Sir Coastalot

Great info, many thanks. Sounds very doable.
I've been looking for a suspension fork for a used recumbent I recently picked up, and noticed a used Birdy fork posted on a local classified. Assuming the recumbent's handlebar mast can fit over the steerer tube, it should go well.

Sir Coastalot

Yes, exactly. Is that yours?
Any idea how preload is applied to the headset with the Birdy fork?

glye

It has a headset cap mounted upside down, at the lower end of the steerer tube. So preload is done the usual way, only everything is upside down.

Sir Coastalot

Ah, I get it now...an upside-down headset. Very clever!

Jipe

The Birdy uses an inverted A-Headset, see below picture:



Now, for the modified Brompton, I do not know where the fork tube comes from because a standard Brompton stem doesn't have a fork tube.

What is possible is that a short tube of the needed diameter is added to the Brompton stem and attached with the standard Brompton quill ?

Sir Coastalot

Finally, a pic that shows everything, including the cap bolt. Nice bling too.

Winfried

FYI, someone else drilled the head tube on the limited edition titanium Birdy and add the Brompton luggage block:

(courtesy of Google Translate)
"I actually dismounted the fork (very simple on the Birdy with his Aheadset headset reversed), then precisely drilled two holes, added inside the socket head a curved plate of titanium reinforcement (from a piece of titanium tube that distributes the stress over a large portion of the head socket) and outer side a piece of aluminum profile to the same dimensions as the front block bracket of the Brompton frame and drilled for the two fixing bolts.

I had previously measured the thickness of the head socket of the Birdy Titanium which is in fact already quite thick, it is manufactured by CNC machining of a titanium block (for memory this Birdy Titanium was produced only 250 copies, for such a small number, Pacific Cycle has manufactured several elements of the frame by CNC machining thing that they probably would not have done for a bicycle produced in series).

Do not weld on a hydroformed aluminum frame heat treated like the current Birdy, not only destroys the paint but it loses the heat treatment and thus weakened the frame.
Before making the change, check that the Birdy Aluminum Steering Bushing is sturdy enough to support the weight of the front bag.

One more thing: if you look closely at the picture, you will see that on my Birdy fork release lever above the front suspension block is very close to the unlock lever block Brompton.

It will be necessary to verify that there is no interaction between the two on another model of Birdy because Birdy titanium even if it looks like the other Birdy is a completely different bike, everything was re-developed by Pacific Cycle for this model: other main frame with asymmetric main beam, any other rear suspension arm with folding adapted to exploit this asymmetrical tube, front suspension fork that uses the same concept but also redesigned."
https://www.bromptonforum.net/t2502p...elos-parisiens

spj

I have those rims. A 406 20" with a tyre up to 1.35 will work fine. I use a 1.1 Schwalbe and I have about 1cm clearance. The bike rides better than on 18x1.5 rims/tyres, but it is a harsher ride. I use the matching Lite-Pro brake levers, so they adjust nicely to 20" from 18" too. You can get them cheaply on Aliexpress or a similar site. Sorry not sure I can post photos but there s one on the Facebook Global Birdy Forum,.

gleearch

Thanks very much for the info. I have been tracking the FB global Birdy community and did see someone with 406 rims and Schwalbe tires that had an aggressive tread similar to Black Jacks. I have disc brakes on my bike, so the conversion won't affect the brakes as much.

spj

tyre clearance is actually 8mm from swingarm. Schwalbe 1.1 tyre, Litepro rim and brakes. One of those expensive chain tensioners on the chainring.

spj

This 2000 model was totally worn out after 45,000km of hard commuting in the UK [bad weather] and Australia. It now weights under 9kg. [19.5lb]. That cat is deceptive - he is 7kg!! The rear swingarm snapped in 2018 and that was expensive to replace secondhand from Japan [US$300]. Front forks changed too. The other parts are LitePro brake kit and wheels, chainring and headset, not too expensive online, and a carbon seatpost [not really necessary], handlebars, and gear cage. Titanium pedals, but they are too small. Gear mech was good, US$50 secondhand. 20" wheel only works with a narrow tyre. Front is still standard but will change to 20". It seems go about 20% faster than my other standard Birdy.

spj

spj

They are clearly very nice bikes, but I do not know why they made so few over in Taiwan, and it was impossible for average people to order one. They are also not very light at 11kg. Maybe they will make more or use the jigs and moulds to improve the current models.

Winfried

Since R&M is clearly moving towards e-bikes, it's not unlikely that it might stop selling non-e Birdys and allow Pacific Cycles to sell those in Europe, something they were barred from, possibly at lower prices.

https://www.faltradxxs.de/serie/102-...gang-nabe.html

gleearch

I was lucky to buy mine second hand from someone who ordered his through B-fold in NYC and had it shipped. I believed he told me the shipping itself was $600. I could not find any dealers out here selling them. Mobic bikes aid they could order them. They are good bikes but really hard to buy here too. They seem more prevalent in Asia. I have a continuous search going on for used Birdys. You never know when one pops up. Just wish there were more and the prices not so high.

spj

You have to look hard, yes. German Ebay has the most for sale in Europe. The US, not so much. Australia, one advert every 3 months. Asian sites have quite a few, but it helps to understand Japanese, Chinese or Bahasa.
I have four - 2 in each country my family and I are in. Particularly important in the UK with bike-on bus-and-train options to help reduce CO2 emissions [of course we have to get there...].

• One of the very first, bought in US for $500 in 1995 [an illegal version badged as Jeep, it lives in the UK now]:
• the red one bought in London for £500 [US$650] secondhand in 2000, rebuilt now in Australia: [https://simonbatterbury.wordpress.co...ing-bike-wars/]
• A blue 24 speed hub/derailleur, circa 2006, for £285 [US$375, massive bargain in 2018 and came with spares that I gave away https://simonbatterbury.wordpress.co...-in-lancaster/]
• and only one bought new at full price, a Mark 2 8 speed for AU$1,400 [US$950] in Australia used for commuting.

$2500 spent on folders sounds a bit much, but all less that one carbon road bike that probably would not get daily use. And it was over nearly 25 years.

gleearch

I have two terns and one birdy. I'm trying to slowly replace the Terns with Birdys. I did see a decent Reach IF on craigslist but while it's a really nice folder, it's fold is too big for what I need it for. So sticking with Birdys.

filtragem

Hello,
I have a new to me Birdy mk3 with sport stem
I am interested in experimenting with the 19.5 angle stem, I didn't really understand with part I need to rotate 180 and how, in order to accomplish it.
The only thing that I see that can rotate 180 is the post to what the handlebar is attached, rotating it means that you also need to rotate the handlebar.
It's like this?

I also wanted to confirm if is normal to have only one tire stopper for the front wheel to lock it when folded.

Thank you in advance

glye

That's how I understand it. Seems you can get the bar 3-4 cm closer to you that way. I haven't tried it. It would also mean that the pin in the post would face backwards, where there are no holes for it to lock into. So the only thing securing the bar is then the quickrelease clamp. Would be nasty if it came loose when you hit a pothole on the way down a hill. Be careful.

I also have only one.

filtragem

Thank you for the quick reply. It seemed to me that it was the only thing that could rotate.

Ok, thank you once more. Is just to confirm what is stock or not with my bike.
On the other side is the light hook.

One more thing. My cables are tide with plastic zip tides, is this normal?

pm124

Hi all--After giving away my Birdy years ago, I found myself in Japan and in need of a travel bike. (I switched to recumbents in 2010 after my employer allowed bikes in the building. I shaved 10 minutes off my ride on a racing recumbent.) I bought a beautiful turquoise Peugeot MI from a collector in perfect condition. I had forgotten how wonderful the Birdy is. My original plan was to sell it when I got back to the US, but I do find that it is convenient to have and it looks good in the apartment.

But I'm looking for tire options. I searched through this thread and didn't see much by way of options. Kojaks are one of the worst tires Schwalbe was made; they are slow and not super puncture resistant. But it doesn't look like there are any other options out there other than changing out the wheels? Since I rarely ride it, I don't want to do that. What are the 355 options on the market now?

The Birdy-branded tires that came with it are just as bad as the Kojaks.

BruceMetras

Schwalbe Marathon Racers, Marathons, and Big Apples are available (not sure they would fit).. There are some winter tires also available from Schwalbe in 355..

yangmusa

When I had my Birdy I used Schwalbe Stelvios, 355x28. They were a surprisingly great all-round tire, but it appears Schwalbe no longer makes it. I say "surprising", because it was billed as a road/training tire and while it was certainly fast I also found they were puncture resistant and survived some touring on dirt roads!

BruceMetras

Yes, those were excellent Kevlar belted tires.. I still have a new pair hanging as spares for when I had my Birdy.

glye

Same here. I've seen it on expensive mountain bikes too. It works well, and is cheap and easy to replace if you have to replace a cable. Just as long as they are black - I hear that white or transparent zip ties don't last long when exposed to sunlight.