Wavshrdr

I got one of the 32H ones. Since I am a bigger guy I am glad for the extra spokes.

v1nce

Oh dear, hmm i think for myself i would i always opt for a 32 spoke wheel! I really prefer a little overenginering over a bit of added speed. I really hope you will continue to offer the 32 spoke wheelset.

Wavshrdr

Problem is the Downtube is a wee bit porky. I can feel its heft while riding it but if feels solid so I don't mind it. It has been quite fun tooling about in the snow. The stock tires which might not be great (ie. inefficient) under normal conditions have been pretty good in the snow and slush. Only other downside is the grease in the steering gets REALLY stiff once the temps are under 20F. I still can't get my gears to shift right but they are closer now. I think I will have to change the length of the cable because no matter how I turn the ferrules, I can't get enough slack in the cable. So a simple adjustment should get it but I haven't had time to mess with it so far other than other basic adjusments. Anyone know what the little inside wheel on the gear shift does? It is a sort of a luck or something? Maybe a tensioner? It seems to do nothing on my bike.

BruceMetras

Great Wavshrdr, If I'm right in guessing what you're asking, the wheel is a friction lock of sorts....Rotated forward (towards the front of the bike) it increases the effort it takes to shift by a bunch...fully counterclockwise, it should require much less muscle to shift.. Since I jettisoned most of the entire drivetrain for my 8spd Nexus Redline hub gear setup, I no longer use the stock gripshifter, but when I did, I had it set at the minimum resistance setting. When you get down to fine tuning the shifting, make sure you check the derailleur mount. I had to whack mine around a bit going for sure shifting.

bruce

Wavshrdr

I have fussed with the derailluer for the past our. It appears that one of the brackets is bent. To top it off the little plastic spoke guard has parted company from the derailleur mount. I found my derailleur was actually contacting the spokes on my wheel it was so badly bent. It then would hunt from gear to gear no matter what I did. So now if it is not perfectly adjusted, the chain when going into first gear hops over the backside of the last sprocket and into the spokes.

It is getting to be pretty frustrating. I may just give up fighting with it and drop in a internal hub. I could probably send it back to Yan as well and get them to fix it. Sort of a bummer though getting a new bike and have this sort of issue. There was no external damage to the box but the derailleur bracket is obviously bent if it is contacting the spokes.

I don't want to over stress it and snap it off bending it back either. The problem now is the little spokeguard just spins and rattles as the wheel rotates. That one would be a real PITA to change too I am betting. Hard to get a good feel for the bike when you can't select a gear without it hopping to another one. It makes it easy to almost fall on your face.

I have another one in the box that maybe I'll pull out tomorrow. I will see if it has the same issue. It has a lot of promise. If the average person got one like I did the'd be sending it back for sure. I can't see doing that if I can resolve the problem myself but then again I don't want to spend a bunch of time when it should have worked out of the box.

af895

Wavshrdr,

Could you post some photos of the problem? What's the "spoke guard" you're speaking of? (the only thing that came to mind was the dork-disk but that wouldn't be attached to a derailleur) Also, what's the bracket you're referring to. (picture worth a thousand words ;)

I was surprised when I read your previous post expressing difficulty with the derailleur and shifter; I hadn't heard of anyone having such problems with the Downtube before so I figured perhaps it was a setup issue or, as you've indicated, something out-of-whack.

C.J.

downtube

Wavshrdr,

It sounds like you need a new rear derailleur hanger. I will send you one tommorow.

Yan

downtube

FYI many of Dahon's bikes (the market leader) have 20H and 24H wheels..... I think 32H was overkill. Additionally, don't forget all our bikes are suspended and have wide tires....this absorbs much of the road shock.

Yan

Wavshrdr

Yan thanks. Can I just remove that little plastic spoke guard that keeps the chain from hitting the spokes. I looked at my derailleur carefully and the bracket is obviously bent (assuming it should be parabolic). It has a slight curve to it. I knew it was obviously an issue when the derailleur hit the spokes of the wheel. There are no marks on the derailluer though from any impact.

downtube

Many riders remove the spoke protector once they adjust the limiting screws on the rear derailleur (see https://www.sheldonbrown.com/derailer-adjustment.html ). The bike looks cooler and is a few grams lighter without it.

Replacing the hanger will take you 2 min. Tell me if you have any problems. FYI all our bikes have replacable rear deraileur hangers.

Thanks,
Yan

14R 

Wavshrdr,

Yan (as well as Whoever is responsible for shipping their bikes) is making sure the bikes are shipped "ride-ready", but something is happening between shipping and receiving. Unless you are an experienced bike mechanic, I would suggest taking any bike that spent some time in ground transportation for an inspection.

I had 3 Downtubes shipped to my address and all three, once inspected at the LBS, had (at least) some minor bending of the derailleur. It may be a coincidence or not, but the box that was delivered by UPS was the only one that 1)did not have holes and were not massively abused and 2) had the derailleur in riding conditions (the other two bikes came from 2 different locations but both delivered by DHL and received some transporting damage). The last one (a silver VIII - just front suspension) came with the plastic spoke guard you mention broke as well, and one entire pedal crank outside the box.

About 5 weeks ago, my roomate insisted that his Downtube was perfect and that he needed no Bike mechanic to do what he could do himself. He did some minor adustment on gear and did about 200 miles on it. After my girlfriend traded her halfway to a Downtube identical to his bike and had it tuned at the LBS, it was like 2 completely different bikes. Brakes, gears, overall feeling, it is amazing what some days inside ground shipping can do. The Derailleur was in riding condition but once examined using that little "compass" tool, also showed some degrees off.

As I said on my review, if you add the average US$30.00 for the "pre-flight" check-up + gear adustment at your LBS, it makes the Downtube one of the best value folders in the U.S.

Only if Yan could use the Star Trek method of transportation...bike disappears there, bike appears here!

Wavshrdr

I think you got it right on the money. Unfortunately my LBS charges about $60 for a tuneup/inspection. While I am a pretty good mechanic I don't have some of the specialty tools that might be required. As Yan mentioned I already limited the range of the derailleur so the little guard isn't needed. I may just take it to the bike shop and try and negotiate a quick tuneup. I did the brakes already and checked the trueness of the wheels. Only thing really left is the derailleur to get dialed in and slap on some good tires once I can take advantage of them in better weather.

downtube

Thus far problems with shipping have been our biggest issue. The top complaints we get are:
#1 Rear reflector broken
#2 Boken Bell
#3 Rear derailleur hanger bent
#4 Spoke Protector Damaged
#5 Paint scratched

Overall, I am unhappy about the problems, however I am very excited that the issues have been so minimal (we have had zero misaligned frames). We have taken steps to rectify these issues in the future. All bikes on our second container were much better packed. The rear reflector and bell were placed in the carrybag, and our third container will have a thicker replacable alloy dropout....I hope it helps!

Thanks,
Yan

v1nce

@ Yan. About the spokes and suspension, that makes a lot of sense actually. SO i am not worried, i am glad you give so much thought to your product. I guess i am a sucker for beefiness because i (also) like non suspended bikes and sometimes use my folder kindoff like a BMX. Does what you wrote mean that Downtube will only develop and sell non-suspended bikes from now on?

downtube

No we plan to continue selling front and full suspension folders, however we will bring in a few unsuspended folders (VIII NS) in late March to test the market.

Thanks,
Yan

v1nce

Oh sorry yes, that is what i meant that you would possibly no longer carry Non suspended models. Glad to hear you will carry both for a while yet, i think they both have their place and (dis)advantages. Keep up the great work. Btw is there a place on the Downtube site yet with lots of clear/detailed pics of your products, that would be nice so i could turn people on to your bikes.

jasong

I also had a huge hole near the derailleur on the box my bike was shipped in, but haven't checked the derailleur alignment. I'm curious if Wavshrdr had his limit screw completely let out for the derailleur hitting the spokes. My clearance is very tight (perhaps I'm bent, which I'll check) between the rim and the derailleur pulleys when aligning to get the pullers just over the largest cog.

downtube

Tell me if you have any problems.

Thanks,
Yan

downtube

I have great news the Downtube VIII and VIIIFS bikes were just listed in roadbikereview.com . I am hoping some of our customers from this forum can help us by writing a review. The Downtube VIIIFS page is at https://www.roadbikereview.com/cat/la...5_5671crx.aspx
and the Downtube VIII is at https://www.roadbikereview.com/cat/la...4_5671crx.aspx

Thanks in advance!
Yan

v1nce

That IS excellent news, whenever i want to ascertain whether anything is really worth buying i always check roadbikereview or mtbreview. Nice

downtube

Any thoughts on a possible new logo for the Downtube site/folding bike?

oldguy52

If it was up to me. Rik

<img src="https://www.differentperspectiveproductions.com/Clients/yan/logo_alternative.jpg">


Hmmmm.... maybe that doesn't work here. Anyway, I like the one with the letters built into the bike.

MicheleC

I like the second one.

downtube

How about



Thanks!
Yan

hubs

Could you get the bike pic to look more like a folder? I'd like it better then!