Folding Bikes - Lightweight Upgrades

Hi,

I'm looking for some lightweight upgrades for my little folder.

So I ask:

1. What is the lightest saddle that's still comfortable for commuting in NYC?

2. What are a good pair of lightweight folding peddles?

3. What are the best lightweight tires that still provide comfort on my pothole ridden rides around NYC?

Thanks in advance. :)

What bike do you ride?

I just got a little Citizen Tokyo w/ 16" wheels.

I'm looking for better (lightweight) folding pedals, a better (lightweight) saddle (I'm female which I do think makes a difference when recommending a good saddle) and some 16" wheels that will help with the bumpy NYC ride that will add as little weight as possible to the bike.

For tires, I was looking at the Schwable (sp?) Big Apple tires but they look heavy & I've read a few posts on these forums about them being prone to flats... I also was looking at the Schwable Marathons... I'm sure there a ton of other brands & options. I'm just so confused and am not sure what to pick that will actually lighten up my folder a tiny bit or at least NOT ADD to the weight.

Any advice is very much appreciated. Thanks. :-)

How does the bike currently ride, what's the current saddle like and what size are the tyres?

We can't make part recommendations unless you take apart your bike and weigh each part individually. Your best bet is to visit the LBS and tell them how many kgs you want off your bike, and how much money you're willing to spend.

That said, working from the photo at citizenbike.com, I will do this if it were mine:
For no money:
- Remove rack and fenders, -500g
- Convert to single speed, -800g (I took 1kg off my Dahon)
- Chop off the seatpost portion I'll never use, -50g
- Narrow the handlebar down to 44cm, it's a city bike! -20g
- Set handlebar at seat height, chop off bottom of the T, -30g
That's 10% off the weight, for no money!
For some money, and to answer your original question:
- Velo competition saddle (230g), $20, -150g
- Kenda Kwest 16x1.25", $45, -250g (wild guess here)
- Lightweight basic V-levers like the Avid FR5, $15, -30g (another wild guess)
This takes 3% weight off, for almost 50% the price of the bike.

Honestly I can't think of any more reasonable weight-reduction methods. I swapped my suntour plastic folding pedals for detachable MKS Promenades + power grips and added weight by doing so.

Of course, you can always go for broke: BMX racing hubs, lightweight cranks, carbon fiber seatpost, KCNC brakes + levers, etc. Please post pics if you do so :)

More on the tyres you mentioned: the Marathon and Marathon Racers are both quite heavy. I've never had a flat on my Marathon Racers.

I've never seen a flat Big Apple either. I don't think they're that fragile. And where I come from, the streets are worse than NYC.

I just got a little Citizen Tokyo w/ 16" wheels.


Did you just purchase it new from Citizen? If so, you can still return them and get a Citizen Gotham which is lighter.

Kam

http://www.thorusa.com/dahon/accessories/tires.htm#stelvio

I do not think that the schwalbes are too heavy .. there are not a whole lot 16 tires out there I am afraid..... I havent heard nothing bad about the apples in regards of flats .... I dont know whats on that bike from the factory but most likely not hals a good tires as the schwalbe ...

( and I am not saying that cause I sell them )

thor

Hi All,

Thank you so much for the suggestions. Yes, I purchased the bike about 3 weeks ago (I'm still within the return window). I did have some issues with the seat and stem which Citizen promptly remedied. (They have great customer service!)

I have had the Citizen Tokyo tuned at my LBS and had them remove the cheap plastic bar grips and placed new, cushy bar grips on my bike. I've decided that I like the Tokyo enough not to want to return it. It rides well for my purposes (NYC commuting). I just want to "upgrade" a few things to customize my ride WITHOUT adding weight or while taking OFF a few grams here or there. It doesn't matter if it stays the same weight. I'm just not looking to ADD to it with these new upgrades. (The bike is 29 lbs. I think that's as heavy as I can go.)

I would have snatched up the Citizen Gotham but it has 20" wheels. I don't want 20" wheel. I want 16" wheels or smaller. I also NEED the fenders and the bike rack-- remember, this is a COMMUTING bike. I do have bags/purse/etc to carry. I even go to the supermarket for a quick stop with it and need somewhere to put my groceries. The fenders are needed to the nasty streets. It's been snowing and freezing rain here a LOT. I'd be covered in NYC sluge if it wasn't for the fenders so I NEED them. Sure, in the summer/dry months I will remove the fenders but I STILL need the bike rack daily so getting the Gotham, I would HAVE TO get the fender/bike rack kit which I'm sure would add a few pounds to it since it's steall. So in reality, once I add on the STEEL fender/rack kit I'd end up with a Gotham bike that is approx 2-3 lbs lighter than my current Tokyo:

Tokyo with fender/rack kit = 29 lbs

Gotham with fender/rack kit = approx 27 lbs.

^^^ As you can see, it's not worth the extra cash to me or the larger sized wheels to go with the Gotham for MY needs when the Tokyo rides well enough for my intended purposes.

The pedals are my first upgrade target because the current ones are pretty hard to fold and sometimes catch my fingers/gloves when opening and closing them! Ouch! It's not a smooth transition and I need to put a LOT of pressure and muscle into folding them and a bit of "oompf" into unfolding. It's annoying.

I was hoping to get a set of folding pedals that are a LOT easier to fold. I was looking at the "Prolite Folding Pedals" because it says taht all you need to do to unfold them is to "step on the pedal body". http://foldingbikesusa.com/itemdetails.cfm?id=457

http://foldingbikesusa.com/merchant/1630/images/large/prolitepedals2.jpg

I was also considering the Suntour Folding Pedals:

http://foldingbikesusa.com/merchant/1630/images/large/suntourpedals2.jpg

And the MKS Folding Pedals:

http://harriscyclery.net/merchant/370/images/large/mks-folding-push.jpg

^^^ I wanted to know which of the above pedals is the best or if there are any other folding pedals out there that are even better. (Note: I don't want detachable pedals. I need folding pedals.)

Next to upgrade would be the tires. Since I have a ridgid steel frame folder it can be a little "rough" going over NYC potholes. So I was looking at the Schwable Big Apple tires only because they are promoted as providing a little "suspension"/cushioning on rough NYC streets. They look big and heavy and as I said prior, I've seen a few posts on the forums with people complaining about getting a lot of flats or having to completely get a new Big Apple tire because of rips and tears.

Can anyone with Big Apple tires comment? Is the "suspension"/cushioning noticable as compared to other normal tires? Are the Big Apples really heavy?

After the pedals and the wheels would be the saddle/seat. I want something very comfortable (for upright postion commuting). My backside rarely leaves the seat except to raise up when going over a big bump/pothole that I can't go around. Otherwise I stay seated the whole trip so I need something that's super comfortable, lightweight and made for a woman. (Oh, and I'd prefer any material other than leather). Does anyone know of a saddle that would fit my needs?

Thanks so much for your help/advice. :)

http://www.thorusa.com/dahon/accessories/tires.htm#stelvio

Thanks for the link, Thor. I just checked out the weight of the 16" Big Apples and the 16" Marathons. The Big Apples are 380 grams which is only 20 grams heavier than the Maratons (360 g).

Which would you suggest would be better for commuting on a steel framed folder in NYC? Thanks.

Thanks for the link, Thor. I just checked out the weight of the 16" Big Apples and the 16" Marathons. The Big Apples are 380 grams which is only 20 grams heavier than the Maratons (360 g).

Which would you suggest would be better for commuting on a steel framed folder in NYC? Thanks.

Big apples have kevlar lining, I think--I ran over some broken beer bottles on it and it was just fine, though I panicked and stopped at once to check them. Not a puncture in sight! I love the extra plushiness it gives the ride too, though it does add some weight, but not enough to bother me so much.

Go for the Big Apples pumped no harder than 40psi.

If your weight is largely on the saddle and not handlebars / pedals then I'd assume by comfort you mean something cushioned and shock-absorbing, and that means heavy. I've got a Sportourer Flex saddle (the man's version. Sportourer is a subsidiary of Selle Italia) and it's a nice compromise between weight and comfort. There's a plastic bridge connecting rails and shell which gives a few millimeters of flex, and the gel padding is very nice in feel. At just under 400 grams it's not particularly light.
More armchair-like saddles weigh up to about 800 grams, with some sort of spring/elastomer system. Sporty MTB and road saddles with minimal padding can weigh next to nothing and some decent 200 gram saddles are actually quite cheap. . . it all depends what you're after. I'd recommend having a look at the Sportourer website.

If you're dealing with wet weather, the plastic/rubber suntours are totally gripless in the wet.
The MKS FD-6 is nicer, but sticks out too much when folded. And you can't put clips on them.

I prefer folding over detachable pedals as well, but the above considerations made me choose the Promenade Ezy.

Almost forgot: check if your bike has the fender clearance for 2" Big Apples.

Thank you all for the input. Very helpful. :)

I just checked the specs again for the wheels on my Citizen Tokyo:


Tire 16" x 1.75" black

It's a 1/4 of an inch thinner than the Big Apple tires so I don't think I'll have a problem with clearance but I'll measure the clearance tomorrow when I have a free moment.

As for the saddle, I am looking for a nice mix of comfort and lightweight. Since I'm going to be getting nicer tires, I can go middle of the road weight-wise with the saddle. Again, I'm riding a commuter in a pretty upright position so the bulk of my weight is on the saddle.

@chagzuki: I'll definitely take a look at the Sportourer Flex saddle. Thanks for the advice!

@ josef: Wow, that knocks the MKS and the Suntour off my short list. All I'm left with from my list are the Prolite Folding Pedals. Are there any other folding pedals that I should consider?

Thanks again for all the great advice and help. :)

As far as folding/detachable pedals, that's all I've tried. I swear by my Promenade Ezy with powergrips. Comfiest pedals ever, even if rather heavy.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joseff/2631041416/in/set-72157605937936133/

Never seen/tried the prolites, sorry.

I put standard pedals on my Dahon as I never ended up folding them anyway. There's some decent and cheap pedals that only weight 250 grams per pair.

I fold down my pedals everyday. My bike is sitting in my hallway right now with it's pedals folded because it's easier to store, takes up less space and is easier to get out the door with the pedals folded. I also always fold my pedals when I lock my bike up and definitely fold them when I put my bike in the carrying bag to take with me so having folding pedals are very important to me.

I guess I'm left with the Prolite Folding Pedals simply because I don't know of any other folding pedals out there that haven't been already ruled out.

Can anyone with Big Apple tires comment? Is the "suspension"/cushioning noticable as compared to other normal tires? Are the Big Apples really heavy?

I run mine at 30 psi over horrible horrible city streets nearly covered in glass and I've found them very comfortable, fast, and flat proof.

Compared to the cheap Kenda tires I had before I'd say they are as comfortable as running the Kendas at the same 30 psi, but as fast as running the Kendas at 100 psi. I think this actually makes the whole bike more comfortable because I can pedal more without tiring, which transfers more of my weight from my butt to my feet.

Also, I wouldn't worry about the weight of the tires because since small diameter tires are inherently light there just isn't much much weight to save. For example, 16" diameter Big Apples only weigh 405 grams compared to 450 grams for "full diameter" Marathon Racers. IMO, tires is the last place to try to save weight when you already have small wheels.

So I highly recommend the Big Apples.

Hello my recomendations

1. BIg apples, if clearence enought
2. MKS FP6 pedals
3. A Beam SDP seatpost and matching post.(with the big apples the seat post cushioing is less of an issue)

i just ordered a tokyo as well and would like to know if the big apple tires fit. thanks.

2. MKS FP6 pedals

+1 for MKS FD-6

I would not necessary go all weight weenie on the saddle ... there are lots of woman specific saddles which are nice ( terry, Specialized comes to mind)
Next step is to cut everything off you dont need ...( careful keep the minimum insertion of course )
Thor

I would go with the Big Apples. I think they would fit your bike. To be sure, you could give them your inside width at the bead, but I am pretty sure they would fit. Again, check for clearance issues.

They do help but they cannot be considered suspension.

I have a set of Big Apples on my Breezer and I do notice the difference over the 1 1/2" stock tires at the same air pressure. It makes for a nicer ride.

I have Marathons on my R20 and they are good tires. I don't believe Big Apples would work on the R20 but many say they do. I have a close enough fit with the Marathons 20 x 1.75.

I did have Big Apples on my Schwinn Wasp. They were 2.35". I did have a flat caused not by a puncture but by the bead not set correctly, so a pinch flat. This was caused by the tire pressure dropping too much while the bike was not used and then when I pumped it back up I was paying close enough attention that the bead was properly set. I ended up taking them off that bike but mainly due to tight clearance issues. It’s an old balloon tire heavy steel bike with 2.125" tires, and there was much difference in suspension.

As for seats, I go with comfort and would not try to save weight there if you have a seat you like.

Lower the handlebars so you are leaning forward a bit. This will take some of your weight off the saddle and put it on the pedals. Get a saddle from your local bike shop where you should be able to swap it for another model if it doesnt suit - saddle fit is very personal. In my opinion a firm saddle is best, wide enough for your sit bones at the back but narrow at the front so it doesnt rub your thighs. To save weight cut off excess seatpost (4" in frame), handle bar post (4" in lower portion) and cut bar width to 44 cm. Cut off front mudguard in front of fork and rear mudguard below reflector. Add a rubber flap to bottom of front mudguard.