Bikes: Meet Hamster little friend

Man from Manila

Giant FD806

Out of the box capable commuter with all the options not found on other folding bike brands on this price range the rear rack, fenders, kickstand looks nice not cheap. Giant also includes all the needed safety reflectors for night and day usage even the folding pedals have them, they also included a loud bell which is nice way of warning other road users. The only cheap piece is the strap which secures the bike front and rear wheel together when folded which can be easily replaced during a visit to 60 peso knick-knack store.
Folding stem, handlebars, grips, brake levers, v-brakes, rims, hubs, spokes, tires, seat post, seat clamp, saddle, crank and the pedals are all Giant OE.

The only non-giant branded parts on the bike Shimano SL-RS45 shifter, rear derailleur RD-TY21, and MF-TZ21 14-24 6 speed cassette, drive train surprisingly quiet, smooth and does the job of city jaunts pretty well. 

Fit of the bike OK with my wide and short 5'7 Clydesdale stature, stand-over height exceptional due to low slung frame.

What makes a folding bike special

It folds...and it accelerates like a bat out of hell.
Plus other typical commuter bike characteristics like hauling stuff, maneuverability on traffic (filtering), and you can bring it anywhere with you if you like.

Little friend, big smiles
FD806 great bike easy to ride, easy to maintain, parts are made by Giant and Shimano so you know that it will be reliable plus it comes with all the essential accessories to get your ass somewhere while bringing crap (rack), and not getting crap on your self (fenders). Fun bike for the city and with the right upgrades can probably do long rides.

Hybrid

Month of ownership and already replaced and upgraded parts of the bike to my own riding needs. Just completed a 80 KM ride with the bike and further upgrades are already in line to improve bike comfort and acceleration.

Hamster little friend updates will be posted every Thursday, while weekly rides on Tuesdays.

Ernest "on the turbo" Hamster

Hamster wheel: frustrations and change

Welcome 2016
April 2015 was the last article that I published the reason "I got bored" . Riding a bike not a new thing for me been doing it since the 80's, mountain biking however was just a three year affair..."Affair" because now I know that I'm done.

Sold my mountain bike and bough a folding bike.

Origami bikes
A bike that folds for ease in hauling, storage, majority have 16-20 inch wheels.

Braze-on for racks and other carrying accessories are standard.

Riding position relaxed, upright, some have adjustable stems for changing positions.

This bike lives in the city it could easily filter through traffic, accelerate quickly, with low stand over getting your foot down, dismounting not a problem.

Running cost low parts like v-brakes (most), drive train, rims, tires are cheap, and since most of the parts are shared with BMX crowd they are easily available.

Initial cost of purchase varies from very affordable to wallet wrecking high.

Why?
Not a mountain bike, needed a bike that could fit inside the trunk of my car, storage moving out of the big house soon, bi-modal travel.

Ernest bike
Had a lukewarm history owning GIANT branded bikes but everyone knows including the Hamster that Taiwanese bike manufacturer offerings are bombproof, and also quite a bang-for-the pesos so I went with their entry level model the FD806.

Bike with short wheelbase, Shimano 6 speed drive train, giant parts, fold able pedals, kickstand, fenders, bell, reflectors and nice shiny rear rack inside the box.

Giant FD806

Man from Manila

Upgrades are us
I love bikes, I also love making them better. Since purchasing the FD806 early December last year had already performed some upgrades, post for future installment of "Project: Hamster little friend".

Ernest "centuries" Hamster