that fold in half only if their stowage allows it, and often get the benefit of larger wheels. We got a pair of Di Blasis 20 yrs ago for around £400 each cf £600+ for the Bromptons. They are definitely not as good but suited us for boat shopping runs and exploration up to 10km. We have five derailleur gears which are on the low side, but are a great improvement on the 3 Sturmey-Archer hears of our previous Dahons which are currently in the possession of a Dutchman but without our permission.

My advice is - have a look at what is available and try to ride them, and also check on baggage-carrying ability. They will all work but with varying degrees of convenience and durability. I would just say that if you are keeping them on the boat, do as I did, which is give them a proper wash once a year and protect with something like WD40 before the off season.

 

[stranded]

Not a bike, but a folding electric (or even manual) scooter is easy to stow and could be a good solution for short trips.

Love those things - used rental ones a lot in Portugal - problem is I believe they are not legal on public thoroughfares in the UK and suspect the powers that be may toughen enforcement after a couple of high profile cases recently.

 

[Daydream believer]

Love those things - used rental ones a lot in Portugal - problem is I believe they are not legal on public thoroughfares in the UK and suspect the powers that be may toughen enforcement after a couple of high profile cases recently.

If you want to use them in the UK & in the EU I assume that one does not need to fit the battery when in the Uk. In which case they must be legal & Ok for short distances . Then if shopping one can put the shopping ( or even a couple of 20 litre cans of fuel) on the foot plate ( get a wide foot plate) & wheel it back to the boat.
I have a pair of Brompton E bikes & they are fabulous. Keep them at home when not cruising
Ostend to Blankenberge is a regular ride when on hols

 

[westernman]

The bigger the wheels the better they are for cycling. And the more space they take up. It is a tradeoff.
Have some decathlon folders which have been pretty good. Biggish wheels and therefore not the smallest available but suitable for my size (195cm, 105kg).
Many folders will only take a max of 80kg and no good for some one with long legs.

Bromptons are silly money. The E ones even more so.

 

[seumask]

We have a pair of "mezzo" D9 folding bike's. They have anodised aluminium frames and normal derailleur gears. We have had them on the boat for nearly 15 years and while they were expensive second hand ( £300) when we bought them I think they are a very close 2nd to the Brompton, not folding quite a small, but significantly better gears!. Good examples are around £350 on flea bay or similar.

 

[Daydream believer]

Bromptons are silly money. The E ones even more so.

A friend of mine has 2 folding e bikes (forget the make) & they were approaching £4k each. So one can pay more if one is so inclined.
I have friends who love their Bromptoms & think that their non electric ones are well worth the money. One of our very elderly sailing club members has 3 Bromptons. One of them is a very early model & he still does several 10 mile rides on it 4 times a week.
The thing about the Brompton is that he can still get spares for it. The design has not changed much over the last 20 years at least, which suggests it is right.
It is claimed that there are 75,000 in London alone. Must say something about them.

 

[stranded]

If you want to use them in the UK & in the EU I assume that one does not need to fit the battery when in the Uk. In which case they must be legal & Ok for short distances . Then if shopping one can put the shopping ( or even a couple of 20 litre cans of fuel) on the foot plate ( get a wide foot plate) & wheel it back to the boat.
I have a pair of Brompton E bikes & they are fabulous. Keep them at home when not cruising
Ostend to Blankenberge is a regular ride when on hols

I think that much of the EU is more enlightened than the UK and they are at least ‘more’ legal. Even without the battery I think it is illegal to ride them on the pavement and hard to see what the point is really - I have nifty trolley that is even smaller to stow if I need it just as a trolley. The fines are pretty paltry, though liability in the case of an accident wouldn’t be, and I think in some circumstances you can get a chunk of points on your driving license. So for me, for now, a bicycle is a better bet, but the day e scooters become legal here, or if I move somewhere they already are, I’d be first in the queue to get one.

 

[Daydream believer]

Even without the battery I think it is illegal to ride them on the pavement and hard to see what the point is really -

The point is that you can stick the battery in when abroad. If it does not have any battery it is not electrically powered. One would be perfectly justified in using the argument in court; If pressed. I am sure that any sensible judge would accept the argument, if one explained the policy.
Of course some smart a.se would use the analogy of a gun not being a gun without the trigger mechanism. But in law it might still be considered a gun

 

[SaltyC]

We have 2 under the forward bunk. Not Bromptons, 20" wheels SWMBO not the best at balance but 20" works.so we can cver 20 miles a day - a BRILLIANT addition to cruising.

 

[stranded]

You’re right - I was simply pointing out the legality of the situation in the Uk. It wouldn’t anyway be an alternative to a bike for me - cycling is my exercise - the scooter would replace the Brompton, not the road bike for longer rides.

edited to make clear this was in reply to DaydreMBeliever.

 

[sailingmartin]

If all goes ahead I will be looking for a pair of folding bikes.

A lot depends on how big your new boat is and where will you be going and how much use you expect to get out of the bikes? If space is at a premium, then you might have to bite the bullet and get a Brompton, if you have masses of room, get a big wheeler as it might ride better. If you will be lifting the said bikes into a dinghy, then weight will be a priority… Just like boats, folding bikes are mostly a compromise.
I have had a Brompton for 20 years (the current one since 2007) and well before I took up sailing. If you do get a bike, get a cover (applies to all bikes at sea) to prevent rust damage, and if you get a Brompton, get a front bag and rear carrier as you don’t want to be lugging a backpack around in hot climates. Fantastic load carrying ability (see Pic).