Some lightweight tuned folders
 

I've been busy building a sub-4kg road bike for a while, meanwhile some of my mates are building some crazy light folder mods. Here I show some of them: I bet there are among the lightest folders out there so far.

Birdy Classic, 7.5kg

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_VlSporLbIhQ/S6...D_7500gr_1.jpg
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_VlSporLbIhQ/S6...D_7500gr_2.jpg
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_VlSporLbIhQ/S6...D_7500gr_3.jpg
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_VlSporLbIhQ/S6...D_7500gr_4.jpg


KCNC seatpost
KCNC crankset
KCNC brake
Sachs shifter
XTR RD
Recon titanium cassette
I-link cable
C64 carbon saddle
Eggbeater 4ti pedal
Custom elastomer
Custom handlepost and seatpost QR
Custom 20" wheelset

Brompton Singlespeed, 7.29kg

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_VlSporLbIhQ/S6...ton_7290gr.jpg
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_VlSporLbIhQ/S6...n_7290gr_3.jpg
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_VlSporLbIhQ/S6...n_7290gr_4.jpg


Zipp 300 crankset
Custom wheelset with titanium spokes
KCNC seatpost
KCNC brake
Wellgo ti spindle pedals
Mortop carbon handlebar
I-link cables

Presto Lite Singlespeed, 6.48kg

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_VlSporLbIhQ/S6...eed_6480gr.jpg
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_VlSporLbIhQ/S6...d_6480gr_2.jpg
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_VlSporLbIhQ/S6...d_6480gr_3.jpg





Zipp 300 crankset
KCNC seatpost
KCNC brake
Nokon cable
Custom wheelset
Carbon saddle

With these weight weenies you are spoiling us!
Nice to see more Pr!mo Champ wheelchair tyres on a Brompton!

I got my Merc/Brompton down to about 8kg. It would've been less with some Eggbeater Ti pedals, (but so expensive!) and then I added weight with an aberhallo stem, drop bolt and pantour suspension hub.
I hear you can lose more grams if you drill the spokes like an airframe :)

Lightes folder ever
 

Wow, fantastic!

The lightest folder I know of so far is the Rob English custom BF Pocket Rocket:
http://community.bikefriday.com/oreg...madebikeshow07

weight is a claimed 15lb (=6.8kg)

Birdy is a different league as it is suspended.

The shown Brompton and Presto are Single Speed, and also lack a rear brake.

Do you know the frames weigth?

BTW, I am maintaining a weigth parts list for folding bikes here (in German): http://www.faltradforum.de/viewtopic...4&t=168&p=2508

Another Birdy, 7.9 kg

http://bike.gn.to/7_9bd-1.htm

I personally don't think the cost effectiveness of these bikes are an intelligent approach. Don't get me wrong, the cool effect is awesome, but I would rather have a bike slightly heavier than these with some gear options, a fitted saddle and front and rear braking power than save 3 or 4 pounds. Specially because unless you are down to 4% of body fat, you can lose a lot of bike-user weight by reducing your body fat.

Does it make any sense?

of course that make sense .... most of these bikes were designed to take the daily grind

however,
Porsche Ferrari Lamborghini Maserati Bentley ....... dont make sense either .....but they are all cars to drool over ..

same as these bikes .... absolutely stunning

thor

It could be that they don't have a rear brake due to using a fixed gear setup. That's what I'm assuming anyway, I could be wrong.

I would like to see more of these bikes which weigh less than the rest.
Makes sense to have a light folder. Something I think about as I lug my Raleigh 20 around the globe....

Light weight is essential for portability- and why should we ride folders if we don't care about portability?

I really hope that dahon reintroduce a single speed (or fixed) version of presto lite.

sorry, but they look expensive, impractical and uncomfortable

My Phillip's 20 lost 12 pounds when I converted it to a fixed road bike and still has it's original fork and stem... the fenders went back on as did a rear rack and a Wright's saddle.

My folding twenty with no original parts what so ever, weighs over 20 lbs... 25? I forget now..
http://file:///private/var/tmp/folde...W/DSC01880.jpg

I seem to remember seeing a 7kh tikit on a Japanese website somewhere....

The stock weight on a Twenty is actually just a little over 35 pounds... with some work you can get them down into the low twenties and have a bike that can handle apocalyptic riding conditions.

You will always be limited by that frame which weighs something like 8 or 9 pounds... the integrated kickstand weighs a full pound by itself.

I like this stuff .. no doubt ...
However, I would be careful with the weights provided by the proud owner ( who just dumped 2 grand into his bike ) .... sometimes its a little wishful thinking, manufacturers are bad enough ...lol

I have seen bikes hanging on scales at Tradeshows , just that if you took the bike off the scale the scale was showing MINUS 3 lbs ...

Bikes with no inner wires in brakes and derrailleurs... middle /low end bikes with Columbus SL tubing which in production was more a hi ten "gas"pipe and 4 times as heavy ...

than we had those CLB alloy outer housing brakecables... they didnt really work as the alloy housing dekompressed awfully and made the brakes BARELY work.... every year before the show season a handfull of BIG names in the industry would order a handfull ....
price was no issue... ( I did make a killing on them as long as they lasted )

:-)
Its almost as good as all the "just riding along" stories

but back to folding bike po..



thor