Smallwheels

I began trying to sell my 2007 Honda Fit last November. Someone bought it last week. Since being freed of the car I feel lighter and more carefree. For the first day or two I felt a little (very little) uneasy. Then one day while exiting my apartment I looked at where the car would have been parked and I giggled. I felt the freedom and smiled.

Soon after selling it I ordered a bicycle that I had wanted for a while. It is a 2007 Dahon Smooth Hound. I wanted the 2007 because it has a front suspension. For a while I thought that by this late in the year they might all be gone. The 2008 models have a different frame and no front suspension.

It arrived Friday morning. It took a little while to assemble. It needs more tuning but otherwise is doing fine.

This is my first Brooks saddle and my butt is aching after riding about fourteen miles today. Originally I intended to put my Thudbuster on it but I've decided to give the saddle a chance to break-in. Maybe I won't need the suspension seat post. I really like the standard seat post with the built in air pump.

In time I will add a rack and fenders. I want shorter crank arms and Rotor Q-rings. If Power Grips will fit on the pedals then I'll add them too.
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fordfasterr

I remember that feeling back in August of 2006 when I sold my car too !!!

Boudicca

Off-topic, but did you like the Fit? Did you ever use the feature that you fold the back seat up and slide a bike in between the front and rear seats? And if so, does it work?

bragi

Why did you go with a folder? (That is a folder, isn't it?

TiberiusBTkirk

that's a beautiful new bike you got there.
classy, graceful, wonderful muted color scheme.
like looking at a beautiful dinner setting.

Lamplight

It looks like it doesn't fold, which is why I can't figure out the small wheels.

Smallwheels

I did like the Fit. The rear cargo area is one of the reasons that I bought it. At the time I didn't have any normal size bicycles so I didn't try putting one sideways in the rear seat area. My comfort bike and recumbent were too long. The Fit was very handy for hauling tall items like upright vacuum cleaners. The load floor was flat. It was easy to load and unload with the low lift over height above the bumper.

This Dahon is not a folding bicycle. It was designed as a touring bicycle that could be stored in a small space. The front handlebar and stem come off by loosening one bolt. It comes with a thick velcro strap to hold the bar against the frame. The pedals quickly come off without tools. The small wheels make it shorter. By turning the front wheel backward it makes the package even smaller. The whole package will fit into a special shoulder bag. The bag did not come with the bicycle.

I bought this model for several reasons. The first is the front suspension. I don't like being jarred by all of the little bumps and cracks in the road. If you've ever ridden with a front tire with lower than normal inflation you know how that makes the ride smoother. That is exactly how the ride feels on this model, only it has the tires fully inflated.

If I decide to put a Thudbuster suspension seat post on it, the Smooth Hound will ride as smoothly as a Moulton for thousands of dollars less.

The second reason is that the small wheels accelerate faster than larger wheels. Since I live where there are hills it should make going up them easier and faster.

I like the Smooth Hound a lot. I did not get to test ride one because nobody sells them in my town. Over the years I've been lucky when ordering bicycles without test riding them. Each one has been as advertised. I can't say that the Smooth Hound will be my favorite bike ever, but it does what I expected it would do and that makes me happy.

wahoonc

Small Wheeled Bike....IIRC they are quite the rage in parts of Japan...

There was also the RSW (Raleigh Small Wheel) they are very compact bikes for easy storage. FWIW the RSW also came in a folding version. Viscount here on the board has several of the non folding versions. Mine is a folder.

Aaron

Lamplight

I just figured that the small wheels wouldn't make that much difference in storage space, but glancing over at one of my road bikes I just realized how insanely long it is. Looking at the picture, it seems they could have reduced the length even further by bringing the rear wheel closer to the seat tube, but I imagine that would change the ride considerably. I must admit, even though I don't currently need one, I do have an occasional fascination with small, space saving bicycles. And this one actually looks very nice to boot.