Category: TechyStuff

I've got to that dicey part of a Brompton 8 speed conversion where I open up the rear triangle to take an Alfine 8 hub. As posted elsewhere, the dropouts on a Brompton are 112mm apart. Shimano hubs are typically 135mm, so that's asking the tubes of the rear triangle to bend apart by 23mm - quite an ask when the tubes themselves are only 180mm long from the point where they are braced together, to their rear end at the dropout. On this job I'm experimenting with swapping the large serrated 10.7mm locknut on the non-drive side for a much smaller 4.4mm one. (From SJS Cycles).   This saving of 6.3mm width brings down the requirement to widen the triangle to just under 129mm. The good news is, I've achieved this already - well nearly. By opening up the triangle to 150mm under compression, I found it sprang back to 128mm - nearly there! However, I decided to try a little experiment. Intuitively,...

Over the years I've tried may ways of cleaning a chain. In this video I show a simple way to keep on top of the grime, that can take as little as two minutes, but makes a real difference to the feel and performance of your chain. Keep the grit and grime out of your Brompton chain, and it will last longer and cause you (and your clothing!) fewer problems.    ...

This looks like an exciting solution for those who already have a Brompton and don't want to find nearly £3000 for an e-Brompton. The entry level Brompton kit from Swytch, by contrast, costs just £400. And what's more, the entire kit weighs about the same as the Brompton e-bike battery alone. Tempting!  ...

Perhaps Brompton Suburbia would have been a better name for this new edition, which looks like it's dressed up for a fancy dress party, not for serious touring. Donning a pith helmet and plus-fours doesn't make you an explorer. I'm disappointed because I'd hoped that Brompton would have used their engineering genius to solve some basic problems that make the Brompton inadequate for touring. Like the fact that the rack can't take panniers. And the gearing is too narrow and still too high. And there are no mudguards. And I'm frustrated, because the Brompton has a lot going for it as a tourer. I've taken mine twice round the Scottish isles of Mull and Iona, and wild camped on remote beaches and hillsides. It's not  a fast touring bike, but with its small wheels it doesn't tire you out (getting going is always easy), and its frame suspension keeps you comfortable. And I'm suspicious, because this edition feels more like a marketing ploy...

Much as I'd love to have an electric Brompton, they are well outside my budget (and probably most people's). So this post is looking at alternatives, and particularly, at what I did with my ten year-old bike to turn it into an electric workhorse at a fraction of the cost of a new electric bike. (There are ways to convert your Brompton to electric too - some people swear by these.) Three Power Options I started by trying a number of off-the-peg models at a local e-bike shop. The three basic options for powering an ebike are to put a motor in the front wheel, the rear wheel, or in the bottom bracket. Most of these work on the basis that when you begin to pedal, this activates the motor, though some have a manual throttle. Each have their pros and cons. Bottom bracket (BB): I tested some state of the art e-bikes with a BB motor. Powering the bottom bracket makes sense because...