Originally Posted by
keyven
For multi-modal commuting - Brompton
For touring - Bike Fridays
For off-road - Montague, Birdys
Most common - Dahon, Tern
Their diverse design means they may be terrible in certain aspects but amazing in others. Every brand listed here but the lower-end Dahon/Terns run into the thousands of dollars. Be prepared to pay a sizable fraction of the cost for a good fold. There are cheaper folders which are mainly commuters like Citizen, Origami, etc.
I like
keyven's short list: it's probably pretty accurate in terms of broad descriptions. Of course, you're going to find exceptions to everything. And then you're going to have to decide on trade-offs - usually money versus some feature - like lots of us already do when contemplating "just one more bike" or N+1 syndrome.
Last year, when I was in southern Alberta, I rode my Brompton up this really, really long uphill slope. I was in 1st gear all the way, and sweating like crazy. I even passed and embarrassed a big guy on his mountain bike! At the same time, I wouldn't want to do that too often: any other bike listed probably could have handled that slope easier.
As for "how do you join the folder club"... I guess you have one, so you're in the club! Now all you have to do is to ride your folder in absolutely insane circumstances and post a ton of photos to brag about the experience! Welcome and have fun!
