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Folding bicycles.
Thought about folding bicycles a bit more. Having one would let me use our smaller more economical car and still do the park at edge of town and ride in thing, or use the big car and drop the boys off at school without having to take the bike out of the boot. I don't really need one, but it could be useful, and potentially pay for itself if it didn't cost too much (depending how much Alice has to use the bigger car if I'm in the Ka - since I prefer the bigger car, and she prefers the smaller one, it would be silly to swap unless it's saving significant fuel).
The main problem apart from is it worthwhile seems to be that they (almost all) come in only one size, which is too small.
I tried a Brompton a while back, and I could hardly ride it without my knees hitting the handlebars. But there is a longer seatpost as an optional extra, and the 2004 models apparently have a new hinge design that gives them a slightly longer wheelbase. Generally recognized as the best small neat folder for use on public transport, but I don't need it for that, and they aren't cheap.
I also tried a Birdy, which is big enough as standard, but is even more expensive than the Brompton. (Their Frog folds even smaller than the Brompton, though not quite as neatly and quickly, but it has a weight and height limit for riders, both of which I exceed.)
Also tried a cheaper Dahon which was only slightly annoying in it's too-smallness, and doesn't have a long seatpost option, but it might be possible to improvise something. They do have quite a range, though not many in local bike shops. The Giant Halfway was similar, with some novel features (it's a Mike Burrows' design).
Going still cheaper, I could get something like a second hand Raleigh Twenty from the Bike Man on the market. But while I wouldn't go this far, or do this, putting alloy wheels and better brakes on would add a fair bit to the cost. And it would also need a longer seatpost, maybe done like this.
Or there's a nasty small "Universal" folder that appears to have been abandoned on the bike racks at work, whose cable lock I could take a hacksaw to....
The main problem apart from is it worthwhile seems to be that they (almost all) come in only one size, which is too small.
I tried a Brompton a while back, and I could hardly ride it without my knees hitting the handlebars. But there is a longer seatpost as an optional extra, and the 2004 models apparently have a new hinge design that gives them a slightly longer wheelbase. Generally recognized as the best small neat folder for use on public transport, but I don't need it for that, and they aren't cheap.
I also tried a Birdy, which is big enough as standard, but is even more expensive than the Brompton. (Their Frog folds even smaller than the Brompton, though not quite as neatly and quickly, but it has a weight and height limit for riders, both of which I exceed.)
Also tried a cheaper Dahon which was only slightly annoying in it's too-smallness, and doesn't have a long seatpost option, but it might be possible to improvise something. They do have quite a range, though not many in local bike shops. The Giant Halfway was similar, with some novel features (it's a Mike Burrows' design).
Going still cheaper, I could get something like a second hand Raleigh Twenty from the Bike Man on the market. But while I wouldn't go this far, or do this, putting alloy wheels and better brakes on would add a fair bit to the cost. And it would also need a longer seatpost, maybe done like this.
Or there's a nasty small "Universal" folder that appears to have been abandoned on the bike racks at work, whose cable lock I could take a hacksaw to....
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Original Moultons do come up on ebay occasionally, though I haven't seen a Stowaway model yet (and that's separable not folding, like the newer ones).