Kronan bikes - anyone?
 

Hello doesn anyone use one of those Swedish military Kronan bikes for commuting? How do you like them?
Thanks

I've looked at them for commuting. There are a few around and ridden by what appear to be very stylish people. However, I have to do some hills on the way home and the bikes just look too heavy and slow with none or few gears.

I guess if your trip is fairly flat and you're not a speed demon, then it'd make a sturdy basic bike with very few mechanical things to go wrong...

Let us know if you get one.

Cheers!

I think they're pretty cool. Saw lots of them in Amsterdam.But I agree with Renart.
If you have hills you probably want more gears than the Kronan gives you.

According to their website, they weigh 46 lbs. That sounds too heavy to me.

Pickup a schwinn ss cruiser, a madwagon, or a electra cruiser, will be cheaper and ligher and ride about the same.

I have a Kronan, I love it! But it is my sunday driver- I have hills in my regular commute and I don't recommend it if you do as well- a few things that I think are great about the Kronan:

(all standard)

the luggage rack on the back- I swear it will transport a TV
the bike pump in the frame- you never know when you'll need it
generator lights- pretty damn bright
the saddle- like a couch

don't let the weight sway you- try to find a dealer in your area and ride one around the block- trust me it's not the slowest pony in the meadow- if you have a flat commute then it's perfecteven has a nice little bell!


ps- sorry for typing like a used car salesman.

I have a Kronan too, and I subscribe to what has been said about rack and comfort, but they ARE heavy and have only three gears, so use it only if your ride is basically flat. I loved it for four years, and now I'm not sure i believe they're so togh as they said. In a smooth downtown commuting (no hills, no potholes) the handle bar broke in two pieces: i was left with only the right part of the handle in downtown traffic: can you imagine.
Not enough: after i got the handle replaced, the rim of the front wheel just broke up lenght-wise: i was lucky the tyre did not explode! AND, last but not least, getting a spare is a nightmare: I e-mailed them and call them on the phone, and they basically left me out in the cold: there's no replacements for you, sorry. I filed a complaint with the swedish Consulate, but that hasn't helped. I am now trying to find some kind of replacement, 'cause otherwise it's 400 euro's down the drain.