My Sedona came stock with Slime tubes. Didn't prevent a flat,and a mess every time I put air in the tires. No thanks.

although, the slime™ tubes and slime™ emergency sealant are two different products, it seems you have considered every angle. so, then, i guess it would it be fair to say, "NO BROMPTON FOR YOU!"

I get a kick out of how some people can spin a simple process into being a huge convoluted ordeal. A few weeks ago it was just above freezing and night time when I had to repair a punctured tube on my Brommie. I was underway in little time with no dangers of losing any pieces. Apparently I have to do a video to show how it's done. Stay tuned.

seems writing a spread sheet is something done instead of learning Mechanics..
the school board needs replacement.

Excuse the dirty condition of the bike. It's been a wet commute all week long, I last rode the bike last night in the sleet and snow and I haven't had time to clean it yet. Anyway, here's my way of removing the rear wheel with the temp being 28ºF. Also I normally use a proper spanner but for the sake of emulating a roadside wheel removal I used the adjustable spanner I pack in the tool pouch.

Look at it as an investment rather than an expense. Brompton's have great resale value if you decide you want something different later.

As others have said, the fold is also far superior. The rear wheel folding under functions as a great kickstand. This makes it very easy to use the bike for quick trips and errands. But you don't have to take my word for it ...


The fold also makes the bikes great for flying. I take mine with me everywhere and have never had a problem carrying it on. They fit wonderfully in the overhead.

"Who are you going to believe - me or your own eyes?" - Groucho Marx

I know how to pull the wheel on a Brompton;it's the fact that I had to do it that cooled me on the whole Brompton fever.

First,are you saying you would prefer to go through a process rather than a much simpler procedure? Really? Second,why doesn't Brompton make it simpler? There simply is no good reason for them not to have a caliper that cannot be opened tool-free,and there's no good reason the tensioner can't remain on the bike. That's just poor execution. And just because something has been done a certain way for a long time doesn't mean it's the best way.

Between my personal fleet and my bike clinic,I've wrenched over 1000 bicycles. I do most of my own work on my Harley(and previous rides),and I spent my first 4 yrs in the USAF as a aircraft tech on the flightline,so I think I'm a pretty good mechanic.

As for schooling,at least I take the time to type proper English. Seriously,in the 31k+ postings you've made,have any of them ever been totally legible? It really is a pain sometimes to decipher your hieroglyphics.

What I would prefer is to have a remote in my pocket which would fix a punctured tube with a click of a button and pour a single-malt for me to enjoy while I wait. That is what I would really like but I'm not going to whine about not having it or question why a manufacturer can't build it for me. Be that as it may the Brompton's rear wheel removal isn't quite the ordeal that some people, such as yourself, portray it to be.

+1

Both my valve stems went on my Brompton - weeks apart - so changing the rear tire was a first for me given that I've never had an internal hub before. It was a bit of a pain, and I wouldn't want to do it on the side of a road in a rain storm, but it really wasn't that difficult: I suspect if I did it a few more times for practice, it wouldn't be a big deal. I took the time to clean off all the hard-to-reach parts, re-oiled some of the moving components, cleaned the wheel nice and spiffy while I was at it!

Changing the tire on my fat bike was a lot more difficult in comparison. Simpler mechanisms, but geez, the tire is so massive it's hard to pop it off and back onto the rims. Ugh!

Don't get your hopes up, if they ever get around to it, they'll probably outsource the hootch:

It'll get easier with practice.

For some it doesn't because they're locked into one mode of thinking and never learn alternate and better ways of doing a particular job. And look on the bright side, unlike many folders out there, the Brompton allows rear wheel removal in the upright 'parked' position. With most other bikes you have to flip the bike upside down or lay it on it's side. Do this in inclement weather and road grime can foul the frame, pedals, seat and/or grips. Not so with the Brommie.

easy now, that's a high quality malt.

Suntory has actually produced very nice whiskies for over 100 years. A friend invited me to sample Hibiki 21. I wish I hadn't because it sells for ~$210/bottle, if you can find it.

Brommies have more plastic parts, that are non industry standard, and made in China than the comparably priced Dahons. Further to this when the plastic breaks it is triple the cost of higher quality standard parts. This same scenario carry's over into some of the metal parts.

Brommie lemmings remind me of old British Jaguar owners. It WAS ground breaking 30 years ago. A competive market has brought us greater reliability,lighter, faster, stronger and much lower cost alternatives.

But I know posting this here will do nothing to convince Jag/Brommie owners of that the world is leaving them behind. They will always find a silly feature that the Jag is different. Well Bravo to you as you sit on the off ramp broken down..

I really like the style and the frame of the brompton, But they are WAY overpriced and if I wanted to upgrade component s you would be talking rarified air. Forget it get a Dahon anniversary or Bike Friday rolhoff for that kind of Money.

You've spouted so much anti-Brompton propaganda here I can't even begin to respond to it all so allow me to just respond to this wonderful little dung nugget of yours which pretty much sums up the rational of most of your comments... ... Hahahahaha! Well I best be going on my horse-drawn Brompton with square wheels.

Wow. A lot of negativity in one post. Impressive. I don't think any of us Brompton owners are claiming that a Brompton is perfect, but if you're interested in the FOLD (hey, a folding bike that folds!) well then, the Brompton offers a lot of advantages.

You're right though. I did sit on the off ramp broken down once. A fender bolt fell off, and a result, a fender brace was brushing up against the chain ring. I had to jury rig it with a temporary tie. I mean, a bolt would never, ever fall off any other bike, right? Only a Brompton could fail in such a manner!

This was after I, on my lemming of an overrated Brompton, overtook a 6'2" cyclist on his full size MTB, going up a steep incline (probably at least 8 degrees for almost a kilometre) that same morning. The cyclist was a little embarrassed.

Relax... it's just a bike...

=============================

To the OP... quick! Make a decision! The forum is collapsing in on itself!

If you want a relatively objective review, look at this. It's a little dated now (mid-2012), but the arguments the article makes still hold up with respect to the pros and cons of various folding bike options.

https://www.theactivetimes.com/tested...commuter-bikes

I agree. There are a lot of Jag owners on this forum.

I'm not sure about Slime... seems that small punctures that get filled eventually expand beyond the slime's ability to patch. So I'm not sure what a slime strategy should be... I mean, if you have to change the tube every time you realize you'd had a puncture that's expensive and if you don't realize you've had a puncture it could expand to a point where suddenly the tire just deflates, out of the blue.

Constructive criticism isn't whining. I've e-mailed Brompton with feedback as well. That's how things get changed.

This is how it is in the Harley world. HD saw the writing on the wall with stricter emissions regs coming down the pike,so they ditched carbs in favor of EFI. The faithful weren't happy. Until they figured out that they could just start the bike and ride,and not sit there for 10-15min letting it warm up. Plus better throttle response. Now their entire lineup are 'fuellies'.

Ozonation- I would attribute you hill climbing success primarily to the engine. Small wheels and a light weight, high quality bike were no doubt a positive contribution in the effort.

Bass- Thanks for sharing your nuggets of wisdom, Next time I am in Louisville maybe we can go for a ride on our folders. Last year I was there with Speed TR, This year with a Tikit. ....BTW shouldn't you be promoting some of that fine Kentucky Bourbon and not Fancy Japanese Scotch!

The Brompton is a great bike and I would love to have one in my stable, but not at the current market price. Its like that fancy whiskey, good stuff no doubt, but worth the cost ?

We have a competitive folding market and we have so many other high quality bikes to choose from. I think I am on topic.

I take it you come here for Derby? Come on by and we can do a Bike Friday ride. As for Bourbon, I'm not too big of a fan, which leaves me open to a lot of ribbing from friends. Funny thing is, there's an overwhelming majority of Bourbon (vs malt whiskey) fans here so what I question is, do they live here because they love bourbon and moved to Kentucky, or are they just jumping on the bandwagon much like regional sports fans choose their team?

I wonder what happened to the OP? Did he ended up buying a Brompton? Maybe he did. If so, good for him!

The topic is to convince him. Some of us did. I'm not sure why the mud slinging have to be involved? Is it really necessary to put down Bromptons, Dahons and other brands for the sakes of brand loyalty?

It's kind of silly to see grown adults acted like little spoiled brats and have now gone down to showing off who's got the biggest d**k, the best stuff and so forth.

A Brompton is a great bike if you need a small folding size and that's what you want, that's what you should get. A person with a Cervelo will not agree with you. A Cat 1 or 2 rider with a Trek Madone will run rings around you and be snobbish towards you and a wannabe Grand Fondo rider will simply laugh you right off the bat with his Carbon bling bling bike. Do we really want to be snobbish folder riders? Seemed to me like it is degenerating into my bike is better than yours and watch out if you own a Dahon. You won't get parts for it.

Be happy and just ride your bike. Who cares if someone wants a Brompton. Let him be. It's his money. I always know why my Dahon puts a big smile in my face! Because it gets me out riding and I don't care whether it's going to break down or not and I didn't pay a lot for it either cause I got the Mu SL on fire sale. Though I put the Mu SL through a lot of abuse through the airport and yet, my friends 2 Trek Madone bikes got crushed by TSA. These are expensive $3000 to $5000 bikes. But do I really care? Nope, because I don't really care or give a damn about it though I sympathize with them.

It's really simple. If you want a Brompton, take a test drive. If you can't, look at your finances if you can afford it. If you can, buy it. It's that simple. See, it's not that hard isn't it.

chuckle!! LOL

Well said!