cpg

Second hand value is between £50 and £100 depending on condition and if it has the original storage bag with it. It would look cool in satin black, powder coated perhaps? Being a folding bike the important thing is to make sure the hinges and latch still work after is has been repainted.

Stepto

Would be quite a bit of work.

No bag with it. Could really do with one....

cpg

It would be a lot of work, I wouldn't repaint it unless the old paint was damaged and the frame was rusting. Bags do come up on ebay but make sure you get one the right size, to fit a 20" wheel bike rather than a 16" wheel bike.

Stepto

New gear set fitted. Will see how it is tomorrow.

cpg

Hills shouldn't be problem with that.

Stepto

Generally it's good. Cleaning and greasing the wheel bearings has been worth doing. The gears are silent and change lovely now.

The only problem is the spread of gears. Need a set more evenly spaced out. Looking into it.

Ready for some gentle trail riding now up on Dartmoor. Want to follow the old tramways.

peterp4848

This is one I have just refurbished for Re-Cycle, a charity that sends them to Africa. The cranks and cassette are dated 1997. The frame with its rear facing rear drop-outs and lack of rear derailleur cable guides appears to have been designed for hub gears. The derailleur mounting is a bit iffy and needs the axle nuts really tight to make it safe. At first I thought the gears were a DIY conversion until I saw this post. As has already been said, the low gear is not low enough. In low gear, the chain fouls the chainguard so I have raised it. If I was keeping it, I would fit a smaller chainring but, at 14.5kg and even nicely folded, it is too heavy to carry about.

12boy

You can rattle can paint a frame without stripping it, using the old paint as primer. 11-32 and 52 chain ring gives yo a good spread:
Gear chart using Gear Inches

For 20 X 1.25 / 32-406 tire with 170 mm cranks

With custom sprocket(s)

52
11 87.1
27.3 %
14 68.5
28.6 %
18 53.2
11.1 %
20 47.9
20.0 %
24 39.9
16.7 %
28 34.2
14.3 %
32 29.9
This is from Sheldon Brown's gear inch calculator. You should be able to get a nice rear cluster for 25.00 or so,, so it is a cheap fix. Decent tires will make a huge difference in the ride. If you don't wish to spend of Big Apples, Kenda Kwests, especially the ones rated to only 60 lbs will be pretty lively and very cheap. They came on my Xootr Swift and I wore them out, but they rode nicely. If you go BMX remember that they do't have to be inflated to top pressure, although less than 45-50 may cause pinch flats.

tudorowen1

I had a bike similar to the one you had in the late 1990s..It was also sold under the name of a Dahon Tailwind..Sorry to say the best thing you can do with this bike is sell it on..I found the bike awful to ride and heavy ..If you buy something like an old Dahon Boardwalk ,Ridgeback Envoy or similar then the difference is just unbelievable..They are a joy to ride..I have an old Phillips (Dahon ) 8 speed chromoly bike from about 2005...what a joy that is..
Get rid of it and find a later model Dahon....best thing..a Dahon Speed P8..fabulous folders..

However ..if you just use your Rudge to go to the shops or to potter about down country lanes..fine..ignore what I say..but if you try a later model Dahon you will wonder why you bother with this Rudge..

Dekaye

And I have one too, a dark blue Tailwind distributed by Ridgeback to have a Dahon frame number suggesting it was built in 1998 and despite the fact that I got mine new or rather unused I am in the process of improving it ( bought off someone who bought it new ridden it once then folded it away inside it's bag to languish in the shed for twenty years- yeah I have the bag too)

What improvements I have made so far include dual pivot caliper brakes and stiffer brake levers, also stainless cables as I have sea air to contend with to have massively improved the braking.I have also fitted a later Dahon luggage rack (painted black), a Biologic seat pump and a Shimano FC 6400 crank set coupled with a 50T chain ring, all decals have been removed pending more stylish ones to be applied and I too have to attend to the atrocious gearing of which isn't 'nice' on Devon's hills, to be intrigued with the fitting of the 34T Megarange cluster on the OP's bike as that derailleur is listed as being able to handle no more than 28T!

I was also going to repaint the bike in a nice deep gloss black but have decided I like the deep blue of which looks much better now the garish decals have been removed.

First impressions on riding it, aside from the gearing and what were the brakes, I like it, it's my first folder and one I got to tie me over until I can find a specific Dahon Vitesse (around 2009), but this thing despite it's limitations and weight, let's not forget the weight, I like it and so far plan to keep it as let's face it, it doesn't take up much room.

I would upload a piccy but I have eights posts yet to make before I can

cpg

You could consider a Sram dual drive drive to get both lower and higher gearing. I did that very sucessfully on a Mezzo folding bike.
Have a look at Wolfstooth derailer extender. Depending on the type of rear mech you have, it might allow you to run a 34 tooth cassette. There are copies available on ebay for a much lower price.

Dekaye

I'd love the Sram Dual drive system as I can see the logic in it, but alas it's too expensive for me, so I will have to potter about with the antwacky existing gearing, where yeah I have dropped two teeth on the chain ring by fitting the FC-6400 crank set and it looks like I will be purchasing a gear cluster with a low gear of 32T and that instead of the 34T because of the problem with rapid rise derailleurs and their compatibility with the shifter unless of course the Sram Gripshift (MRX 100) is immune, I don't yet know.

But thanks for recommending the wolf's tooth thingy as that opens the door to more potential derailleur options as my existing derailleur has a monstrous great claw fitting on it to have felt limited to Shimano Tourney- not that there's anything wrong with Tourney, it's just, well, I like to have options.

And the front double chain ring idea, I am sort of pondering it as that in part was the reason I fitted the road bike double crank set ( with a single ring, an outer currently fitted on the inner position to have much the same chain line as the one I had removed - 1.5mm difference), oh and it's mirror polished, and there are lugs down the diagonal tube to suggest a front derailleur could be fitted, but I've looked there aren't many front derailleurs around with a 39mm band - only found one of which might fit with a bit of filing, a Sram xx , but have yet to ponder further on that idea and yes Litepro do an adaptor to fit the K series frame to enable the fitting of a front derailleur, but again I need to ponder further.

But today, what with the arrival through the post of a fourth hand tool I finished the braking system, to be well pleased with it, oh and I also received an old alloy dork disk of which I hope will fit my wheel as it's distinctly more stylish than the plastic disk currently fitted.

fb22

Hi do you still have the Rudge folding bike ?
I found one of these bikes and don't have a seatpost/saddle or shifter,
if you could give me an idea on the length/size of the seatpost and a photo of the shifter I would be very grateful.
TIA