folding bicycles

[Terry in Naples]

I am interested in buying a couple folding bicycles to take along on coastal cruises. Any recomendations for good/economical bikes that anyone has experience with? I once had a Dahon but they appear pretty pricey now.
Thanks

 

[Tim R.]

Try to find some used Montagues. They are the most like a traditional bicycle. Next I would check out Dahon.

The better bikes are going to be less economical. Cheap bikes are economical.

Renting locally may be your best bet.

 

[Ed Schenck]

Good idea taking bikes. Wish I had a buck for evey mile we walked for groceries when a local said "oh, just a mile that way". There are tons on Craig's List and E-Bay. My local Performance Bike Shop has a Dahon that I have tested in the store but have yet to buy. Less than $250. on sale.

 

[howard]

Try to get some with 20 in tires at least. we have Downtube folders with 20 tires but have some friends that have the smaller tires, 16 in I think, the bigger tires ride a lot better and dont take a lot more space.

 

[stephen Penny]

Dahon.com and downtube.com folding bikes. Purchased two downtube folding bikes last week. They can be set up and fold down in seconds and store into a carry case. Very compact storage.

 

[KD3PC]

we went with second hand full size bikes, as if you ride the foldups any amount at all, you will find them quite tiring. The cost and attractiveness to theft were also major downs for us.

We just cable the bike to the stern rail, and go...when they rust out (they will) we donate them and replace them with another used or Goodwill bike. The foldups still rust and are a chore to store, if you do so below...

YMMV

 

[Tim R.]

we went with second hand full size bikes, as if you ride the foldups any amount at all, you will find them quite tiring. The cost and attractiveness to theft were also major downs for us.

We just cable the bike to the stern rail, and go...when they rust out (they will) we donate them and replace them with another used or Goodwill bike. The foldups still rust and are a chore to store, if you do so below...

YMMV

That works for folks with big dinghys but most people would have trouble loading full sized bikes into a small dinghy. Or possibly damaging the dinghy.

Folders are so much easier to take to shore and unfold there.

 

[seadaddler]

Try WM

Look for when WM has them on sale and than try them out and if not happy with them,than bring them back.
We just don't use them much and find other ways of getting around and also go with other cruisers who don't have them,they in my garage waiting when we will need them?????.
Nick

 

[Johnb]

We have 2 Dahon steel frame and 2 Dahon alloy frame and the latter pair live permanently on my boat. I have walking difficulties and find these bikes a huge benefit. The apparantley small difference in weight is a big one when you are passing them up a companionway and then to a dock or dinghy.

Although the frames and wheels don't seem to corrode, the chains, cogs etc. are steel and must be cared for to prevent problems.

 

[zeehag]

they can be found online cheaper than even wm sales.

 

[kendall]

I looked into folding bikes, and determined that for my use, a regular road bike works fine.

I use a regular road bike with quick release axles. If you use a mountain bike style with straight handle bars, they fit into smaller areas than 10 speed type bars. Single speeds or internal gears like the old 3speeds everyone is familiar with (available in 3/7/8/14/or the nuvinci infinitely variable speed versions) make for quick and easy wheel removal.

With the bicycle market today, you can buy an aluminum or carbon fiber bike for $200 at walmart, or $400-$700 at a bike shop, or a good used bike off craig's list for under $200 and rebuild to suit for well under that. mountain bike style is typically smaller all around than a road bike and already comes with the flat bars, but a road bike will be lighter.

whichever way you go, get high pressure tires, and smooth tread, mountain bike tires with aggressive tread patterns are a real pain to ride any distance on hard surface roads. If you want a road/trail tire, get the combo tires, smooth center with knobs on the edges.

My road bikes with 10 speed style drop bars easily fit in the cockpit lockers just by removing the front wheel. But being an outboard in the well version, I have tons of room below that would otherwise be filled with engine, so locker filler can be placed below.

 

[BillyK]

That works for folks with big dinghys

Thats what she said!

 

[Benny17441]

Terry, sometime back I looked into foldable bikes. I found that they would work great to stuff in the trunk of a car but not necessarily be convenient for a boat. For me, for them to be practical they would have to ride and store on deck and they were too pricey to leave them out to the elements. I ended up going to a trift store and picked up two 20" bikes with raised handle bars for $25 both. The bikes were in good shape but I had to replace the seats for comfort, get a longer seat tube for mine and one tire and inner tube. End result for around $50 I had two bikes I can tie to the rail and not worry if they get rusty or stolen. I once tried to haul a bag of groceries while pedaling the bike back to the boat and I can tell you is not practical. We do not carry them all the time as we mostly use public transportation but there are places where they are very convenient to get to a beach or so then we put them aboard. Think it through.

 

[zeehag]

i use a full sized mountain bike with saddle bags for hauling stuff......difficult to ride in cities as traffic will killye and not look back, but is ok for less civilized areas,,,

 

[TomY]

We've have a couple Downtube Novas.

Try to get some with 20 in tires at least. we have Downtube folders with 20 tires but have some friends that have the smaller tires, 16 in I think, the bigger tires ride a lot better and dont take a lot more space.

We bought two Downtube Novas this year. We did have a couple Dahon 16" folders a while back. You're right, 20" wheels make a big difference. I'd say the Downtube, after quite a bit of riding, is about 85% of a full size non folding bike. It's quite good on the road and folds about as compactly as you can get with 20" wheels. They're quite light. Two sit side by side in one of our cockpit lockers.

I think we paid 300 each. Good price for a real basic folder. I'm happy with them.

 

[DannyS]

We found these "vintage" Dahon bikes at an estate sale. I think we paid $300 for the pair and they were in pristine condition. We love them. They live under the setee that converts to a double bed. We usually leave the bed made up so they make good use of the space below the bed. They have the smallest tires of any I've seen and make for an exciting ride when flying downhill! Bigger tires would ride better but I love that they fit in such a small space that I'll take that trade-off. Besides, we really just putter around when using them and don't need better performance, we have road bikes for that.

 

[Bad Obsession]

I have two Dahon bikes that I have been carrying for 5 years or so. There are many miles on my bike.

They are great for getting around. I highly recommend getting the storage bag as it makes it easier to get them in and out of a dingy.

Try campingworld.com I bought one of my bikes from there and it was considerably less that BoatUs.

Boatus brand bikes look good. They are very similar to Dahons.

Try ebay, you might get lucky but you will pay a bit for the two bikes. They are well worth it when you have convenience of use.

 

[SneederBee]

If you or someone you know is going to China, you can pick up good 16" folding bikes for about $110. Bought this one in a Walmart (yes they are in China now, listen for Mao rolling over..) in Xiangfan

 

[David in Sandusky]

2 26 inch Dahon folders

We have had these bikes for 9 summers now. The Admiral uses hers as her standard road bike for our trips on rails to trails around Ohio. They work well on long trips - Leamington to the end of Point Pelee, for instance. Although we love to anchor out in the Islands, our cruises in Lake Erie and Lake Huron find us in a marina most of the time, and bikes make a huge difference in enjoying any of them. We particularly enjoy the rides in Presque Isle near Erie, and Port Stanley, but have had the bikes ashore in almost every Erie port. In several places (Presque Isle State Park Marina comes to mind) we can anchor out overnight, but the marina is fine with us coming to the fuel dock to unload and onload the bikes

We go to Pelee Island every year to enjoy great rides through farmland and nature. We especially like the ride from Scudders to the Winery for their picnic lunch.

The bags Dahon makes are a must to ease stowage, and prevent damage to woodwork and oil on cushions. We stow them on berths underway, and then put them on deck at anchor, or on the dock in port. The bags make shifting them easy. (We had them 2 years without the bags - don't try it!) Set-up and take-down into the bag are about 5 minutes per bike.

 

[John Nantz]

Second the Mountain Bike

Prior to buying my bike I did a lot of research and talked to a lot of people knowledgeable about bikes, including boaters who used bikes. The result was that they said if there is any way to go with larger wheels compared to those found on folding bikes, do it. Hence my solution.

I considered keeping a bike on the deck lashed to the rail but there is a LOT of rainy days and the salt air would quickly do a number on it, so this eliminated having a nice and newer-looking bike.

Our case is that even though we only have a 35-footer, we happen to have a very nice large lazarette that I can put a full-sized mountain bike in and keep it down below deck. There is some effort required for breaking it down into major component parts because I remove the wheels and the seat. No tools required because everything is "quick-release".

I made a small stand out of plywood to keep the derailleur off the deck when stowed. The wheels I currently just wrap in an old blanket to keep the axels from sticking into things. The forks are mounted on a Yakima quick-release bracket which is screwed on a wood wedge to align it with the forks. The rear support uses the kickstand and there is a hole in the vertical wood support so no bolting required.

I've been looking around for a rack and then a couple panniers but currently I've just been using a backpack. This isn't as gravity-friendly because it is up high whereas the panniers would put the weight down lower.

The bike is a Raleigh "Sport Comfort" mountain bike with aluminum frame. Got it on a closeout as the bike shop had newer models in. Paid somewhere around $150 to $200 or so for it about 10 years ago. Still looks like new.