Brompton Owners Could You Educate Me Please?

[citoyen]

Sorry, should have said "as much titanium as possible".

And not for weight reasons so much as the fact that it doesn't rust.

d.

[Charlotte]

Put the AM hub on it and it'll be complete 

That's the plan.  Along with my  well worn and lovely Brompton Brooks B17.

[Arch]

I've just bought a flatbar, 3 speed, no rack.  For me it's the most elegant of the Brompton options - more minimal than the 6 speed, less fussy than the M bars.  Additional goodies were the EZ wheels and some Brommie luggage.

Oh... and raw lacquer finish 

But, but but!

M bars are how you spot an oncoming Bromptoneer!

I like the classic M bar look.

[rogerzilla]

Put the AM hub on it and it'll be complete 

That's the plan.  Along with my  well worn and lovely Brompton Brooks B17.

Swap the internals into the nice alloy shell FTW.  I might even have a spare oil port somewhere.

[MacB]

Well I've now tried some Bromptons and the jury is still out, one of the big reasons for considering a superlight SS was the ability to heft it. I now have to accept that, despite being a big strong lad, I'm not going to be carrying one very far and a backpack just wouldn't cut it for me.

However, in a similar price range, I've now been quite taken with the Bike Friday Tikit. It comes with 135mm rear spacing as standard and I could get it as a SS and also have setup for an I-9 wheel. You can also get a fancy folding rear rack allowing the use of full size rear panniers. The original Tikit rolled on one wheel only but the rack gives you a little 'easy wheel' as well, making rolling or pulling feasible and more stable. I also find appealing the fact that you can use standard bike parts and a wide variety of handlebars. Plus your positioning doesn't need resetting every fold/unfold.

Downside - doesn't fold as small, but does it fold small enough for my needs?

I can't find much on the Tikit in the UK, are there any owners on here?

[Biggsy]

How do you feel about the point I made earlier: have a Brommie with rack + Eazy Wheels so you can push it along when folded?

Of course it makes it even heavier, but you won't have to carry it for long.  Not many men have weaker arms than mine, and I can manage carry it up and down stairs without too much difficulty.

Just use a velcro strap to hold the wheel to the frame when the seatpost is up while pushing it folded.

[MacB]

It's a good idea Biggsy but, if I'm honest, a main attraction to the Brompton was the idea of carrying it in a backpack. The other benefit is the size of the fold but I'm just revisiting how much that would mean to me. I don't have any concerns about being able to heft either a Brompton or a Tikit when need be. But to my inexpert eye, if you remove fold size, then the Tikit seems to offer more. I can use my existing luggage, it folds easily, it rolls/pulls better, it accepts regular bike parts and has the 135 rear spacing. There are also claims around it offering a better ride, this is fine but I wasn't unhappy with the ride of the Bromptons I tried.

I guess I'll just have to try for a demo of a Tikit to make my mind up. I've not switched off a Brompton totally but I'd now prioritise utility, versatility and roll/pull over fold size.

[Biggsy]

Oh, carrying the whole bike in a backpack!  Blimey, no, unless you're Geoff MacCapes.

[MacB]

Oh, carrying the whole bike in a backpack!  Blimey, no, unless you're Geoff MacCapes.

  and I'd already had this pointed out to me on this thread but I'm stubborn so I had to feel for myself 

I will report back when I've managed a test on a Tikit

[geraldc]

Another point I forgot to mention, unless the back pack has a frame or padding to keep the brompton away from you, the knobbly bits of the brompton are going to be digging into your back. I also found that due to the weight, I had to adopt a slightly bent over position (otherwise with a normal stance, the weight pulls you backwards), so you spend a lot of time looking down, when carrying your brommie on your back.

[citoyen]

If you want to be able to carry it, get an A-bike. If you want to be able to ride it, get a Brompton.

Surely you're only ever going to need to carry it short distances? And the eazy wheels mean you can drag it like a trolley anyway.

I don't know the Tikit but it looks good. Personally, I'm wary of any folding bike with derailleur gears, but that's based only on a hunch rather than on practical experience.

d.

[MacB]

If you want to be able to carry it, get an A-bike. If you want to be able to ride it, get a Brompton.

Surely you're only ever going to need to carry it short distances? And the eazy wheels mean you can drag it like a trolley anyway.

I don't know the Tikit but it looks good. Personally, I'm wary of any folding bike with derailleur gears, but that's based only on a hunch rather than on practical experience.

d.

Yep, that sort of mirrors a fair bit of my thinking, remember this is a learning curve for me and I hadn't actually tried a Brompton first. Now that the backpack idea is shelved then the fold size of the Brompton is no longer a major consideration. Agree with you on the derailleur system, hence why I'm looking at a SS Tikit and also having a hub gear wheel done. Keeps the initial purchase price down and I already have the hub gear. So I'm now weighing up the Brompton/Tikit comparisons but won't know until I get a test on a Tikit. On paper:-

Brompton wins for size of fold and that's about it, the Tikit has the ability to use standard components, 135mm rear spacing, a better roll/pull, static setup position through fold/unfold and is claimed to be a better ride, plus it's a super easy/fast fold and unfold. I read this document:-

http://www.anatolyivanov.com/prose/en/AI.7.00109/

he actually went Brompton but fold size and backpack use were his prime motivators. Worth noting that his review doesn't cover the Tikit with their new foldable rear rack. That really caught my attention, it sort of concertinas up and down, so you can use a rackpack or pull it up for full panniers. This would mean I can use my existing Ortliebs etc rather than buying specific luggage as well. It also gives an easy wheel so the roll/pull are no longer on just the one wheel which adds stability.

Pricewise I think the Tikit may work out a little more but it's pretty close once you've factored in luggage requirements.