Response to Moulton Question
I have a strange relationship with Moultons. As I said, the TSR 30 is long since sold. I still have a Mk2, which needs a respray, an APB21 Land Rover edition, and an ARCC TSR8 e-bike.
Many years ago I saw a guy on a yacht, in the harbour of St Peter Port in Guernsey, unloading a Moulton and cycling off. It was probably a Mk1 or Mk2 so would have had hub gears, so made perfect sense for that sort of use. It stuck in my mind and I decided that one day I would have one.
Fast forward a couple of decades, and I was on the lookout for a bike. I decided that this was probably my Moulton moment. I went out to research what was out there and narrowed it down to the TSR27 and TSR30. In the end I chose the TSR30. I picked up a used one and thought that I ought to try to put in some miles before we went on a planned tour on the mainland, from Aberdeen to John o Groats, via Inverness, then across to Orkney on the ferry to cycle around and have a look at Orkney, before the ferry back to Shetland.
Bear in mind that I am overweight, unfit and asthmatic. On top of this I hadn't ridden a bike for some years. The first time I set off, with a destination in mind 4.3 miles away, I only managed to get about 3.5 miles, at which point I was too exhausted to go any further. I stopped for half an hour to rest, ate some food and topped up on fluids, then rode back very slowly, stopping for breaks. I didn't throw in the towel though. I kept going for slightly longer rides until I was doing 20 miles a day. By the time we set off on our tour I had done 500 miles with the longest journey being 20 miles.
My other half still exercises 2-3 times a day at 60 years old, and has done since she was in her 20's so we are not an ideal cycling match, especially as she gets cold waiting for me. I did my best to keep up, but we were in a different league and she would be off far in front of me. It didn't take me long to realise that the advantages of the small wheels, when it came to acceleration, were lost when it came to the better gyroscopic effect that you get with larger wheels. All too often she seemed to be coasting along whereas I was constantly having to input power through the pedals. There was nothing wrong with my bike, nothing was rubbing, everything was smooth, the tyres pumped up to the correct pressures.
I know that there are many that love them, but I loathe derailleur gears. All too often I would have to stop suddenly and find myself in the wrong gear, often with the chain on the wrong ring. I just had to get some hub gears.
Moulton bikes are described as seperable and not foldable. I only took mine apart a couple of times, but found it a complete faff, other than the fact that you could make the bike smaller it seemed the worst of all worlds. These days there are usually places on trains for full size bikes, at least on the sort of trains that I travel on. Unless I was going to travel on a commuter train, where the Moulton was packed in a suitcase, and then what would I do with the suitcase on arrival?
The carrying capacity of a rear rack bag, with a sleeping bag strapped to the top, and two panniers at the front kept my overpacking tendencies in check. I would bring the kitchen sink if there were a big enough rack.
What about the positives though? To me there weren't that many. Potholes were hellish, I needed bigger wheels. The bike was reasonably light. I usually have steps at each end of the journey, particularly steep where my partner lives. I would have liked to carry more weight on tours, but I was worried that I would overload the rear rack if I bought a bigger bag.
Why did I buy more Moultons then? I had decided that "long distance" touring was not something that I would do any more on a Moulton, but one might suit for short weekend rides and the occasional commute to work (18 miles each way). I was curious about the hub/derailleur system on the APB21. This bike has also acted as a spare if my partner comes to visit. Other than the Brooks B17 saddle, which neither of us can get on with, even after 1,000 miles of breaking in, the APB21 has turned out to be reasonably suited to the task. I bought the Mk2 for really short trips, whizzing around the town. I think that has a three speed hub, but although the mechanicals are all fine, as I mention earlier it needs a respray. I was still in love with Moulton so I bought the ARCC Moulton TSR8 because I wanted an e-bike. Leaving my unassisted partner's bike in the dust, she decided that she had to have an e-bike, and bought a large wheeled Bergamont.
The ARCC Moulton has all the same problems as the TSR30, but without the derailleur hassle, but the problems are lessened by the power assistance. The lower quality parts on the ARCC TSR8 (Moulton parts) have corroded. I have bought a trailer for the bike, which has improved its carrying capacity. The last time that it was used was to take a fridge to the recycling facility. Before that it carried the TSR30 into town to be boxed for selling.
The Thorn eXp has turned out to be the bike of choice, if I am feeling fit enough for the ride to town/work, and if the wind isn't too hellish.
If I could wind the clock back what would I have done differently? Not bought the TSR30. Bought a Thorn earlier, maybe a new Nomad or a Raven. I would have still bought the APB to quench the Moulton thirst, and the Mk2. Not bought the ARCC Moulton. It was £3k by the time that I added to extra 4Ah batteries and two extra chargers. Knowing what I know now I would have spent extra and bought a Riese and Muller e-bike with a Rohloff hub. As to the Tern 21 and Strida SX that have so far been unmentioned, the former was bought because at the time Brompton wouldn't allow their dealers to ship any of their bikes. The latter because I loved the design. It is totally impractical for me with only one gear. The ultra short wheelbase and narrow handlebars, as well as raising the saddle puts you nearer the handlebars makes starting off a perilous affair when I am at the controls. On the few occasions that I have done it I have wobbled halfway across the lane. It has become an expensive ornament, and only serves the purpose of being a useful talking point.
Bromptons have come back into my thoughts recently, possibly from watching too many YouTube videos about them. I don't have a car, but I do have a bus pass, so the thought of multi-modal travel, incorporating a Brompton became more attractive. I could even do a little light touring perhaps. I hadn't realised that there would be so many obstacles: the bike that I wanted was limited edition and long sold out, the Brompton Bike Builder - where you can specify what you want to a point - was closed down due to demand, and all of the Bromptons seemed to be being bought up by people flogging them on eBay at huge profits. In the end sense prevailed, and I decided that a Brompton would have all of the problems that I had with my TSR30, only magnified
Your opinions and experiences vis-a-vis the TSR30 may differ from mine of course! I wish you the best of luck with it. If I had been fitter I think that would have made a huge difference, and at times I contemplated a Rohloff conversion, which would have removed the ball-ache of derailleurs.
My apologies that this has run much longer than I imagined it would!
