Turf Zone – AlbertsTipsy
One question that readers have asked is why did I choose the Brompton C Line Urban model for conversion to single speed and why not go for the cheaper A Line or the even the vastly more expensive T Line One, which is already single speed? Well, here’s why. That’s the C Line Explore above, by the way.
I actually started looking at the A Line initially. It’s the cheapest new Brompton available, coming in at £950.00, so seemed a good starting point for a single speed. However, the A Line would have required a whole bunch of additional components to get it to the state I wanted, including mudguards, carrier block, rear wheel, sprocket, chain tensioner, tyres, pedals and chainring, adding around £400.00 to the total cost. This brought the total cost above that of the £1300.00 of the C Line Urban. In addition, there was only a basic choice of two colours available for the A Line. The A Line weighs around 11.5 Kg.
I also looked at the ultra-lightweight titanium Brompton T Line One, the only single speed model available in the Brompton range and only around 8 Kg in weight. However, the price is somewhat daunting, starting at £4250.00 which might be regarded as crazy when you can purchase a titanium Sonder Camino gravel bike AND a titanium Sonder Broken Road mountain bike for less than that. Just does not seem good value for your money.
However, despite those thoughts, what actually put me off the T Line One was the naked metal blasted finish. Had it been painted in a range of bright attractive colours, Bumblebee Yellow, for example, I would almost certainly have bought one. Even with the additional £200.00 of components required to meet my own requirements I would have been happy to pay the money.
The other model in the Brompton range is the P Line. These are lighter weight Brompton’s using some titanium components to save weight, reducing the overall weight down to around 10.50 Kg. Prices start at around £2300.00. Add another £350.00 for parts to change to single speed and a lack of suitable colours in the range that I liked, also meant a big no-no for the P Line.
So, this left the C Line with the C Line Urban 2-speed best fitting the bill. I already have the 6-speed C Line Explore but wanted to keep that fully geared. Cost was £1300.00 for the C Line Urban with less than £100.00 of additional parts required for the single speed conversion, and a far better choice of colours available, so that was the model I ordered. Now waiting with baited breath for a delivery date. More on the conversion soon.
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