Bike Friday
A folding bike is a compromise between ride quality and foldability. Moulton makes great artisan folding bikes with very unique design. Brompton also makes lovely folding bikes (previously-reviewed), but kind of artisan and pricey. I like the previously-reviewed Strida if all you have to do is ride 1-2 miles to the transit station. It's not much good if you have to ride for more than 15 minutes. Citizen Bikes are awful, but some people who have never ridden a nice bike seem to be able to tolerate it. Dahon is starting to make some pretty damn good folding bikes at reasonable prices.
But my favorite is Bike Friday. It can fold into a suitcase that won't incur over-charges on airplanes. Super light. Rides like a real bike, in some ways better. They have a few different models (even tandems!); I've ridden most of them -- they are all good. I optimized my choice for quality of ride, but you can build them with ease of folding in mind by specifying what you want in terms of tools/no tools. For instance, some models require tools to fold for airline travel, but not for folding to stash on cars/buses. The Tikit models, on the other hand, explicitly requires no tools for folding at all.
These bikes are not cheap. I am a self-admitting bike snob. I value ride quality. Most low-cost folding bikes just feel cheap. The difference is in the custom-fitted frame, and better design details, higher-quality components and etc. (Bike Friday has been doing it for years). But you can get on a good Bike Friday for $1200. If you want, you can spend up to $3000 or even more for extras, but the frame is the same. These guys have great customer service, too.
I love mine. When it was recently stolen, I was heartbroken. Bike theft is like pet death. If you see my yellow Bike Friday (it has my wife's name "Arwen Griffith" on the top tube), throw rotten fruit and stones at the asshole who stole it.
Favorite (15)
norton
A good folding bike is a great way to experience the city. I've been commuting to work on a Brompton for the last two years and love it. Friday's are good bikes, too, but I preferred the compact shape of the a folded Brompton, the fact that it locks when it folds, and the way the chain is tucked into the middle of the folded bike, so you don't get grease on your slacks when you're carrying it in the elevator. Plus it's not that much more expensive than a Friday. If you're lucky enough to live near a shop that specializes in folding bikes, such as B-Fold in NYC (http://www.bfold.com/) try out several and see which one works best for you.
Aaron
I've had a Bike Friday Tikit for two years now, and I absolutely love it.
The ride is fabulous, it folds in literally five seconds (check BF's website for video proof), and I don't have to worry about taking a bike lock--the bike just comes in with me wherever I go.
The Tikit is perfect for multi-modal commuters like me as well--I don't have to worry about finding an open bike hook on the MAX here in Portland. It rolls on folded and takes up no more room than a suitcase.
Highly, highly recommended.
Martin
You might want to check out http://www.montagueco.com/ for a series of high quality folding bicycles. They ride just like regular bicycles. Also the quick release hubs are very innovative.
Jagur
The Moulton shouldn't be consitered a folding bike. It separates by design but it's really in a catagory all by itself.
Karmen Mlinar
I love this one folding bike: http://www.bigfishbike.com/
Karmen Mlinar
I love this one folding bike: http://www.bigfishbike.com/
Nicholas
I have a custom made single speed Pocket Rocket by Bike Friday. Quite cool, and after riding a Dahon for a year was looking for more stability. It still fits in a truck if I ride to meet friends for a beer, and get a ride home. But, the size even without folding is a consideration. They are great for apartments and with one hand launch over a transit turnstile.
Daniel
I also love my Bike Friday. I've barely used my other bike since I got it. It's quite handy when I can fit it into just about any of my friend's cars if I end up needing a ride home etc.
What makes it so good compared to other folders is that all the parts are standard, so you can customize it just like any other bike, and it's easy to replace a part that breaks instead of going to something specific to the manufacturer.
Darren Alff - Bicycle Touring Pro
I am currently traveling around Europe for 8 months with a Bike Friday New World Tourist and it's performing extremely well. It's rugged, flies for free on the planes, and works well both on and off paved roads.
Only recently has the bike become a problem on the trains and boats here in Austria, Slovenia and Croatia. Whether the bike folds or not, many public transportation methods here don't allow the bike onboard. I've had to bribe my way onto boats and pay fines on the train for bringing the bike on board. The cost of these bribes and fines were small, but the stress it caused was pretty overwhelming at times.
This says nothing about Bike Friday however, as the bike is fantastic. It's simply the fact that folding bikes are still not a 100% answer for traveling with a bike. They're pretty darn close to perfect, but not 100%.
I am trying to get my hands on some of the other major folding bikes to give them a try and compare them to my Bike Friday, but I haven't been too successful with that endeavor just yet. It's hard to say whether the Bike Friday is best when you haven't tried everything else on the market. WHile I work on getting my hands on all the other bikes, I can say that I'm pretty happy with my Bike Friday. It took me about a month to get used to the fact that I was riding a little folding bike, but now it feels completely normal. It feels like riding a regular mountain bike... and I like it!
Moon
Couldn't you fashion some sort of bag for the bag and then nobody would know what it was without close inspection?
Moon
That should read "bag for the BIKE". Sheesh. I didn't think I was THAT hungover.
Jerry Q
I have a Bike Friday Air Glide, and although I consider it a superior bike and great to ride, I have to say that I totally agree with people who call these "bikes that fold" rather than "folding bikes". Air glides may be different than other models (new world tourist, etc), but I can't imagine using them for multi-modal transportation as the folding process is not particularly fast and the complete detachment of the handlebar stem makes it incredibly annoying to keep track of! We use them (my wife has one as well) as great "week-end" bikes. They fold up enough to fit into the back of a VW beetle, and I can put them together at our hotel or bed and breakfast, where ever we are, and spend a weekend exploring in whatever town and surrounding environs we're located. The Brompton and the folding Breezer, both of which I've ridden, seem to be much more oriented toward rapid and complete folding into compact commuter packages--both seemed to ride just fine, as well. I rode one of the really early Tickit for a week (rented it for a week), and it didn't fit me well at all. I'm 6'1, 205 and it squeaked and creaked quite a bit, although I understand from friends that the newer models are much better.
Crosius
I have a Tikit that I ride all over the city. When I commute, it fits under my desk. I absolutely agree that Bike Friday makes wonderful bikes.
Spiny Norman
I'm a bike fanatic. I've had bikes stolen and I've had pets die. If you think that bike theft is like pet death, you like your bikes way too much, your pets not nearly enough, or both.
Kevin
I think I saw your bike thief, Saul. He was riding around Kalamazoo with a guy who looked like Elvis.