Bikerdrummer

After a few months of thinking it over, I’ve put in an order for a Brompton P line bike.
I currently have a steel road bike and a vintage steel mountain bike. The plan is to put a swytch kit on the mountain bike for errands, the road bike for riding in general, and the folding bike for around town and travel.

The deal maker moment was when I had to drop my car off to get repaired, and I had to take both wheels off of the road bike to fit in the car to ride home and back to the shop. It got me thinking how convenient a folder would be, just throw in the trunk. Then I started asking friends who had folders how they like them and they swear by them.

I can see myself using it daily so I decided to order the new P line. Looking forward to getting this in the rotation.

If it weren’t for work I’d be able to go car free.

tds101 

Welcome to the fold!

willydstyle

Congrats, bromptons are great!

mlau

Should be pretty great!

The A line for my fiance came in. I was impressed how much nicer it is than my current older Brompton (lighter, tighter, cleaner).

childcarepro

That's great to hear! I was looking hard at the P line but my wife isn't ready for $3K "weird looking" folding bikes. So I was looking at the C line but was wondering what the magic of the A line is, why it only weighs 23 lbs with a 1.5 lb internal gear hub?!? Rather than buying a $1750 C line and replacing components I've paid for with lighter ones, why not start w/ an A line and NOT pay for components I would replace anyway?

Bikerdrummer

Looks like it’s in the US. Should have it soon. Will likely do a video so will keep you posted. I don’t see any US reviews for the p line but I think they are arriving here this week all over.

mlau

I was thinking of starting a thread called, "Pimp my A line"

However, I'm not done with parts. Waiting on a Honey Brooks to round things out. After all the upgrades, I think I'll be putting in about $300 into it? (different left pedal, grips, bell, Brompton front light (the expensive part), back light, front luggage block, fenders, and Brooks B17).
Raxel is right....the third party suppliers make nicer accessories for the Brompton.

childcarepro

Sounds great. Although at $3K, you could probably build a 15 lbs full titanium bike with aftermarket parts. Still the kind of money my wife definitely won't be happy with!

Bikerdrummer

I’m not married yet! Woohoo! Bikes for me! Lol
Can’t wait to get it.

childcarepro

Keep us posted! Very exciting.

Bikerdrummer

Picked up the P line today!
Took a 16 mile ride.
Here’s some thoughts-
cons: (just a couple)
-it didn’t come with a plastic front bag mount. It was $30 additional, which I didn’t buy. It comes standard on the C line and this is way more $ so I don’t get that. For $3,000 I think they would give you the plastic mount… and maybe a free bag. Shame on Brompton for that one.

-the wheels were not as advertised. They advertise Schwable one tires on the site. This bike had continental Urban out of box. I don’t know if those are better or worse, just letting you know they give you wrong information on their web site.

-the gears switch well but each one runs a bit roughly. Almost like when you’re cross chaining a road bike and it’s not smooth. I went back to the store a couple mins after I left and they took a look but they said it was minor and should break in. I don’t know about that. My road bike and vintage mountain bike have shimano and those are like ice skates. This is not. I’ll give it 100-200 miles and maybe go back in to see if they will adjust it then. It’s not terrible but not good. If today is as good as it gets, well, that could be a major issue but I’ll give it the benefit of doubt it needs to break in and then be adjusted…

-bell is worthless. Barely makes a noise. Will try to switch to a better one. (Again, for $3,000, put a nice loud bell in there and don’t make me upgrade already)

-lights don’t come with this. I have lights I can use but again, for $3,000, throw some lights in?

Pro:
-I’m 5”6 and got the s bars. The fit seemed perfect. It feels like riding a full size bike and it was really fun.

-Starting from a stop was easier than a full sized bike.

-has fenders. Went through a puddle already and stayed dry. Always a bonus.

-the gears switch flawlessly and the range in 1st going up a steep bridge was totally fine and street riding in 4th was great. Gear range is great.

-I got sparkle black. The whole bike is painted, looks really sharp.

-saddle is soft and has a grip so you can lift it easy which is cool, although I’m used to specialized saddles so I’ll probably switch it out in the future.

overall I’m happy with it except for the gears apparently just need breaking in.
I’ll add some pics.

childcarepro

Congratulations! She's a beaut.

I agree at this price point it should come with everything standard rather than nickel-and-diming for every knick-knack. The plastic front carrier block probably costs them $1, though if they included it, it would cost them $29 of profit. My $900 Electra Townie Balloon 7i's came with headlamp and tail lamp with dynamo.

I believe the Continental Contact Urbans are the tires of choice for BrilliantBikes UK; they rode them for nearly a year with zero flats. They weigh 260 g x 2 vs the Schwalbe Ones at 190 g x 2, or 140 g (5 oz) extra for extra puncture resistance. I'm planning on losing those 5 oz elsewhere and save myself the headache of flat tires.

tcs

The P is advertised as the Superlight.

Lights, front carrier block, even a better bell would all make the Superlight...heavier.

Equip it as suits you, of course, but the factory spec seems on mission to me.

Bikerdrummer

I guess that’s one way to look at it.
But if they are just removing the plastic front mount and charging $1,500 more to call it superlight, well you get what I’m saying.

The main function of this bike is to get around in urban environments. A bag would be pretty necessary in most situations so you have to take into account what it’s being overall used for. I’m not racing this in Tour de France. At least include it in the box!

bee-man

I have an S6L and was very excited for the P Line, but I'm not so sure the grass is greener and have some concerns mentioned from the comments section of a youtube channel. I know the drivetrain is rough, but did your chain ever skip? Can the bike be folded in any gear, or does it need to be in a specific cog? Are you having any issues with the seat loosening? What are your thoughts on the range of the 4 speed compared to a 6 speed? Thanks!

Bikerdrummer

Hi- sure, I’ll let you know my experience. I haven’t experienced any gear skipping. In fact it switches flawlessly between gears and stays put. As far as the drive train, it definitely doesn’t feel as high end as a shimano 12 speed, but not I’m thinking it’s maybe not fair to compare.

The more I ride it the more I get there’s give and takes between being able to fold this up and performance. Not saying it performs bad but it’s not road bike smooth and maybe not fair to compare. It has a function.

Given all that, the gears seem to work fine and the shifter works great. I’ve been up a couple semi-steep bridges with no issue and I’m about 30 miles in. Still breaking in the bike and the saddle. I’m hoping the saddle breaks in nicely so I don’t have to buy another, even though I know a brooks would be nice. There’s been no saddle slipping. I’m 175 pounds.

I didn’t realize the bike needed to be in any certain gear to fold up. No issues thus far.

As this is my only Brompton, I’m not sure how it compares to others but if you live in a big city like I do, I can see this coming in very handy. I’m actually already thinking I could of been fine with a cheaper model. But I do like the black sparkle paint job.

It’s a lot of fun to ride, but for just riding, I’ll be taking out my road bike. This will be to go places including work and grocery store. I would never ever ever lock up my road bike outside, so I’ll be able to take this and bring with me inside.

bee-man

Thank you very much for the response. The real appeal for me is the weight savings because I currently carry my S6L folded approximately 100 yards from transit stop to work area. I fantasize about saving roughly 4 lbs with a beautiful Storm Grey P line, but would hate if I spent all that money only to learn that the S6L did things better and was more reliable. T line is out of the question due to cost. Thanks again!

willydstyle

The continental contact urbans are definitely an upgrade. They reviewed *extremely* well on bicyclerollingresistance.com and I would buy a set for my bike if I could actually ever find any in stock.

12boy

I have been wondering if the sprockets on the p line are replacable individually or it is a onepiece unit. BikeGang has given me a trial 3 speed unit but it is a onepiece unit.

Schwinnsta

Bikegang has a kit which they have been selling from back before the unibody kit that allows you to select any combination that works with your bike. I got one before they offered the unibody kit. The upside of the kit is you can use any combo that will work on your bike, and they are individually replaceable. The downside is that on SA hubs the smallest cog you can do is a 12T. On my B, I have 12-14-19. So it is a 3 speed, hence the 19 for a low gear. I think I could put a 20 on but I would have to notch the dropout. I would not have a problem with that, but I don't know how large a gear you can up shift to. I would do a larger cog if the bike setup, which is stock, could shift to a larger gear. On a 6-speed conversion to 9-speed, a12-14-16 is nearer to ideal.