bykerouac

Hey jur, sorry for the delay in answering, I have been out of town for a spell. The new width is a bit more than 12 inches, or around 31 cm. What makes it a bit wide is the barend that has a backward protrusion. Had I chosen barends that only go forward I would could have saved an inch of space there. Another place where there is added width is the right back roller (refer to above pic). The original roller was small and mounted at the inside of the rack. With the wider inline skate wheel I opted to mount it on the outside, for stability when folded, and it looks better. Also, the riser bar has a curve to it that slightly adds to the width. Brompton specs the folded width of the M type as 9.8 inches, which is a bit on the smallish side if you ask me. I think it is more around a little less than 10 1/2 inches. I can live with the slightly wider width, and I hardly notice the difference as I can still park it in its usual corner, and it I can push it through the subway turnstile with no prblems.

My folding basket bag arrived, and it fits quite well and does not appear to interfere with the cockpit controls. I think then that my setup is one up on the S type Brommie, since it can accommodate all bags while the S Brommie can only use the S bag. I will test it out on an actual ride later and report, along with pics.

Ariane

I like your modified Brommie. I too didn't like the mushy brakes on my L6 so took the inner cables out and greased them thoroughly and then put them back. Wow! What a difference. They performed very well going up and down the Col d'Aubisque and down the Col de Soulor and the Tourmalet.
Why do you not fit clipless SPDs? It improves bike handling no end. I couldn't wait to get rid of the folding pedal. I fitted bar ends as well - Titec stubbies which don't affect folding. The modification I really want to know about is fitting a front mech and double chainset say a compact 50-34 or 52-39. Does anyone know how to contact Steve Parry about his cast bracket to attach the front mech to or do people use other means to attach a front mech to the seat tube?
Thanks,
Ariane.

LWaB

Phone is best, no website, usually slow replies to emails.

jomoj

nice mods! I tried to find a hi-rise bar to do the same mod and found the tioga r60 with a 60mm rise. Unfortunately the centre bulge actually begins before the bend so I couldn't thread the bars through - very frustrating. I may take a look at the azonic bar as a cheaper alternative to the S-stem.

cyclistjohn

I actually bought a second folding pedal from a fellow Brompton rider, who prefers SPD's like you. I have several folding pedals, but they all fold outwards of the pedal. The Brompton design is smarter in that it folds *inwards* of the pedal, saving a massive amount of space in comparison (although care is required to avoid scraping the rear triangle at some crank angles when folded).

Here's the combination I use (yes, my chain needs oil :-)) which involves manually lifting the chain from small to big, which I find ok, as I only need the small ring on steep, say 1 in 8, & steeper.

If you search recent threads you'll find EvilV has posted some info' on front mech's.

Simple Simon

Thats a very neat gear solution.
Any probs with the new outer cog catching clothes ?

And YES you must oil that chain (or use a dry lub ... eg try waxoil)

bhkyte

I concluded that 60mm wheels balance the best on the front.But I did not try the rear wheel mod in addition. As a rollerhockey/speed skater with all sorts of skate stuff in the house I should have thought off putting some rollerblade 72mm wheel on the outside and on back of the rack like this! Disapointed with my lack of lateral thinking I need to lye down.

cyclistjohn

Hello Simon.

No clothes catching, although I do usually wear a reflective band around my right ankle.

Waxoyl, good idea, I'll try that thanks. I think I've left it so long this time, as oiling it causes the back wheel to become filthy & it's a continuous cleaning job!

This approach to gears meant I didn't need to change the bottom bracket, as the chain line for the big ring is standard, so I think it's probably the simplest & cheapest way to try out low gears. I did try a 39 t like EvilV has, but it's not low enough for some of the hills I'll encounter.

I suspect a front mech' wouldn't cope easily with the rather large jump from small to big ring, so I'll stick to manual, unless anyone has any bright ideas?

John

LWaB

Front mechs can cope with a wider range than you think, if you are mechanically sympathetic as you change gears. After all, wide range double cranksets (e.g. 46 & 28t chainrings) used to be seen fairly often on touring bikes, as were half-step + granny set-ups with 20t jumps between small and middle chainrings.

invisiblehand

If you friction shift the front derailer instead of index it, the jump will not be bad at all. It won't be great; but more than serviceable.

bhkyte

sorry wrong quote I think!
steve Perry recomended the campaq Mirarge for the mod (generally)? from what I can remember this was to cope with large changes......

Ariane

That's an interesting chain set with the small ring on the outside? Surely a conventional double can be fitted? What are the dimensions of the Brompton bottom bracket are they shared by other BB makes? Are there alternatives available that can accomodate a double chainset?

cyclistjohn

That's encouraging LWaB, as I haven't seen those large doubles. I'll go hunting & see what I can find.

John

cyclistjohn

Yes it can, but where have you seen 20+ teeth difference rings on a modern day "conventional double", preferably with 150 mm. cranks? Please post with a link if you have.

Like lots of other bits on a Brompton, the bottom bracket is a "standard" size, & one is free to fit one of several "standards" according to the desired crankset.

Bear in mind my desire was to test what low gear range I need without going to great expense in the process :-)

owlpiliph

Hi

I have a P type. I felt the handlebars were too high and the bike was not rigid. I replaced just the bars with a 2.5 inch riser bars for an MTB

The result is excellent. Rigid and a good riding position. The other change I recommend is to replace the pedals with SPD pedals.

Best

Rog

fietsbob

The new Dual pivot brakes seem to be lacking in cable adjustment, just a token at the lever..
I've been considering the V noodle with the adjuster, that gets used with V drop bar levers.
so this may be a reinforcing encouragement...

Older single pivot CLB calipers had the adjustment on the caliper..

kamtsa

bykerouac, very nice bike!

What is the motivation for the corks? If it is to provide resistance to the handle clamp you may want to look at these plugs https://www.ergon-bike.com/us/en/product/ls100

I noticed that you are using regular seat clamps. Did not know that they fit. I may do the same if it preserves better the pitch adjustment when removed.

If you want to go all the way with brake mods, here is an interesting example with V brakes. Am not sure how it was done. Possibly some brazing.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/brompfi...n/photostream/

fietsbob

Appears the V noodle is hard on the paint on the side of the fork.

the newer fork adds a braze on that may be useful for others,
to make a housing guide/standoff.

They put it there, later, to fit a disc to keep the brake cable off the tire
of a mudguard-less bike.

Biggsy50

Hi Bykerouac,

Being a tall rider do you find that the reach isn't great enough, i.e. the distance from the saddle to the handlebars isn't far enough as the S-types stem curves further forwards

Thanks,
Steve

3speedslow

Really using my Brompton bag on the front to grocery shop. As many others have found out, the roller wheels are too small for that, they cause run and wear on the shock block.

The local bike shop has a bin of used roller blade wheels which the owner let me go through. Two good ones and longer bolts, back in business!

tcs

Wow! 15-year-old thread.

CrimsonEclipse

With a 56K warning.
yikes!

biosync

I see a Red Beard Bikes sticker! Awesome

3speedslow

Yes you do! The bike came from them to the previous owner. Looked awesome so I kept it on.

On NC coast, we have Blackbeard the pirate. Now there Redbeard the Brompton.