Airnimal

http://www.airnimal.eu/News/Home.php

So I was looking at these as my replacement road bike after meeting a serious looking roadie commuting from Oxford to Reading one sunny summer afternoon a year or so ago....
Beautiful looking and I've held one at Condor and they're surprisingly light all things considered.

I'm quite keen as they appear to have also got the functionality of an easy storage solution in my future Dorms (which don't like bikes as a rule).

So yep, anyone got one?
reviews?

Not got one but know the guy who designs them and part owns the company (he obviously likes them!). He gets a lot of very good cyclists buying them for travel and training, think Emma Pooley got one. They're based out near Cambridge if you want a test of one first.

Bit expensive, that's my only memory of it, they sell them at London Fields Cycles...

I'm housing my brother-in-laws and he wants to sell it. Pics here. If it has done more than 50 miles i'd be amazed. He bought it about two years ago thinking he would morph into a cyclo-commute type. But he didn't. PM if you want to come look. In Earls Court and in my personal space.

havent got one, but they are Stradivarius of bikes,
if youre in the market- dont piss about, buy.

"I'm quite keen as they appear to have also got the functionality of an easy storage solution in my future Dorms (which don't like bikes as a rule)."

Does this mean your selling the geek v.2? Dibs :)

no, geek2 is being taken to a secret location (my grandparents house) and being stored, till I can afford a storage location in Nottingham.
It will never be sold!!!!!
Riding with JoshPrecise over the weekend reminded me how much I fucking love it!

when I get back (and get a job) these are 1st on the list of purchases....
they just sound great.

Guy I work with has one, speaks very highly of it, packs down lovely as well.

I've been lusting after a rhino for many a year. All the reports I read about the company were positive, and you'll struggle to get a better riding foldable. Another option, if you dont need to be able to break it down that quick, would be a breakaway. Not sure how small it actually gets though.

http://www.ritcheylogic.com/dyn_category.php?k=97991

http://www.minty-ai.net/bike/

pretty awesome, i repost this every time i see airnimal

now saving up to get one.
i've decided.

While not wishing to piss on your bonfire, Airnimals are great, but the early ones all cracked.

As I understand it they're better now, but something to consider if buying secondhand.

If you're in Oxford, Warlands sells them and will let you test ride. Worth looking at a Moulton, too, while you're there; I considered both, but decided I would have gone for the Moulton had I not lost my job. :(

Used to be in Oxford, london now.
Going to buy new, want the warranty.
H

Just had a message from ebay saying i've got second chance to buy one i missed out on a month or so ago as the sale fell through.

Have wanted a folder for a while as I travel a lot with work. Will let you know how I get on with it.

I bought a Cannondale, to tide me until I can actually afford one.
Was that the touring one with all the extras?

I've got the Joey Explorer Elite which might be the touring one you're thinking of :

I've changed a fair bit on it: wheels from 24" 507s to 24" 520's (after the pic was taken), Magura HS33's, decent bb and headset, bigger chainring and saddle / stem / handlebars / drop bar ends etc. The original spec wheel size limits you pretty much to above Schwalbe Marathons whereas moving to the 520's means I can run narrower rims and Duranos.

Very £££ new (mine was bought secondhand) but I've seen a few go on fleabay for less that the price of the Rohloff.

It's my daily commuter and I'm doing between 30 and 50 miles a day on it (I've got to have a folding bike as the train company don't allow non-folders on board unless you're travelling between 10am and 4pm into and out of London). I think they're the closest you can get to a 'proper' bike that folds within a couple of minutes .

I love it. Have been thinking about replacing it with the Chameleon but the aforementioned horror stories about cracking (and the bomb-proof rohloff on the Joey) keep putting me off...

I think that if I got a folder, it would probably be a Joey. That is, if I could ever afford a Birdy I'd get that.

I picked it up today. It's a Joey. I need to check the website to see which model but the ride back from Clapham Junction was good (with v quick stop at Souths).

Am contemplating whether to set it up as fixed / ss inspired by the link above ^^....

ahh. saw you at souths.
lucky bastard...

Were you sitting on the same table as Aram?

It seems cool - bargain at £375 i think?. Main reason for thinking about ss / fixing it is to bring the weight down as it's a bit heavier than I imagined.

btw they just did this:
http://www.airnimal.eu/Images/News/Fixie-Large.jpg

yup.
sorry quite quiet in person... shy/ tired/ preoccupied.

Soooo. I've had the Airnimal now for a few months - time for a quick review and a couple of questions.

Firstly I like it. It was definitely a good buy 2nd hand but there are a few buts.

For me it's working well. My requirements were fairly specific. I needed a bike I could:

• fit on my boat
  
• move around easily by taxi and train (London to Burton and York to Burton being main journeys)
  
• commute to work daily (about a 7 mile round trip with mild hills each way)
  
• get in a taxi (I actually didn't realise this requirement until I had the bike but big shops / crazy August rain made it a necessity)
  
• fit panniers on (again not a consideration initially but shopping / commuting kit-wise this has become essential)
  
  

Good news for me is that I picked the right bike - the Airnimal handles all the above.

There are some buts though:

• Folding. For me the fold is fine. But I don't need to get it really small or fold it that often, which is a good job. Folded it fits easily in a car boot but it's a pain to do regularly and to be honest especially with the rack it doesn't go that small. You have to:
  
  • take off the front wheel
    
  • tuck the handlebars into the spokes
    
    

As I don't have to fold that often this is OK for bunging in a cab but would proper piss me off if doing it every day for a commute. On a train I find I leave it unfolded. Better off with a Brompton I would think.

One thing I would ike to do is change the bars from flats . Ideally I'd like to stick bullhorns on there as that I mainly ride on the drops and miss this for the commute / any longer journeys.

Thing is it has V-brakes. Anyone have any experience of doing this (can V-brakes work with bullhorns?) or should I just get drops?

If so can anyone help me with a good set-up?

cheers!

you could use these levers:
http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/product-Tektro-Tektro-RL520-Aero-V-Brake-Levers--Black-14956.htm
and put them on the underside of the bullhorns, like

I really want an airnimal, if only they weren't so expensive...

Excellent - thanks v much!

Do they work with V-brakes do you know?

EDIT: Doh - just clicked the link - yes they do!

Keep looking - I reckon now they have been around a while there will be more coming up on ebay. I looked for 2 years.

There must be a fair few people who've bought them but they are not the right bikes (see above - Brompton is bar far the better option for commuting).

I really want an airnimal, if only they weren't so expensive...

H. as per post 4. Haggle, or think about haggling while you're in sunny California.