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Kickstarter launches next week for Crosshead folding bike

The Crosshead is a brand new folding bike, that is said to ride like a racer and fold up in just 20 seconds flat...

A British designer is one step closer to realising his vision of a faster, more convenient folding bike that has been eight years in the making, with the Kickstarter campaign beginning on Monday 21st August.

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Design classic: Brompton folding bike

The design is a compact folder with two main frame hinges, and CEO Stuart Lambert says the emphasis was on designing a folder that rides like a full-sized bike. It has 20 inch wheels but 10 speed gearing, and the physical dimensions are the same as a full-sized bike when it's built. The bespoke frame also includes attachment points for mudguards and racks. Stuart Lambert says: "The fold is entirely unique with the wheels folding towards each other, and can be achieved with minimal practice easily within 20 seconds. Experienced riders who have ridden the Crosshead are easily aware that its geometry and feel are superior to all commuter type folders."

crosshead 2.png

The eight-year project to bring the bike to life took four designers and four engineers, with the first three prototype models being made before the completed CP04 and 05 models were made. CEO Lambert wanted to design a frame that doesn't flex when ridden hard, and the new Crosshead range is said to address this problem.  

Depending on the success of the Kickstarter Crosshead say they will sell direct from their website initially, but will look into supplying bike shops directly or finding a distributor further down the line. Prices will start at £1,650 for the SF-1A model, although customers who back on Kickstarter will be able to get a 10 speed Crosshead for £1,500 when funding starts on Monday 21st August. Visit the Crosshead website for more details. 

 

Arriving at road.cc in 2017 via 220 Triathlon Magazine, Jack dipped his toe in most jobs on the site and over at eBikeTips before being named the new editor of road.cc in 2020, much to his surprise. His cycling life began during his students days, when he cobbled together a few hundred quid off the back of a hard winter selling hats (long story) and bought his first road bike - a Trek 1.1 that was quickly relegated to winter steed, before it was sadly pinched a few years later. Creatively replacing it with a Trek 1.2, Jack mostly rides this bike around local cycle paths nowadays, but when he wants to get the racer out and be competitive his preferred events are time trials, sportives, triathlons and pogo sticking - the latter being another long story.  

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2 comments

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macrophotofly | 6 years ago
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I have to agree with Chris that the price for this looks  wrong. It needs a model at £1000 to get the RTW scheme. At the moment it is pushing up against the carbon folding bikes out there .

I like the hinge aspect though - looks very well engineered- although I would want to know what adjustment there is for any play introduced over the years in the joint

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Chris Hayes | 6 years ago
2 likes

I love to see new products brought to the market, but with a price pitched 50% above a Brompton, I'm not sure who'd buy this (its 105 Synapse money - if you want a good ride!)  And the concept: do folding bikes get 'ridden hard'?  I wonder whether the USP of this is addressing a problem that doesn't exist.   These bikes are used for shorter journeys, for the most part.  And, some of those hinges look overly complicated (wear?) and when closed offer sharp edges. 

If I were pitching a folder at the market I'd look to an aluminium frame (so, tick), but use standard - off the shelf - equipment.  My 6-speed Brompton is functional and great for getting across London (journeys up to 6-7 miles are comfortable), but  the highly bespoke components and nuts and bolts FFS irritate the hell out of me!  The RTW Scheme made its extorrtionate cost slightly more affordable and I know that if I want rid of it, I can recover circa 60-70% of its cost on eBay.  Will that apply to the above?

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