Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Carry Me Delight! Avid Brake Levers and Ergon Grips

A new addition to the bike family! In addition to the Dahon Boardwalk X20-R, Dahon Vitesse P18-TT, and Flamingo London S7R, we now have a Carry Me!

If you don't already know, the Carry Me is a folding bike with tiny 8" wheels that folds really compactly. It is made by Pacific Cycles in Taiwan. When fully folded, it has an extremely small footprint and can literally go on any public transport at any time. It rides surprisingly well and it always brings a smile to someone who is riding it for the first time.

I got the bike second hand, but the condition is practically new! The previous owner did not really use the bike a lot and so I got a really good deal. Best of all, it was a really nice blue colour!

Overall view of the Carry Me

Front knob for locking down the main frame. I tried using a QR lever instead of the knob, but found the knob easier to use.

Came with upgraded Ezy Wheels! Very smooth rolling indeed.

Rear caliper brakes. Not of high quality, but it works.

Front caliper brakes. Seems that this bike needs long reach caliper brakes and thick but short brake pads.

Special drivetrain system, with half-pitch chain and gears. Crank arm is only 160mm to minimise pedal strike.

Front chainring with 84 tiny teeth. The bike is in such good condition that the plastic wrapping is still on the frame!

Rear sprocket with 14 tiny teeth.

With the 84T in front and 14T behind, it gives a driving ratio of 6. Together with the 8" wheels, the gear inch for this single speed bike is 48". This is not a high ratio, equivalent to about 52/21 on a 20 inch bike, but it feels just right for the Carry Me.

I have already started to zhng the bike! There wasn't any investment in components needed, thus I just made the switch. Also, I checked every bolt and nut on the bike to make sure that none of them are loose.

The stock brake levers are pretty bad, thus I switched in a pair of Avid FR5 brake levers that I had lying around as spare. At the same time, I also installed a set of Ergon grips which were previously used for the flat handlebar Dahon Vitesse.

Original brake levers and grips

Upgraded Avid FR5 brake levers and Ergon grips!

It is now more comfortable to grip the handlebars, and the brake levers seem to feel less squishy. Other accessories added are a set of small front and rear blinkers for night riding.

Riding this bike can be quite fun, as the turning radius is so small that you can practically keep turning on the spot. It takes a while to get used to the narrow handlebars, which makes the steering more twitchy. But it is very useful for getting through tight spots! Riding on the roads is not really recommended due to the slow speed and also small size which makes you less visible.

The small wheels means that you will feel every little bump on the road! But when pumped up to the recommended 80 PSI, the bike is surprisingly comfortable given such small wheels.

Some pictures of the folded Carry Me below!

 Only occupies one small corner

Takes up only 6x6 dots on the MRT platform!

Express fold, only half folded. Handlebar and seatpost not lowered.

Fully folded view. Tucks in anywhere discreetly.

Takes up less space than a rubbish bin!

This bike is perfect for mixed mode commuting. With a bike this small, you can go onto the MRT at any time. Very useful for getting to places within 3km of an MRT station/bus stop. Any further than that is still possible, but be prepared to sweat a little more and take a while longer!


Overall pictures of the Carry Me! Note where I wrapped the rear light.

15 comments:

  1. I was going to say...8" wheels - what happens if you hit a pot hole or a frost heave? You'd be down on the road in no time! I don't really get bikes like these. If you can't ride them on the road, or anywhere else you might go, what's the point? It makes me really glad I decided to go with a Montague bike. It's a full-size folder, and I've never had a problem taking it on public transit.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Different bikes for different purposes! this bikes are best for casual cycling to the neighborhood or on the park connectors. I wouldn't use a road bike on an off road trail, but that doesn't mean the bike is no good.

      good for you that you can easily bring your full sized bike on public transport, but here in Singapore it's quite challenging to bring even 20 inch folding bikes on the train. the carry me solves this problem.

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  2. Hi Steve, remember me? The Dahon Curve SL guy from some time back. Chanced upon your blog again and it's looking awesome!

    This is my foldie:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/sultan_d/sets/72157626694777932/

    Let's keep in touch. Do email me at sultandingodile@gmail.com!

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  3. Hi Steve,

    Is the folding handlebar stock part or did you buy it from elsewhere? Any idea where I can get a decent priced one. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  4. the folding handlebar came with the bike

    ReplyDelete
  5. the folding handlebar came with the bike

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  6. hi, where you get this carry me bic from and the price? i am interested to get one

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  7. looking for used carry me , tq.

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  8. Hi Steve, you mentioned with this bike, one could go into the MRT any time. Including peak hours when foldable bikes are not allowed?

    HL

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Most likely it will be OK, as the size is very compact. However, I do not set the rules, so there might be some who will not allow this during peak hours.

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  9. Hi, may i know if it is possible to use road bike brake calipers on carryme as a plug and play option?

    If it is possible, would Avid FR5 brake levers work with the road bike brake calipers?

    Thanks Steve!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Normal road bike brake calipers have a different design. This Carry Me uses a front caliper with the fixing arm on the opposite side from normal brake caliper.
      As for the rear, the cable comes in from the bottom, which is again different from normal brake caliper.

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    2. Thanks for the quick reply!

      I was wondering if there are any options to upgrade the brake caliper. saw this photo of sram apex caliper on a carryme online


      https://scontent-sin6-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/11025814_828324483906691_5063476003278561184_n.jpg?oh=bdc31979c923f032c6c18f398a896052&oe=5AED4C45
      ^Photo

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    3. You could do this, but the brake caliper arm might get in the way of folding.

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    4. Thanks! I shall upgrade the levers first then decide if I want to upgrade the calipers.

      Thanks for you advice and wonderful blog posts!

      Delete

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