tudorowen1

I have an old Dahon and an Enda..When these bikes are unfolded the hinge clasps are usually under tension..When the bike is not being used is it better to store them unfolded or at least with the folding clasps undone so they are not under tension..?

ShortLegCyclist

Interesting question, I'll be interested to see what the forum gurus think on this.

My two cents, some bikes are under no stress when folded and seem to "like" being in that state, like Bromptons. All my Bromptons stay folded unless actually being ridden.

Terns and Dahons, though, do not seem to "like" being folded, meaning if you move one or carry one it tends to want to open up. Along with the magnet, the folded bikes are held together by a rubber strap, and this seems to me to be under considerable tension when carrying or rolling a folded Dahon or Tern.

So I don't keep my Dahon and Terns folded because I want to avoid stress on that rubber strap more than I worry about the springs on the hinges, which seem to me just want to keep the hinge lever closed, whether the bike is folded or not.

Can speak at all to Endas, never heard of that before your post.

My only other folder is a Bike Friday and I never fold that unless transporting. Their whole schtick, interestingly often appropriated by Josh Hon when describing his Terns, is that Bike Fridays are "not folding bikes that perform, they are performance bikes that also happen to fold."

energyandair

It's best to keep them folded if you want to save space.

If the hinge latches are properly designed, then leaving them fastened should not be a problem. If it is desirable on a particular bike, I would think about changing bikes.

If leaving fasteners undone to store them relatively stress free, was normally necessary then it would also be necessary to loosen all quick releases, all nuts, all screws, and all spokes.

ThorUSA

makes no difference
as long as you don't ride them unfolded ( or way too loose )

thor

bhkyte

One possible thing to consider is brake,and gear cables. I find that the torturous cable routing on my dual drive mezzo needs some elongating from time to time to avoid cable stick. Maybe it would happen anyway if not used for a long time. It needs a good run from time to time.

dadbar

+1

The more I fold and unfold my folders, the more the derailleurs seem to shift alignment, so I only do it when I need to fold.

ShortLegCyclist

I don't like derailleurs on wheels that close to the ground so I almost exclusively have internal hub folders.

The glaring exception with ironically the smallest wheels would be my six speed Bromptons of course.

fietsbob

this , though I mostly only use the rear wheel flipped under 'Kick stand effect', of my Brompton.

it's not folded in my house's Entry room.

tudorowen1

Excellent point..Thanks..

bhkyte

I run Teflon lined inner cables, kevler outers with Teflon linings to reduce this and to improve performance. Only do this upgrade if problem or if fitting new cables however.

foldingBiker

Yep, also had the problem with my Dahon bicycle. Basically, I am storing my bike with the folding clasps undone, because I fear that the tension, will break the clasps.

Btw Dahon`s warranty goes for up to 5 years.(even though I had no real problems with my bicycle yet)

Violinfish

if you keep some metal parts tightened and untightened repeatedly, they may wear out or break sooner than staying tighened .
The extraordinary example about “metal fatigue” is that it takes only a few pounds of force applied repeatedly back and forth across the paper-clip’s thickness to break it.
IMHO, you'd better keep your bike unfolded. it's unnecessary to fold it unless you do neet to save space.

lucille

My Bike Friday is pretty much always unfolded, Brompton lives in a small nook and it's folded until needed.