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Proteam Sp1055 Folding Bike
by litangmu
The Proteam SP1055 Folding Bike, at first glance, appears to be a very wise choice for someone looking for the convenience of a bike, the flexibility of being able to store and move said bike easily, and a low price point. I am not 100% sure whether the old adage 'you get what you pay for' applies here, but I'm sure you will make up ... your own mind as we go through the details.
1. Appearance
On the outside, this is a very attractive little bike. Little is the word however, with 16 inch wheels, the whole bike itself barely came up to my navel, and I am not that tall a guy! The bike I purchased was white in colour, and I must say, it looks a lot more expensive than it is. I must say I do prefer the black colour though. I will also say that the low centre of gravity of the bike may appear odd to some, but you will find that the vast majority of folding bikes are, out of necessity, very similar in shape. Overall, I would describe the appearance of this bike as very 'commuter-like', in other words, I can certainly see a business executive riding this bike. I'm not sure someone in skin-tight cycling shorts would really look fitting atop this bike!
2. Design
This is by no means a mountain bike or racing bike. The one position you will be able to sit on this bike is upright - there won't be any heads down, blasting through traffic riding to be had whilst atop this little thing! As you'd expect with any bike, the seat and handlebars are both adjustable, allowing for optimal user comfort. The handlebars seem to be somewhat shorter in length than you may find on other bikes, but again I believe this is due to necessity and design constraints of a folding bicycle. The seat is reasonably comfortable, and the pedals seem very well placed in relation to the seat. The whole bike feels moderately sturdy, as sturdy as something that folds can be! I never felt 100% secure on this bike though, I must admit. Having put it together and then riding it, in a sense I 'knew from whence it came', and it was somewhat unnerving. As I've touched on it, let's look at...
3. Folding
Folding bicycles are often touted as the pinnace of convenience and portability, but I don't find that the Proteam SP1055 really fits this description. The bike folds at the centre, just beyond the peddles. The seat can be pushed down, all the way down, so that the end of the seat post goes beyond the bottom of the back wheel. The handlebars retract, and then fold forwards and twist sideways. The main folding joints are all secured by metal release clasps, which do provide a good deal of resistance if you try to snap them open. The seat and handlebars are kept propped up by small handles which, when pushed closed, tighten a mechanism around the supporting pole holding it in place. I never felt 100% happy with these particular joints, they really did not feel as secure as they could be. Overall however, you will end up with a bike about 1/3 of the size. And it is not light. It is at least a 10-15 kilograms (I shall explain fuzziness about weight later) and if you do not fold it correctly, if you carry it as-is you will find yourself getting pricked and prodded by cogs or other bits of mechanism. This will also serve to soil your lovely new jeans you just had washed and ironed. If bought new however, I believe this bike comes with a carrying bag - I think that's quite a good idea. Bear in mind however that the bike will still be bigger than a fairly large rucksack. Despite this, I have happily taken this bike, folded, onto buses, trains and on the London Underground without any hassle at all. Thumbs up in general, but a little finger down at the same time.
4. Rideability
As I have already alluded to, I never felt particularly secure on this bike. I was constantly anxious about the seat falling through to the floor, or the handlebars collapsing back down. The seat did give way on a couple of occasions, but I do believe this may have had something to do with the fact I had an extremely heavy backpack on that probably tipped my overall weight over the 100Kg mark. A word of warning: Do not ride this bike if you are heavier than this. I'm sorry, but I had a friend try, and the seat gave way instantly. 100Kg is the maximum the bike is designed to hold, and you won't get away with trying to push beyond this. Speed wise, with 6 Shimano gears I found I could zip quite nicely around town. The gear changes were all smooth and clean, despite the bike being disassembled and reassembled on a daily basis! I wouldn't want to take it off road or on a long mountain bike trail though, I just don't think the bike could handle the punishment. Overall, an enjoyable riding experience, if a little tense!
Conclusion
You can buy this bike brand new for about £135, I got mine for half that from a local seller. Because I got it from a local seller, I did not have a manual with this item and cannot exactly confirm the weight - but 10-15Kg is certainly about right! Brand new however you get all the documentation and a very useful carrying bag which I think will make the world of difference when travelling around, as I have suggested above. I parted with this bike as I no longer had use for the little thing, but for what you get for your money, I was quite impressed. It is not the most sturdy, nor is it the best quality folding bike you will ever own, but if this is your first foray into the world of portable cycling, then this bike might just be for you.
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Brompton Bicycle M-Type
by craig123
I've had my Brompton M3L for nearly a year now and its brilliant!
I purchased mine through works cycle2work otherwise the high price may have been too much, it is made in Britain so with high quality the price is high but with this it retains its value well unlike most bikes.
With the all extras mine came in at c.£850 which is ... twice as much as any bike previously I have brought, I went for a M3L that's a 3 speed original style handle bars with mud guard and no rack I also added dynamo lighting, eazy wheels, the C bag set and kevlar tyres all in black.
As this was not a standard off the shelf bike it had to be ordered in and took almost 18 weeks (yes I counted every day) to be made and delivered. After the wait, the build quality is spot on, it just works, no annoying bits here and there and no jumping chains its engineering at its best. The sheer brilliance of engineering to get everything folded down so small yet work so well is almost unbelievable until you get used to it, you have to start thinking about cycling and transport in a different way.
The ability to go from bike to train to car to bike makes thing very easy for me, no problems about get the wheels off seats down etc. just throw in the boot or foot well and off you go. I typically cycle to the train station, train to work then cycle to work, for the return journey I try and get a lift so the bike just gets put in the boot/floor and get dropped off nearby. The sheer range of options having a fast mode of transport with you makes life very easy! Most trains accept folding bikes regardless of time unlike standard bikes and you get to sit down and not worry about getting in the way of the doors.
The fold is very simple, it looks far on complicated in the diagrams but once you've done it a few times you can do it under 10 seconds and high speed is sub 5 seconds. That's 10 seconds from carrying a bunch of metal to moving along the road on your bike.
Things you might want to know if you did buy a Brompton:
The standard gearing is quite high, so you pedal slowly which takes some getting used too, I personally like to pedal a little faster, I'd drop down one step on the gearing to make things easier but you will lose a little of the top end speed but a bit easier on the knees. Have a play on your dealers test bike, you'll see what I mean.
3 speed while doesn't sound like much really is enough for everything I come across, the optional 6 speed looks like a good idea on hilly areas.
Not a lot of room for cycle computers and the folding takes its toll on the cables so wireless really, I've personally got a o-sync wire free which works and fits well.
The front bag really makes life easy, just clips on and no matter how heavily the load you can get around fast. No sweaty backs! The c bag is huge with load of pockets, I use it as a everyday bag even when I dont have bikes as its comfortable to wear. I get a chnage of clothes a large laptop and lunch without problems.
I went for a all black and regretted it, I should have got the lacquer finish as I'm a engineer at heart.
The newer models 2009 onwards use a matt black paint which hides marks and dirt a lot better than gloss. As of 2010 the tyres are now kevlar as standard and the rear bottle dynamo is now replaced by a very nice looking hub dynamo on the front wheel. Would love this upgrade.
The fold is very easy once you've done it a few times and you don't think about it after a while.
Don't forget as its a well built bikes parts can be upgraded later so its not the end of the world, e.g. lower gearings is about £60 to do later.
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Dahon Vitesse D7
by Juney
I have to drive into work but I wanted to buy a fold up bike so I could throw it in the boot of the car and if necessary, park in the Park n Ride just out of town and cycle the rest of the way in, or I could cycle into town from work to save on the extortionate parking charges.
I decided on the Dahon D7 because it seemed good value ... for money. It seemed easy to fold (excellent videos on You Tube demonstrate how to fold the bike) and it didn't seem to be too heavy. I bought the bike over the internet - big mistake, I don't recommend this method, you have to put the bike together yourself and I didn't have a clue, nor did I feel confident in how tight I could get the connections together and I didn't want the bike falling apart whilst I was riding it. In the end I took it to a bike shop and they fixed it up for me for a small fee. They made sure I could fold and unfold it and voila. I was off!
Its light enough for me to lift in and out of the boot and it's great fun to be able to ride the bike in when the weather is nice.
The disadvantage is that I can't find a basket to fit on it. I like a basket to put my shopping in. The second and very big disadvantage is that ideally you should carry it everywhere with you folded. If I want to nip into town, the idea is you fold it up and carry it around with you, not at all practical - why? Because they are easy to steal and thieves are on the look out for fold up bikes to steal. Even with the best locks, the seat post can be stolen, I have to take the seat post out and lock it to the bike, I use 2-3 locks to lock my bike up and I'm lucky to have a secure bike park to leave it in but otherwise I have carrying it into buildings with you isn't always appreciated or allowed!
Having said that, I love my Dahon and it is a great little bike for a good price
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