Bike Friday New World Tourist folding bike ~55 cm

[EricS]

I'm selling my Bike Friday New World Tourist folding touring bike. Bike Friday's are custom-built steel folding bikes, made in Eugene, OR (I'm the second owner, so it's not custom to me). The typical evaluation relative to to Bromptons, that I have found to be accurate, is that a Brompton folds more compactly, but Bike Fridays actually ride like a normal bike, partly due to it's larger wheels (20" vs. 16" on a Brompton) and because they are made in multiple frame sizes. The NWT is designed for fully loaded touring - it can take front and rear racks, and it packs up into a hard-sided suitcase that passes airline size requirements and does not trigger oversize luggage fees. At this point, I can unpack and build up the bike in under 10 minutes. Packing takes about 15 minutes, with a little fiddling to get everything to line up in the case. It comes with detailed instructions on folding/unfolding and packing. These are very fun, solid bikes, but I'm in the process of acquiring a different travel/touring solution and this has always been a bit big for me.

Asking £700, negotiable.


More photos below.

Size: approx. 56 cm (hard to put a number on it, because they don't have a top tube!), it's a bit too big for me at 5'8", 5'10"-6' is probably a reasonable range of rider heights. Let me know if you want to test ride it.

Drivetrain: 46t chainring, Sachs 3x7 hub: that's a 7-speed cassette+3 internal gears, controlled by Shimano STI levers - a very clever system that eliminates the front derailleur and makes the bike easier to fold/pack. Sachs 7-speed rear derailleur.

Wheels: 20" aluminum rims, 36 spoke, Shimano Deore front hub. Primo Comet tires 20x1.35".

Contact points:
Saddle - Brooks B17 Special, but if you don't want it, we can work something out.
Handlebars - Bike Friday segmented drop bars (they're cut down the middle with a sleeve to join them together under the wide stem - sounds odd, but it works and makes it a lot easier to pack the handlebars!)
Pedals - none

Brakes: Tektro V-Brakes with a TravelAgent so they work with the cable pull of road levers.

Shifter/Brake levers: Shimano RSX-STI 7x3.

Also: Carlton hard-sided suitcase with packing materials and anti-crush braces.

Suitcase with science-y stickers so airline agents are less likely to want to charge bike fees



All packed up, with a little space to spare for panniers or helmet.


Rear wheel with all the internal and external gears


The internally-geared hub:


The fold-point:


Folded up:


Fork with low-rider rack mounts: