I was planning on buying an auto-mini folder for my girlfriend for christmas but the only ones I've found are single speeds with coaster brakes. How difficult/expensive would it be to convert it to a three speed with hand brakes? Could I do it myself (I'm a complete hack with limited experience)? Is it better to go to an actual bike mechanic?

Get a 3 speed hub/wheel with a coaster brake. Thats the easy way to do it. Adding hand brakes to a bike not made for them sometimes is very tough to do. Cost is whatever the parts cost. My guess would be $100+. Roger

Side pull brakes should be no prob to fit. Just find an old wheel with 3 speed hub and a set of brakes, a brake lever and brake and gear cables (these can come in a neat package in the form of an old 3 speed bike). If you find all these on an old bike you sill be able to study how they attach easy enuff. Just try and resist fixing up the old bike afterwards

Well hey!!! No pressure here.

A good test is this, if you know what the hell they mean by getting a 3 speed hub wheel with a coaster brake, then I think you can handle it. Having a good LBS or bike savvy friend or relative to help or point you in the right direction, also helps avoid costly mistakes and delays in completion.

However, like any potentially large expenditure, weigh in the pros and cons. Ask for an estimate for the work and compare it to what you would be spending in turns of time & money. Also consider the quality of the work. You can't have brakes that half way work or a three speed that only works on 1 & 2 but not necessarily well on three.

Another option to consider is to do some of the work yourself but have the LBS handle the more complicated/costly part.

But...but that Old Broadwalk I now have ain't that bad. It just needs new front brakes, new cabling, new brake levers, new handlebars, a new saddle, new seatpost and yeah the gears and latches need a little work - but beyond all that - it's as good as new.

Unless you are really set on an Auto Mini, you may want to rethink your decision.. I had a brand new one (NOS) with a 3 speed Shimano (non-coaster brake) .. not a very nice bike, and it was new .. wheels are chrome plated steel .. the brakes were non-existent (even with replacing the new pads for other new pads of a different brand).. the cranks are very short .. there are a lot better riding bike out there in folder-land.. but I can understand if you dig the looks, it is an attractive vintage bike.. here's mine ..

I mean the looks didn't appeal to me as much as the affordability and availability. Folders are not really a common item around here (NY/NJ) and I found this one for a hundred bucks (good price?). Newer ones are going for a lot more.

Wow... has that one been sitting in your shop for 40 years?

Doesn't sound like you want to restore a bike yourself, so $100 isn't a good price if you have to put double or triple that (parts and labor) into it before it is a safe, good riding bike .. the newest Auto Mini is going to be around 40 years old (as Jur alluded to), steel, heavy, unwieldly/awkward fold, and probably with some rust issues... NY/NJ seems to have a fair bit of folder action through C/L, but you might also head into one of the bike shops that specialize in folders .. they might have something they've taken in trade that would be more suitable for your g/f and at a price that is less than trying to rehabilitate a bike that may be a can of worms and not really worth the effort once you're finished.

I got it from a storage facility.. the box had seen better days, but it was untouched inside .. plastic wrapped seat .. manuals for the bike and the hub .. generator kit and wiring in a bag .. originally sold through J.C. Penny department stores .. I rode it for a few months off and on to run errands, but never developed an affinity.. there is actually someone on this forum that modified one considerably, and as I recall, liked the result.

Yeah, I was wondering how the final cost of the project would compare to, say, a brand new Downtube Nova or a Dahon Eco 3.

rival - Gotta ask. Who is this bike for really? Is it for her or for you?

I know you like the looks of it but has your g/f expressed a strong interest in getting a vintage or classic folder of this type at all?

If not, then maybe getting a new or gently used folder may be the best way to go.

Whatever you decide, test drive your choice with your girlfriend's biking preference in mind. Better yet, take her along. Bikes are such personal things. What's comfy and cool to you, may not be to her.

It's like buying shoes for someone else, thinking that knowing the person's size is enough? It seldom is.

I somehow doubt a bike can be hidden as easily as a pair of shoes, the GF is bound to have seen it. Has she expressed any opinion on it?

If she likes the bike, why not give it to her as is and 'help' her with any modifications she wants, that way she'll feel more like its her bike.

I think the OP is thinking of buying the Auto-Mini for her for Christmas. No way to know if the OP is picking this bike with or without her knowledge/consent/interest in mind.

As far as giving her a bike as is, unless she's really handy with bikes (more than the OP) she may not appreciate getting a bike that needs work. The only exception would be if she has already expressed a strong interest in obtaining an Auto-Mini or similar bike.

@SunnyFlorida

You might be right

The thing is she lives in an apartment with her mom and brother and there isn't much room. When her sister lived with them she had a bike in the hallway that was always in the way. When my gf expressed an interest in getting a bike I thought that maybe a folder would be a good choice for her since they're so compact. However, I know her and after reading the responses here I know she'd rather have a bike that was ready to ride and not a fixer upper.

But new folders are so much more expensive! Isn't there such a thing as budget folding bikes out there?

How much do you want to spend really?

tcs did give you two links for a budget folder in his post.

The cheapest on the Dahon side is the Broadwalk. Next in line is the Eco. Both do weigh but if the folder is more for storage in the apartment and she's not lugging it up stairs, than those two are good possibilities. Here's a link to a possible vendor you may want to use that list the specs for both folders.

https://www.thorusa.com/dahon/current/boardwalk1.htm

Be aware though that the cheaper the folder the more it weighs and the less adjustable (in terms of arm reach) it may be.

Another option is to look at your local Craig's list for a gently used folder.

Whatever you decide, try and test ride it or see it in the flesh before you buy. Buying it on line (especially a used one) is tricky at best.

There are cheap chinese folders about. The build quality on them isn't great but they will work out of the box and if they have problems they require modern parts to fix. They also tend to fold better than older better quality folders. There was a thread about them recently.
Example would be something like https://cgi.ebay.com/20-FOLDING-BICYC...item230b3c80f4
These type of bikes have a small risk as you tend to buy them over the internet and cannot try them out.
Cheaper Dahons are another option.

I am familiar with the "cramped" feeling as I too live in a too small space with other family members. You are correct about a folding bike would do nicely in such a situation. At one time until recently, I had four of them stashed all around me. I sold one (16" Dahon Piccolo), donated the other to a bike co-op (20" Dahon Boardwalk), and kept the other 2.

Be warned that folding bikes are more expensive than a non folding similarly spec one. BUT, the price is well worth it considering the flexibility that these bikes offer over the other ones. Namely, built in theft resistance & compact storage in all types of situations.

Budget New Folding Bikes: I find that the Boardwalk S1 wins hands down for a fantastic introduction to folding bikes. I had mine from December 2003 (it was a purchased new 2003 model) to this August. Dahon is the largest folding bike manufacturer world-wide. It lends itself from none to simple upgrades all the way to fancy major modifications (like I done with mine adding a three speed hub & rear side pull brake). I do recommend that you involve your girlfriend with this major decision. Nothing is more heartbreaking than someone with a forced grin trying to appear happy with someone else' idea of a perfect bike-and never using it.

Used Folding Bikes I did not consider purchasing and cleaning up a used folding bike until I was far more knowledgeable about bikes in general and folding ones in particular. I had the Dahons and the Brompton for several years before I was lucky enough to locate a dirty, but nice Raleigh Twenty. I used my other bikes as a foundation (many parts stripped from the Dahons & transfered to the R20, some limited off-the-shelf new parts purchased at the bike shop, sewed my own bags & covers plus did all the major cleaning before going to the LBS, and was already grounded with these type of bikes or the BF members helped me greatly in other knowledge gaps) to revive this old bike. So I was able to keep the costs down to a minimum. I can tell you it was not cheap or a budget bike after the final total was calculated. But I just love my old/new/whatever Raleigh Twenty bike. I hope your girlfriend will love her bike just as much as I do all of mine.

I am looking at a used single speed 20" wheel folder. No make was given and they say it is Italian. Where would be a good deal to turn this thing into a 3 speed?

The brakes are hand brakes, so no issues with that.

To turn it into a 3 speed you would need a new rear wheel with a 3 speed hub. These are hard to find cheaply. You could try looking for another bike that has one and swap wheels (plus cable and shifter). Cheapest way to add gears I found is to go for a deraileur. Just buy a cheap kids mountain bike with 20" wheels and you have everything you need. Whereabouts in the world are you Duo?

20" = ISO406?

This looks like a pretty good deal. No affiliation with this company and never done business with them.

Sturmey Archer makes up to 5-speeds with coaster brakes... however, I've thought the new S2C would be a neat little conversion for a 1-speed coaster brake folder...