grem

Anyone have any experience with the 8 or 6" wheel micro folding bikes?

There's some on ebay and amazon for 150-250$ - not looking for anything GREAT but do want it to not break after two weeks, type of thing. i like the small wheel size and compact-ability of these 8" wheel folding bikes

edit: i have looked into a carryme, which seems ideal but it's a little out of budget range atm for me - i would like to spend under 300$ but i could swing 400$ or less.

ttakata73

Not from experience but from lots of research online. ..people only seem to love the Carryme for the tiny wheelers because it is the only one with the build quality expected of a real bike.
It will be hard to find used but if not; maybe a bigger wheeled scooter like a Razor would be a good alternative.

Hopefully others will chime in.

Azreal911

if you want wheels that size your only bet would be the carry me for ridability or maybe the abike city which is also 8inch wheels. Be aware though that with the carry me you can squeeze out 10-20km if you are adventurous and the abike city probably 6km max. Don't pick any of the abikes with 6 inch wheels they are just too small for even the cracks on the sidewalk and the gear inches are so low that you would probably go faster in a xootr scooter.

grem

thank you very much for the info!

i will wait until i can afford a carryme, or go with a cheaper 8" abike knockoff (for this summer, and save up for next) - maybe even a "cheap" 16" wheel folding bike in the mean time. i already have a 20" bmx and a regular mountain bike, so it would definitely be neat to have something i could literally store in my room, or take with me when i travel.
the only reason i haven't gone with a scooter (or a unicycle) is i am recovering from a leg injury and can't put full weight through it. they have some awesome pump-action scooters at the pawn shop here but they require two good legs.

thanks again, and if anyone has any other info i am always eager to learn more!

cheers,
grem

smallwheeler

personal opinion: Abike is POS. and the chinese knockoff is even worse.

grem

Any specific reasons why? I know, of course, it can't go off road or anything like that, but are they of poor build quality also? I want one based on their uniqueness and all, knowing their usability would be limited, but am leaning more toward a 16" cheap bike for this summer anyway, keeping the carryme in mind for next year.

ttakata73

The more joints, the more flex, which is probably why the A bike is junk.
A 16" folder is the best way to go but keep in mind it will flex some but probably far less than an Abike.

bhkyte

There is a carryme clone called a carry me, that's not made by paffic. Proberly breaks copyright ect. I had one from ebay it was great ,about 1-2lbs heavier? Quality was good. These will proberly be moredifficult to find than an oringinal? I am not suggesting you buy one, or that its ok to look for a questionably ilegal copy. Just including as information.

Weakling

I've tested A-Bike original once and a false copy once and the original A-bike is better than the copy and although me have not tested but the bigger A-Bike City with bigger wheel should be much better than the old one. What about this one is that one cheap to buy? Oritatami 10" Folding Bike https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?s...7260460&type=1

Seems to have existed since 2010. https://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/step_120/archive/2010/8/1
you have to use google translate unless you know japanese here is another entry on it
https://www.bd-wonderful.com/blog/2010/03/

yes that is 10" instead of 8" but small enough? Easier to roll than a CarryMe that have very small
caster wheels when one want to roll it folded.

edwong3

If you're leaning towards a budget priced 16" folder, then the Citizenbike Tokyo is a pretty solid choice for the dollars invested. Oh, and they come in a number of cool looking colors too.

https://citizenbike.com/catalog.asp?p...&product_id=10

grem

I actually have been looking at the Citizen Tokyo! It's right in my price range and the opinions I have read seem that it's a decent beginner folding bike, especially for the price. Plus it comes in orange!

smallwheeler

2_i 

They had a demonstration set up of 6" on a square in Beijing. Even though the area that they confined the riding to was rather flat and smooth (presumably intentionally), the ride was awful. The bike was unresponsive and I was afraid I could get stuck on some hairline crack and lose my teeth. I would rather walk.

ttakata73

Wow I didn't know you could get a bike like that for so little.
You have lots of room for customizing.
Other than an extra pound or 2 from the steel frame there is nothing to complain about.
I would buy it.
You might find the gearing too slow but that is a problem on every folder. It won't cost too much to get a bigger chainring/smaller rear cog to make it faster.

I take my 16" Dahon Mantis on the skytrain here and don't feel bad about it but I see some people with 20" bikes and they look so cumbersome.

grem

thanks to everyone who was helpful, all my searches didn't turn up any good info on the smaller wheel bikes (other than why not buy them, they're cheap! haha). i just realized (due to the losing teeth comment) that landrollers almost have bigger wheels.

@ttakata73 - yes i read some info on getting a bigger chain ring to make it faster, i will definitely be looking into that!

i think i will be going with a citizen tokyo

vmaniqui

check your local CL. you're better off getting a good used one than those micro bikes. great deals can be had at your local CL.

vmaniqui

not to discredit the tokyo but look elsewhere (i used to have one) there are better deals out there especially your local CL.

edwong3

Cool! Please let us know how you like it when it arrives! I suggest that when you do get it, invest a little more ($25-$40) and take it to the bike shop to have them go through it to make sure everything is properly adjusted. You'll be happy you did that.

Ed

grem

I am keeping an eye out, as I want to sell my unicycle before getting another bike related item, I live in a small area though so there hasn't been much in the way of folding bikes unfortunately :[

Azreal911

why in the world would you sell the unicycle?? those are two different things you have to explain to the wife Plus that's a pretty unique item that you might want to ride once in awhile.

grem

I actually have two a 20" and a 24" unicycle, I'm not able to ride either due to an injury (it requires being able to put equal weight through both knees and I won't be able to for another year or so) - so I'd figure I'd sell one, the bigger since I'm smaller and more comfortable on the smaller wheel, and use it to help fund something I can ride right away... as soon as the weather warms up to a balmy 0 C

Dahon.Steve

That's why I sold my A-Bike. You can't ride one at night because any crack can cause you to flip over! I mean you have to ride with total focus on the street for any kind of road imperfections. A much better option would be a Xooter kick scooter. I still have mine and safer than an A-Bike. You still have to be very carful and always wear gloves and knee pads would also be a good investment.

BassNotBass

Riding a unicycle is akin to the act of "self-fullfilment" (can you believe the "master*" word is filtered on this forum?!). There's really no benefit to it other than it's fun and you know that you'll be the only one doing it. I had a 24" unicycle as a teen and it's nothing more than speed walking except for the extra bulk/weight and the amount of concentration expended on balancing.




The downside is that in stock trim, the Tokyo's gearing is on the low side (but faster than a unicycle). However with an update in gearing, the Tokyo should prove to be a good folding bike. There's no doubt that the frame is stout enough to be reliable and although the components are rudimentary, they certainly are good enough to perform reliably.

grem

^ is that the same for the carryme also since it has small 8" wheels?

@BassNotBass - I just sold my unicycle last night! I was worried since it's a "unique" item, and I've never seen any one around here riding one. We do have practically everything else - electric scooter riders, motor-bicycles (even though they require a license here), long-boarders, i've even seen a recumbent trike and there's a guy here with a sweet looking hand-cycle - never any unicycles though :]

Planning on upgrading it's gearing - if nothing pops up in the mean time on CL (etc) - I do have a regular bike for longer distances but I wanted something "new" to ride that could also fold for storage or taking into a building, as bikes DO get stolen even in small towns :/

Azreal911

ok to go faster right away get a new gearing cassette with 11t as the smallest gear that'll bump you up easily and also the tires are probably crap and only go up to 35psi so switch out the tires for these babies:

https://www.schwalbetires.com/node/3816

pump them up and let the good times roll! easiest way to go faster and maintain efficiency.