TheChosenOne

I read it on wiki. Also there's only one official dealer in the U.S.? I looked up dealers in Birdy's website and it only showed Propel Bikes in New York

bike.gang.uk

Which parts do you have in mind? Birdy is much better than Brompoton, more parts are generic.

TheChosenOne

According to this wiki page, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birdy_...#Disadvantages , it says . Also
So Birdy is better than a Brompton? I heard the Birdy is fast, is this true? Does it require a lot of pedaling to make it go fast? Also how easy/hard is it to add an electric bike kit to it in the future? I am having a hard time choosing a good quality, regular bike and an ebike.


I have come down to two bikes, the Birdy and 2017 E Joe Epik SE

2017 EPIK SE ? e-JOE Bike



From the specs, can you tell which year they are? And which one would be good for me? I would travel around 10 miles to commute and 10-20+ miles when I have free time.


Birdy Folding Bikes : Urban Bike Fitters

TheChosenOne

From wiki page:


I don't know anything about bikes but ignoring Tern's frame problems which I heard is fixed, is the Tern Verge S8i considered good? I am thinking about getting that, a Birdy and the 2017 E Joe Epik SE

Sangetsu

I haven't had a problem finding 18" tires for my Birdies. I converted one to run 20" wheels, all I had to do was bolt on the wheels and use break arms with longer slots to move the pads further outwards. But the fold is less compact with 20" wheels. Birdies are quite reliable, the only extra parts I would want are a spare rear urethane shock, a spare fold locking lever, and that's about it. If you convert to a rear spring to replace the urethane shock, then a spare isn't necessary.

The front "bearings" are simply plastic bushings which you can make yourself from tubing, when I once managed to break the "spoon", I fabricated a spare with a piece of wire. A replacement part was only $6.

bhkyte

The information about tyres is very out of date. Possibly quoting an old A to B article.
There are far more options for tyres for a birdie available around the world.
Maxxis make some in 355.
Swimables(lol) make kojack, marathons in 1 3/8 and 1.5, and big apples. And more

Parts that are hard to get are the chain catcher and tensioner.
You do need birdie seatpost, I use a koga however.
Stem and some of the racks, mudguards and stuff is difficult to get afaik.
Does anyome get Birdy stuff by mail order?
Brompton stuff is easier to buy worldwide afaik.
Birdies do have some reliability issues.
I have had to get new chain tensioner, chainguard, frame clip, bolts for stem,
Birdies do have issues as a folder but worth sorting I run a chain tensioner from bike gang like the newer bikes and a short rear cage. A metal outter chainring, and I add a zip cable to add spring to the frame clip. Thats about it.

jeffharrisnyc

Schwalbe makes some great tires. I use 1.125" Duranos.
I converted my Birdy to 20" tires with BMX rims a while back.

Anyway, I discovered that my standard stem has a crack where the tightening bolt is.

So, the handlebars rotate freely. A bit shocking when I tried to ride it. Luckily the was a nearby BMW SUV to crash into. ;-)

Does anyone have any idea if it's possible to order a replacement?
I tried writing to Riese un Müller, but their online form is broken. Then the US distributor.

I hope I can find that part!

Thanks.

Estuche

Define "hard to find"

Some of the best Birdy mods or component upgrades will have to be imported if you are in the US. Not hard but rather inconvenient.

It is easy to find any components you will ever need, but you have to be open to importing some things.

Jipe

The stem of the Birdy is proprietary, it cannot be replace by anything else.

You can try to buy one from the Pacific Cycles online store: 10 degree, 21 degree

Or from a dealer in Europe: https://www.vouwfietsen.com/onderdel...n/birdy-stuur/ as you can see, the stem for Birdy ii and Birdy III are different.

If you have a Birdy II monocoque, the stem seems available from a dealer in the US ?

grayrest

Since you're in NYC, contact David at bfold. The two times I've needed Birdy parts (front hinge bolt, rear swingarm catch) he's had them in stock.

jeffharrisnyc

OK, I forgot about them. Thanks!

I wrote to Riese & Müller and they suggested contacting Propel Electric Bikes in Brooklyn.
They said there’s no Birdy distributor in the US at this point, but Propel sells RM’s e-bikes.

I did and they ordered a new stem assembly.
The guy I spoke with on the phone had never heard of a Birdy, but got super excited when he checked them out online.

Hopefully the stem arrives soon!