Hi everyone,
This is my first real post on this forum. I've been riding what I believe is a Dahon Boardwalk (not sure...bought it here in Beijing and they don't seem to use the model names much) for the last year, and have been loving it. I took it with me when I visited Toronto in January, and then to Singapore in February -- my parents in Singapore fell in love with it and are now the proud owners of two Speed D7s! Anyway, as I was about to take it out this morning, I noticed there was a bit of play in the main joint, which I'd never noticed before. It is particularly noticeable if I push the handlebars forwards and pull the seat backwards, but I noticed it first when I was carrying the unfolded bike down stairs, one hand on the handlebars, one on the top-tube immediately behind the main joint.

I'm quite sure the movement is in the main joint (thought it was a loose headset at first) since partially disengaging the latch makes the play much more noticeable. I'd always found the bike to feel quite solid, so this is a worrying development. Any tips? I have yet to find an LBS I really trust around here -- most Dahon dealerships are strictly sales-only places -- so I'd like to fix this on my own. I'm including an old picture of the bike (in Tiananmen Square) to help identify it and the kind of latch it has.

Thanks in advance!

Dahon has a pretty good collection of pdf manuals on their site. I think this may be the one you want. https://www.dahon.com/support/manuals...alk-manual.pdf See page 9, adjusting the frame latch. If it's not the same, then look through their other manuals.

I just bought a new Speed P8 and I have noticed the same thing recently. I think it's just the stem joint needing adjustment. I think I can see what needs to be done but I was going to run it over to the shop soon and ask. I think it's all part of getting broken in.

Fantastic! That did the trick, thanks very much. What should the recommended 5-6kg (11-13.2) lbs of force feel like when closing the latch? I think I've got it, but any Dahon veteran tips would be very welcome.

By the way, as you may notice from the picture, I don't have a stopper hook for my handlepost latch (it snapped off a long time ago). Is this something I should be concerned about?

I'm afraid that I just go by how the latch feels when closed. If there's no play but I can still close it without extraordinary effort, I assume I got it right. Someone else may have a more scientific method.

About the stopper hook, this is just a personal opinion. I don't claim to be an expert, this is just what seems reasonable. I think the latch will most likely stay closed without it *most* of the time. I can imagine, though, that it could be struck in such a way while riding that it would pop open, and that is what the stopper hook is supposed to prevent. If it were me, I would probably at least try to secure it with some kind of sturdy strap that could be removed easily for folding. Then I'd write to Dahon or their local distributor to try to get a replacement.

Good luck and ride safely!

That sounds eminently reasonable... I'll see what I can track down on the weekend. I've been riding without a stopper hook for nearly a year, but every so often it occurs to me that I should probably do something about it. Thanks again for your help!