Folding Bike Weight Limits?
06-28-11, 04:58 PM
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Folding Bike Weight Limits?
So just as I'm starting to get comfortable enough with my bike to start riding it on my commute, I find myself in need of a folding bike, because part of my commute involves a regional train (BART) that doesn't allow non-folding bikes during my commute hours. I've found a few that look interesting, but I've noticed they all seem to have a weight limit of around 230 lbs, and I exceed that by about 30 lbs (and don't expect that to change anytime soon). Do any of my fellow Athenas or Clydesdales have a folding bike? What's your experience with them? How much attention should I pay to the weight limit?
06-28-11, 07:33 PM
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I don't have one, but a friend of mine who's a Clyde does - the Bike Friday Tikit - and he loves it. Not sure what he weighs - probably around 220-230 or so.
06-28-11, 08:55 PM
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I know that some of the Bike Fridays have high weight limits, like 300 pounds. But they are pricey.
06-29-11, 07:00 AM
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I have a Dahon Expresso and have exceeded the 230lb limit for most of the time. I don't see a problem, but I only use it occasionally. Most of those limits are inspired by lawyers, not reality.
Marc
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06-29-11, 09:23 AM
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This is a thread I have questioned several times and you probably will not get a decent answer - We have seen really heavy riders on steel, carbon, and Al bikes riding along without any problem but truth of the matter is that almost all road bikes are designed for around 100 Kilos (220#) - Now the question is, what material is the bike made of, how strong does it look by eye balling it, what quality of welds or bolting apparatus - and how much are you going to cry if you break your new toy - And again you are considering a folding bike...
Just remember the old Boy Scout Rule... "Don't take anything into the field your are not willing to loose..."
Just remember the old Boy Scout Rule... "Don't take anything into the field your are not willing to loose..."
11-26-11, 08:05 PM
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Wanted to come back and update: after much research and test-riding, I finally settled on a Xootr Swift and I've been riding it ~6 miles a day, 3 days a week for a few months. As far as non-fullsize folding bikes go, it has one of the highest weight limits at 260 lbs., and it rides much better than the Bike Fridays I test-rode when I was thinking real hard about getting one with the heavy rider upgrade. It's also about half the price. 
it doesn't fold up super-tiny like the BFs and Dahons, but still small and compact enough to fit onto crowded BART trains in the morning. (And you can get it even smaller than shown in the photo by removing the riser--this makes it fit easily into most car trunks.)
it doesn't fold up super-tiny like the BFs and Dahons, but still small and compact enough to fit onto crowded BART trains in the morning. (And you can get it even smaller than shown in the photo by removing the riser--this makes it fit easily into most car trunks.)
