Do you still ride a bike or do you already kwiggel?

[Skybird]

I am tempted.



Made of specially hardened but flexible steel. Advertises with being made of the toughest and longest-lasting components and manufacturing standards of all globally produced bikes. Weight 8.5-11 kg.



^ The inventor. Produced in Hannover, Germany, you must buy directly from him, that keeps the price low.

That thing can become FAST, over 30 km/h, with a steppinf requency and reistence comarbale to am ordinary bike. The brakes have been designed to trade distance for risk management, the braking distance is still within legal limits, but the brakes are limited so that you cannot fall frontally if braking top hard - cannot brake "too hard". Hill down they have exceeded speeds of 60 km/h. Normal everyday routine speeds are 20-25, with not more or less effort than on a normal bike, they say.

Price varies according to version: 1370 - 2050 Euros.

https://www.kwigglebike.com/en_US/

Smallest city solution I have seen so far, smaller even than Bromptons. It uses Schwalbe balloon tyres. They offer th choice for Rucksacks for it, 0, 3 and 6 speed gearboxes, wheel proteciton or not, luggage rack or not, trailer or not.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/i0LUDhn0sIs

In production since several years already. E-bike version in development (whether it makes sense due to the probably inevitable rise in weight, is something different...).

In practical use:

[Skybird]

https://www.kwigglebike.com/en_US/home-kwiggle-vorteile







Chain and sprocket are made of high-strength stainless steel with extremely high wear protection. This quality is worldwide top in the bicycle market.

Therefore, the chain and sprocket last 5 - 10 years under normal use, despite the few teeth, until they need to be replaced. (Quote from their website).



Quote from their website:

We have many customers who purchase the Kwiggle because of the specific physiological benefits and enjoy every mile in the upright riding position. The Kwiggle provides invaluable benefits for lower back and core muscle movement.

We ourselves also feel the great efficiency benefits of riding upright with high pedal pressure every day.

So yes, we see great potential in a Kwiggle with large wheels.

[mapuc]

I've seen a lot of similar bicycle here on our island-It's mostly German who use them-They pack them into almost nothing when they have to take the bus and then unpack this mini bicycle.

Myself does not have a bicycle I use my two-stroke rye bread engine or I take the bus.

Markus

[Skybird]

^ There are many folding bikes, but only one concept like the Kwiggle. Note that the anatomic position is very different from a normal bike, you more stand than sit on this, and bring more power into the pedals, while maintaining a straight back and relieved stress on all angles.

I have just placed my order. With protectors, lights, luggage holders, and 3 speed gear, it will cost me around 1730 Euros if I keep it.

Chain and sprockets will last severla years they say, they are using notr greas eor oil ,m but some special ceramic powder-greas-something stuff. Its all made of hardened special steel, sprockets included.

Changing tyres and replacing rubbers on brakes can be done by any shop, if you want a complete "pit stop", you tell them, they send you a logistics label, you put it into a small box (mind you, the bike fits into a medium size suitcase and weighs 8.5-10.5 kg...), and some days later the parcel delivery service returns the serviced bike to you the same way. If you want, you can do all maintenance yourself, too, special screws and sprockets and such items you only have to order form them in advance, these ar items you will not gets anywhere else, they are specially made for the Kwiggels alone.

The steel is specially hardened, but yet flexibel. The weight limit they set is not due to the steel frame, but due to the very small tyres.


They do not sell in shops (but you can go to their base and get it there, in Hannover), and therefore allow customers to test-drive for two weeks or so - you can send it back if you do not like it. Its said that adaptation time to this new feeling is less than a week. They say they have a return rate of less than 3.5%. It seems customer feedback is overwhelmingly positive.

I am in, I will test it. When i found out I could even hang in my ordinary - and huge - bike bag, I "was surrendered". As comparison I have the Bromptons of my parents. I expect this to be better.



Why shouldn't I try this? I do not have a car, I dont need a car, I save the costs from owning a car. We have very good bike-friendly infrastructure, so why shouldn't I focus on bicylces? I will have a normal bike, an e-bike and the Kwiggle then, plus a flatbed trailer for the first two.

[Skybird]

From 2016, at that year the development had taken them 7 years.






Beat the time if you can!

[Rockstar]

That Kwiggle looks like a great bicycle but seems to me made specifically for transportation in the confines of a city after a bus or train takes you there.

The larger the wheel diameter, the further it can travel over one revolution of the wheel. To find that distance in inches, use this formula, as it will give you the circumference of the wheel: (from radius) C=2pi×r where r is half the diameter.

For a 26″ wheel, this would be 13″. Thus: C=2×3.1415×13. As a result, you would get C=6.283×13=81.68. For each revolution of a 26″ wheel, it will travel 81.68 inches. The wheels distance of travel will always be its circumference. Because of this, the larger a wheel is, the faster a vehicle may go for a given rpm. There are limits though, and drawbacks.

A larger wheel is harder to accelerate and resists axis changes more, which means they hinder steering. Also the larger the wheel, the easier it maintains speed, which can increase highway range. The larger wheel rolls over larger obstacles easier, making for a smoother ride and less energy lost overcoming the obstacle. - Owner at Mitchell's BikeWorks

Not saying one design is better than the other as each has their own pros and cons. What matters is that Kwiggle meets yours needs and most importantly that you have fun riding it. Any bicycle is better than no bicycle at all. It’s gets you out of the house and promotes good health. Well, as long as you don’t get run over by a big truck going down a hill with no brakes.

[Skybird]

Yes, it is heavily depending on smooth track surfaces such as tarmac, asphalt etc, it is not for MBT biking in the woods. And you must spend more caution on looking ahead and check small obstacles on the surface that a normal bike rider woudl not need to care for, but that is not different to the e-scooters that you now can lease in so many cities.


I expect in the beginning I will wag my tail like a walking duck when stand-riding this and get plenty of laughter.


The point is that you do not sit that much on it, but stand: not more than 50% of body weight should rest on the saddle, with normal bikes it is much more. Since you stand almost straight and upright, it is less your muscles pushing the pedals, but your own body weight: as if you ride a normal bike and at a hill lift from the saddle and "stand" in the paddles. Also, the dynamic swinging of the spine, back, shoulders, it is very different than on a normal bike, and more flexible, dynamical.

It is this altered movement pattern hat made me curious, and I imagine it can be great fun.

They claim that you can drive as fast with it as with a normal city or touring bike, speeds of up to 35 km/h they say are absolutely in reach of evberybody, and at hills you may find you reach the top like the others, and as fast: but much less exhausted and breathing not as heavy. The top speeds they measured, was around 60 km/h. Well, I am not eager to try that. Not at all. These days I start to feel alarmed when speeds start to scratch at the 40 km/h mark.



They also did long range multi-day tours and said it is absolutely capable to do that: and even less stressful to body and muscles.


They also claim their materials are such that the wear and tear on this is less than on other bikes, and there is less material degeneration in the chain, sprockets and so forth. Since the sprockets have so few teeth and thus are under big stress, that is surprising, but for the time being I trust their words.

I was thinking occasionally on getting a folding bike as a third bike, but never really "needed" it. This I get now only due to the very different movement body position and movement - I got curious.

And the lightest version weighs only 8.5 kg, although made of flexible special steel! The whole frame they say is designed to be a spring, being flexible, and very much so. The tyres limit the carry weight, not the frame. The frame is safe to not break at up to 250+ kg load. Its the tyres limiting it to something much less, 100 kg in total.

They work on a version with bigger tyres.

I will post when I got it. Could take 10-14 days, they say.

[August]

The only downside seems to be that one looks like an absolute dork riding it.

[Skybird]

https://robertisenberg.medium.com/be...e-270de04339d3

Once Bettin was satisfied with his R&D, Kwiggle won widespread attention in a most 21st Century way — by crowdfunding. Kwiggle was a darling on Kickstarter and received a series of write ups in English-language websites, which mostly praised its unusual design and compact fold.
(...)
Today [August 2021, Skybird], Kwiggle is an established business, and it’s growing. Last year, a development bank in the Lower Saxony invested “a six-figure sum” in the company. Customers can freely order their own Kwiggle from the official website. Units can be delivered almost anywhere in the European Union, and they have gained a widespread continental following.
(...)
Up till now, units haven’t been widely available in the United States. My only exposure consists of JPGs and video clips on the Internet.


But that’s about to change. Bettin expects to enter the U.S. market this autumn [2021). To start, the company will ship its product directly from Germany. But it’s very possible that Kwiggle will open a brick-and-mortar store in a major American city, or even several. Other folding bike brands, like Brompton and Dahon, have flagship stores in (among other places) New York City. Bettin is interested in a distributor, or even a partnership. For now, it’s all up in the air.

I’m also fairly cynical about bicycling in my native country. I have ridden large chunks of Western Europe, including parts of the Rhine and Ruhr Rivers, across Belgium and the French campagne, and the experience is night and day. Europe isn’t a two-wheeled Utopia, but Europeans are — literally — miles ahead of Americans in terms of cycling culture. The Kwiggle would look eccentric anywhere, and it has yet to receive the glare of, say, a tattooed American contractor in a Ford pickup, who wants to share the road with exactly no one.
But the perception is rapidly changing. Small-wheeled bikes are everywhere now. Electric scooters zip down American sidewalks, moving every kind of person around with unironic ease. Many U.S. cities have a bike-share program, and where it exists, it is popular. If anything good can be said about COVID-19, it’s the exponential popularity of cycling. Bikes are more diverse than ever, and they’re better accepted every day. I myself own a recumbent bike; the most common response I get is, “Where did you get that?!”

I read around a bit about the company, and it seems they did a textbook jumpstart from day one on, they ran one of the most successfull kickstarter campaigns every, and grow rapidly even during Corona and logistics meltdown. I conclude - they have definetly hit a nerve.

[Skybird]

There are many strange and weird bicycles out there in this crazy world!

[Jeff-Groves]

Originally Posted by August

The only downside seems to be that one looks like an absolute dork riding it.

I'd expect that to be a major selling point in California.

[Skybird]

Time is fleeting... Got the news today that they have been failed by their provider for the front wheel fork and that it will be another two weeks minimum before they get a new delivery...


I hoped to make use of this new toy much earlier, I should have been rolling by now since a few days already. Now I must hope to even drive it this summer.

[Skybird]

Wide grin...

[Jeff-Groves]

I can see that there is going to be a learning curve with that design.
It has the front wheel BEHIND the actual steering shaft.
Now what does that mean?

Any action to the steering handle is going to be exaggerated in a not to happy way!

Just had a friend that bought an E-Bike with the same set up.
At 18 MPH he took a spill and damned near killed him.
That set up for front wheel to steering geometry is just asking for trouble!

There is a well established reason Pedal Bikes and Motorcycles don't use that crazy design!

[Skybird]

We have a proverb in German: "Probieren geht über Studieren".

I am certain that after 8 years development and many prototypes they have tested what there was to be tested. Also, they are in production since some years now, and cannot feed the demand as quickly as orders come in.

Note, the bike is named (K)WIGGLE. The concept is to add a wanted unstability, that is countered by the swinging saddle, counter-balanced, and yes, the frame - both the saddle as well as the centre pole with the handgrips - DOES wiggle left and right with every step on the pedals, and the whole body, the spine and back that is, must swing as well. Look this short video again that I also had posted above:

He looks like a running waiter holding an invisible tablet in front of him. And he "walks" upright.


The view from his back. Looks like someobdy who is running.




The spine swings at all directions, the bottom goes left and right, up and down. Everything swings. No muscles in the back is allowed to not move and to not tense, cannot harden like you have left and right in your lower back when driving a bike for many hours . I do 7-11 hours tours on bike, I know what happens after so many hours - and I have a very good saddle and dampening. With such driving times, the material can be as good as it gets, you start to get problems with your bottom - and with your muscles in your back, left and right along the lower spine, and in the shoulders, and hands. You cannot avoid it.

You do not sit on Kwiggle as fixed as on a bike and you do not stand as motionless as on an e-scooter. You have ,much less wieght on your ahnds and shoulders. Everythign wiggles - and those who have made the experience say after adapting to it, which takes some kilometers, it is very stress-free, joyful, and far less exausting while driving as fast if not faster, than with an ordinary bike.


The man said he drove aroudn the Isselmeewr in Holand in one rush, 16 hours, nonstop - 300 km. More than half of the time in cold and against a harsh wind. He also managed a steep climb of 30 km in the Alpes, with a steepness of 13% , some famous track.


I imagine it is like with inline-skating. Have you done that? I have. Nothing in inline-skating is static or non-dynamic, everythign swings, your spine, your limbs, your body, arms, legs. You need to swing in order to skate well.

The video shows it quite well how the whole body swings in a way that you do not see with people on ordinary bikes. And then the speed , that is clearly in excess of the 25 km/h that my e-bike would support before switching off the motor . With a classic, non-electric touring/city bike, my average speed is 15-19 km/h or so. I saw that alrteady with the Bromptons of my parents, I tried them of course. And was amazed how fast you are on them, depsite the smaller wheels. Just terrible dampening, I would not like to ride these for hours and hours, the tyres are not fat (wide) enough f or such small size, me thinks. . ...

Everything in this Kwiggle bike looks counter-intuitive. It looks as if you must fail with it, and break every bone you have at first opportunity, still people are enthusiastic about it, the company is a great success, is expanding. All if's and cannot's, all reasons why it should not work becasue it cannot work mean little if one has not tried it for oneself.

The truth lies in the ride.

I'm looking forward to learn all about it. I am very confident. Will post about it. Thought by now I already would by now, but the logistics drama hits them as well.


P.S. Your note on the steering shaft. Note that you do not sit on this bike, but you "sit-stand". The steering handles are closer to your body than on a normal bike, too, and you are in a much more upright posiiton, you "stand" or better: you walk. There is not as much weight on the steering handles as if you would lean on them while sitting on a normal bike. Different to a normal bike, most of your body weight rests on your legs with this bike, not on the saddle/your bottom, and your arms/hands). The inventor somewhere says that he got the idea when watching race drivers at the tour de france, when they lift from the saddle and then stand in the pedals, but never for long before sitting again. They sprint this way, but cannot endure it for long time, and so the inventor thought about a way to enable the more powerful pedal push from standing - without the exhaustion he saw with the race drivers.