jgh7

Hi everyone. First post. Let me explain my situation. I commute to my college via a car. The college has bad parking and I end up having to park 3/4 a mile away from the main campus. So I decided to buy a folding bike that I would take out of the trunk of my car daily when I arrive at the college. I would then use it to get around, and then fold it back up and put it back in the trunk at the end of the day.

I did as much research as I could on folding bikes. I ended up buying the Citizen Miami. At the time I really didn't think the weight of it would be a problem, but I guess time makes fools of us all. It's mainly because I have to pick it up with my arms extended to get it out of the trunk. This is tough and puts a lot of strain on my back (yeah, I'm weak).

So it looks like I'm gonna have to return it (hopefully I can). And now the problem is that I need to decide on a new bike to get.

Here's the real kicker: I live literally 10 minutes away from the main Citizen bike warehouse. I was able to buy from them in person. That meant a lot to me (no worrying about shipping and such).

With that in mind, I'm very torn at the moment. I'm trying to decide whether to get the Gotham II which weighs 27 lbs according to the website or the Downtube Nova which weighs 24 lbs. But I would have to get the Nova shipped.

In the end, every pound I can save counts to me. So do you think it's worth the shipping hassle and I should just go for the Nova? Feel free to list any other lightweight folders that are under, lets say 600 bucks and 25 lbs.

P.S. Sorry for the long post, hope you didn't get bored reading it.

vmaniqui

where are you located? have you checked your local CL ? you already bought a citizen and complained about its weight then why would you want to get another citizen ? G2 is just a tad less in weight compare to miami. do yourself a favor and look elsewhere. nova might be a better choice for you. too bad curve sl is sold out at thorusa.com. if you can find a curve sl (used) it's way lighter (about 22.4 lbs).

Dynocoaster 

24.2 pounds $379 but may be less as there is a special going https://www.thorusa.com/dahon/current/speeduno.htm

HGR3inOK

Seems to me that the Dahon Mariner D7 should definitely be on your short list. See:
https://www.thorusa.com/dahon/current/marinerd7.htm

-HANK RYAN-
Norman, Oklahoma USA

Jyyanks

The Mu P8 is slightly over your price range (check with Thor on pricing) but it's about 24.2 pounds. If you can find a Mu Uno in stock somewhere, its only 22 pounds but its at the top of your budget.

badmother

Is there any way you can avoid keeping the bike in the trunk? A piece of tharp in the back seat and a light bag w a drawstring to cower the bike while staying in the back seat?

jgh7

I've racked my brain for a few days now thinking about it. I found out via another thread on this forum that the G2 actually weighs 29 lbs in real life. I guess the website is fibbing, which is not a surprise seeing as how they had the G2 listed at 25lbs before they changed it to 27. I'm definitely going to get the downtube Nova. I hear that it's made completely from aluminum where the G2 still has certain parts that remain steel. I trust that the Nova will have a noticeable difference in weight compared to either the Miami or G2.

prathmann

I have a good folding bike but if I were going to do what you have planned I'd choose to use one of my regular bikes instead. In less time than I can fold even an easy-folding bike like a Brompton I can take the wheels off my regular bike and stash it plus wheels in the trunk of my car. And my regular bike is significantly lighter (about 19lbs.) even with the wheels attached - since the wheels come off first it's that much easier to lift it into the trunk. My car is a Toyota Corolla sedan (no fold down rear seat) and the bike is a pretty large frame (60cm) so I'd think this would work for just about any bike and car combination.

alhedges

Your Brompton-fu is weak!

But I do kind of agree that this is not necessarily a case for a folder - if you get a trunk rack, you can basically just carry a full sized bike with you on the back of your car. For not too much money, you can get a fairly lightweight bike...even used.

But more importantly, the bike's weight won't matter as much because you'll have better leverage. Lifting a folding bike up to take it out of or put it into a trunk is more difficult because of how you have to bend your back and how high you have to lift it to clear the lip of the trunk. Putting a bike on a trunk rack is easier - you just lift it straight up about 2-3 feet and place it in the rack.




And my regular bike is significantly lighter (about 19lbs.) even with the wheels attached - since the wheels come off first it's that much easier to lift it into the trunk. My car is a Toyota Corolla sedan (no fold down rear seat) and the bike is a pretty large frame (60cm) so I'd think this would work for just about any bike and car combination.[/QUOTE]

prathmann

I've got a trunk rack, but never use it for only carrying a single bike - it really is even easier to flip open the two QR wheel levers and lift up the bike so the wheels fall off and then put the bike frame plus the two wheels in the trunk of the car. Takes less than 10 seconds. And, unlike using a trunk rack, this way the bike is out of sight and not subject to theft or damage.

jgh7

Thanks for the responses guys. At first I was iffy about taking off the wheels on a bike, but it looks very simple with the Clix quick release style. I would like to keep my bike in the trunk out of the public's eye, so I won't be getting a rack.

The only thing I'm worried about is if someone tries to steal the wheels because they're so easy to get off. Is there some sort of lock or something to prevent others from just using your quick release to steal your wheels?

Also, does anyone have some good brand/bike recommendations for lightweight affordable bikes with the clix quick release?

prathmann

The rear wheel is usually locked together with the frame to some fixed object and there are a few approaches to securing the front wheel. One is to take it off the bike, place it next to the rear wheel, and secure it in the U-lock as well. Another is to add a cable that secures the front wheel and is locked either with a separate lock or connected to the U-lock. A third is to modify the quick-release with devices like the Pitlock:
https://www.pitlock.com/
and carry the matching cam device to open and close it. Finally, in some situations it's easy to just carry the front wheel inside - this also reduces the value of the remaining bike to thieves and makes it more likely they'll pick a different target.