The Greatest Bike Ever Made 3/3 (7.2023)

Shop Here: s2w-shop.com
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#bestbike #bike #bicycle #alexmoulton #moulton #birdy #brompton #travel #foldingbike #separablebike #separablebikeframe #separaframe #compactbike
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Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:59 Frame Compatibility
3:15 Luggage Carriers
3:55 Drive Trains
4:57 Fit and Finish
8:05 Collecting

[@jpguthrie6669]

I have owned a Birdy, a Brompton, and a Moulton. I still have the Moulton, I gave the Birdy and the Brompton to friends. I liked the Brompton because it was a good townie bike, easy to fold, and easy to take on a train. However, the limited gear options made it hard to ride when I moved to a part of the city with steep hills, and I don't like to have to get off and push. The design of the Brompton made drivetrain upgrades difficult, and the 16" tire size made installing a derailleur with a wider range of gears impractical. The Brompton also doesn't offer much in the way of cockpit adjustment, you have to ride in an upright position. I replaced my Brompton with a Birdy. The Birdy was much more easy to upgrade and modify. I could easily add an MTB cassette and derailleur which gave me the gearing to climb any hill. Converting my Birdy to 20" wheels was as easy as simply bolting them on, and adjusting the brake pads outward. The Birdy was lighter than the Moulton, though not as fast to fold. The Birdy's cockpit was larger, and a road bar could be fitted, giving me the ability to mimic the riding position I use on my road bikes. However, the Birdy had a quirky ride. It was perfectly adequate for getting around, but the very long stem which tilts toward the front, loved to fall to one side or the other when I stopped and took my hands off the bar. At high speeds it was prone to the "death wobble" unless I held the bar tightly. While the Birdy folded compactly, lining up the pedal, tucking away the cables to prevent pinching, shifting to the small gear, and then lining up the chain when unfolding, made the process more troublesome than the Brompton. I bought the Moulton on a whim. A local dealer had one in stock (a rare thing), I handed over the cash, and rode it home. I hadn't ridden more than one minute when I realized I was on one of the sweetest riding bikes I had ever been on (and I have ridden lots of bikes). It was smooth, stable, and agile. Unlike the Birdy, I could actually ride without my hands on the bar. The Reynolds 531 steel was strong and supple, the suspension worked when I ran over bumps or holes in the road, but otherwise wasn't noticeable. A wonderful thing about the Moulton was that I could modify it as easily as the Birdy. I upgrade the standard Shimano 9 speed driveline to a new (at the time) Dura Ace 9000 Di2 system, TRP brakes, custom wheels, and an ATB bull moose handlebar. I was lucky enough to find an Ostrich custom travel bag in Japan which allows me to disassemble the bike, put the components in special compartments, and carry the bike with me when I travel. Many people like the Moulton because of its space frame design, I like it because it has the best ride of any bike I have experienced.

[@SmallWheelWonder]

A great comment that confirms much of what I have said in the videos. The only mistake you made was to get rid of the Brompton and the Birdy. There is nothing wrong with collecting, and the Brompton makes an exceptionally agile shopping cart, while a properly detailed Birdy can be hung on the wall as a conversation starter ;-)

[@jpguthrie6669]

@@SmallWheelWonder I live in Tokyo, Japan, and though our home is very large by Japanese standards, it is not big enough to store a stable of bicycles. The Moulton has everything I need of a bicycle, so it is the only bicycle I need. It's very tempting to own more bikes, and in Tokyo I have access to things which are much harder to find in America or Europe.

[@SmallWheelWonder]

I understand. If those with a full collection were pushed to make a choice, they would chose the Moulton. The fastest bike in any category that you can store under the bed.

[@uncleronny6748]

Yeah the "folding" bike stuff is out there. Several years back I bought 2 AM7s with optional racks, bags and Uber rare transport cases for a hundred bucks at an estate sale. Since then I picked up a Bike Friday frame for $25. What works to your advantage with these is most sellers think they're kids bikes.

[@PRH123]

Wow, awesome finds. Green with envy here :)

[@chimichaelx8770]

Is such a very beautiful artwork ( masterpiece)

[@SmallWheelWonder]

You can look at a work of art at a museum or even better, you can ride one.

[@fofopads4450]

This guy voice made me understand why YT has a 2x speed for videos. Loved the video tho. Now I know I can skip on Bromptons and Birdies

[@lewis2360]

Look forward to your thoughts on recumbents, maybe even on recumbent trikes.

[@SmallWheelWonder]

I have a video on recumbents and another on velomobiles, but more is coming.

[@MazingerZX]

Cool to see my red SST at 23 sec of the video! :)

[@SmallWheelWonder]

You have a bike for life.

[@fender1000100]

No doubt a great bike and looks like it can move. I will be buying a Moulton Speed. Xmas 2025. Got £6,000 saved up need another £6,000.

[@ericpmoss]

Nice! Are you thinking leading link or Flexitor fork? I tried each type (not Speeds, though) at the Moulton factory, and they felt very similar, but I really like the idea of the NS fork as it should resist rotation better than the leading link, should be less finicky when balancing the left/right damping, AND has the lockout to improve hill climbing.

[@LouisCognault]

Subscribing to hear what you'll say about recumbent bikes.

[@bristolfashion4421]

Nice vid. dude 😊 I was lucky - I went to the factory and he go like we got this sst in (a very plain vanilla) grey and the buyer not like it… do you want it? I go like oh yes

[@SmallWheelWonder]

I'm jealous!

[@paulmckearney4945]

I dont doubt that they are great bijes with a great ride quality. I also don't doubt that they are an example of over-complicating a solution to a problem.

[@SmallWheelWonder]

So far, nobody has come up with a simpler solution to create this level of rigidness and strength along with separability. If this happens, I will definitely cover it.

[@stevezodiac491]

yes you are right.

[@paulmckearney4945]

@@SmallWheelWonder Give me a double triangle steel frame any day!

[@deepindercheema]

Interesting observation on collectors. The branded bikes with car companies are no good to collect. The only one good to collect is the Lotus track and time trial monocoque designed by the late Mike Burrows which was used in the Olympics but then banned by the UCI. The other bike to collect is the very early Brompton. The first 30 which was made when Mr Ritchie failed to sell his patent, so 30 people paid £300 which gave the inventor £9000+ to make tooling and buy materials and 2 years later his single handed made Bromptons were ready to collect. He made another 20 for retail. I have No 004 and 011 - only 30 were made and several were thrown away. So I think having 2 Bromptons from the late 1970s ( the Sturmey hub is dated 5-80) is as good as having a Vincent Black Lightning and is rarer

[@SmallWheelWonder]

People collect a lot of junk without paying attention to resale value. You must consider rarity before you buy.

[@deepindercheema]

When the inventor of the Brompton ( Andrew Ritchie) could not sell or licence his Patent to Raleigh, he decided to make a proof of concept edition, so 30 subscribers were found and they paid £300 for a Brompton in the future, so when I found No 004 i discovered that several were scrapped or thrown away. This increased the rarity of this edition, so I bought No 011 when it came up for sale. The hinge for the fold was changed from No 051 onward so the edition of only 30 + 20 pieces could only get rarer.

[@geriannroth449]

Which Moulton model would you recommend for light off road trail riding & some bumpy city riding?

[@SmallWheelWonder]

A frame that can take a 2.5 inch wide tire with brakes attached on the two sides at two points.

[@geriannroth449]

@@SmallWheelWonder Ok thanks

[@ericpmoss]

I have an XTB. It is fabulous for crappy roads and cobbled streets, but "light off road trail" ... it won't do anything technical, as it is not good for anything out of saddle because the front suspension is tuned for road chatter instead of bunny hops. It isn't very slack, so going down an embankment won't feel much safer than on a normal road bike. It is not good in mud deeper than 1", and then only with knobbies. It is great if you can do what you need sitting and spinning. So, I have had great experiences on rough streets in Chicago, well-packed gravel, cobbled streets, and firm, smooth single track as long as it doesn't get too steep or rutted or muddy. I wouldn't try a rock garden at all.

[@ericpmoss]

Addendum: for me, unless I had infinte $, the best two choices are the XTB and the SST. The XTB is tougher and accepts wider tires, BUT... depending on how rowdy your streets are, how heavy and aggressive you are, and how much 'underbiking' you are comfortable with, the SST could be a better overall choice. It is lighter, at least in the 2x configuration, is 1000 GBP cheaper, has a 2x Campy option, which is really nice, and still lets you put on 35 (40?)mm BMX slicks. I'm chonky and dealing with some luggage on some really primitive roads, so I put up with the XTB's extra weight and bulk and 1x drivetrain. Doing it all over for a barely loaded fun bike scenario, I'd do the 2x SST with the widest tires I could fit. It would still be very good in the city, and still ok to do a little underbiking in non-snow, non-mud, non-technical trails (not over fields).

[@jeremylim1076]

Can’t fold..? Hmm…. Then I can’t get into the sub way..

[@SmallWheelWonder]

You can separate it, but this is a weak spot for sure.

[@davidhunternyc1]

You said something about the Moulton which blew my mind. Correct me if I'm wrong. You believe that a Moulton would beat every bike in the Tour de France peloton. Is this true? I could see how the Moulton would beat bikes from 40 years ago but new bikes weigh 15 pounds and use advanced technologies of their own. How much does a Moulton Double Pylon weigh? Your observation about 20" vs. 28" wheel sizes is interesting indeed. I'm surprised too that Moultons are banned in pro peloton bike races. Doesn't make sense.

[@SmallWheelWonder]

The world speed record for upright bikes is held by a Moulton. All small wheel bikes are banned from all of the big international races along with recumbents and for the same reason.

[@stevezodiac491]

​@SmallWheelWonder as soon as you go up hill below 10 mph, the weight of the Moulton would be a severe disadvantage against a 6.8 kg uci limit bike.

[@stevezodiac491]

From a life long racing cyclist's point of view the design of a Moulton is much more inferior to a modern race bike. There is no real need for suspension on such a small light weight vehicle, with a single rider because the pneumatic tyres on modern bikes are quite sufficient on their own along with the spokes on a larger wheel. Moultons 'bob' whilst pedalling, just the same as a mountain bike that also has both front and rear suspension, which isn't efficient at all and alters the natural cadence, for further efficiency losses. Smaller wheels do accelerate and decelerate faster but smaller wheels also do not roll as well and all things considered are not as fast as larger wheels and are twitchy whilst riding, they also as a wheel, don't smooth out road imperfections as well as larger wheels. So the addition of small wheels in bicycle design, nessessitates the need for suspension, that with larger wheels, it negates the need for further suspension, or the extra weight, it's addition would incur. Further, the frame is a round section tubing space frame, round tubes may be good for weight against structural load for some engineering requirements but round tubes are very bad for aerodynamics, add to this the whole space frame gives you as big as a surface area as you could possibly imagine, with the mirriad of triangles and you have got a bicycle frame with possibly the worst aerodynamics of any bike on the road, not withstanding added unessessary weight compared with the alternative double diamond frame, whereas modern day carbon fibre aerofoil shaped tubing on a modern race bike, is the leader in aerodynamic design, that is not an illegal in competetition recumbent, which is by far of the greatest importance along with the aerodynamics of the rider for going as fast as possible with the available power to propel the bike. The long seat and steerer tube, inherent in the Moulton design, also reduces overall stiffness, which again reduces total efficiency because of flex. The double diamond frame has persisted in bicycle design for one reason, it is the best within the design restraints of a none recumbent. As far as I can see the Moulton was an answer to a none existent problem, a tour de force of misguided over engineering, just for the sake of it. I myself own a Brompton, with small wheels but the folding element nessessitates small wheels in the design and otherwise as a bike you pay the price, with poorer rideability. With a Moulton, there was no need for all that extra engineering to re'invent the wheel as it were for no functional reason. As far as the usual comment "carbon is rubbish" I have owned a carbon fibre Dunlop Hotta Perimeter TT double diamond aerofoil framed bike, with carbon specialised tri spokes wheels and a carbon cockpit, since 1992 ( 32 years ) I have won open inter club cycling club races on it and it still works perfectly ( and hasn't rusted away ) now that i am a pensioner. I haven't seen any Moultons in competition at all, then or now. I wonder why ? I have also done road coast to coast rides and many century rides with thousands of feet of climbing on a carbon fibre cannondale super six evo, weighing in at the uci limit of 6.8 kg, probably half the weight of a Moulton.

[@SmallWheelWonder]

The Moulton speed record has never been successfully challenged, but keep in mind that it was established by a fully faired version.

[@user-iu3vd6ft5b]

Iam pleased to tell you there are Russian flags flying over avdeevka you know the impenetrable fortress city,, it makes so proud and just in time for the anniversary of the smo on the 22of feb.

[@SmallWheelWonder]

I will have a video on the progression of WWIII coming soon, but not before I hit 1000 subscribers and get approved as a Tube partner because the topic is a bit risky ;-)

[@user-iu3vd6ft5b]

so sorry my bad to many threads and debates at once.@@SmallWheelWonder

[@SmallWheelWonder]

Not a problem. My video will be more weapons and tech focused than politics, but it will be educational nevertheless :-)