I just bought a new-in-the-still-sealed-box Schwinn Loop from a fellow in my area who got it on Amazon and his plans changed so he sold it off even cheaper than it usually costs. I bought it for $150 from his ad on CraigsList.com; no tax, no shipping, so I figured I couldn't go too wrong by experimenting with it. My intention was to replace a very old single-speed folder that I inherited, which I rode once and set it aside because it was just plain no good. I used it just to get back home from dropping off my car for service. I thought that's what I'd do with the Loop. However, soon I realized another purpose. I'll be explaining my experiences with my Schwinn Loop in this thread.

I found that the Loop came in good condition (that is, no shipping damage) but almost everything was out of adjustment: brakes cables, spoke tensions, derailleur cable tension. In a way, it was a learning experience, so I don't regret having to learn these aspects of bicycle mechanics (by watching a few YouTube videos) because if I'm out far from a bike shop and I have trouble, I'll know how to handle at least those simple adjustments by myself. As others have commented, the saddle (seat) is murder on the butt, so I'm replacing it, but that's a common complaint about cheap bikes or even expensive bikes -- the selection of a properly fitting seat is often a necessary customization that I see being done all the time in bike shops.

I have been fascinated by the video series about bike touring on folding bikes, which was produced by a young couple who have made a living (for a while at least) doing bicycle traveling promotion. Their web site is http://pathlesspedaled.com/ and they have some great videos, including a series about self-supported biking across Oregon on the state's scenic bikeways. I was dumbfounded to see that they did that series on Brompton folding bikes, which have 16" wheels, 6 gears in the rear derailleur (modified for a 12% lower range to make hill climbing easier) plus a 3-speed internally geared hub (giving 29-87 gear inches all together), and a steel frame. Here's a description of their bikes: http://pathlesspedaled.com/2011/03/touring-bromptons/. Made in England, Bromptons are excellent highly portable bikes, but I'm not ready to jump into that price range. Dipping my toes into the folding touring waters, I decided to give a try with my new Schwinn Loop upgraded with some accessories.

First, after adjusting the bike cables as I mentioned, I took it to my trusted local bike shop (Spokesman Bicycles in Santa Cruz, California) and showed it to a bike mechanic. I told him I was concerned about the fact that the Loop's wheels only have 24 spokes each, and they're in an unusual star pattern, not evenly spaced as in other bikes, and they are paired side-by-side not all in one circle around the center of the rims. I also was concerned about the gauge of the spokes. He looked and checked the gauge and said he's not concerned at all about the strength of the spoke arrangement. "It's not under-engineered," he told me. Still, I think I'll have him make a few spare spokes of the correct length to carry with me if I'm going out on a bike touring adventure. What I've read about touring shows that the most common breakdown, after the common flat tire, is a broken spoke on a heavily loaded bike. I asked the mechanic if he thinks it could take a loaded tour without undue risk. "With how much cargo weight?" he asked. I said I weigh 155 lb and I might have as much as 50 lbs of stuff (camping gear, clothing, food, water, etc.). No problem, he said. It should be able to handle that weight and more. I haven't seen any spec on the weight limit from Schwinn, so I'll have to trust his opinion and see how it goes. Moreover, I will distribute the weight on front as well a rear wheels.

Next, I borrowed a very comfy seat from another of my bikes to try it on the Loop. This is a Selle Royal Drifter, which is a gel-seat, with water-proof seat covering, wide, no genital groove, short nose, and suspended by two double-springs that absorb road bumps and vibrations, like the old classic cruiser-style seats. What a difference. On the original seat, after 1 ride downtown and back, I was nearly incapacitated by the soreness caused by simple road riding for about 1/2 hour. With the Drifter, no such trouble. I road again today, this time up some long hilly climbs and fast downhill runs on the UCSC campus as well as flat riding. No problem with the seat. So, I'm ordering a new one for my Loop. It can be ordered online for about $40 from various sources. I've seen some complaints about this seat on other sites or reviews. One complaint was that it's hard to stay in one place on the seat because you tend to slide around on the smooth surface. I solved that problem with a light abrasion using fine sand paper in a few swirling strokes around the top (not the sides where the thighs rub) to remove the gloss there. I tried the seat on my gravel road and potholes as well as on good roads. Very nice ride. [Update: I gave up on the Selle Royal Drifter saddle. See my later posting below.]

Then I researched the rules about taking folding bikes onto local buses, Greyhound Bus lines, CalTrain (San Francisco Bay Area commuter trains, not light-rail), and Amtrak. The idea would be that I would use public transit like that to go to some distant place with my folder and other gear, then embark on an interesting long-distance tour to some other location, where I would pick up the bus or train again for a return home (or if really ambitious and having time for it, I would ride all the way back home). I had been setting up an old mountain bike for touring, and definitely will still set that up, but it's not so easy to travel with a full-size bike. Amtrak has a limited number of routes which allow full-size bicycles on board in a few bike storage alcoves of a few train cars. Local buses often have bike racks on the front. If those slots are full, you'd have to box the full-size bike in a special bike box and ship it as checked baggage on Amtrak. However, not all Amtrak stations have checked baggage service, so you might not be able to get your boxed bike on the train or not get it off at your destination and would have to go to a different city to get the bike onto or off of the train. Not good. However, Amtrak allows folding bikes to be carried on as one item of the allowable 2-item luggage on any train. You lug it on and lug it off, but it has to be folded and must meet the Amtrak size limits for folders: 34"x15"x48". My Loop only has trouble with the 15" width dimension. It comes in at 17" wide. But, by a few slight re-arrangements, I got it down to 15" width, or so close to 15" that hopefully Amtrak won't refuse to let it on board. I'll eventually find out.

Some public transits require that the folding bike be contained within a clean container, such as a heavy canvas (nylon or whatever fabric) bag. The Schwinn Loop comes with it's own bag like that. However, as configured with my extras that I'll explain later, I have to struggle mightily to get the bag on and can't completely close the zipper, so I searched for an alternative bag. No luck finding other folding bike bags, such as those made for Dahon folders, that have the necessary dimensions. Therefore, I turned to the bike bag I had previously purchased from Nashbar.com for transporting my 26"-wheel touring mountain bike. It's easier to load because the zipper goes far around and down the sides. But it's bigger than needed, so I figured out how to tuck it into the folded bike and pull the bag into a smaller shape with a tarp-bungee and if needed some extra bungee cords. It has a shoulder strap and 2 carrying handle straps. This works, and it's not an expensive bike transporting bag. Maybe later I'll have an awning shop make me a custom bag if I want to continue using the Loop this way.

If the folded size and bag goes well with Amtrak, the other hurdle is how to carry my other gear in just one other piece of luggage to avoid the problem again of not being able to check excess luggage as baggage in all Amtrak stops. Amtrak allows 2 pieces of luggage at no extra cost. (I'll find out if I can bring more than 2 pieces of luggage, even at a non-baggage-service station, but I think the answer is no, other than a very small carry-on bag 12"x12"x12 for personal items onboard.) Aha! I'll put it all into the Schwinn bike bag and carry that as one piece, plus the bike in the Nashbar bag. I have yet to test out the capacity of this plan, but I think it's going to work. I'll load my gear and clothing into panniers and some into their own stuff-sacks (for sleeping bag, sleeping pad, and tent) and put it all into the original Loop bag. I'll keep the total weight and full-laden size within the Amtrak limits for luggage (50 lbs, certain dimensions). I don't want to carry more than 50 lbs of stuff anyway.

How to carry that stuff on the Loop was the next hurdle. The rear rack built into the Loop's frame is very sturdy, but it's made from tubing that is larger diameter than standard pannier racks, so the hooks of panniers don't fit it. Moreover, they would cause heel interference and/or ground clearance trouble if mounted in the normal manner on the rack. I even tried front panniers on the rear, but I still get heel interference. What I need is a rack above the built in rack if I want to hang panniers. The built-in rack works great for a rack trunk bag. I have one from Nashbar which attaches by means of 4 Velcro straps to the rack, and it fits fine on the Loop's rack. But for larger capacity, I'll need panniers. Aha! I'll mount a seat-post cantilevered rack and hang the panniers from it. If I get a rack that has pannier hanging side frames, I may be able to rest the frames on the Loop's built-in rack for support, so I can carry more than the 20 to 25 pound weight limit that those seat-post racks allow. Working on it. I'll let you know what works out.

To better distribute the load, I installed low-rider front pannier racks on the front of the Loop. The ones I have come from Nashbar (again). I had to buy 2 new screws to replace the ones that mount the front fender stay, so the rack's support strut and the fender stay both can be held by the same screw. A metric #6 screw about 5 to 10 mm longer than the existing one worked. I got a stainless steel screw with metric hex socket pan head. When I'm sure it's ok, I'll back out the screw, add thread-lock liquid, and screw it back in. The Schwinn factory used thread lock on the original screw, I noticed.

I wasn't sure what effect the front panniers would have on the handling. I found out that it actually improves the handling -- no more wheelies on climbing steep hills. Steering isn't affected noticeably; maybe even slightly improved by the extra mass, so it's not so sensitive ("twitchy") as the unladen steering. I mounted 2 front panniers that I had from a different bike, loaded them, and rode up to UCSC campus. I approve. The panniers I have are Garneau "Alpha" panniers, which are small front paniers with a nice quick-release locking mechanism on the hanging hooks. (I don't find them on the Garneau web site so I guess they're discontinued.) The position of the hooks is adjustable, so I could make it hang perfectly, with center of the bag aligned on the center of the wheel axle, and it's level with the ground. The bottoms of the pannier bags don't hit the ground, even on turns and rough roads.

In a future post here, I'll continue this story of upgrading my Loop to be a folding touring bike and will report how it does after I take a longer ride with it. So far, I think it's going to be good. I'll have photos and info on where to get the accessories I added.