The "Revolutionary" iXi Bike

[muffinman]

Does anyone here have an iXi Bike? I am considering getting one, and they look here. Here is the main site. http://www.ixibike.com.

I'll probably use it to commute 5-10 miles a day. They look really neat. If anyone here has one could you post the handling, speed, comfort, and other aspects of it? Thanks.

 

[erickkoch]

Never tried one of those but I checked it out on several websites and there are no user reviews I could find, just sales pitches. It must be very new.

It does look cute but my concern is the availability of spare parts. The drive chain looks is proprietary, if it breaks I doubt a local bike shop will be able to fix it, they'll have to order the part. It appears to have many proprietary parts. I would stick with something more conventional unless you really, really need a compact bike that stores easily. I can remove the wheels easily in about a minute without tools on my Cannondale so it stores in the trunk if I need it to.

For what this one costs you could get a good quality road bike that will probably ride much faster and be upgradeable if you want better parts.

I suggest you check out local bike shops that have them in stock and try before you buy. If you get it I would be interested in what you think.

 

[muffinman]

eric, have you ever ridden a 16 inch wheeler? How does it feel.


i know its overpriced.

 

[pseudobrit]

Better folders are available for that price range.

If you're concerned about getting chain lube on yourself you could just buy a chainguard.

That belt's just gonna be trouble down the line if not out of the box. Sure, timing belts and such on cars are at high tension and work just fine, but imagine that thing slipping off during a ride. It's not like dropping a chain back on; it's gonna take tools. And that's assuming it won't stretch and flex under load. Which it probably will.

 

[SamIchi]

Looks uncomfortable.

 

[erickkoch]

eric, have you ever ridden a 16 inch wheeler? How does it feel.


i know its overpriced.

Not in many years so it would be difficult for me to compare to what I ride now. I seem to recal that they accelerate quickly but don't maintain a good speed for very long. This bike only has 4 speeds so I'm guessing the road you'll be riding is relatively flat so it should work OK. I ride in San Diego when I visit but I find the traffic kinda scary, I need a fast nimble bike in the downtown area where all that construction is going on. I'll be back this summer so I'm hoping the area has improved.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

IMHO, the best bike for urban commuting is a small frame hardtail mountain bike with slicks. It's pretty hard to get one's hands on a decent rigid fork bike nowdays without going custom, otherwise I'd recommend that too.

I've got a '98 Trek 930 singletrack that has about a billion miles on it. It's one of the last cro-moly steel hardtail bikes Trek made. It is great offroad with the right tires and with slicks it's fine for road rides. I'm not much of a fan of folders though - The small size is convenient to store but they just don't ride as well as I like - the tires are too small to handle crappy pavement and curbs.

 

[erickkoch]

IMHO, the best bike for urban commuting is a small frame hardtail mountain bike with slicks. It's pretty hard to get one's hands on a decent rigid fork bike nowdays without going custom, otherwise I'd recommend that too.

I agree. My Cannondale is a small frame montain bike with slicks. It's not a hardtail but I lock out the secondary suspension most of the time making the frame stiff (Fox Float). The suspension in the front fork provides enough cushioning for a smooth ride over potholes and curbs.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

When the Trek Y-Bike first came out a friend of mine bought one, and after riding it I decided that I hated dual suspension bikes. It was heavy, rode like a truck, and when you tried to accelerate the rear suspension absorbed so much energy by bouncing it was a waste. Since then dual suspension rigs have gotten a lot better but IMO the best configuration is the pivotless softtail - suspension in the front and rear, but movement in the rear is accomplished by actuallly flexing the frame rather than a mechanical pivot. They're pretty expensive bikes (especially the titanium ones), but I rode one once and loved it - stiffer than a dual suspension but enough rear travel to keep control in offroad situations.