Split Commute: 2 bikes or a folding bike

I have a two mile Crouch End to Finsbury Park, then Victoria to Chelsea option and have opted for two bikes, with aa steel single speed that's cheap and fun to bomb around in at the town end. So far so good, I have a lot of hills / dirt path in the home end which Brompton might find challenging, and tbh I've had no problem with the single speed in town at all.

Although this morning I did think someone has nicked it until I arrived at work to realise I was too lazy to ride it on Friday and left it there all long weekend

What about the Canadian folders there are/were on Kickstarter?

Could they be an option for you? They sure look promising, at least on the staged photos...

I ride a Brompton all the time, and it's great. Small handlebars also are good in London traffic.

Having a folder is handy in other situations too.

I got a folder in a 'knee jerk' moment but it's proven very useful, not just with train travel. It's a Mezzo D9 and I've just managed to squeeze a bigger cassette on it (9 sp Tiagra Short Cage) which has given me a lower gear for hills. I still like the Brompton though!

Do you have to go all hte way in to KGX?
I commute from St Neots to Finsbury Park every day, 1 stop before Kings Cross. I opted for a cheap folder to do both ends (slower but not a huge difference, about 5 mins on the 3-4 mile journeys), but did consider the very secure bike parking at Finsbury Park - may be worth checking it out as a potential overnight lock up.

A word of warning: check with your train company on their folding bike policy. FGW only recognise folders with wheel sizes up to 18 inches which gives very limited choices other than Brompton. Folders with larger wheels are treated as normal bikes (under strict policy at least). In practice I suspect a 20" will be OK but anything bigger might draw attention.

I have a 1.5 mile ride to the station followed by a 7.2 mile ride from Waterloo. Definitely a Brompton is the way to go. Yes, they're not cheap but you get what you pay for and they hold their value really well if your plans change (check out what they go for on eBay). For me the purchase price was repaid by not paying for the tube in 1 year, so from then on I'm getting a free ride.

Yes they're a slightly more exhausting ride - but I look on that as extra 'training' per mile! I could ride from Victoria which would be a shorter ride to my office, but deliberately choose the longer route from Waterloo which says it all really!

+1 for a folder.

The idea of having to stay late at work to maintain/service/repair a bike that never comes home would be enough to persuade me.

Bromptons are expensive but they avoid the old adage of "buy badly, buy twice" (which I have done). The design is streets ahead of the competition for durability and ride.
Have a shop around as a number of vendors are doing monthly instalments so you can set off tube fares saved/train station parking and the pay back comes rapidly.
You will need one with the extended seat post due to your height.
The Brompton website is doing a competition giving a bike away every week if you want to have a go ?

Definitely a Brompton - you will never regret investing in one.

Without any shadow of doubt, get a Brompton s type with 3 or 6 gears. Fast, the best folding design and you will have no problem keeping up with roadies in town. I once had a dahon and the folding hinge on the bike broke when I hit a pothole and i'do argue having the hinge in the middle of the bike is a serious design flaw.
Bromptons are also surprisingly stable at speed as I have hit 40mph + downhill and there was no wobble at all.

Locking up a decent bike is London is asking for disappointment. Take the folder and you take it everywhere.....get one with drop handlebars for speed....

A lock up bike won't be any more fun if it is stolen or so crap no one will steal it.

Go and take a Brompton for a spin… or one of the other higher-end folders… when I've tried them at the cycle show, I've always been suprised by how well sorted they've felt… and not at all weird to cycle.

I'm guessing that the six mile ride will be mixing it with London traffic, if this is the case you won't be able to go full speed for most of the time any way so a folder like a Brompton isn't going to be that much slower really.

For the peace of mind I'd opt for a folder.

Folder - then if you have to travel somewhere else for work (ie. a business trip/jolly), you can simply take it with you.