Just Riding
 

We have been enjoying a long stretch of dry, sunny weather here in the UK - which is very unusual! I have been able to take advantage of the dry days and have been clocking up the miles almost every day. Over the past week I have been riding my lightweight racing bike - Columbus alloy frame, carbon forks, Campagnolo wheels and gears. It has been a delight to speed along the roads on a responsive bike and hill climbing has been better.

Today I chose the Xootr Swift and was shocked to find how heavy it was compared to my racing machine. We Swifters know that the bike is light for a folder but it carries a fair amount of weight compared to the racing machines. I was dissapointed when I set off for the ride as the Swift felt sluggish but after about a mile I readjusted to the folder and really enjoyed the day out. I rode about 25 miles along familier lanes and noted that my cruising speed was much slower than on the racer but it did not feel bad.

Although I enjoyed playing at racing on the other bike, the Swift showed me that there is more to cycling than mph. I took my time to enjoy the sunshine and even took a little detour off the main road along a river bank (photo). The birds were singing, the bees were buzzing and the butterflies were flitting. My Xootr showed me that riding with your nose against the front tyre is not the best way to see the world!

http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w...n/P1020046.jpg

You cannot compare a Swift with a lightweight racing machine of course - they are made for different duties. I am glad I noticed the difference as it enabled me to appreciate what cycling is all about and what a great little bike the Swift is.

The $10 Nashbar front rack that attaches to the canti posts.

awesome. peter recently replied to me with a photo of something he built that will mount against the frame/near the headtube isntead of the steering. sounds like he would be willing ot repeat it for others if anyone is interested. its a huge difference when you have the mount on the frame.

i'm really curious about htis kickstand. i was looking at the pletscher double feet kickstands, wondering if they would fit a xootr. what model is this one?

i'm on the fence as to whether i will install a kickstand, i don't need it frequently, but when i have a big load, it is clumsy mounting bags with the wheeling flapping around. the added weight might be annoying though when i have to lift the xootr or carry it folded sometimes.

anybody riding kojaks? punctures frequent, infrequent if so? my marathon racers are great, but i think i can risk even less puncture resistance.

btw, the sks xtradry fenders are definitely too short for xootr. i'm going to shop around for longer clip on fenders soon. also thinking to get the models that extend a bit towards seatpost to protect dirty from quick releases as well

I had no problems with my kojaks in some pretty unfriendly terrain (ahh the glass strewn streets of sunny glasgow). I can't compare to the marathon's but the kojaks are a lovely tyre.

I use kojaks and love them. I did some testing a couple of years back with a power meter round a velodrome on my swift with a number of tyres, and with a range of pressures too. The test was to ride at a constant speed and note how much power was required to maintain that speed. Kojaks were the fastest, and were faster still at lower pressures than the max rated (I presume because they give some suspension, which helps small wheels). Marathon racers were the next fastest. For me the best think about Kojaks is that they are fat enough that the pressure you need is low enough to run them tubeless. I run them tubeless with a stans rimstrip, with stans fluid inside so if I puncture it seals itself as I ride, just needing to add more air

Kojaks don't last that long, but at only £15 per tyre here in the UK that's fine by me. They give great grip in wet or dry and their size and suppleness definitely gives some suspension effect which makes them faster.

I'm not running Kojaks now, as over the winter I've been running the swift with 24"/520 airnimal wheels (which you can't get Kojaks for). I'll be putting 406 wheels and Kojaks back on in the next week or so in time for the Smithfield Nocturne folding bike race (in which 20" wheels are the max permitted size).

You're in luck: http://www.petracycles.co.uk/product...ource=googleus

Almost, but not quite ... those Kojaks are for 507 rims, not 520.. but there still are some fast tires in 520 available ..

Small Tweaks!
 

When I swapped the flat bars for drops I put the SRAM twistgrip onto a 'T' bar bolted to the stem riser. It has worked OK but a simple adjustment has made gear shifting easier.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=201479

The 'T' bar has a slight angle to it, similar to handlebar stems, so you can flip it over to gain a little height or dip it lower. When I used the bar to cary my 'bar bag I had the bracket tilted up and left it that way when I slid the twistgrip onto it. This brought the twistgrip very close to the underside of the handlebar and was a little cramped. I have just flipped the 'T' bar over and slid it a little further down the stem riser and this has made the whole system easier to use.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=201480

I have also fitted a bell to the other side of the 'T' bar. This bell is designed to slip into the end of handlebars and produces a nice old fashioned (and friendly) "Ting-a-ling" instead of a "Ping"! From the front the 'T' bar looks a bit lopsided. This is an optical illusion as the twistgrip covers most of the right hand side. It does mean that if I wish to add another chainwheel - using Xootr's kit - the other twistgrip will slide onto the left hand side and even things up! Using the 'T' bar frees up the handlebars and prevents clutter.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=201481

Some time ago Xootr changed the stem riser of the Swift by increasing the external diameter. The top two or three inches are still 1.1/8" in diameter, to take standard stems, but below that the tube is much fatter. This will restrict how far you can move the 'T' bar and I am not sure why Xootr changed the specification.

It just shows how a small change to the set up can make life a little easier. The 'T bar is sold by the UK cycle shop St. John Street Cycles - sjscycles.co.uk.

It's because people like me snapped them. Actually it didn't so much snap, but crack over time, from the top of the slit at the QR and round. Luckily I noticed the creaking and the increasing looseness just before it would have snapped off completely.

I wasn't so lucky with my original forks - they snapped without warning (on the steerer tube) as I was riding it - the bars just came off in my hand. A similar thing happened to the Dahon Speed Pro I had before the Xootr. I've since changed to carbon airnimal forks, and airnimal riser and it's been rock solid since.

[QUOTE=rickybails;12629312]It's because people like me snapped them. Actually it didn't so much snap, but crack over time, from the top of the slit at the QR and round. Luckily I noticed the creaking and the increasing looseness just before it would have snapped off completely.

That's interesting, I hope the fault was not common. I have either had the 'T' bar down at the QR area to hold a front bag, a Rixen Kaul Caddy bracket to do the same job or a bottle holder bracket. Having something wrapped tightly around the stem riser at the bottom may well just add the extra support that you needed.

Ricky, have posted your swift pics with the 24" wheels? I'd be interested to see that setup.

Will do. One interesting aspect of the setup is that I've had a second BB shell welded below and behind the original which fixes 2 problems - firstly with 24" wheels the BB is too high to get my feet down at lights, and secondly it lengthens the effective top tube which on the Swift is about 2 inches too short for me to dial in my ideal position. With 20" wheels (or rather using the original BB) I have to run a 180mm stem to get the right position which doesn't make for great handling. With the lower BB I can mimic the position on my track/race bike perfectly (which is important to me as all my training is done on the Swift).

Any UK-based folding bike riders?: a reminder that the 'Smithfield Nocturne' folding bike race is coming up (June 11th). This is a great event in central London: Le Mans start, business dress, start with bikes unfolded. 5 laps of a great 1k circuit, crowds cheering all the way round. There's an elite race straight after our race, and this year as the race is being televised by Sky, there are going to be some top riders racing. Other races include a penny farthing race and a longest skid competition (on a fixie, and last year the winner skid more than 100m).

Here's last years:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zw97q...1AEEDADB28ADC4
25 seconds in - there's a Xootr centre frame. Dunno who -anyone on this forum.
40 seconds in - me in 4th place. I was the only bike with drop bars, and this is running the Kinetic Pro wheels (1kg a pair and really fast).
1:44 - I think this guy came all the way from Spain to race in this crazy suit

http://www.londonnocturne.com/
Entries close end of May but it's popular race so if you want to enter, enter sooner.

It's great for spectators too if you don't fancy racing.

not original I'm sure, but I like it
 

pretty much stripped my swift down to the frame and started over. now it has
* drop bars
* road brakes
* 451 wheels
* Tiagra shifters
* Capreo rear hub (seems to yield a higher top gear)
* 105 rear deraileur
* 9-speed cassette

still has campus pedals, CrossRack, toolbag mounted on front end, water bottle dangling from riser, and fenders

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=202055

pretty happy with the results so far. definitely feels quicker, though I haven't yet had a chance to retrace my daily commute and see how it stacks up. only downer so far is that the road brakes don't grab like the v-brakes used to...need to get some salmon koolstop pads for sure.

took me a few days, which would have gone faster if I had known the first thing about installing cables. buying replacement cables at Walmart was also not smart - all the housing were for brake cables. bent derailleur hanger also cost some time. I still think the 105 derailleur doesn't fit perfectly - will be looking at that soon.

nothing terribly original but thought you might enjoy...

Xootr on eBay
 

Right now it is at 405 with about 15hrs left. Looks mint.

ACE video !!
Getting popular too - this year's places all sold out months ago - we couldn't get in !

I was there, last year - we met, briefly.
I was in the 11 strong Strida team - 5 of which made the final ... see them streak off 50m ahead at the start - due to fast unfold.

but I got knocked out (like 60+% of the field) in the heats before this final - 'rubber band drive' , 'Stupid triangle' 'stupid upright riding position' :-)
I concur with Ricky - It is a great days event for the whole family - some take it seriously, others just have a laugh - whatev .... recommended !

More Pix HERE and Flikr group HERE

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nuttyxa...@N23/lightbox/

Which (if Flikr allows) shows Ricky at Full bore .. holding off the legendary, 3 x winner: Kieth henderson (Cat 1/2 racer ?)

HERE if above image not showing. :thumb:

I wonder what fork he's got in that picture...

Airnimal Chameleon fork .. note drop down bracket to mount caliper brake..

Thanks. (I did see that...)

Hi,

I am new to the forum. I am looking at folding bikes for my commute of 2.5-3miles in NYC. The Xootr Swift looks like a nice option and is in my price range. I have a couple of question that I can't seem to find an answer easily.

1) How easily is it to carry the Swift up a flight of stairs? Do I need to take off the handlebar and wheels? Does it stay locked? Does anyone have pictures or video of someone carrying the Swift around? The swift fold is not a problem for me at home, however, I have no where to lock the bike at work. So, I am thining of bringing it into our office. I have to walk up a flight of stairs before I can get to the elevator. I will also have a small bag to carry.

2) I would like to get an internal gear hub, what's the best way to go about this? Should I just buy the frame and customize it? Or is it cheaper to buy the complete bike and upgrade the rear wheel?

3) When you remove the front wheel, is there a place to attach it to the rest of the folded bike or do I need to get some straps?

Thanks.

Nexride
 

Picked up Karl Ulrich's new Nexride saddle today. Very interesting feel on the initial ride. will test it out more this weekend.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=202703

You can have it built here with a IGH and the frame steel. http://hpm.catoregon.org/?page_id=214