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-   -   Impossible to fold or unfold, big problem here (https://www.bikeforums.net/folding-bikes/891818-impossible-fold-unfold-big-problem-here.html)

snafu21 06-07-13 06:01 AM

^^^ You're a sweetie-pie. You can send $10 to me at the usual address.

I'm only here for a while as the teaching schedule is hectic again.

Old Spanish proverb: 'Lubricar las bisagras, o quejarse por los siglos.'

[h=1][/h]

smallwheeler 06-07-13 10:27 AM


Originally Posted by snafu21 (Post 15715009)
First up, Ekdog has a serial beef with Dahon ownership and his useless Spanish non-Dahon mechanic which six million others don't.

He now operates as the President of the European Anti-Dahon Front and takes every chance to diss Dahons to newbies. He can become aggressive when challenged.

Bear this in mind when you read his posts.


welcome back. your posts are always fun to read.

regarding ekdog. one of your last posts prior to your absence was about ekdog and now that you've returned 4 months later, one of your first posts is again about ekdog and his point of view. i'm curious, why so interested?

pampera 06-07-13 03:33 PM


Originally Posted by snafu21 (Post 15715009)
First up, Ekdog has a serial beef with Dahon ownership and his useless Spanish non-Dahon mechanic which six million others don't.

He now operates as the President of the European Anti-Dahon Front and takes every chance to diss Dahons to newbies. He can become aggressive when challenged.

Bear this in mind when you read his posts.

Second, frame-hinge parts, screws, pivots and latch parts are easily available in Europe from CH White at www.dahonspares.co.uk and have been for at least five years. They usually ship stuff next day. If they don't and anyone in Europe wants a part from them, mail me. (I'm not a dealer)

Thirdly, Dahon frame pivots and latches need regular lubrication, whether they are stored in dry room or not. It's a point emphasized in the owners manual. Tolerances are close, and precise. Lubricate or weep.

Fourthly, Dahon had a production issue with frame pivot tolerances on some bikes in 2007, notably some, not all- Matrix and Jack frames which were stiff to operate. They were rectified by 2008 and have not reappeared. Dealers are aware.

After laughing a lot thanks to your post, and very relieved for the diagnosis of my bike, I have to confess: I didn't read the manual nor did any kind of mainteinance to the bike except my first ride - first flat - first tire change.
And I can almost listen the voice of my brother telling me the secret of the universe some years ago: If it has to move, WD40, if it has to be fixed, Duck tape.
I panicked when such a strong bike like mine (it feels like a tractor) couldn't be folded.


I will keep with my Speed TR because is the only folding bike that allows me to climb Madrid and the steep hills in my town and because it's strong enogh to carry at least one child without any trouble, and last but not least, it fits ok thanks to the adaptable stem (I bike like a grandma delivering eggs or a proudy upright lady).


Thanks for the link, I'll keep it and also your nickname in case I cannot find a spare part, thank you very much.

pampera 06-07-13 03:38 PM


Originally Posted by snafu21 (Post 15715057)
^^^ You're a sweetie-pie. You can send $10 to me at the usual address.

I'm only here for a while as the teaching schedule is hectic again.

Old Spanish proverb: 'Lubricar las bisagras, o quejarse por los siglos.'

Well, in Argentina we listened Atahualpa from childhood "Porque no engraso los ejes, me llaman abandonao, si a mi me gusta que suenen, pa' que los quiero engrasar" singing about his horse cart, telling he is called neglected for not oiling his axes, but he loves the sound of them (lousy translation, excuse me).

snafu21 06-08-13 01:19 AM

You're welcome. Mindful of my own idiocy, I have just lubed the frame catch of my own bike, used in the snow at Christmas. :eek:

Many of the later Dahons now have grease points on the latch and pivot. I use light household oil on mine '3-in-1' or similar.

Via con Dahon.

snafu21 06-08-13 02:04 AM

i'm curious, why so interested?

Internet posts on the lines of 'My XXX broke, therefore all XXX's are crap' are destructive, malignant and ill-informed, and they are placed solely to put people off buying an XXX and to punish the manufacturer.

It's a juvenile low-shot: One rant is fine. Months of it is an obsessive compulsive disorder.

For balance, Dahon produce nearly 700,000 bikes a year, most operating perfectly. I've got two of them.

Lube it or lose it.
:bike:

badmother 06-08-13 03:59 AM


Originally Posted by snafu21 (Post 15718950)
i'm curious, why so interested?

Internet posts on the lines of 'My XXX broke, therefore all XXX's are crap' are destructive, malignant and ill-informed, and they are placed solely to put people off buying an XXX and to punish the manufacturer.

It's a juvenile low-shot: One rant is fine. Months of it is an obsessive compulsive disorder.

For balance, Dahon produce nearly 700,000 bikes a year, most operating perfectly. I've got two of them.

Lube it or lose it.
:bike:

+ 2 :thumb:

smallwheeler 06-08-13 09:41 PM


Originally Posted by snafu21 (Post 15718950)
i'm curious, why so interested?

Internet posts on the lines of 'My XXX broke, therefore all XXX's are crap' are destructive, malignant and ill-informed, and they are placed solely to put people off buying an XXX and to punish the manufacturer.

It's a juvenile low-shot: One rant is fine. Months of it is an obsessive compulsive disorder.

For balance, Dahon produce nearly 700,000 bikes a year, most operating perfectly. I've got two of them.

Lube it or lose it.
:bike:

well, if he is anti-dahon, you are certainly pro-dahon. a kind of balance of opposites. hmm. but, for that theory to hold, he would need to respond to your above comments with his own assortment of ad hominem attacks against you. i guess we'll have to wait and see how it plays out.

snafu21 06-08-13 11:43 PM

^^^ Nah, we've both rattled our bars over this. The karma flows again.

I am fan of the low-price Dahons - the Vitesse alloy frames in particular are super.

There's plenty of choice of bikes and they all wear and break eventually. I'm a member of the Moulton club and while it's possible to keep even forty-year old bikes going, they all suffer the same problems as anything else: corrosion, eventual lack of spares, and pivot/bearing wear.

Making bikes out of bent steel tubes, fitted with rotating parts was always a lousy idea. :-)

pampera 06-16-13 12:32 AM

Well, at last I could get my bike back, working in order and folding and unfolding smooth thanks to the magic of WD40.
No need to say I feel a bit ashamed for running afraid to the workshop before even trying to oil it, but it was a good lesson.
Thanks again to all af you!

rhenning 06-16-13 07:37 AM

I think I told you in the second post that it was rusted. Roger

smallwheeler 06-16-13 08:19 AM


Originally Posted by rhenning (Post 15668566)
Rust. Roger

that's hilarious.

rhenning 06-16-13 04:58 PM

I always try first to fix anything using the K.I.S.S. philosophy of repair and other people are engineers that way over think everything. Roger

kamtsa 06-16-13 06:18 PM


Originally Posted by smallwheeler (Post 15748088)
that's hilarious.

10-4

pampera 06-20-13 02:43 PM


Originally Posted by rhenning (Post 15747987)
I think I told you in the second post that it was rusted. Roger

Yes!!! You were right at the first moment. But... I had already taken the bike to the workshop due to an "over fear" :(
Talking about engeneers and over thinking, my father is still laughing at me when I told him I was afraid of bending the frame while closing the hatch of the car (only chance to do any harm to it). He said that before bending the frame I could have seen it emerging through the hatch.
Over thinking, as you said. It costed me 110 Km driving and ten days without the bike.
Next time I'll listen first.

BassNotBass 06-23-13 02:17 AM


Originally Posted by snafu21 (Post 15721556)
... Making bikes out of bent Aluminium tubes, fitted with rotating parts was always a lousy idea. :-)

Fixed it for ya. ;)


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