Can't wait to see it! Yeah, send pics, pics and more pics. Good luck and as you state BF customer service is the best.

When my Pocket Crusoe came, one of the mini-fork tips on the bottom of the seat mast (which hook onto the QR) was just a tad off-angle (bent) and the customer service team helped me out immediately and basically gave me the confidence and liability go-ahead (no voided warranty) to slightly bend one of the steel fork tips back into its correct plane. Was easy and worked perfectly. No problems since then.

Here are a few from yesterday....

ChipasFixed, great bike! I have a couple of questions:

1) you did choose the T-screw version instead of the hyperfold. Why?
2) there have been reviews on the Tikit saying the front hinge has play. Is that true?
3) when folded, does the ahead stem stick out? Could not BF give it a more forward angle such that ahead stem wouldn't be necessary (see Dahon or Brompton).
4) can you comment on the ride, in comparison to your other bikes (NWT, Joey)?
5)How does the folding speed and size compare?
6) uniform rear triangle constructions get a lot of force on their rear hinge. Do you notice any flex or play when stand and crank? What kind of bearings to they put there? I am a bit skeptical as other URT bikes have massive hinges, e.g., Airnimal Chameleon.
7) does the disk brake help for taking front wheel off for suitcase fold? Or is it more problematic?

Best,

Peter

1) you did choose the T-screw version instead of the hyperfold. Why?
Not sure why, seemed simpler and less likely to malfunction. It also seemed I would be able to tighten it down more and get the hinge stiffer. In practice, I am a bit leery of the plastic twiddly knob as it seems like it may strip easily if torqued too hard. I am looking into getting an all metal knob to replace it.

2) there have been reviews on the Tikit saying the front hinge has play. Is that true?
The stem hinge had some play at first. Then I got BF to send me a new twiddly knob (as the first one was actually bent) and they also recommended to tighten the hinge screw a bit. This seemed to solve the problem. I also experimented with a thin piece of stiff cardboard in the hinge between the plates, this actually stiffened it up even more to where no play was noticeable.

3) when folded, does the ahead stem stick out? Could not BF give it a more forward angle such that ahead stem wouldn't be necessary (see Dahon or Brompton).
The ahead set does not seem to stick out much, as the stem actually angles under the bike when folded. My H bars do stick out a bit, though.

4) can you comment on the ride, in comparison to your other bikes (NWT, Joey)?
The ride is fantastic, it feels as comfortable as the NWT, though maybe not quite as stiff as the Joey. It is a softer ride than the Joey, though, for this very reason. Longest continuous ride so far has been 40km. I think I could easily do 100 in comfort.

5)How does the folding speed and size compare?
Fastest fold in the world, hands down. No problem folding and unfolding several times a day, no hassles here. The size is manageable, though not the smallest.

6) uniform rear triangle constructions get a lot of force on their rear hinge. Do you notice any flex or play when stand and crank? What kind of bearings to they put there? I am a bit skeptical as other URT bikes have massive hinges, e.g., Airnimal Chameleon.
Have not noticed any rear triangle flex when pumping up hills, nor have I heard of any Tikits failing there. Any flex there may be would come from the stem.

7) does the disk brake help for taking front wheel off for suitcase fold? Or is it more problematic?
Just loosen the QR lever, and remove the tire. No need to touch the brakes at all, even easier than V brakes!

ChipasFixed, thanks for insight. Regarding comfty ride, it seems that the CroMo rear construction works as a suspension. Could you test it? Does it provide certain give if you put your weight on the saddle?
What I like in comparison to my Dahon Mu is, that is doesn't have a hinge in the main tube. Other than Birdy or bigger Bike Friday the Tikit's URT design can handle gear hubs or single speed setups without tensioner (version with horizontal dropouts). Folding speed and size seems to be pretty similar to the Dahon's.

Fold is faster than Dahon for sure, and a big advantage is you do not have to re-set the saddle height or center the handlebars, you just unfold and go!
I agree the cro-mo softens up the ride vs the Joey's aluminum.
Had a major blowout yesterday, a friggin car key got impaled in my rear tire, right through the kevlar, and shredded the tube! I am now on the lookout for new 349 tubes, which in N Australia may be tough to find. I had understood it was common practive for Bike Friday to send a few spare tubes with every new bike purchase, but they did not do this for me!!

Congrats on an excellent choice. I've got a Green one too though a June 98 model. K-Mart may have 16" tube, at least they have it in Perth.

Keep us posted on your rides on your excellent bike.

a 1998 tikit?? wow!
do you know if the k-mart tubes are 305 (16x 1.75- 2.15) or 349 (16x 11/8- 13/8)
and if they are the 305's do they still work for the Tikit's 349's?
thanks

It's might not only be material but also construction. The seatpost lower part works as a lever for the URT. It might in total have some 1" up/down travel, working as a suspension, e.g., similar to the Airnimal Chameleon. Just my guess seeing the construction. Could you investigate that?

I can ride my Speeding Tikit no-handed for several minutes...I heard that was a no-go on Bromptons. What about Dahons?

Being able to ride without hands is largely a function of the amount of trail on the front wheel. IIRC the tikit has about half the trail of a racing bike, which is sufficient to do the job; I believe the Bromptons and most Dahons have much less than that. [FWIW: Dahon has a history of fairly low trail.]

BTW: I can't reliably ride no-handed on my Tikit, because it tends to lean subtly to the left when I do so. Rob English says this was due to a minor bike flaw in the tube latch assembly which BF has since cleaned up.

Do you have the impulse fold or hyper fold?

Hyperfold. I first thought it was the hyperfold cable issue. Rob assures me it's not.

This isn't to say I can't ride no-handed on the bike (how many double negatives are in that sentence?). But mine is a bit more challenging. Still much easier to do than ride no-handed on the Bromptons I've tested.

Interesting. Mine is the Impulse fold. Thanks!

No, but if you have disk brakes on both wheels, there's no reason you couldn't put 305 rims on there; then the BA's might fit (dunno, just speculating).

Kmart tubes are 305 (16" x 1.75") with schraeder valve. You can use them in 349 (16 x 1 3/8) tires, but it's not as easy as you'd wish, and you have an increased risk of pinch flats since there's a bit of extra tube.

Yeah, I have done it with a Curve D3, but that bike has wide tires. Not sure about the ones with narrow tires.

I can ride my Mu XL hands free while drinking a cup of coffee (or a beer). Actually it is easier than on my full size bike. Partially this is due to the super wide Big Apples I have attached. Very stable ride. Mu SL with skinny Stelvios, there it is a challenge, but doable.

I found this pic:


The ahead sticks out quite significantly. And it does not stand as tripod.
I also would prefer the rear to fold into the fork just as on the Airnimal Joey. This would allow for a more flat package. Suitcase fold seems to be quite wide. So, does it fit into a 29" Samsonite Oyster? Or only into the larger F'lite?

Figured I would update the thread with pics of the completed UGADA Tikit, now ready for anything (and just back from a 600km maiden voyage in Sumatra and Malaysia).
Features include:

-special 100mm fork to accommodate the Alfine generator hub.
-Special rack to fit the wider fork and bolt onto crown fork mount (due to lack of cantilever braze-ons). Fits Ortlieb backrollers, or the smaller MEC panniers shown here. The smaller ones can also go on the rear rack with the Ortliebs up front for self supported tours, but I have not needed that much space yet.
-Edelux headlamp and B&M toplight flat plus rear (work amazingly well, though still waiting for the proper connector to arrive)
-Avid BB7 disc brakes, amazing stopping power!
-Alfine 8 gear internal rear hub, nice silent, wide range shifting with no dramas!
-DIY garden-variety twiddly knob, looks a bit like a flower which could potentially reinforce the clown bike look, but I actually like it.

I am really really pleased with this bike, have done back to back centuries on it with the front panniers fully loaded, commuted on buses, taxis, planes and ferries, ridden accross Sumatra, ride it to work every day, fold it several times a day, ride it down stairs, through the woods, late at night, and can fully recommend it!

Sorry for the in-office pics. I have lots of nice outdoor pics from Indonesia and Malaysia but they do not feature the bike really. I may post some of them in a different thread, maybe in the touring forum.
edit: per the suggestion of a fellow bikeforums member, I may have to change the bike's name to the Steampunk Tikit

Opps,I mean a 2008 June. Senility is setting in

DIY garden-variety twiddly knob


Looks great, maybe I try to find one for my Brompton.

Hi ChiapasFixed,
Bike looks awesome. I know Malaysia very well (we are just about to move to the DC area after living in the region for the last 10 years. Great times!)- if you can survive some of the roads there I reckon you could tour anywhere.

I am looking at building up something very similar- primarily for a Mon-Fri commute when we move to Washington DC. Idea being some days I might go the whole distance (15 miles one way) other days take the metro and a 2 mile short ride. So Tikit seems one of the few bikes that can do this easily in Spring, Summer and Fall.

Winter is my concern. Can the Tikit survive in the winter with the snow and ice we would get in the DC area? IGH + disc should handle most of it but a bit concerned about the 18inch tires through the snow/ice (unplowed MUP). Would probably have to build my own studded tires based on 349 as I dont think they are availble commercially yet.

Was hoping you could give me some insight as to whether a tikit could be a true 4 seasons ulitmate commuter- or would it need to rest for the winter!

Thanks

elmatto:
hmm, havent ridden it in the snow yet, some mud, yes. The schwable marathons are not supper grippy and slip easly. if you could manage some studded tires, I think you would do fine.
I know some folks have used a season Tikit in the winter. Look at Vik's blog...

Last year DC had almost no snow. When there is snow, it's negligible. The primary issue is ice, and last year there was little of that.

Studded tires are not called for here.