pinholecam

Adding a portable bike for the family that is usable by both adults and the kids.



20160416-DSC01187 by jenkwang, on Flickr

The CRIUS SMART 3.0 is a 14" foldable with a Shimano Nexus 3 speed IGH.


Immediate impression is that its very light as touted (~8.5kg)
If I hold it up by the CG area (approx the middle of frame above the crank), its really effortless.

Folding is small, which is why I got one (in fact, I also got the Java X2 at about the same time)




20160416-DSC01180 by jenkwang, on Flickr

Finishing is pretty good (Dahon level)
Components are mostly from Litepro which is why its so light (and Litepro is the parent company of CRIUS)

The Chainring is 46T and the cog is 16T.
This is almost the max that the setup can go since the maximum chainring possible is about 48T, as its limited by the chain line touching the frame.
I'm glad that the selection is near the upper end of whats possible, since it really needs it with those 14" wheels.



20160416-DSC01179 by jenkwang, on Flickr



Ride is surprisingly nice with the wider tyres.
I don't find it twitchy.

Its not very fast though, more for a nice commute than a ride with the boyz.

Abu Mahendra

nice. how low will the handlebars go? i am looking for a bike for my 1.25m-tall boy. how does it compare to the Java?

pinholecam

Thats one of the cons of this bike.
The handlebar height is fixed.
The one on the Java is adjustable.

I got mixed feelings between these 2 bikes.
Neither are clearly better.

The Java is cheaper looking and has cheaper/heavier parts.
But it is cheaper in cost.
It also rides well and a bit more comfortably with the stock tyres.
The SRAM automatix is simple and works well enough for children with their low cadence.
Sometimes I feel I dislike the lack of control over the gear change, other times I feel it simplifies things.
There is a mod for the IGH BTW.

The Crius looks better with the higher quality parts.
The low weight aids handling a lot too.
The downsides...
Nexus 3 SP is clickity clackity, but gives control over what gearing to use
It's still not fast given the stock gearing, so at times, I wonder if the gearing is worth it.
The gearing span is good to cover most roads in Singapore.


I hope the info helps you to make a decision.

pinholecam

Pict of the Java X1 Auto

20160417-DSC01196 by jenkwang, on Flickr

14" with SRAM Automatix IGH
The wheel size is a bit bigger than the CRIUS SMART 3.0 even though both are 14" wheels.
Running on 14x1.75 tires, it does give a more comfy ride.

edelay

That is a darn nice looking Dahon Dove copy. What the OLD on it?

ThorUSA

I am getting a couple. will measure them

jur

It looks tiny. Too small for adult use?

tds101 

I was thinking the same thing. It's darn small,...

pinholecam

I will measure it and let you know.
The SRAM Automatix OLD is 120mm but comes with a spacer to get 130mm though.



For most SE Asian, its fine, but maybe not large sized folks.
This is the fun part about the bike to me, it functions both as a kids bike but can be used by an adult with minimal adjustments.
Its used for short commutes or last mile purposed anyway.

pinholecam

Alright, I checked both bikes and old is 120mm on both.

mmw

Does anyone know the gear inches on the speeds?

Joe Remi

You're the 6'-2" guy, right? The gear inches are you'll never in a million years fit this domestic market bike never intended to be ridden by someone your height.

pinholecam

The info has been mentioned above and you can actually calculate it from there.
Chainring = 46T
Cog = 16T
IGH = -1.15/0/+1.15
Wheels = 14" (don't want to go into fine details of it being actually smaller diameter, etc )

So
GI = (46/16)*1.15*14
=46.3

Azreal911

Or if you don't care about multi speed and 46.3 is waaaay too low for normal cruising you can upgrade with this wheelset and their crazy 9t rear cog! for a whopping ((46/16)*14 ) = 71 GI's

https://goo.gl/FQvs2D

my 14 incher is around there and it's actually amazing at that speed and very light so I was able to climb hills like this:

https://www.strava.com/segments/2583459

without a problem.

mmw

Thanks for the link.

I am talking with a guy who can do a single speed of 58T and 9T, so if my calculations are correct, that is 90" gear inches?

What if I wanted to do a geared version, with high gear inches, what would be my options?

Azreal911

your options would be very limited because of that wheelset is just made for a single speed. You would have to change out the front chainwheel because i'm not sure if anyone is really selling 10t 9t cogs just for fun.

Also i would be very very weary about making the bike 90 gear inches, you would have an extremely hard time pedalling anything but a flat or downhill at that high. Go on your multispeed bike and calculate out which gearing is 90 or above 90 gear inches and just try riding that around your neighbourhood. You'll find out pretty fast it would be quite a tough effort for such a bike. It may be faster on paper, but in reality the amount of torque you would need to get that going would be tremendous and stop and go traffic would kill you.

ThorUSA

a good number for singlespeed is 65 isch ... 90 is just crazy
ESPECIALLY on a folding bike where you should sit down and spin instead of mashing the gears standing up ...
Now considering the size of the bike AND the size of the rider, this becomes a liability


Having said that I will go to Paypal and call back the offer I made, I rather loose a sale than going this route any further.


thor

mmw

Yes I was thinking the same thing of having a single speed set so high. Which is why I am trying to figure out how to get a 3-6 speed bicycle with a high gear around 90/100".

Any thoughts on this?

tdonline

Pinholecam, how tall are you? From your photos, it looks like the seatpost is level with the handlebar post? What position does that put you (upright, sporty,etc)?

Joe Remi

Yes, my thoughts are you can easily find a 20-inch wheel folder with all the gears you can stand, and you'll actually fit it. Neither is going to happen with that itty-bitty Crius.

pinholecam

There are options out there (mainly Taobao China) that offer 14", 16" folders with some sort of 3sp RD and 6-7sp RD.
But I doubt it will be easy to get one in the US.
Like :

This for example is the Fnhon with a 3sp RD. 9T,13T, 17T with a 53T chainring
https://world.taobao.com/item/527615....k0LVgf#detail
I don't know how it can have a chain line that does not rub the rear dropout though with the 53T.

https://world.taobao.com/item/539659....k0LVgf#detail


All said though, I think 70GI is plenty as a cruise around bike.
14" wheels are just too small to do long full day rides unless you are looking for the additional challenge.
Start>Stop every few km or every hr, I think its fine.
I'd take at least a 16"-20" wheeled bike for full day riding.

I am bad reference for most of you guys.
I'm as tall as a boy (though the plus is that I weigh as much )

The CRIUS Smart will need a longer telescopic handlebar post to fit a taller rider.
Even for me its already in a semi-upright position.
The main reason I think is also that they wanted to keep the bike very light and one less step to fold (ie. retract the handlebar post)

Abu Mahendra

FhHon Gust 16" with a RD setup. FSIR Spin 3.0. Both are 130mm OLD in the rear so you could even fit a SRAM DD hub with a 1.36x multiplier in there. That's what you can do. Quite another is what you should do with a bike this small. 80ish gear inches would be as tall I'd gear one.