Cyclamatic is new and dying, help!

[Biker44]

Hi guys - I hope one of you can help.

I'm very happy with the Cyclamatic Foldaway I bought for Xmas (it's for leisure, so only some 40 miles covered so far). It came from Sports HQ who may, if I'm lucky and judging by previous experience, accept a not-too-many-questions asked return if I contact them/send it back before the 30th January.

I get a rattle from the rear wheel/hub when under power and when free-wheeling - though not when spinning the rear wheel freely in the air.

It sounds a little as if it might be a broken spoke tumbling and tapping on other spokes - but it's not, they're all tight.

Any ideas? I might put many more miles on it and see what breaks ... but I'm reluctant to do that and don't have all that much time.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Hi guys - I hope one of you can help.

I'm very happy with the Cyclamatic Foldaway I bought for Xmas (it's for leisure, so only some 40 miles covered so far). It came from Sports HQ who may, if I'm lucky and judging by previous experience, accept a not-too-many-questions asked return if I contact them/send it back before the 30th January.

I get a rattle from the rear wheel/hub when under power and when free-wheeling - though not when spinning the rear wheel freely in the air.

It sounds a little as if it might be a broken spoke tumbling and tapping on other spokes - but it's not, they're all tight.

Any ideas? I might put many more miles on it and see what breaks ... but I'm reluctant to do that and don't have all that much time.

Theres been many reports of this noise. Its almost certainly noise from the spokes that will move a bit under load. Nothing too much to worry about. Keep checking the tension every 100 miles. If any come loose, tighyen them. If they keep coming loose, re-tension them all properly.

 

[Fordulike]

Hi guys - I hope one of you can help.

I'm very happy with the Cyclamatic Foldaway I bought for Xmas (it's for leisure, so only some 40 miles covered so far). It came from Sports HQ who may, if I'm lucky and judging by previous experience, accept a not-too-many-questions asked return if I contact them/send it back before the 30th January.

I get a rattle from the rear wheel/hub when under power and when free-wheeling - though not when spinning the rear wheel freely in the air.

It sounds a little as if it might be a broken spoke tumbling and tapping on other spokes - but it's not, they're all tight.

Any ideas? I might put many more miles on it and see what breaks ... but I'm reluctant to do that and don't have all that much time.

If it's definitely not the spokes, then I would send it back.
I wouldn't chance leaving it and finding out you've got a duff hub motor.
Then you'll have the problem of finding parts, if it's outside of the warranty.
SportsHQ repair turnaround is fairly quick, so you'll be back on the road again in no time.

 

[Biker44]

Thankyou d8veh and Fordulike, both your comments were helpful and I applied my little spoke key to miraculous success. I've given every spoke a 1/4 turn tighten up and some of them needed as much as one whole turn.

My excuse is that, being the wheels on the Foldaway are small (20") and the spokes usefully strong, the test I'd use on bicycles/motorcycles (hand pressure on two adjacent spokes) failed to demonstrate a problem.

In the dim and distant past I remember the owner of a Yamah who was constantly tightening his spokes. I wonder whether these much stronger stainless spokes that the Cyclamatic uses are prone to coming undone and have started applying a drop of thread-lock to the almost exposed thread, a few at a time.

Despite the machine being, apparently, brilliant, lots of things have come loose on it in a very short time (still only c.40 miles!). I will advise admirers to become very friendly with their local bike shop very quickly!

 

[Deleted member 4366]

In my limited experience, it's common for manufacturers to not tighten the spokes properly. Much of the manufacturing is in China, where the factory workers are working at the highest piece-rates they can. Hence, the amount of tensioning at the minimum level. Once, properly tensioned, I've never had further trouble with spokes. Did your noise go away after your tightened the spokes?

 

[Fordulike]

Thankyou d8veh and Fordulike, both your comments were helpful and I applied my little spoke key to miraculous success. I've given every spoke a 1/4 turn tighten up and some of them needed as much as one whole turn.

My excuse is that, being the wheels on the Foldaway are small (20") and the spokes usefully strong, the test I'd use on bicycles/motorcycles (hand pressure on two adjacent spokes) failed to demonstrate a problem.

In the dim and distant past I remember the owner of a Yamah who was constantly tightening his spokes. I wonder whether these much stronger stainless spokes that the Cyclamatic uses are prone to coming undone and have started applying a drop of thread-lock to the almost exposed thread, a few at a time.

Despite the machine being, apparently, brilliant, lots of things have come loose on it in a very short time (still only c.40 miles!). I will advise admirers to become very friendly with their local bike shop very quickly!

I tightened mine as tight as I felt comfortable with, around 1000 miles ago, and have had no problems since.
I do a lot of track riding, so if you ride your bike on roads only, then you definitely won't get any more problems.

 

[flecc]

It's also common for wheels to be machine built now, and that invariably means a less than perfect build.

 

[Biker44]

Did your noise go away after your tightened the spokes?

Yes it did thanks (well, I say that, only tested with a cycle down the hall so far!)

I've never had spokes come undone either - but then, on the bigger wheels of regular bicycles they're under proper tension. It seemed to me possible that the sliding surface of a non-corroding stainless steel is different from what I'm used to and is perhaps more prone to movement.

I take everyone's point about working conditions in manual/assembly-type operations in third-world countries, it was bad enough when we were doing it.

 

[Hurricane]

Hi guys - I hope one of you can help.

I'm very happy with the Cyclamatic Foldaway I bought for Xmas

Remember a bike is for life and not just for Christmas!

 

[Biker44]

Remember a bike is for life and not just for Christmas!

You'll be glad to know I've kept it and loved it and cared for it and we've been together for a stratospheric 180 miles. How do I know my exact mileage?

Well, I've put a little wireless cyclometer on it, which doubles as a fuel-meter. About 3 shopping trips takes me to 8 miles and the amber light flashing, I re-charge and re-set the trip.

The only slight irritation on the Foldaway is that the smaller tyres mean the sensor is further from the display and the latter doesn't pick up the signal. I've had to fit the display to the main cycle member, where it's a bit more difficult to see. But not a biggie.