Originally Posted by
buck-50
So far, some great advice and suggestions.
As much as I like the looks of the reach that price tag may put it out of
my reach for a while. One question for the fans of the Pacific Reach- will it fold into a standard suitcase?
So far, what I'm hearing about my two original choices is:
the swift can be built up pretty light, it's stiff and feels a lot like a full size road bike, but may be a PITA to fold into a suitcase. Would most likely be buying without ever riding. It's not been a problem for me with traditional bikes, but this is not a traditional bike.
the Speed pro TT could be slightly heavier, possibly harder to fit to a big guy, less stiff but easier to fold and considerably yellower. Additional plus for the Dahon is that there is a dealer in town and I could try one out.
And of the new suggestions what I'm hearing is:
The Pacific Reach racing is awesome but probably out of my price range for now, also
AFAIK, nowhere to test ride.
Bike Friday are well built and quite nice but also out of my price range, though might be cheaper used.
This summary seems about right. However I have seen Pacific Reachs on sale in shops and on ebay in the UK for between £380-£450.
Personally I prefer to have the TT Dual drive ,much is expensive to buy separately and represents a better value for money IMO as a bulit up bike. Otherwise a good dual drive wheel build can cost £300-£400. I think the dahon will go in the suitcase easier. However the swift will be cheaper if you have components lying around. However, the Swift gearing will be limited for fast riding unless you get a big chain ring (58 approx),or cespro hub,both of which could add al ot of cost to get your build satisfactory. So I vote TT.