// PRICES

I apologize, but I can’t add prices. I omit pricing for all reviews I publish. The reasons?

1) My web site is read globally, so I’d have to calculate prices, shipping costs, VATs and currencies for the whole planet.

2) Bike configurations vary so much! A friend of mine bought a used Brompton for 300 EUR… and if you look at Bike Friday web site, they list a SRAM Red outfitted Tikit priced at 3 880 EUR. And that’s not the limit, if you choose some other components, both for the Brompton or the Tikit.

// SECURITY

I don’t have a bike lock for my Brompton. You’d have to knock me out to get my bike. Or steal a strange and heavy backpack that I use to leave the folded Brompton in cloak rooms and on trains.

But, yes, you’re right, I probably should add a security overview for both bikes. Thanks for the tip!

For me the ride is fine for 5 miles or so but nothing like a full size bike, so if I dont need a fold I use my road bike.

Could you add a rough price comparison? perhaps cheapest to most expensive for both ranges?

A weakness of the bromi is that they are highly prized by thieves, so I tend to keep it with me rather than lock it up. so another comparison could be security

Martin

I’ll recommend the tikit for tall people

Yes, I agree. I’d say 1 m 85 cm is the maximum for a Brompton.

I think perhaps many Brompton users are not cyclists used to better bikes so they endure B. faults

Maybe some Brompton users are indeed like you describe, but I think the majority is well aware of the Brompton’s handling shortcomings. It’s a compromise.

Yes, you’re right about Sturmey Archer’s 8-speed hub.

The Shimano Nexus can fit the Brompton in the same manner: choose the one with the brake, remove the brake and spacers, spread the rear triangle a bit.

Otherwise, as I’ve tweeted from Eurobike 2009, Sturmey Archer also makes a 5-speed gear hub available in Brompton’s 111 mm over locknut width: the S-RF5. 256%, 13 T, 1 kg. So no tinkering required.

(Bike Friday probably also chose to call it ‘Model T’ to highlight the feature that separates the Model T tikit from all other tikits: the twist knob that one twists (or twiddles) to fold/unfold the bike. Twist, twiddle, T… get it?)

J Dille Brussels

As I was saying on my Twitter, I’ve briefly test-ridden the Mezzo during Eurobike 2009. About 15 minutes on good asphalt. Max and min speed, cornering, track standing. Very stable ride, folded size inbetween Bike Friday Tikit and Brompton.

However the distance between the saddle and handlebars have seemed too short for me, and the handlebars too high as well. That’s after the adjustments for my 1 m 80 cm body at Mezzo booth.

1/ Bike Friday Tikit;
2/ Brompton S2L;
3/ Airnimal (quite a few models to select from);
4/ Strida 5.0

Funny thing, 3 out of the 4 models are British makes, only Bike Friday is an American one.

Anyway, with my priorities fixed at the comfort of riding (but balancing slightly towards compactness of the folded bike and ease of fording/unfolding), I should probably be choosing Airnimal, then Bike Friday Tikit, Brompton S2L and then Strida 5.0.

With the compactness of the folded bike in mind, Strida comes first, then Brompton, Bike Friday and Airnimal.

Folding/unfolding time/ease wise, Strida first or maybe similar to Bike Friday, then Brompton and Airnimal.

Spend-wise, Strida comes the cheapest, then Brompton, while Bike Friday and Airnimal are probably similarly priced to each other.

Sadly excluding Strida, as despite having one racer and one MTB (or maybe because of that) I probably need a bike more suitable for biking (although some tests of Strida show that you can actually ride it!) and leaning towards excluding Airnimal due to its folded size, atypical wheel size and being not as easy and quick to fold/unfold (I am going to test it soon).

I am also leaning towards excluding the Brompton as I have just tested it for a while and it feels a bit tricky and uncomfortable (although I am sure you can get used to it). Also, its cheaply accessories/parts do not appeal to me when choosing a bike.

The (not so clear winner) seems to be Bike Friday Tikit but I will have to check on the Airnimal capability to fold/unfold soon. I will have a few test rides so that to compare the roadability of the bikes. Maybe I will also test the Strida but I think it its design and roadability fall too far from what I am ready to accept for a folding bike.

Piotr

The current Bromptons are much better than the previous versions, especially the Taiwan-produced. So I’d suggest to check out a new Brompton as well. Comparing a Tikit to a 1996 Brompton isn’t quite fair ;-)

Don’t know about the Bike Friday’s naming inspiration, but could ask, if needed.

Thanks for the huge comment, I think we all appreciate your feedback.

I kept on repairing all the time, I’ve spent a lot of money on spare parts, and finally I gave up after some accidents and after having replaced nearly every part of the Brompton.

Interesting. That’s not my experience. Which parts were breaking down?

I replace mainly the cables, yearly, especially the gear-shifting cable. They wear out much quicker because of the constant folding-unfolding and the friction caused by the suspension.

And there is also no reason to build the swing arm so narrow that only 3-speed gear hubs fit; an 8-speed gear hub is more appropriate.

There is a good reason for a narrower rear triangle: a narrower folded package.

Yes, I too would love to have an 8-speed hub instead. It’s possible to fit the Nexus-with-brake hub by removing the rear brake and spreading (cold-setting) the rear triangle just a bit.

I think instead of developing the recent 3-speed Sturmey-Archer BWR + derailleur system, Brompton ought to steer towards an in-hub solution instead. Why Brompton chose to go that route, I don’t know. Yet.

I think it would be possible to build a Brompton which is both lighter and more reliable

Totally agree.

* Brompton’s quality is horrible. I kept on repairing all the time, I’ve spent a lot of money on spare parts, and finally I gave up after some accidents and after having replaced nearly every part of the Brompton. The Tikit has a much higher quality, and if that’s not enough, you can exchange most parts by other standard components. If you are riding fast, Brompton’s quality is simply not sufficient.
And there is also no reason to build the swing arm so narrow that only 3-speed gear hubs fit; an 8-speed gear hub is more appropriate.

* As Rav has pointed out, the way of pushing the folded bike is an important thing; especially when using public transport. If the subway station is crowded or if there are narrow stairs, it is better to fold the bike. And then, it is nice to be able to push it instead of carrying it. Brompton’s little wheels are nice, but pushing the Tikit on its front wheel is much better — is is not only easier on a rough surface, but one can also steer the bike easily through a crowd. So you can push a Tikit even when running, but not a Brompton.

* Because the folding hinge of a Brompton is located behind the bottom bracket, the chain is shortened when folding, and a chain tensioner is always necessary. On my Tikit, I have installed a gear hub, and together with adjustable drop outs I don’t need a chain tensioner, and could install a full chain case — which is extremely nice in bad weather, it saves me a lot of chain maintenance, and my pants never get dirty.

* Backpack/cover: Your backpack is very nice! But when looking at the default covers, I like the Tikit solution more. The Brompton cover is stored in a little bag under the saddle, you have to take it out and pull it over the bike; then you have to carry the bike. But the Tikit cover is already installed on the frame (where it remains), you only have to pull it over the bike, and there is a handle to carry the bike — the Brompton must be carried at the saddle. And, if you have a front rack on the Tikit, it keeps the cover off the front wheel, so you can still push the bike with the cover on it.

So my opinion is: The Brompton has a great concept, but the quality is absolutely out of question. I think it would be possible to build a Brompton which is both lighter and more reliable, it could even use Tikit’s hyperfold locking mechanism for the hinges, but the other two aspects are harder to achieve — the Brompton is so small because the main frame is folded (=> pushing it on the front wheel is impossible) and because the swing arm has to fit underneath the frame (=> the hinge has to be behind the cranks).
On the other hand, also the Tikit could be improved; it cannot be made shorter, but certainly narrower.

Conclusion: The Brompton is more compact, The Tikit has some interesting features, but especially a far superior quality.

Christoph

He says I’ve omitted the folded bikes’ “rolling” comparison. The Brompton can be moved on its auxiliary wheels (3 or 4), the Tikit rolls around on one of its 16 in wheels.

Personally, I dislike pushing / pulling my folded bike for further than, say, 20 cm in a supermarket queue, so I haven’t really tested nor compared the “rolls when folded” functionalities of the bikes sufficiently in depth to write about.

C’est un bon comparatif que tu fais entre ces deux vélos et je t’en remercie, car je recherche des infos sur le Tikit de Bike Friday. Je suis rassuré quant à la qualité du ride du BF, un peu surpris concernant le dérailleur cassette, mais c’est bon à savoir.

Je suis moi aussi assez passionné par les vélos pliants et j’en possède trois, dont un Dahon et un Brompton. Chacun des deux modèles ont leurs qualités. Selon moi, le premier pour son comportement routier et le deuxième, sa compacité une fois plié.

Tout ça pour dire que l’une des qualités que tu as omis dans ton comparatif, c’est la facilité à manœuvrer les vélos pliés :

Le BF a la possibilité de déplacer le vélo plié devant soit par sa roue avant en le tenant par sa poignet. Alors je ne suis pas d’accord avec toi quant à la manœuvre du B dans la foule même avec le kit easy weels (2 roues). Ça reste cependant plus facile avec les 4 easy weels, mais le porte bagage devient indispensable.

Malheureusement, je n’ai pas eu l’occasion de tester ce point, mais il parait bien plus facile de faire rouler sur une roue de 16″ que des roulettes d’environs 60 mm.

C’est par ce point (entre autres) que BF m’intéresse

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSSgkcWqR6I&feature=related

Bien à toi
Rav

Thanks again! – Chris

I am about to buy a folder for my commute (20 mi round trip most days, others 35 mi due to other sites).

Great! Will this be your first folder?

I appreciate the review.

Thanks!

I was leaning heavily to the Brompton although am beginning to worry about the fit and my unusual size (6ft 5in, 205 pounds).

I’m 5.9 ft and use the extended (+6 cm) seat post, so you’ll most probably need the telescopic seat post on the Brompton.

It appears the more custom fit and better ride of the Tikit may sway me in the end. The size of the Brompton fold is very inviting but not absolutely crucial to me, comfort of ride and fit are significant concerns for me.

Do you have access to both bikes?

I would definitely suggest test-riding both. And the longer, the better. I mean, more than just around the block.

Do you have opinions about the choice of handlebars in the Tikit and Brompton?

The Tikit works with any handlebar out there. As noted above, you can choose flat bars, bullhorn bars, drop bars, moustache bars, Bike Friday’s “H” bars… Whatever.

The Brompton restricts the choice to only 3 handlebars’ types: traditional “Dutch” or “BMX” handlebars (M type), flat bars (S type), “butterfly” or “touring” handlebars (P type).

For urban use, I favor aerodynamics (faster) and permanent access to the brake levers (instant reaction).

For my Tikit, I’d choose the track-style handlebars, AKA pursuit AKA cow horns AKA bullhorn bars.

For my Brompton, I’ve combined the lowest P type stem with the flat S type bars. The picture above shows the bike before modification. Take a look at the current configuration.