Inexpensive folding bike

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VanLifeCrisis

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I was looking through craigslist and seen a folding bike for 400 bucks. they said in the ad it costs 799 new so out of curiosity i looked it up. That same model was 319 new lol Its a citizen bike, and they actually have some cheap as 169$ (16"). The 20" miami is 199$ This seems pretty good to me for a folding bike, has anyone had experience with these?

Here is a vid of the miami
 
Walmart has cheap ones too (tho ive learned a long time ago walmart bikes are bad quality). I guess i was thinking foldables were still very expensive...i recall them being that way a long time ago. hmmm...I wonder if my big butt can ride one safely lol
 
DazarGaidin, I got mine from Camper World. The bike was about 200 bucks. I feel safer on it because it is lower to the ground. My big butt fits on it.
 
as cool as those are, how hard is it to ride a full sized bike with training wheels? Of course I mean those tiny 10"ers on the front and back. Seems like you'd have to push real hard to keep goin!
 
I used to have a folding bicycle. The biggest factors of a folding bicycle are the size of the wheels (usually 16" or 20") weight of bike, and number of gears. You will want to get a shoulder bag to carry the folded bike. You don't really need a bike lock since you can simply fold the entire bike and carry it with you wherever you go, such as inside a cafe or store, etc. I've seen too many bicycles get stripped of parts while locked on sidewalks. Don't be a victim of that. A typical folding bike weights nearly 30 pounds, so that's still a bit of weight to carry on your shoulders, assuming you use a shoulder bag. But some folding bikes you can simply wheel it on the ground instead of carrying it. I would make sure to get a folding bike that can be wheeled around.
 
I mainly want it folding to fit in the van...if i take it out id just be riding at the park etc so no need to carry it or leave it.

What do you think of a very tall person riding one? Doable? I'm a leggy 6'4. My last bike was 29" (frame not wheel) but that was a lil big even for me.
 
I've been looking at the citizen bikes also. They say they work for people up to 6' tall I'm about 6'1". The highest measurement from pedal to the seat on the bikes is 33" to 34" depending on which model you get, I measured the bike I am riding now and I have the seat at 35". So not sure if a folding bike is for me, but I can see a lot of possibilities with these bikes, it would be much easier to take a bus or train with a folding bike than a regular bike and would be able to keep it in the van instead of on a rack outside of the van where it could get stolen.
 
i found a 26" folding mountain bike for 299 on amazon, columbra i think it was. swap out for some smoother tires and it might work better for me. when folded it seems to only take a couple more inches.
 
I've seen a few of the 26" ones they should work well for you. You will find a better selection of tires in 26" than the 20" tire. And the bike should fit you better since you are tall. For a tall person Columbia recommends getting a taller seat post for the bike, columbia sells them in there amazon store for $18.
 
It would be cool to have a folding mountain bike. I like riding off curbs and staircases and dirt trails, can't do that with regular bikes.
 
Don't understand folding bikes much. Take off the front tire with quick release and the bike will fit in the trunk.
 
I now have a Novara (REI store brand) Flyby folder. It's an awesome lightweight folder with a Nexus 7 internal gearing system. It's quick and smooth. I love it! Weighs 22 pounds and folds small enough that I can easily put it inside my van. My 29er was too big for that and I worried that someone was going to steal it off an external rack. My Flyby brings me peace of mind and a great bike!


Also I was able to trade my 29er for a small harp! Win, win!
 
I have a Brooklyness Broadway folding bike, and I really like it. It folds down much more compact than most other bikes, and it was a pretty good price, too. Only single speed, but that's fine for me. I just like to have it around for emergencies--in case the van breaks down and I need to go get help. Looks like they're sold out on the Brooklyness website, but maybe they'll make more.
 
I have been looking at the Dahon bikes, but didn't mention them here because this discussion was about inexpensive bikes. I didn't consider them to be inexpensive at a low price of about $500. However they are better suited for a taller person than the Citizen bikes so I was looking at them for that reason. I like ridding a lot so I need a bike to fit right! And Dahon has a lot of bikes to chose from, they have at least 1 that has 26" wheels. I'm looking for 1 that I can put in a semi truck so will need 1 with 20" wheels.
 
Keep an eye on Craigslist for the Montague folding bikes. They make a couple different models, but they all have the same basic folding design and it's rock solid! I have a Montague Paratrooper and really like it!

At one time they a had a promotional deal with GM's Hummer division so some of them are labeled Hummer. I've seen those go for as little as $200 on Craigslist, which might not fit everyone's category of "cheap", but over the long run they'll be cheaper as they are much higher quality than some of the Walmart and other big box store bikes.
 
Citizen folding bikes are known for being decent quality and a good buy for the money. Along the same lines is Downtube bikes http://www.downtube.com/ss-index.html with their basic 7sp intro level bike at $299.

I'd not go much lower than these brands new -- while you can find them as cheap as the $100-200s, those bikes are junk, hard to maintain, not meant to last, heavy, department store style, with low end components. Same thing I've seen in West Marine. For just a bit more, a Citizen or Downtube is a much better bike.

Next level up ($400-700) would be Dahon and a new company called Tern. Someone mentioned a Novara from REI -- it's actually a rebadged Dahon and a good deal. At the upper end of this range, also consider a Xootr Swift -- not the smallest fold, but a good, stiff bike. After that, sky's the limit. My current folder is a R&M Birdy which I converted to 3x7 DualDrive gearing. Retail on a new bike with this setup would be something like $1600, but I got mine used for way less than half the price as a 7sp and then picked up the DD system cheap later on.

Figure out what you need. Typically, the smaller the wheel, the less comfortable range it will have, but the smaller it will fold. 20" wheels are pretty much the standard compromise; lower than that and you are sacrificing comfort and range for a smaller folded package, bigger wheels will have you riding further in comfort at the expense of storage space. There's a cult out there surrounding the UK brand Brompton, a higher (>$1200) end folder with pretty much the smallest fold in a practical bike.

Used bikes can be a bargain, but know what you're getting into. Many used folding bikes have proprietary parts which are obsolete and not easily sourced. If you don't know your way around bike mechanics, it's easy enough to learn on your own (and I'd encourage you to do so!), but if you want it checked out and tuned up at a bike shop, figure another $50-75 into the purchase price of a used bike. If you buy a new bike online, it will also likely need assembly and adjustment, so again, know what you're doing, be willing to learn, or figure some money into having a shop do it for you.
 
Has anyone fabricated there own folding bike from existing bike? Use some PVC sleeve to bind them. Not sure how much strength and ease you can get out of that. Pure speculation.
 

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