Meet Chutney, a Dahon Speed Pro TT (2008)

[woollypigs]

oh bother, I think you have the model before mine since you got a suspension hub. Though it is not good with all these braking bits

Will be knocking on wood all day, as I would not like to have this when we are going to France this summer.

[fhills]

The bottom bracket the Sardinian bike shop fitted appears to be this:

FSA Platinum ISIS Bottom Bracket
68 x 108mm ISIS

Chain reaction do it - from the price looks like a quality item.

Fairly standard apparently which suprised me.

The headset I fear isn't - if that went I think you'd be out of action for the duration of your hioliday - best to check the tightness frequently.

I guess the design of the Speed Pro just creates a lot of leverage on the headset since it is so low down.

Question for you: do you use a speedo on yours? I use a Cateye Wireless but keep having problems - distance between sensor and readout unit too far maybe.

Pic attached of Speed Pro on form atop a Sardinian mountain - those 21 Sram Dual Drive gears really are great - I did manage to get to the same point on my 5 speed Brompton though harder work of course and did run out of gears on the flying down.



Paul
 

oh bother, I think you have the model before mine since you got a suspension hub. Though it is not good with all these braking bits

Will be knocking on wood all day, as I would not like to have this when we are going to France this summer.

[woollypigs]

I a buy worried about the.headset too but i'm 15 stone and have done 1500+ miles now in her and still going strong.

I can see that yours is the older model and therefore a lacking the extra 9 gears I got 30 on mine an that bottom 28" was very needed in them lumpy bits in France.

I got a wireless speedo too, I think a cateye, and have no problems with it. Are you sure that your batteries are fresh?

[fhills]

21 gears is fine on mine woolly - easier climbing than on my 27 gear Cannondale. And I like the fact that 7 speed rear cassette and chains are easy to come by, tough and pretty cheap. Who needs 10 speed?

Got up this



without too much trouble (ok a bit of puff and sweat and cursing), climbing from a valley to Villasalto Sardinia, 1,500 feet in just 5km.

Cateye computer is Micro or Micro 10 (costs around £35) and I think I'm on the limit of its operational distance - 70cm. May see if can move sensor a bit further up. Maybe better change to a VDO wireless for just £15  which apparently transmits over about 100cm. Gone off Cateyes - often tell you more than you need, for price of spare kits for you can often get an entire kit and unit from other brands.

Anyway - straying off subject - got an attack of the words after months off YACF.

Will follow your Speed Pro experiences with interest.

Maybe we should compete for highest thing climbed? May get it to 658 metres before the summer.
Paul

 

[woollypigs]

Can't remember the model but the price sounds about right, will check model and distance when home tonight.

Well by the end of July I will for sure be up and over the 2114meters in France just like last year.

[fhills]

well if that's metres and not feet I give in already.

Congratulations.

[StuAff]

Update on mine.

The wonders and frustrations of this bike continue.

In Sardinia with it a few weeks ago and found that the bottom bracket had gone.

It's not done that many miles (and the bottom bracket on my cheapish Ridgeback hybrid is still going strong) at all - amazing.

Luckily a bike shop out there managed to fix it - they were a bit dismissive of the bottom bracket they found in there - replaced it with one from FSA.

So - on a bike not ridden all that much (it's very much a speciality job) I've had:

Several rear wheel spokes replaced.
Front wheel replaced to get rid of crazy suspension hub
Headset disintegrated
Bottom bracket gone

Still, it rides briliantly well, it does fold (handy for foriegn trains where they charge for bikes/need booking and also for chucking in friendly folk's cars) and I've had a fair lot of fun on it  ...

If figure out pic posting will support woollypigs with a pic of it up foriegn mountains/beside the sea.



Paul

I had my ('04 model) Jetstream XP serviced back in January- first full going-over it's had since I got it just over a year  before. And funnily enough, the BB was shot as well...and the creaking I'd been putting up with turned out to be a hairline crack in the frame hinge (?!!!!). It's done a pretty big mileage though, so I'll put it down to wear and tear. Only £280 all in (including the rear shock service)...still a lot cheaper than the '08, let alone the '09 EX....!
And then the Cadenza (also second-hand) needed one of its hinges replaced as well....
Hopefully they'll both be OK for a while!!

[fhills]

Another update.

Piddly thing maybe but this bike sure seems to like playing with your loyalty.

Saddle is an IBeam type - unconventional mount. Advantages supposed to be lighter weight and increased and easier adjustability, but I can't say that I've ever found problems with conventional rail-mounted saddles.

So, lack of rails meant I couldn't just buy an extra £5 mount for my faithful Topeak seatpack but had to buy a special one using straps. Now I  find that the bit of the saddle mount these straps have to pass through has, for no discernible design advantage, got a very sharp plastic edge.

So the saddle has sliced through one strap completely and the other one is almost gone.

Like some people, I fear this bike is so clever it's stupid.


And very good fun in small doses but you could never rely on it.

I'm not altogether suprised that they discontinued in the UK the touring version

[woollypigs]

Well since I got my Surly LHT I have not used my Dahon from 2008.

I have tried to modify the brakes to get them to work better, with some results but that made folding bad, can be done but the cables bends a bit too much.

I have worn out the thread on the left hand (leg) crank arm.

There is a crack in the frame, even with the right amount of seat post in the frame, I have always been at the upper limit of the recommend weight. So the frame is gone.

Tyres, well do let me go there ...

The other day I talked to a fella who had the 2010 model. The v-brakes made for better breaking but because of the fold, the cables has to run further which causes the breaks not to work as good as they could. The frame has been strengthen around the seat post down type area, which clearly tells me that they had a problem with the older models. And even the new tyres are crap.

But that said with some changes, e.g. shorter cable run for the brakes and some better tyres, this Speed Pro TT is a great ride and fast as any other road bike.

So mine is up for sale mostly for spare parts as, any offers over £250 welcome. £250 is what I hear the SRAM Dual Drive II is going for second hand.

[fhills]

//Like some people, I fear this bike is so clever it's stupid.

Woolly's post made me take another look at mine.

Bit above could be confusing.

I meant some people can be so clever they can be stupid.

Often thought that of a few New Labour folk, but they aren't as much fun as the Speed Pro on its good days.

Off to jump on speed pro - some tape on saddle to blunt razorsharp edges (on underside I should stress) and seatpack repaired by a nice lady using some stuff obtained from a camping shop.

[fhills]

ps

I also note that the hinge that holds the thing together has changed on the 2010 Speed Pro (I posted elsewhere on this).

It sure is interesting riding a work in progress.

[StuAff]

Woolly, sorry to hear about your woes with Chutney. A Pro TT is one of the Dahons I'd think about replacing my Jetstream with..but fortunately that's holding up OK. Apart from the (no longer replaceable) rear shock, which seems to have a few issues holding pressure these days, but it'll be OK with no air in. +1 for the tyres, shame the (superb) Durano Plus isn't available in 406.
Fhills: i-beams are indeed a pain. I have had a saddle bag on from time to time, fortunately didn't have your problems! Only real fix is to get another seatpost with rail saddle mount. The Speed  Pro frame design changed in 2009, to include the new hinge. Dahons are always 'a work in progress' (for better or worse) because they're always looking for improvements. The downside is spare parts etc for older models can be a real pain to get hold of.

[fhills]

In my experience, spare parts for Dahons new or old (well at least mine) can be a serious issue. May be about to get better with new distributor, I don't know.

My experiences with my Dale and Speed Pro have - finally - taught me the advantages of bikes with standard bits. You then still have oodles of choice with individual manufacturers of said bits, price points/engineering quality etc.

I've never been sure whether Dahon's constant changes are the result of mad boffins forever thinking "oo this new fangled bit looks exciting, let's chuck it on next year's model and see how it goes" or the purchasing department leveraging Dahon's massive buying power (world's largest maker of folders I think) to get good prices on sometimes too-clever-by-half bits - Dahons can definitely seem good value - the Cane Creek nice rubberised bar ends on mine cost a fair bit by themselves and the Sram dualdrive is also a pricy bit of kit.

StuAFF - I personally think you'd be barmy to buy a new Speed Pro. I think it's around £1,300. Mine (only 21 gears) cost about £580 I think as an end of line.

[woollypigs]

Yeah mine was £850 and I would have expected better breaking and much better tyres for that. For some reason no one reported these issues before I got mine. At one point I was thinking that I had a bad one. But then I talked to someone who also had a 2008 model and he wasn't happy either.

And talking to the fella who has the 2010 model the other day at £1300 you would expect that the tyres would last a wee bit longer, though the breaks does sound better but not as good as you would expect v-breaks to be.

That said I have had some great rides on it, fast and fun it is.

[StuAff]

StuAFF - I personally think you'd be barmy to buy a new Speed Pro. I think it's around £1,300. Mine (only 21 gears) cost about £580 I think as an end of line.

Prices have gone a bit nuts...but no, I'm not going to buy one, unless the lottery numbers come up or the Jetstream dies.

[StuAff]

In my experience, spare parts for Dahons new or old (well at least mine) can be a serious issue. May be about to get better with new distributor, I don't know.

Older parts might actually be easier now- CH White (who handle online sales for Dahon UK) bought up all Fisher's parts stock when Zyro took distribution over. Home

[Sigurd Mudtracker]

It would appear that if you're buying a Dahon, you should go for last year's model.  Big retailers like J E James, Winstanleys and C H White seem to discount the previous year's model significantly.  My Dad got his Mu Sport for about half price.

[fhills]

Another update on mine (though as per above mine is the flat bar 2005 model) - another (the second) headset has disintegrated.

New bit on its way - pretty sure that, one way or another, this is the last headset this bike will see - I tend not to see them as consumables.

Hope this isn't terminal.

Will report more when I know more.

I don't think Woolly minded me posting to here - might be interesting for any other folks with the Speed Pro in its various models/yearly revisions to share their experiences here since it has gone through a series of changes, er maybe improvements.



 

[Pancho]

I'm a long term (2005 IIRC) Speed TR owner and haven't really had any problems. In fact, it's pretty much my favourite bike.

But it uses too many one-off propriety components to rely on too much. I'm half expecting something to fail and it'll be consigned to the back of the garage for six months while I wait for parts.

[fhills]

I'm a long term (2005 IIRC) Speed TR owner and haven't really had any problems. In fact, it's pretty much my favourite bike.

But it uses too many one-off propriety components to rely on too much. I'm half expecting something to fail and it'll be consigned to the back of the garage for six months while I wait for parts.

Lucky you Pancho. Do I take it that you mean the 2005 MODEL Speed TR?  If so, I think that's just the touring version of mine isn't it? I know the wheels are different but I had the idea that they were essentially built on the same bike.

On parts you may well be in luck.
A lot of old UK parts are now handled by CH White.

https://sslrelay.com/s75353868.oneandoneshop.co.uk/sess/utn;jsessionid=154d70fdc5880ba/shopdata/index.shopscript


They are very good - I posted my views on them under retailers reviewsvery recently


C H White - folding bike specialists

[fhills]

Update.

CH White sent the new headset and were wonderful in answering questions by email and on the phone. I was also helped by a really nice guy on a Pacific island (I joke not - this is a Dahon and Dahon's dodgy support and poor information means that folks have to help each other as best they can) who took his own Speed Pro TT (2008 I think, like Woolly's ex) headset apart and sent me pics so that I didn't have too many worries opening mine up. This was particularly useful as someone on the Dahon Forum who I think has a business relationship with Dahon informed us that there is no exploded diagram in existence of said headset.

Bike rides fine again, though there is still slight play in the headset - I think I'll keep it running - best to be philosophical I suppose - replace the headset every now and again funded by savings on chains and cassettes - not many 7 speed bikes (3 x 7 Sram dualdrive) will ride so fast.

Oh and Dahon's support for its dealers is clearly as C***AP in Italy as it was of old in the UK - a disgrace.

But CH Whites are brilliant - if you have a Dahon and need bits, I'd get in touch with them.



 

[woollypigs]

Mine is still on sale, need to figure out if it is worth asking Dahon to do the frame or just sell it for parts.

[woollypigs]

I managed to get a new frame for the costly price of free It is the newer frame with reinforcement on the part where I broke it with v-brakes on the back.

Now I just need to put it back together and sell it.

[clarion]

Good value.

[fhills]

Well done woolly - glad that you checked out the warranty situation.

If it's up for sale, clearly you have had enough of it though/moved on to the comfort of the Trucker.

Mine is still running - still great fun - the headset is doubtless wearing even as I type this.