Great idea. I thought of wrapping the suitcase with duct tape, though i worried that ight inite inspection.

here's a link to the Xootr Singlespeed kit referenced above: http://www.xootr.com/single-speed-kit.html. I could never get to it from the above links.

Mid Life Refit
 

My Swift has now been bashing out a daily commute for 3 years, the first two in Chicago and then recently in London. The poor girl is looking a bit tired and it's time for a mid-life refit. Here's what I'm thinking:

1. Go to disks front & rear. Daily commuting in the winter is not kind to rims... I'm on my second set and these are nearly shot. I figure that disks will give me better stopping in the wet and are more easily replaceable that rims.
2. Switch to a hub. I'm planning on an Alfine 11. This will give me great range with simple maintenance. It'll also give me a higher top-end because my Swift has a funny frame and can't run in top gear without dragging the chain on the frame.
3. Replace 406 rims with 451. Since I am going to disk brakes and need to replace my rims, I can't see any reason why not to switch to slightly faster 451s.
4. Get a paint job. I'm thinking 'New York Taxi Yellow' with black forks.

I've found a great LBS that does custom recumbents, so I should be in good hands. This will become a great winter bike and I'll use my Airnimal Joey Drop for the summer.

Photos will be posted after we complete the refit!

JL

too much weight addition, if you lift it a lot.

check. though, i'm downgrading from my alfine 8 to a sram i-motion 3. i was happy with 3 gears on my brompton.

chainguard + front derailleur
 

I upgraded to a front derailleur somewhat reluctantly because I didn't want to lose the chainguard. I went ahead with it but definitely missed the chainguard (big chainring moves to where the chainguard was, and little chainring moves to where the big ring was).

Today I found a way to have my cake and eat it too. The key was to get longer chainguard bolts and a set of washers to create space between the large chainring and the chainguard, so that the chainguard rubs neither the chain nor the front derailleur. (There might be a way to hoist the derailleur so that I don't need quite so much spacing.) So here's how it worked:

First I picked up a set of longer chainguard bolts at the LBS. Not sure exactly how long they are, though I would guess 16mm. Here's a pic for comparison:
Attachment 178205
And here's one of the big chainring bolts with the washers. I used four standard one-quarter inch washers I picked up at Home Depot. There may be more elegant ways to do this.

It is honestly a little bit tricky to get all of them into place, because you have to get the washers in between the chainguard and the large chainring, then slip the bolt in through the washers.
Attachment 178203
here's a picture from above so you can see the spacing:
Attachment 178204
and the finished product.
Attachment 178202

works great, and no more grease on my pants as I climb the hills!

Another update! In an earlier post I mentioned replacing the 52 tooth chainwheel with a 48. I was pretty happy with the lower gearing but a recent ride showed that even lower gearing would be better!. I now have a 46 tooth chainwheel allied to a 11-32 cassette and this is proving to be even better. I shall be working 6 days a week until Christmas (and possibly beyond) and have Grandad and church duties to perform too so riding time will be tight. A quick ride today showed all was well but as my fitness levels will suffer because of lack of saddle time the lower gears will be very welcome!

1) i'm getting my dream bag finally, the carradice super c saddlebag with sqr based mounting

2) my latest version of my wish list:

overall, lighter to lift up and down stairs, quicker to fold and unfold with minimal readjustment, a little faster. feel free to respond.

-faster, lighter tire with some puncture protection(currently marathon plus) - probably marathon racer
-swap out longer klickfix mount for klickfix caddy
-try a bunch of fits for saddle angle, fore/aft and for handlebar height, handlebar style (moustache, some other versions of upright)
-swap out for titanium seat post
-better quick releases for seat post - something easier that requires less pressure, that doesn't come out of adjust as much (brompton's not compatible) ultimate seat post would be getting the bike friday folding seatpost on a swift
-swap alfine 8 for a 3 speed hub (probably 40", ~53", ~71"). probably sram i-motion 3 speed. i'll miss my higher gears, but i'll be fine without them. - my only hesitation here is that if a 3 speed hub is having issues with 1 gear, it makes the bike unusable.
-brompton folding pedals or other fast folding. a tiny bit faster to use, and easier to fold/unfold with on hand
-maybe custom wheels - i'm only 125 lbs + 15 lbs gear - so could shave off some spokes
-find a durable tail light, and find a place to install that doesn't interfere with pedaling or folding, and a mount that is wide enough for swift tubes.

I use these on mountain bikes to add a bashgard to a triple without sacrificing the outer ring:

Sugino 14mm Chainring Bolts with Spacer

that looks like exactly the set I used, thanks!

Finally took the plunge and ordered a Swift yesterday. Today the frame of my Dahon Speed Pro cracked. Good timing!

After years of thinking about which folder to buy. Spending many enjoyable hours looking through various websites and blogs I bought a Swift (Aloha Bike Factory, Honolulu).
The price was okay, the fold was okay for me and now I`ve put a few Ks under the wheels I feel it was the right choice. No disrespect to Bike Friday, Brompton and the like but I am very satisfied with my choice.

I`d never ridden a bike with small wheels before. Apart from the bigger potholes around Diamond Head it is not an issue. My usual transport has been a mountain bike with off road tyres so the stock Kendas feel very efficient.

If I had to identify what persuaded me over the other makes I would say,
various levels of fold (from simple quick fold to suitcase packing)
use of standard parts
much cheaper than Bike Friday ( although I was so close to buying a NWT)
feels very stable even when out of the saddle
decent amount of useful accessories.

Rob

Welcome! But watch out, the BikeFriday mafia will come after you...

I'm another new member of the Swift club. I purchased a used one recently, the frame was somewhat battered, but fully functional, and it came with a lot of new parts. 451 size Velocity wheels, Schwalbe Durano tires, a Thudbuster seatpost, front and rear derailleurs, drop handlebars, bar end shifters. I think it's a pretty nice set up, now that I've rebuilt everything, though the gearing seems kind of low. Reading this forum has been very informative.

Please post pics of your build. This thread has waaay too much tech advice and not enough Swift porn

hey, i live around hartford part of the year and new hampshire the rest. feel free to drop me a line sometime if you want to compare swifts around hartford sometime

I'll post some pics when I get the handlebar tape and new seat I ordered installed.

nish2575: I'm about an hour NW of Hartford. Thanks for the offer, maybe in the Spring, if it ever gets warm around here again.

what a lot of information! I have a quick question. Will the BikeFriday trailer setup work with the Swift?
thanks-

train safe-

i love kent and washington. as soon as mid-summer hits, i always drive out there. a friend i contract work for sometimes lives in new hartford. this summer, i biked the last 8 miles to his house 2-3 times a week for work, brutally hilly out there, i felt like i was vertical at one point.

we used to do lunch rides from his house to winsted on our folders - my swift, his dahon vitesse (which i bought him). his daughter refuses to ride it because its awkward looking (:

near end of december, i'm heading into nyc to have b-fold do a full tune-up and some special request for on my swift. i bought it through him, because nobody in connecticut seems to have a clue about folders. there are a few dahon dealers though

not sure what you are asking. but i take an amtrak train 2 times per week now for a short hop. they don't even look twice when i bring my folded swifted on board. but it doesn't fit in any official luggage areas except the clothing hanging closet near some doors. i usually place in the big space in front of the handicapped seats, which they advise me to do. the dahon's do fit inside the oversize luggage racks at end of train compartments. my old brompton used to fit in the overhead luggage!

recently, the late night train guys have said i don't even need to fold before i get on, if i don't want to.

but, some annoyances, if you are getting off on a small stop, sometimes they only open one door, and its not the same door you came in on. that means you will have to walk down a narrow passage between passengers for 1 or 2 trains with the heavy, awkward bike with one arm in front of you. from that experience, i've learned, just a minimal piece of velcro strap aroudn joining the two tire rims will stop the front wheel from flapping freely. and take off your crossrack to make the shape a little more manageable.

I'm a couple of miles from the NY and MA borders. The roads and scenery are spectacular, but the terrain is very hilly. It gets easier if I ride 2-3 times a week--low gears help a lot. Did you get the Super C/SQR bag yet? I'm curious as to how well that set up works on the Swift, with folding, etc.

got the bag, waiting for sqr, due to arrive today! just tried the bag today without sqr, its amazing. post photos after i get a few more changes done

What made you go with the SQR over the Bagman support?

i think it detaches quicker. mostly because i use a funky seat (spongy wonder), and it doesn't have bag loops and can't be made compatible with them. paul on here also has some carradice stuff. a lot of the brompton people swear by sqr mounted bags for quick release with fold

I wouldn't post this run-of-the-mill Swift picture except to note that it is now sporting nish2575's Crossrack:thumb: http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=182227

How do you get on with the Spongy Wonder seat? I tried one but could not get along with it as I kept slipping off it!

(: . never been a problem for me, the only long term drawback might be a little more pressure on wrists without a nose to put weight on

Haven't seen this mentioned before but I can not release the front brake to allow me to remove the front wheel.

The approved method it to use one hand to hold the brakes against the rim (not using the brake lever) and slip the noodle/ curly bit from the brake housing allowing the pads to be opened wide enough to allow the wheel out.

When I squeeze the pads the noodle can't be removed. I released air from the tyre and was able to remove the wheel. Once the wheel is out I can remove the noodle (but then again there is little point as I can not replace the noodle with the wheel in the correct position).

Any quick fixes?
Thanks
Rob

^ Sounds like the cable needs to be slightly relaxed to enable the noodle to be unhooked. Loosed the cable pinch bolt on the brake arm and slide the cable a few mm out and firmly re-tighten pinch bolt.

anybody taken a Swift on Amtrak? was planning to bring mine along, but the ticket agent said it had to be the size of a Brompton when folded...

Thanks Jur
Sorted.
Rob