The Oyama Lexington parked on the banks of the Torrens
I purchased this Oyama Lexington folding bike from Chain Reaction Cycles for approximately $500, and rode 500 kilometres on it, including 60km of the Mutual Community Challenge in the Adelaide Hills. It was a tester for whether or not I wanted a small wheeler, and in the end I bought a Bike Friday New World Tourist and sold this bike.
The Oyama was shipped fully assembled, but folded. It is a centre fold bike, similar to the Dahon style, and has an aluminium frame.
Oyama Lexington folded and packed into it's original shipping box, ready for the Tour Down Under
The Good
The Oyama was cheap and light. The ride felt a bit like a BMX, very responsive and easy to accelerate. I found that people on the shared paths found it less intimidating than my other bikes. It was fun to ride for short distances.
The fold is quick and easy, and there is a magnet that snaps the two wheels together so that the bike can be carried without unfolding itself.
The Bad
The stock seat was wonky when I pulled it out of the box, but that didn’t matter to me much since I was always intending on putting a Brooks on it.
The ride quality was not the best – the first time I rode it, I ended up with numb hands and a numb butt. I put a fatter BMX tyre on the back which improved the ride somewhat. The aluminium frame was quite rigid and the handlebar grips were a bit thin.
It tended to get a speed shimmy downhill, which led to a few scary moments in the Adelaide hills.
The fold means you have to fiddle with the seat height every time you unfold it again which can be annoying.
Conclusions
This bike was a great, cheap, run around town bike, but no good for anything longer than 10 kilometres in my opinion – and don’t try to ride it too fast, it will make you dizzy.
perthcyclist 