Thank You Rapid Transit.

I just wanted to let would be Brompton buyers know that Rapid Transit staff was wonderful to deal with. I had a few thousand questions to ask about all things Brompton before I decided to buy. All questions were answered with no attitude and hints and helpful tips were given freely.  

So if you are thinking of a Brompton buy local if you can, I am more than happy that I did.

Jonathan Zalkin

Views: 1129

Attachments:

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on January 10, 2013 at 8:32am

They do make a model that is a folder.

It sucks.

Cameron 7.5 mi said:

I've always understood Bike Fridays to be more accurately described as packable more than folding. Most of their videos show a bike significantly disassembled to fit in a case. Good for checking at the beginning/end of a long trip, but way to much hassle for daily hopping on and off trains. They're more designed to be shipped to a destination than carried and used intermittently during a trip like most folding bikes. I could be wrong, but that's the understanding I got from reading about them. Unless you're regularly trying to fly with a bike, probably not the right choice.

Permalink Reply by Joza 7 miles on January 10, 2013 at 9:35am

I looked At Tern, Bike Friday, Brompton. 

I had no problem deciding  which brand would best fit my needs. Brompton.

I needed a folder for use in conjunction with a bus leg in my commute. Knowing that space would be

very limited during rush hour. Simply put the Brompton was the only real choice. It has the smallest

fold, hides the chain between the wheels and can fold in a seconds. ( I would say it takes me about 30-40 seconds but I just got the bike last night.) Bonus is I can now take a bike with me on vacations with out any of the full sized headaches. 

I shouldn't have gotten the telescopic seat post though. Need to return that.

Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on January 10, 2013 at 11:16am

I didn't think you were going to really need that, I can ride one with the extended post well and it seemed like you are shorter than I am.

Bring it on in and we can get it swapped out for you.

Joza 7 miles said:

I looked At Tern, Bike Friday, Brompton. 

I had no problem deciding  which brand would best fit my needs. Brompton.

I needed a folder for use in conjunction with a bus leg in my commute. Knowing that space would be

very limited during rush hour. Simply put the Brompton was the only real choice. It has the smallest

fold, hides the chain between the wheels and can fold in a seconds. ( I would say it takes me about 30-40 seconds but I just got the bike last night.) Bonus is I can now take a bike with me on vacations with out any of the full sized headaches. 

I shouldn't have gotten the telescopic seat post though. Need to return that.

Permalink Reply by Juan Primo on January 10, 2013 at 11:24am

My folder is a Raleigh 20.  Unfotunately, it is ALMOST tall enough for me.  It would be cool if I could find an extended seatpost for it because I'm thinking of giving up on that cool cool bike... that almost fits.

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on January 10, 2013 at 11:27am

Sorry to hear it.  I have a Dahon Speed P8 (steel frame) that I bought back in 2003.  It's held up well and is still going strong.  It seems that Dahon's commitment to quality products and customers has fallen off a LOT since I got my bike (also at Rapid Transit).  From what I've been hearing, I'll probably replace my Dahon with something else when I reach that point.

I've heard nothing but good things about Brompton over the years, but I couldn't afford one back when I got the Dahon.  Bike Friday didn't offer a commuter-oriented bike back in 2003, so they weren't in the running. 


Dan Allison 14.5 mi said:

i bought my dahon folder (a steel Speed P-8) at rapid transit back in 2007. in 2009 it developed small frame cracks around the seat tube. Rapid transit sorted out the whole issue and got dahon to ship a new frame and they swapped everything over to the new frame for me. tip-top service.

just last night i was giving my dahon some TLC and noticed a similar small frame crack starting to develop around the seat tube in the exact same place that occurred on my old frame. WTF?

i don't blame rapid transit, they're a completely solid operation, but form my experiences it seems that dahon makes a sub-par product, which is perhaps why rapid transit is no longer a dahon dealer and has instead switched to tern. probably a good move on their part, but now i've got another cracked dahon frame. aggravating.

Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on January 10, 2013 at 11:39am

How long is the current seatpost?  The Raleigh 20 will accept a 28.6 seatpost and they are easily available in 350mm lengths.

Juan Primo said:

My folder is a Raleigh 20.  Unfotunately, it is ALMOST tall enough for me.  It would be cool if I could find an extended seatpost for it because I'm thinking of giving up on that cool cool bike... that almost fits.

Permalink Reply by Josh.E on January 10, 2013 at 12:07pm

I like how the Pacific iF looks and if i could afford it i would get it in a heart beat 

 

Permalink Reply by Dan Allison on January 11, 2013 at 5:43am

Brompton exclusively makes 16" wheelers, right? when it comes to small wheel folders i really do prefer a 20" wheel over a 16". when i was doing folder test rides, 16" just felt a little too toy-like to me. not that 20" isn't also a ridiculously small wheel size, it just seems to me that a 20" wheel strikes the best balance between folded compactibility and ride quality. That was one of the reasons i ended up with my dahon (price being the real deale-sealer, though).

my Dahon also won points with me on the aesthetic front too because, like you said, all small wheel folders look silly enough to begin with, but the Speed P8 model came the closest to looking like a normal bicycle that i could find. the 16" wheelers just take the silliness to a different level in my opinion.

still silly, but not absurdly silly (at least in my opinion):

it looks like Tern has a good selection of 20" wheelers, but my concern is that Tern is a spin-off from Dahon which makes me wonder if the same shoddy design/fabrication practices followed suit. how long has Rapid Transit been dealing Terns? Have you seen many frame cracks and other serious structural failures that Dahon is infamous for from the Terns that you've sold? i'm basically wondering if Tern is a brand i should place any trust in after my sour experience with Dahon?

In any event, my Dahon has other issues right now well (frayed cable housing, stretched chain), so i'll bring it by the shop sometime soon and have one of the mechanics have a look at the hairline crack in the frame and determine what, if anything, can be done about it.


notoriousDUG said:

I believe that Brompton is hands down the best out there; it folds smaller easier than any other and it rides quite nicely.  Outside of that I think Tern is the next best choice.  There isn't really much else out there that isn't sort of junky or not very good at being a folder.


 

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on January 11, 2013 at 6:18am

When I was looking to buy, I did test rides on folders with 12", 16" and 20" wheels.  The smaller the wheel, the more sensitive the bike seemed to any pavement imperfection.  I chose a bike with 20" wheels for the same reasons Dan mentioned below - a good balance between ride quality and compact folding.

Dan Allison 14.5 mi said:

...when it comes to small wheel folders i really do prefer a 20" wheel over a 16". when i was doing folder test rides, 16" just felt a little too toy-like to me. not that 20" isn't also a ridiculously small wheel size, it just seems to me that a 20" wheel strikes the best balance between folded compactibility and ride quality. That was one of the reasons i ended up with my dahon (price being the real deal-sealer, though).

Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on January 11, 2013 at 7:05am

Yes, Brompton only makes a 16" wheel bike; they place highest priority on the compact fold so there is a trade off in how the bike handles.  I think the Brompton handles well for a tiny wheel bike but it is still noticeable.

We have carried Tern since their introduction; I think right around a year now.  From what I can see externally the bikes seem to be well built but only time will really tell that.  In the time we have sold them there have been no recalls or come backs due to frame issues but again, only time will tell.  What I do know is that Tern is much more active when it comes to resolving issues with the bikes.  The few issues we have had with them, which were mostly shipping damage related, they have dealt with promptly and with little fuss.

Dan Allison 14.5 mi said:

Brompton exclusively makes 16" wheelers, right? when it comes to small wheel folders i really do prefer a 20" wheel over a 16". when i was doing folder test rides, 16" just felt a little too toy-like to me. not that 20" isn't also a ridiculously small wheel size, it just seems to me that a 20" wheel strikes the best balance between folded compactibility and ride quality. That was one of the reasons i ended up with my dahon (price being the real deale-sealer, though).

my Dahon also won points with me on the aesthetic front too because, like you said, all small wheel folders look silly enough to begin with, but the Speed P8 model came the closest to looking like a normal bicycle that i could find. the 16" wheelers just take the silliness to a different level in my opinion.

still silly, but not absurdly silly (at least in my opinion):

it looks like Tern has a good selection of 20" wheelers, but my concern is that Tern is a spin-off from Dahon which makes me wonder if the same shoddy design/fabrication practices followed suit. how long has Rapid Transit been dealing Terns? Have you seen many frame cracks and other serious structural failures that Dahon is infamous for from the Terns that you've sold? i'm basically wondering if Tern is a brand i should place any trust in after my sour experience with Dahon?

In any event, my Dahon has other issues right now well (frayed cable housing, stretched chain), so i'll bring it by the shop sometime soon and have one of the mechanics have a look at the hairline crack in the frame and determine what, if anything, can be done about it.


notoriousDUG said:

I believe that Brompton is hands down the best out there; it folds smaller easier than any other and it rides quite nicely.  Outside of that I think Tern is the next best choice.  There isn't really much else out there that isn't sort of junky or not very good at being a folder.


 

Permalink Reply by Thunder Snow on January 11, 2013 at 7:40am

I haven't had a chance to ride either a Brompton or a Tern, but those two would be top of my list if I were shopping for a folder. 

I would be leery of Dahon right now.  All of the best design and marketing people seem to have jumped ship from Dahon to form Tern--it was a corporate coup, with son (Josh Hon) and ex-wife (Florence Hon) forming Tern, leaving Dad (David Hon=DaHon) holding on to part of Dahon while son & Mom still hold another part.  And everyone's fighting over it.

That said, I'm still pretty happy with my Dahon Mu XL Sport that I've been riding for 3-and-a-half-years.  If I owned only one bike, it'd be a folder, simply because of the versatility.  Folded, it stashes easily in my small apartment in a corner or behind the sofa.  I bag it at job sites and carry it inside.  I've checked it at the coat check station at clubs or restaurants.  It's always welcome on CTA or Metra--no blackout times or dates with a folder.  20" wheels, 8 speeds, needs little maintenence other than pumping up tires and lubing the chain from time to time.  For a long ride, I'm likely to grab my Trek Soho, but most other times, the Dahon is the right bike for the job.

Permalink Reply by Juan Primo on January 11, 2013 at 10:16am

Nice one, Dug.  I hadn't bothered to check what else would work for me.  Thank you!

notoriousDUG said:

How long is the current seatpost?  The Raleigh 20 will accept a 28.6 seatpost and they are easily available in 350mm lengths.

Juan Primo said:

My folder is a Raleigh 20.  Unfotunately, it is ALMOST tall enough for me.  It would be cool if I could find an extended seatpost for it because I'm thinking of giving up on that cool cool bike... that almost fits.

RSS

Groups

© 2008-2016   The Chainlink Community, L.L.C.   Powered by

Disclaimer  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service