Cycling UK Forum

Another thing to bear in mind if using panniers. It makes a lot to carry. One bike two panniers is more than a 'handful'.

Single pannier with a shoulder strap would work.

Edit changed bare to bear - spollchick errar.

I agree with last post, too! Panniers don't work on a Brompton for me. Always used a small rucksack. No hands involved and weight of belongings distributed across various carrying possibilities. Having one hand busy with the folder and pannier/s in the other, not good option... no hand left for dealing with ticket, for example. All that clipping/unclipping - rucksack simply stays on back until needed. Each to their own, mind...

I'm not a Brompton fan in terrms of the ride or their gearing, but for a rail journey with a short flattish last leg, and if you can manage with a front bag option then it's hard to beat. I didn't have a rack but found mine too heavy to carry, so maybe the rack with roller wheels would help for station concourses etc.

I currrently have a Raleigh Boardwalk Lite, sadly no longer made. It's a Dahon design which includes a "rebar", a reinforecement bar which triangulates the frame. They appear to have abandoned the design altogether.

I used to use my Brompton with their S bag, which was brilliant! It meant I didn't even need rucksack as everything I needed, either for the journey or at work, would fit into the bag, which clipped onto the front of the bike (obs) and stayed there until space dictated that it should be removed (for folding for example). Even then, with its combination of stout handle and shoulder-strap, it offered good carrying options. I would definitely recommend the S bag - well-made & well-designed, if (predictably) a bit on the dear side.
I switched to using a rucksack when I adopted the Ortlieb mini bag, as part of my conversion to 'leccy. Cute tho' the Ortlieb mini O bag is, it is probably waaaay too small for most folk to use as a commuter bag, especially when half full of Bosch strimmer battery The O bag is about the same price as the S and in my view is not such good value.

simonhill wrote:Another thing to bare in mind if using panniers. It makes a lot to carry. One bike two panniers is more than a 'handful'.

Single pannier with a shoulder strap would work.

I use two panniers for overnight trips (i.e. a few or several days) so a small shoulder pack wouldn't be adequate. However the OP wasn't making an overnight trip so that wouldn't matter. I'm still pleasantly surprised at what you can carry on a folder if you need to though!

simonineaston wrote:I used to use my Brompton with their S bag, which was brilliant! It meant I didn't even need rucksack as everything I needed, either for the journey or at work, would fit into the bag, which clipped onto the front of the bike (obs) and stayed there until space dictated that it should be removed (for folding for example). Even then, with its combination of stout handle and shoulder-strap, it offered good carrying options. I would definitely recommend the S bag - well-made & well-designed, if (predictably) a bit on the dear side.
I switched to using a rucksack when I adopted the Ortlieb mini bag, as part of my conversion to 'leccy. Cute tho' the Ortlieb mini O bag is, it is probably waaaay too small for most folk to use as a commuter bag, especially when half full of Bosch strimmer battery The O bag is about the same price as the S and in my view is not such good value.

Brompton have stopped making their S, T and O bags and replaced them with the Borough and Metro bags.

https://www.brompton.com/shop/bags?page=1

You might still be able to get their old bags as NOS or second hand.

Im in Devon near Exeter and have a very lightly used Brompton M6L for sale.

Al

Get a Brompton - there is no contest.

The first requirement -

* Be easy to fold/unfold and stay locked when folded

Precludes quite a lot of the cheaper folders on the market. I have a Brompton but previously rode a Giant Halfway, that was a pool bike at work. It would only stay folded with the aid of a bungee and there weren’t any of the little rolling wheels that the Brompton has, so it was a pain to carry any distance.

I have had folding cycles since the early 2000's, mostly Dahon's. I purchased my current one in 2013 because that is when Dahon seemed to have copied Brompton, and fitted a brazed luggage bracket on the head tube! For some stupid reason l purchased a Brompton in late 2018, but did not really get on with it due to the small wheels not getting on with unseen potholes! Also riding lonely Worcestershire country lanes, and being deaf made me feel slightly ill at ease, due to many rogues seeing Brompton's as possible portable...'cash cows'... My Dahon is now fitted with Tannus Tyres, thus removing punctures spoiling days out. I have no problem carrying my cycle onto trains and the like and l consider it to be a great purchase!...

I would highly recommend the Dahon Curve as a cheaper alternative to the Brompton. I have a custom model from C. H. White with Big Apple tyres. I lowered the gearing with a 16T rear sprocket and replaced the horrible saddle with a Brooks.

My Curve weighs 10.5 kg and is easily folded and carried. It also fits into a 'Dimpa' bag from IKEA (only 3.00!) so can be carried on as luggage if necessary. Rear panniers are not an option even with a rack due to the 16" wheels. A range of bags can be fitted to the front Luggage Socket Headstock, though I prefer a small rucksack.

They do come up frequently on Gumtree and ebay.

Although Dahon does not currently have a UK distributor you can buy a new Curve from Bikester.co.uk for 661.99 plus 29.00 postage. Their model has a rear rack and hub dynamo lighting so is a bit heavier at a stated 12.23kg

I would have inserted links for all of the above recommendations but the process using this forum is frustratingly counter-intuitive.

Big advanatge of the Brompton is, in addition to its compactness - there are no oily bits (chains, derailleuers etc) on the outside when folded, they all go in the middle. A must for any folder I would say, especially when pulling it around shopping centres, putting it under tables in cafes etc..

I believe people talk about it as an inner fold. I've just looked at a video for the Curve that shows an inner fold rather like a Brompton's. The Dahon Vitesse I had before my Brompton was an outer fold. It was fine, although I'd agree that inner is an advantage, all things being equal.

Dahon Curve: definitely an outside fold. However, the Dahon Curl is an inside fold, actually folds smaller than the Brompton and with modern gearing. Not lighter, in fact, probably a bit heavier depending on spec.

The Dahon Jifo and EEZZ are tiny, light and fold fast.

Hmm. In America, we would say this next suggestion is 'from left field'. UK...a suggestion 'from backward short leg'? Anyway, there's a folding bike that was specifically designed in the UK for multimodal journeys (although that doesn't seem to hinder those Korean cats from taking long tours on them.) It's light. It folds fast. There are no greasy bits. It's been in production longer than almost any other folding bike. Yes, you can hang panniers on its rack. It's hard to imagine a bicycle that requires less maintenance.

The Strida.