Experiences of *old* folding bikes?

would you consider something new(er)?

Not really to be honest as I think those new ones are a lot uglier.
I'd rather get an old bike that needs some work / few new bits.

I think the Decathlon ones are very ugly as well. At least they're cheap-ish.

A friend of mine has one of these; they ride pretty good, but are €500-700 depending on specs,
also to be honest in real life they look worse than in this picture

I have borrowed a pretty wicked one from a friend for a week or two, to check out whether a bike like that would actually make sense for me.
Manufacturer is apparently "Sport '72", model might be "Europa", from the "luxus" line.

I had the same model in that lovely green. Rare but lovely, was £20 on eBay if I remember.

It looks like I'm a day late to this conversation:
Raleigh Twenty in a Ford Ka. Needed the stem 'safety' wire removing to allow the stem and handlebars to be lodged in the seat tube.

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Thats a neat man

A to B magazine is quite fond of Bickertons, but they've had their day.

http://www.atob.org.uk/folding-bikes/history-folding-bike/

As has been said, they are very flexy:

The Bickerton was the first modern folder, and for many years was the only one readily available. Its novel aluminium construction produced a very light frame, but one which was very flexible, which most people found very undesirable. The Bickerton is long out of production, but due to the large number that were sold, quite a lot still survive. Probably not a good choice for anyone nowadays, unless you are interested in a piece of cycling history. If you do have one, support is available via Derek Baker, and Mark Bickerton, the son of the designer Harry Bickerton, is still actively involved in the cycle industry (Cyclemotion, who are associated with Dahon amongst others), and has made a start on recording some Bickerton history.

http://www.foldsoc.co.uk/buyguide.html

The brand has been revived:

http://www.bickertonportables.co.uk/

Very nice MrE love that colour , luckily I just pop the rear seats down in my car and the king pin fits in easily,

The Ka is MrsE's - she won't drive the bigger cars, and it's sometimes convenient for her to drive places then drop me off.
It will fit in the Freelander and Q5 without moving the seats...

You could probably put the ka in the back of Q5, Mrs k used to have the non folding twenty so when I found this folding kingpin for £30 I was delighted, she always forgets it can fold,

I was trying to comment on the bike in the Q5, but yes, the Ka will probably fit as well.
The colour is RustOleum Dark Grey - looks good but chips easily.

Thanks for the links!
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The colour is RustOleum Dark Grey - looks good but chips easily.

I can recommend Montana colours (the spanish Montana brand, not the german one!) for rattlecan-DIY-jobs.
The palette is really nice I think.
You need to shake these really well before use and let the paint dry properly.
Then you'll have a super tough finish with a nice gloss.

http://www.montanacolors.com/webapp/spray?id=108

Found one that aesthetically is somewhat close to the oldschool folders -

Called the "JUDD", by Critical Cycles (or the "Folding" by FabricBikes, if you prefer the spanish version).

Quite a few mixed reviews though; components apparently are only mediocre quality.

Do appreciate the design though!
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I got a Dahon Piccolo folding bike single speed hub with knobbly tyres good for short distance. Folds up nice and small when commuting and around 13 kg

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Nice and small

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My mum had a Bickerton in the late 70s/early 80s. She used to drive to the childminders with it in the boot, leave the car and kids there and cycle on to work, about 3 miles I think.

I nabbed it off her about 10 years ago, tried it once and was terrified by the flex. Freecycled it.

I also had the same Halfords folder as posted at the start of the thread, and agree it was a great ride. Way nicer ride than a Raleigh 20 IMO.

Seems like I just got myself something fun. Any good sources for 20" wheelsets? Anything that is not BMX with 48 spokes?

look for Taylor Wheels on ebay - They are a German shop with lots of cheap 20" offerings.

Just saw this in the small ads.
If it wasn't so far away I'd actually buy this, if just for shits'n'giggles..
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That's mental. Post it in the functional thread and watch the reaction ;)

Give me the link and I'll do it.
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Needs drops and unpadded saddle

Those bars are totally on trend right now. #bluelugbuilds

#posthipster

Imagine if actually it’s a giant tall bike with Bickerton-esque bars...