Originally Posted by rickybails

Yes - I've just revisited after a few years away because I'm thinking about going for the Ti Swift. It's that or carbon race bike (e.g. cannondale supersix) but as so many of my riding opportunities are part of my train commute (where only folding bikes allowed) having a fast folding bike still makes sense even though the price/weight of a Ti Swift can't really compete with a modern carbon racer if you don't need to fold.

I had a revelation recently with my Swift by changing tyres. I've been running Kojaks tubeless for a few years (which I loved) but recently tried Schwalbe Pro One tyres (tubeless) and OMG they are even much faster and smoother and soak up bumps better. Running tubeless means low pressures for no increase in rolling resistance (basically it's a few mm of free suspension) and 60psi is the sweet spot for me. I rode out with a group of (fit) roadie friends and the swift more than kept up. I did a few roll-down tests next to my friends and the swift rolled better than any of the (modern carbon) race bikes - I think mostly down to the me being the only one with tubeless tyres.

I've used 406 wheels for a while and have decided to stick with those due to the tyre choice available. You can't get pro one or kojaks in 451, and there's even less choice in 520 (which I also ran on my swift for a year).

I don't mind the weight so much, but the stock swift is about too short (top tube) for be which necessitates a 140mm stem to get the right stretch, which spoils the handling somewhat. The other driver is that my forks have too much rake - they are airnimal carbon forks designed for 520 wheels and the trail is too short with 406 wheels so he handling is too twitchy. I snapped the stock forks a few years back.

My gears are knackered now so I'm going to switch to 1x and the new SD driver freewheels and 10t cassettes that you can now get (e.g. SRAM 10-42) so I can ditch the front mech and my 61T chainring (good for bragging rights and starting conversations, bad for the chain rubbing on the seatstay). Chain drops have always been a problem for me and 1x setups allow the taller wide/narrow chainring teeth and clutch rear mechs that are much more secure. I had a capreo 9t groupset years ago as my first mod on the swift but that was only 9 speed and doesn't have the range I need for a 1x setup.

I've also been looking at all the other folding bike options out there but I just really like the look of the swift above all the others. I won my first bike race riding my swift and I think I still have an emotional attachment to it. Buying a custom-made Ti bike feels like a 'bike for life' and the swift design has stood the test of time.