kingfish254

The front crank on the Getaway is very standard, so you shouldn't have any problem swapping out a bigger chainring. Post your pics and questions over on the Dahon forum. It is fairly active and very helpful.

Abneycat

I don't think i've ever put up a photo of my Llama before,



Not a very pretty picture, but given that it's the winter season the bike is dirty and I don't want to go outdoors and do a photo shoot with it.

It's been a work in progress over the last year. I've been changing and revising components on it slowly over time, next in line is replacing the basic 32 spoke Sun Rhyno Lite based wheels with some 24 spoke Velocity Aeroheat based ones.

I'm in love with my Bike Friday. It has been with me on bike tours, to visit other cities, and it's been mountain biking a few times at Nose Hill park, and on some trails in southern Alberta. One tough little monster.

That giant saddle pack is a Carradice Super C. They're great packs, very water tight and great looking.

Some folding bike related points:

MKS Espirit Ezy superior pedals. They're removable, high quality, durable, and don't require a retention clip unlike the older line of the MKS Ezy series. I highly recommend them if you're looking for a way to make packing your bike away a little easier.

Schwalbe Marathon Winter tire (20x1.6). Even with a smaller wheelsize and a comparatively smaller contact patch, they give greatly improved traction in icy conditions, and i'm able to enjoy the bike year round as a result, even in a harsh Canadian winter.

Shimano SLX "shadow" rear derailleur. It has a lower profile that makes the bike easier to pack up without worrying about the derailleur getting in the way, or being damaged. A mid cage allows the bike to have a triple crank without the bottom of the derailleur coming perilously close to the ground, too.

Oh yes, and the slimy / shiny saddle is due to it being slathered in proofide at the moment the picture was taken.

kingfish254

Picked this up from an old Englishman today. Actually in pretty decent shape. Just needs a good cleaning and some attention to the brightwork. I love that it has the original (and working) hand pump. Just need to find a chain guard. I think I did well for $75.




and another pic on it's maiden voyage with Savannah's favorite son, Johnny Mercer.

kingfish254

Here is my most recent folder project. I am adding a little English look to my wife's 1990 Dahon Mariner Classic III folder.
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...-English-theme

kingfish254

Here is the 1998 Dahon Getaway that now belongs to my stepmom. She loved the work I was doing on my wife's old Dahon she had to have one.

miniwaring

I recentle acquired a folding bike from a camping shop which I think was intended for Mr and Mrs Caravanner to nip down to the shops for a pint of milk and a newspaper. It came in two flavours, steel and aluminium alloy, but I could only afford the £110 steel version. However, with a few alterations it has been a bit of a revelation. As you can see it seems to be very Dahonesque (I don't know whether Dahon know about it but I'd better shut up in case I start a lawsuit). However, when I bought it I could not tell you what any Dahon bikes looked like as I assumed that all folding bikes were reminiscent of the Raleigh Twenty that my family used in the early Seventies. This bike was branded Pyramid, which seems to be a camping and caravanning supplies wholesaler in Nottinghamshire, and there was no hint of the manufacturer.

The best change I made was to change the squashy child's mountain bike tyres (I think they were an attempt at suspension) for a pair of Schwalbe Marathons which I had bought about a year ago for a recumbent bike project. The difference in ride improved so much that I decided to stop riding my 700C bike to concentrate on the folder.

Next the pedals were swapped from resin beartraps to the minimal-looking Shimano SPDs. The first reason is that the SPDs were smaller than the non-folding beartraps. The second reason was that it took a long time for twisting the foot for release to become instinctive and I did not want to lose that hard-won skill after years of pulling the foot back from toeclips and straps. On more than one occasion, after changing, I gracefully fell sideways as my brain furiously tried to work out what to do to get my foot free before I ate tarmac.

The saddle was replaced by my Brooks B17, not for any reason other than it now fits my behind perfectly. the original was a cheap, functional but rather short sponge-filled affair.

I added small bar ends which give me an alternative hand position, now I have given up the drop bars, but I find that the open-chested position is ideal for me when hill climbing.

The gear range is less extensive than I am used to but I find that the top gear of 68" is OK (it's a case of if you want to go faster then pedal faster). The 34 inch bottom gear is higher than I am used to but I need the exercise. The gearing is a six-speed freewheel with a Shimano mech and a Tourney grip shift. It all seems to work well allowing for cable stretch adjustments.

The weight, though, would put the lovers of lightweight off as I tried to weigh it using bathroom scales and including the weight of a beam rack it weighed around 33lbs. However, using this bike I will probably lose the difference between this bike and a lightweight one twice over in bodyweight.

I am enjoying the little white monster much more than I thought I would and with its ride and handling I can see me giving up the 700C for good.

kingfish254

Nice bike and I like the mods you did to it. It does look a little like a Dahon Mu. Dahon allows other manufacturer's to license some of their technology, so it isn't that unusual to see similar bikes. It is pretty cool to compare the technologies of folding bikes over the years. I love my old 1973 Taleigh Twenty, but it doesn't compare to my 2005 Dahon Jetstream P8.

JosephLMonti

Given that the frame is steel and the components more "entry level", I would liken it to a Citizen Miami:

https://www.citizenbike.com/catalog.a...1&product_id=1

Sixty Fiver

Kuwahara has been building bicycles since 1918 and builds or has built nearly every type of bicycle. It was only in the 80's that they started self branding and they manufactured bikes for many other large companies.

Besides BMX and mountain bikes they also made very nice road and touring bikes.

The Gaap is an awesome bike and starts at $2000.00 U.S. not factoring in any import or shipping fees and tops out at $3150.00

kingfish254

My wife and I went for a ride today. She took her "new" Dahon and I took my old Raleigh Twenty.

miniwaring

Thanks for the link Joseph, you seem to have hit the nail squarely on the head as the equipment seems to be extremely similar. 'Entry level' equipment is proving to be very reliable and I am finding the bike a lot of fun.
I would love something more lightweight in a similar style but at the present a proper Dahon or similar would be beyond my finances.
I hope I did not upset any owners of Raleigh Twenties in my last post but when I rode the one that our family had I was only ten years old and so any bike of a normal weight would seem like hard work.

JosephLMonti

I would check cragslist.org or eBay for a second hand Dahon or Downtube. You can sometimes find great deals, such as barely ridden folders for 1/3 of retail price. Also, on the CB website you will see a model called the "Tokyo". This steel framed folder will be lighter than the Miami, or its equivalent, but is smaller and uses 16 inch wheels. Just like the Miami model, I have seen copies of the Tokyo. In Europe, the bike is called "Born2Ride". Here is a YouTube link to someone riding it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umxyK1URzf4

kingfish254

I agree with Joe on keeping your eyes on craigslist. I started off with two little Dahon Classics from a yard sale and was hooked on folders. Then I scoured craigslist and found a family with 4 Dahon Jetstream P8s in Phoenix. I bought all four and then sold three on ebay. I basically ended up with my Jetstream for free, plus pocketed $150.

brommie

My new bike, (still have the old Brompton) but this is a fast one! It's an Airnimal Joey Explorer. Gone take some hills with this babe!

Abneycat

Heh, I like that that Dahon Jetstream P8 has a magura hydraulic brake on the back. Very styling. Do you find that the hose handles the frame folding very well?

kingfish254

I have never had any problem with the hydraulic hose and the folding. It is pretty durable and flexible. The JP8s only had the Maguras for a couple of years, but I am glad that mine has them.

Kevinator

2009 Dahon Boardwalk S1 - modified
Still building, but here's what it looks like currently:

IMGA0196.jpgIMGA0189.jpgIMGA0199.jpg


With Cyclone motor:
IMGA0132.jpgIMGA0129.jpgIMGA0126.jpg

With Staton LHD/RHD 7 spd freewheel
rear wheel - top.jpgdrive side.jpgfull shot.jpg

More info in sig

kingfish254

Great mods. You should post them over on the Dahon forum.
https://forum.dahon.com/


I see that you call your bike a "Clown Bike". You will appreciate my "Clown Bike" photo below.
Ronald McDonald was at our park when I was riding around on a Dahon Mariner D7 (very much like a Boardwalk). I got him to pose on the bike for me. Shortly after this I used the fenders and rack for my Dahon Jetstream P8 and sold the Mariner on ebay.

GeorgePaul

....

ravjahman

Greetings all fanatics folding bike and others !

I present you my first folding bike
It's a Dahon Jetstream P8 2006






My second is a Brompton "Passione" M2L-X 2007

David325

That green Brompton is seriously classy. Well done.

neilfein

Rav, that green Brompton with the white Brooks is gorgeous!

ravjahman

Thanks you guys !

I managed to get the brompton at a good price, so I could put more money for the saddle
But the saddle is more for a Brompton type S handlebar, the swallow is more made to have a supine
Exclusively british stylee ! Rav

Foldable Two

Here's all five of ours. Might sell the S1 - right now it's just a "guest" bike.

The only one with a name is wife's Blue Crusoe - she has christened it "Sapphire".

morffyd

DSC00256 (1).JPGI have an Airnimal Black Rhino with Rohloff speed hub, purchased from Avon Valley Cycles Bath.

Can't wait to take it travelling woohoo!