C.H. White & Son Owner Reviews

[homemoz]

Reviewer: John Fielding

Purchased From: C.H.White and Son

Model: Mu P8 conversion

Purchase Price: £929.00

Time Owned: 6 Months

Local Terrain: Moderate Hills


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Strengths:
Good quality frame & wide gear range. Minimal drag from motor when ridden without power. Manages moderate moderate hills comfortably as long as you're prepared to pedal. Has proved very reliable over 6 months of ownership.


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Weaknesses:
Relatively low powered. Very much a pedal bike with electric assist. Throttle only control, no pedelec option. NIMH battery relatively heavy with limited range of about 15 to 20 miles.



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Summary:
The bike has been used mainly for commutes of between 6 & 8 miles each way in all weather. One gradual but lengthy gradient. It has made the difference for me between cycling or not cycling to work. The throttle though is a matter of preference. I've modified it to make it easier to grip and can now manage okay. My wife finds that she cannot hold the throttle open for any length of time without wrist problems. Motto - try before you buy. Overall, a decent and stylish folder but probably not so good in very hilly ares.

Overall Rating (out of 10): 7.5

 

[bluevalentine]

CH White Dahon Ciao folder - early impressions

Took delivery this week.
I must say, the company, with whom I have had no previous dealings, were exemplary in their promptness, attitude and product knowledge.
I spent just over £1200, which included £60 worth of (subsidized) TNT carriage to Ireland. The base price of the bike fitted with the Shimano Nexus 8-speed hub gear is £969. I added on a good number of extras - sexy magnesium bar-ends, Cateye wireless computer, a gorgeous retro wicker clip-on front basket, Altura rear bag, Zefal mirrors but the bulk of the price hike was taken up by the Cane Creek 'Thudbuster' seat post - true 'rear suspension' - which does a superb job of ironing out the bumps, particularly 'sleeping gardai' and un-level crossings which abound in the district of Dublin where I live.
The bike arrived double-boxed and pristine apart from a small crack in the rear light lens.
The Ciao p8 is a 20" wheeled folder of superb build quality and with decent components as standard - forged cranks and chainset, comfy gel saddle, decent V-brakes, LED lights, etc. It also came with a thoughtfully designed bag which, if you are built like a brick wash house, you could hang off the shoulder. It will be useful when transporting the folder in the car.
The bike folds up in under 30 secs - handlebars swivelled, bar stem folded, seat post lowered, central hinge folded, pedals folded. A magnetic catch keeps who whole thing together. The wheels are parallel so the bike can be manoevred using the seat post as a handle.
The motor, throttle driven, is only 180 watt but made a pretty good fist of hauling my 16 stone up some modest local hills on my first test drive. The throttle is on the RHS, which works well but has the effect of rendering the numbers on the gear change lever, transferred to the left, upside down. No big problem, but slightly inelegant. The Nexus gears are smooth changers and can be twiddled when the bike is stationary.
I made one modification - swapping the wimpy bell for an Airzound horn.
So far so good. I'll try and report further on the riding experience in due course.