Giant Halfway

[Hilldodger]

Have been offered a Halfway for not much money compared to what secondhand ones usually sell for.

It needs a good service but otherwise isn't in too bad condition.

I was saving up for a Birdy but am tempted although it's one of the few folding bikes of the 90s/00s I haven't ridden.

Will be used for car assist rides around the countryside whilst I try to get my fitness back.

 Any reviews from folk on here?

[LittleWheelsandBig]

Mike Burrows reckoned that bike was excessively value-engineered once his design was handed over. I always thought the Giant Halfwit was a nicely styled Dahon with some interesting details. Didn’t hear of any specific weak points but the gearing is very low and the brakes are a bit of a pain.
http://www.atob.org.uk/folding-bike-buyers-guide-uk/

[Butterfly]

My friend in Sussex had one. It snapped, but he did live half way up the downs, on the opposite side to the cycling group's rides, so he may have put it under some stress. 

[Brucey]

My friend in Sussex had one. It snapped...

any details of the break?

If looking at a used one (the only sort now I think) it is prudent to inspect the rear wheel fixing carefully to make sure it isn't damaged or seized up.  The low gearing stems partly from the use of a screw-on freewheel (on the model with gears) and this would presumably be one of the cost-cutting corners.  If you only have a 14T smallest sprocket, chances are that if you fit a large enough chainring to make up for it, it would be so large it would interfere with the folded size.

FWIW there are various ways of looking at the single-sided design; one is that it makes fixing punctures easier and makes the fold a bit smaller for nothing. Another way of looking at it is that these gains are footling by comparison with the loss of structural redundancy that occurs in a traditional bike frame, and folders are bad enough in this respect already, so why go out of your way to make it worse...?

cheers

[LittleWheelsandBig]

A large chainring makes the chain clash with the seat stay, I understand.