Originally Posted by
lukerh
Yeah agreed - I'm in SE michigan and have been (and will continue) looking. Realistically this is probably a build-it-up-next-winter project so there is absolutely no rush for me. A right-priced dahon or similar seems very plausible - I do kind of want a 3 speed hub on this which seem less common on the newer bikes - haven't really decided yet though (and obviously not a deal breaker because I can always move one over or rebuild the wheel).
SE MI, my old stomping grounds!
If you like 3 speed IGHs, there are many Bike Fridays for sale used (at least in the Pacific Northwest, particularly around their mothership in Eugene Oregon, or Portland, and some in Seattle) with a Sachs/SRAM 3x7 or 3x8 IGH/cassette setup, that was popular with them for a while, but they sell cheaper now because most people want all external gearing, because it's easier to service. I would think different with ALL internal like a Rohloff 14, but to me, the 3x7/8 was the worst of both worlds, the drawbacks of IGH AND derailleur gearing. (It was designed for city bikes in Europe so could have a chainguard, but I have seen front derailleur bikes with chainguard on these forums.) Dahon made the Speed TR ("Touring") with that setup, instead of simply using a 3X crank in front. The Rohloff is notable in having great gear range, great seals, and oil lube where a drain and fill is easy, instead of $100+ teardown and lube of a typical IGH, there's an IGH specialist in the Seattle area that does that.
Bike Fridays are great bikes but built to order so often a semi-custom size; You need to know what dimensions will fit you, and can do that via the Bike Friday website I think.
The pic of mine in post #9 is an hour due west of Eugene OR. I was sorry I didn't have the time to stop by Bike Friday and look at their bikes, the shuttle bus between the train station and the coast, passed right by them.