Montague Folding Paratrooper Mountain Bike

halflife

Pedelecer
Jul 12, 2008
33
0
Hi All

Thought it was about time that I wrote a little bit about my bike.

I purchased it about 2 months ago from Steve at electicmountainbikes.com. He will spec the bike however suits you best and spent ages on the phone with me due to being very enthusiastic about electric bikes.

First a bit about me and why I picked this bike instead of another.

About 4 years ago I had a near fatal Motor bike accident. Although grateful to still be here it has left me with some problems namely a weak right leg and wrists that don’t move very well any more. I work about 8 miles from my home and the route to work is quite hilly. We no longer have access to showers at work so an electric bike seemed right up my street. I wanted something that helps me with the hills so I could use it every day for work but more importantly I wanted a proper mountain bike. Something I could take on any off-road course without fear of it falling apart. Another issue I have is that I have to drop my 2 children off at their grandparents in the morning who take them to school so I needed something that could be easily transported in the car. Enter the Paratrooper.

It is a folding mountain bike designed for the US paratroopers (they have apparently sold several thousand to the US army if you read the blurb on their web site).
Steve fitted a high-torque (still road legal) Heinemann motor for me (fitted into a strong Maverick rim) and the battery is carried in a ruck sack to keep the weight off the bike.


The folding mechanism is really simple. There is a cam screw that you unwind which releases a pin in the frame and then the bike folds around the seat post. The front wheel is quick release and this is also removed to enable you to fit in the boot.


Photo taken from Montague's web site

Steve customized the bike for my needs and it was fitted with folding pedals (which are now removed for serious off roading) and semi on / off road tyres that have knobblies down the sides but not the center.

I cannot tell you how much I love this bike, (but I will have a go) my car has barely been off the path in the last two month (apart from taking kids to granparents) saving me a fortune in fuel. I have got the 8 miles ride to work down to around 30 mins which is only about 5 mins more than it takes me in the car. But it is off road where it really makes you smile. We have been through muddy bogs (see photo below), climbed over the top of Moel famau, done the intermediate route at CwnCarn south Wales and the bike has just taken it all in its stride. There are some sections that would just be sooooo hard on a normal mountain bike, like when cycling though muddy bogs that come up to axles, and try doing that on a normal bike without pedaling.

There are a few niggling points (more annoying than anything). When you fold the bike all the cables rub the paint off the frame which could so easily have been fixed in the factory by just putting some protective stickers in the right place. I discovered the folding pedals are useless off road so I now have both folding and ridged and just change according to what I am doing.

Below are some of the off road pictures taken over the last few weeks

After Steve took me on a tour of the North Yorkshire Dales

lovely

One final thing I have to mention is the service I have had from electricmoutainbikes.com. They have been so helpful (even fed me and took me for a tour of the countryside) and spent a lot of time advising me before I shelled out my hard earned cash. thank you
 
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Django

Esteemed Pedelecer
Feb 11, 2007
453
1
Really interesting stuff - thanks for taking the time to share it.

The URL is here.
 
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flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,762
30,348
Good to see a bike that's really up to the rougher stuff. The solid spindle Heinzmann is a really sensible hub motor for off road work, the hollow spindle of the Chinese Hall effect motors being suspect where high impacts can occur.

Glad that you're getting so much fun from it.
.
 

Footie

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 16, 2007
549
10
Cornwall. PL27
I like the bike halflife.
I also opted for a MTB but I went a slightly different route (none folder, from China).
The only down side with mine was the SLA batteries, which I had to replace after eight months with a 36V 10Ah Li Ping LiFePO4 Battery.
Unfortunately, it's a little too heavy for serious off road - but then with the drugs I'm on I can't over do it anyway :)
The bike gets lots of attention and gives me hours of fun around the local forestry tracks :D
.
 
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halflife

Pedelecer
Jul 12, 2008
33
0
I like the bike halflife.
I also opted for a MTB but I went a slightly different route (none folder, from China).
The only down side with mine was the SLA batteries, which I had to replace after eight months with a 36V 10Ah Li Ping LiFePO4 Battery.
Unfortunately, it's a little too heavy for serious off road - but then with the drugs I'm on I can't over do it anyway :)
The bike gets lots of attention and gives me hours of fun around the local forestry tracks :D
.
glad to hear someone else using an electric bike for more then commuting. Anyone else out the I wonder?