The folding bicycle experiment

When I discovered this folding bicycle on Costco's web site, my imagination exploded with all the benefits it could deliver. Folding bikes can be taken on rush hour GO trains, so I could ride this bike from Union station to my job instead of the subway; after seven weeks, the bike would pay for itself. I work in Toronto, the bike theft capital of the world, and being able to bring a folded bike to my job would provide great peace of mind. The exercise I'd get before and after work would be beneficial to my health. This folding bike could easily be stowed in the trunk of my car, allowing me to park in low-cost or free parking areas, using the bike to complete journeys into areas of expensive parking. It suddenly occurred to me that a folding bicycle was exactly what I needed to make my life better.

I ordered the bike on a Tuesday; it arrived on my doorstep on the following Friday. My first reaction when lifting this bike out of its cardboard box was that it was heavy. I'm talking bend-at-the-knees-when-lifting kind of heavy. Costco isn't exaggerating when they say this bike weighs over 40 pounds; with the exception of the wheels and a couple of clips, this bike is made from chromed and painted heavy steel. Even the fenders and chain guard are made of tin.

When unfolded, the dimensions between the seat, pedals, and handlebars of this bike are that of a full sized adult cruiser bicycle. At 6'4” and 220 lbs., it's important for me to have a bike that's big and strong enough, and with the seat post fully extended, this bike just barely fits. It's reasonably easy to find a comfortable riding position, as the seat incorporates chromed springs and generous padding and the handle bars have an ergonomic bend. In fact, given the price of $139, this bike comes remarkably well-equipped; besides the comfort grade seat, it also comes with a full reflector package, sturdy carrier, full fenders, full chain guard, a kickstand, and even a bell. These are usually options on comparably priced and even more expensive traditional bikes that, combined, can easily cost half of the price of this bike.

In spite of its heaviness, this bike is remarkably easy and comfortable to ride. There are six gears, and they're all geared low to provide sufficient options for just about any kind of hill, making the bike weight a non-issue while riding. The shifting is indexed, and my bike needed a minor adjustment after arriving to ensure the chain meshed with the appropriate cogs, which I did myself without the use of any tools as the dérailleur is a good Shimano. The unfortunate side effect of the gearing is that this bike doesn't go very fast. This bike would have been better with a significantly larger chain ring, as first gear is ridiculously low for the 20” wheel it's driving. As for the brakes, the front brake is a cheap side pull caliper, and the rear brake is a band brake. I had never used a band brake on a bike before, but my first impression was that it seemed adequate.

The bike rides solid enough, but there is some frame flex. I don't think this has to do with the hinge, but rather due to the lack of a top tube in the frame. Overall, the flex isn't any worse than what one might find in a typical steel frame women's cruiser. The 20 inch alloy wheels appear to have come off a kid's bike, which should come as no surprise given that Mongoose does a lot of business making bikes for kids. The tires are cheap, and the soft rubber is easily punctured, but other than that they are strong enough for my weight. It occurs to me that many of the components appear to have come from kids bikes. My guess is that Mongoose incorporated components from their mass produced kids bikes to keep the price low.

Time to unfold and set up takes me around 45 seconds. Time to fold the bike back down takes me around 30 seconds. When folded, there's nothing to keep the bike together. The optimal place to hold the bike while carrying it is just above the pedal crank on the seat post, but even still the handle bars want to flop out occasionally. I recommend a bungee strap to keep it together.

I tried this bike out for two weeks for my commute. I put it in the trunk of my car and drove to the train station, where I took the train every day to Union Station then rode the bike to my job, where I folded it up and stowed it at work. I then rode that bike back to Union station, rode the train back to my home city, put it in the trunk of my car, and drove home. When riding, I felt as though I was riding an adult-sized kids bike. I was certainly quicker than walkers, but people jogging were able to keep pace with me unless I cranked the pedals fast. I quickly ran out of gears even on slight inclines. When I did this to get some good speed out of the bike, I found the brakes faded awfully quickly, to the point of being scary. Towards the middle of the second week, I noticed a new pain developing in my back; it became clear to me that lugging over 40 pounds of bike along with my backpack was taking its toll. A folding bike this heavy wasn't meant to be carried any distance.

Once the “Gee Whiz” factor wore off, I realized that a cheap $99 department store mountain bike offered a better experience than this folding bike. Such a bike could be locked up at a train station and be largely ignored by bike thieves, and I could carry the tools necessary to perform regular basic maintenance in a small bag.

There doesn't appear to be any kind of carrying case for this bicycle offered by anyone anywhere, so this offers no real advantage over a full size bike for the airline traveller. For the compact car traveller on a budget, it might be suitable; it fits in my trunk comfortably with room to spare. Not quite enough for a second identical folding bike (unless I folded down the back seat), but certainly enough for anything I'd need for a week away from home.This bike is really meant for those condominium dwelling recreational cyclists who would like to bring a bicycle with them on their annual camping trip to putter around on the groomed camp ground trails. For a minimal investment, you have something that you can stow away in a closet, ready for the one or two times a year you'd want it. No need to worry about roof racks or carriers. 

No doubt about it; this is as cheap as it gets when it comes to folding bikes, but it's pretty clear why this bike is as cheap as it is. My advice to Mongoose is this: Put a larger chain ring on this bike to give it full sized bike gearing, give it decent brakes to accommodate  and drop the weight by 10 pounds by way of aluminium or plastic components. I can tell by this bike that you build decent quality products, but the kiddie bike gearing and fading brakes were huge disappointments.  As for me, I'll be sticking to full sized bikes from now on.