Using a Brompton as a home exercise bike
 

Hi

Can anyone recommend or advise what i need to purchase to use my brompton bike as a home exercise bike ?

Thanks for your attention folks

s

I wonder how many of these are still available after 11 years?

https://www.bikeforums.net/folding-b...ed-folder.html

I have the Minoura indoor trainer I would part with for $100. Don't know if it would work on a Brompton, but works well on 406 rims.

thanks

the discussion on trainer adapters for 20" wheels had some interesting leads but brommies have 16" wheels.

Do you think these rollers might do it ?

https://www.evanscycles.com/training...e_trainer_type

Seems to me the key distance is the one between the two rollers for the back wheel - ?? These evans ones have adjustable length so that should accomodate brommies ?

thanks s

Yeah, I wouldn't have wasted your time except that upon actually reading the link I saw that several of the mentions said they worked for 16" wheels.

I see two rollers on that link, neither of them look to have an adjustable distance between the two rear wheel rollers?

I’ve used my Brompton on my Kurt Kinetic Z roller. Giro explained it well in post 8 on the link above. It works, but it’s harder (both to balance and to spin).... better than nothing I guess, but I prefer my 700x32 gravel bike on it more.

yes sorry - i did look up Kurt Kinetic models and the 1Up - the latter seems a US product only - i was just wondering about the rollers too as they seem less pricey and bulky ...

Posts 8 and 10 by Giro - were a bit confusing as they don't specify a Kurt Kinetic 'Roller' so i was assuming it was the bigger 'Road Mashine'. Also the link didn't work.

Thanks for clarifying 'Kurt Kinetic Z roller' - you say you've used successfully on a brommie. That doesn't look adjustable (?) so i'm assuming the distances fit the brommie bike length ?

Yes a couple of youtube vids show it can be a bit wobbly on rollers but it also is doable - Maybe i should look at the Kinetic Road Mashine and equivalent models - getting a range of prices for those from £200-£300 ....

cheers s

The KK roller seems same as all the others - only front roller adjusts for wheelbase. The setting is the same between my two bikes though, the B has a long wheelbase. The 2 rear rollers are fixed in place so the 16” wheel drops in a bit deep adding to the friction - keep the rear pressure high to offset.

It is do-able, just not ideal.

I put my 2 speed Brompton on my Cyclops fluid trainer
3 speed has mount that won't allow axle clamps
It and my 20" Dahon and Downtube needed an adapter ( ~$40)
the 20"ers have solid reat triangles and looked fine, but the 16" Brompton put a lot of stress on the rear suspension in a twisting fashion, focused on the pivot
I would recommend against trying it on the 16" Brompton and on 20"s with rear suspension

Hi
bikebikebike Sorry i didnt quite understand - are you saying you don't recommend using the Cyclops with a brommie or that it's okay with the adapter ? cheers !
sp

The Brommie S2L rear triangle had a lot of rotational stress focused on the rear hinge , when on my Cyclops.
The IGH on the 3/6 speeds of many make mounting an issue as well, as the shift chain comes out through the hub.
I would expect the same issues on a rear suspension 20".
They are not built with this kind of motion in mind, so I could see that stressing the welds and tubes in an unanticipated fashion.
The bigger bikes these trainers were designed around, distribute these stresses over longer spans and distribute the stress better.
Plus many trainers need $$ adapters for smaller wheels.
Roller trainers don;t have this problem, but they have their own issues that are reflected in their own lack of broad use.
I liked my Downtube NS IX on the Cyclops, but it showed these dynamics , so I just use it with my 20"trike as a recumbent trainer. where there isn't much rotational stress on the rear.