Aaargh!! Bad decision that I'm going to put right!

[spammeplease]

The story so far: Noob asks whether 9 miles each way to the station is too far for a Brommie, gets lots of good advice but then runs into a Camper Van, gets a 2nd hand tourer and resumes lurking.  Now read on.... 

Hi all, you may remember me from such threads as 'Aaargh!! Is a Brompton really not suitable for me?'  Well since then I have been commuting on an old touring bike which I used to squeeze onto the train. I've got fed up of the animosity from the non-cycling train users, though, and so am ordering a Brommie imminently.   

Why am I telling you this?  Not just to counter the suggestion that I was all talk and no, um, pedal, but to ask the last few questions I haven't decided on.

I'm going for a S6L in orange and cornflower with Marathons, firm suspension, extended seat, battery lights, easy wheels, S-bag and standard gearing.  The questions: They don't seem to offer bar-ends any more, where do they come from?  And is firm suspension any better or worse, I'm just going on the catalogue suggestion of suitable for agressive riding?  Any other comments on the spec?

[Jacomus]

As you are going for a longer seatpost, your weight would make the firmer suspension a natural choice. The 'aggressive riding' bit is just sales guff, in the most part.

Bar ends you can buy from anywhere such as Bicycles | Bikes | Mountain Bikes | Road Bikes | MTB Bikes | Bike Parts | Bike Frames | Road Frames | MTB Frames or
   Mountain Bikes | Road Bikes | Cycle Clothing & Accessories Wiggle
- they simply fit onto the ends of your bars. You will have to shift your grips and levers in about 1.5cm or so to make room for them.

I think, for your journey length, that considering a different saddle would be an astute use of your budget. Personally, a Brooks B17 would be fitted faster than greased lightning

[oncemore]

I have these on my 6SL - together with slightly wider than standard bars (both fitted by previous owner). Very comfy and don't interfere with folding.


   Ergon GC2 Handlebar Grips Only £29.69

[rogerzilla]

I use Titec Pluton Ergo-Mag (stupid name) bar-ends on my S3L.

Titec Pluto Ergo-Mag Bar End

Bar-ends transform a Brompton into a proper bike.

[Sigurd Mudtracker]

I fitted Cane Creek Ergos on my S6L - nice and grippy and very comfortable.  I simply squeezed the foam handlebar grip up a bit and clamped them on.  Fits fine, but from your statistics your hands may be a bit larger than mine.  Only downside is that the rearward projection increases the folded size very slightly (unfortunately enough to inconvenience my strict requirements, but a second with an allen key rotates them out of the way when required)

I am having mixed feelings about the saddle.  But you can use any standard railed saddle you like so it doesn't really matter.

Having compared it with my previous 10 year old Brompton, I can confirm that the new S6L is a Very Nice Bike.  You'll not regret it.

[spammeplease]

Right, thanks for the replies.  It's Ordered with firmer suspension and I am looking at bar-ends.  I have seen the Titecs but would like to see a set of Ergons.  i'll stick with the latest model saddle for now.

I changed the colour at the last minute to Turkish Green and Orange.  The dealer had a Brompton colour swatch thing that had very different colours to the printed brochure and was well worth a look IMO.

[Sigurd Mudtracker]

I have Ergon GR-somethings on both the tandem and my MTB.  They are very comfortable and certainly improve any flat barred bike (I tend to be a fan of drops normally).  I'm not sure why I went for the Cane Creek bar ends, but they are very good too.  I would say that the Cane Creeks are best if you like your hands perpendicular to the bars, the Ergons if you like your hands on the bars - the bar ends on mine are a bit vestigial and rather hard and cold to the tough if you're not wearing gloves.  I would guess that both add a bit to the folded size (the Ergons have a rearward projecting "flange" for your hands on the main grip part)