AvenirFolder

On my ride yesterday, I happened across an older fellow (who looked Japanese) on a Timaon folding bike. It was a wee little thing that his companion/daughter? -- who spoke English -- told me was actually a kid's bike.

Here's what it looked like: Timaon T1 14 Inch Mini folding Bicycle Bike Front and Rear Mechanical Disc Brake Portable Variable Speed Bicycle-in Bicycle from Sports & Entertainment on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group! .

Oddly enough, it did come with disc brakes!

Has anyone else seen one of these out and about???

ttakata73

I like the disc brakes but I see 2 concerns.
1. The 2 piece stem is a horrible design on any bike; I would change that over to a 1 piece handlepost.
2. The derailleur is so close to the ground; it's going to be a problem if not dangerous.

I have a 14" Dahon Dove but never ride it anymore.
Sure it's OK for a 173cm tall guy to ride, but the short wheelbase and 14" tires are not really fun on anything rough.
I'd stick to 16" and up.

smallwheeler

thor is now selling dahon dove knock-off /counterfeit bikes so, that may be an option for anyone interested.

edelay

Those Crius/LitePro bikes have a nice clean look to them.

Joe Remi

Yes they do, and calling such a basic, common design "counterfeit" is ridiculous. Dahon may still sell a 14" wheel bike somewhere in the world, but it sure isn't in the USA. I might buy one.

tds101 

If I manage to get my weight lower, of which I'm working on, I'm considering a Crius from ThorUSA eventually. Really nice, small fold. It would be a perfect short ride (3 mile) commuter. These LIRR trains can get really packed some afternoons,...

Azreal911

with a total weight of 19lbs and folding into some tiny package you can just chuck it into those IKEA bags, bring it into the train and no one would bat an eye at you.

smallwheeler

cognitive dissonance, my friend?

don't hesitate, guys. just do it.

pinholecam

I have the CRIUS 3.0 (3sp Nexus IGH) and its a very handy bike.
The light weight makes if very easy to handle folded/folding.
Easy to push around when folded too with a velcro keeping the 2 ends together.

I don't like the IGH much though.
Noisy and a feeling of inefficiency on the high gear.

All said, its still great as a light commute last mile bike.

Joe Remi

I don't know what that means, so I couldn't say. My point is that copying a fold-in-half frame is about as counterfeit as copying a diamond frame: There's tons of them from tons of manufacturers.

smallwheeler

never mind. once again, i'm over-thinking it. i'm sure any resemblance is superficial and purely coincidental.

(incidentally, i'm also beginning to believe that no one actually engineers or designs bikes - they just sort pop up fully formed like mushrooms after a spring rain.)

jur

I'm guessing both Dahon and Crius buy them from a manufacturer, neither did any designing. Dahon has bought frames before rather than go through the pain of actual designing. Remember the Curve? Or do I have the name wrong... Must be Curse.

smallwheeler

well, also remember a while back, ed wong III informed us that all of dahon's bike designs come from a sort of communist/state capitalist bureau of central bicycle designing. so, dahon, in fact doesn't engineer or design bikes. they are just the number one producer of folding bike shaped objects.

by the way, have you seen the charming new offerings from langtu and fnhon? i mean, with these kinds of dramatic innovations taking place who really needs a big corporate goliath like dahon anymore (or it's pathetic offshoot, tern)?

Joe Remi

No, you're just being argumentative for the sake of argument. I've been around here a while, I'm familiar with it.

smallwheeler

well, if that's what you think, would you care to present a counter-argument? so far, you definitely haven't. by the way, i just came in from a brisk 10 mile ride in the dark through some lovely countryside here. i even saw a bobcat sitting on a fallen tree. neat stuff.

Joe Remi

I like that story better.

Azreal911

actually that yellow bike is one of fnhon's more "original" designs probably the ONLY one, and the folding mechanism was different and amazing, i really don't understand why would they screw it up and compromise the frame with a fold and latch in the middle when their first design was sooo perfect with a seamless mainbar that does not fold! sigh, it was the only folder that intrigued me greatly so I had to snag one while we where visiting singapore.

bhkyte

Smallwheeler.
You are wrong as normal.
The Dove and cirus are different colours.
Blimely.

edelay

Hi Jur. Sorry, relatively new here. How come you are call the Curve the "Curse"?

edelay

I was certain my next bike was going to be a used Brompton that I then upgraded... but one of these 5 speed Crius bikes might fit the bill too. Cheap, compact fold, nice looking.

smallwheeler

i realize that now. one is "brilliant white" while the other is "bright white". thanks again for continually pointing out my embarrassing errors.

that being said, there is also the banian smart 14 (not to be confused with the crius smart 14 or the fnhon smart 14 which are two completely different bikes).



i can't recommend the banian smart 14 as i have only had experience riding the dahon dove which bears only the vaguest similarity to the banian machine and therefore i could not constructively comment.
i can however, enthusiastically recommend and endorse the videos of my 80 bike. you don't need to speak thai or want to buy a non-counterfeit folding bike object to appreciate the witty repartee they seem to effortlessly maintain in every one of their charming videos.



please like and subscribe. and if you're in the area, stop in and buy an inner tube or a meme lamp. why not?

Joe Remi

Unfortunately I started looking around Thor's Garage Sale..now I want that $2500 Crius with the carbon wheels! But I'm sure it's a counterfeit Dahon and I will get 25 pictures to prove it. The internet is fun.

tds101 

That Crius is fantastic,...but definitely not in my budget. The little 5 speed? More my style,...

smallwheeler

ah the good 'ol days when strangers didn't take time out of their day in efforts to save you money.

again, please buy one and write a review here. previously you mentioned being too heavy, but i don't think that should be a problem. i'm sure these fantastic crius bikes are all manufactured with tripe-butted sonusİ™ tubing just like the dahons that they are not copies of...

smallwheeler

because they are not designers or engineers?