Jammed the left pedal!

[Time Waster]

For some reason I folded the left pedal before folding the rest of the bike. Then I forced the pedals to the right position to allow folding. It didn't feel like I was jamming it but now I can't move the pedals to free the folded one. Seriously jammed it against where the pump is. Short of stomping on the folded pedal I can't see how I'll free it.

This was me being stupid and brain dead from a long day but is it a design flaw too? How to jam it will take a bit of time at the home station. Or a 250m plus walk with a folded bike that's not fully folded. Plus no doubt somewhere there's going to be bare metal with the paint scratched off.

Anyone else done a stupid thing like that? What's the solution other than force?

 

[Spiderweb]

Post a pic

 

[Roseland triker]

Post a pic

Yep. Maybe rotate the chainset to relieve the pressure on the jammed pedle

 

[T4tomo]

don't force it, assuming its a Brompton, can you lift the seat post to give you some wiggle room

 

[Kell]

From memory, I think it is possible to 'pedal' the bike forwards a bit while it's still folded.

I did something similar a few weeks ago (can't remember what now) but the pedals ended up in the wrong place and it was folded. Might have needed to be lifted up or the seatpost lifted (as mentioned above) in order to do it.

 

[u_i]

Take off the crank??

 

[Time Waster]

D'oh!

It's only jammed when folded!

U nfold the bars, lift the seat, pull around the front wheel, lift it up to pull the back out and can you guess what happened? The pedal just dropped away. It was only jammed because I folded it jamming it in the process. No real jam!

I feel daft now. I did jam it once before in another way so assumed I'd just done it another way. Sometimes you just leave brain disengaged! Thanks for your help, appreciate it even if there was no problem in the end.

 

[shingwell]

There are various daft things you can do with a Brompton. For maximum effect, make sure there are people watching. Best for me was to set off without doing up the main clamp (I didn't get very far). But the daft thing I do most often is to set off without unfolding the pedal.

 

[Time Waster]

Potholes! Spectators love to see a brompton rider taking to the air but there's a good chance you won't hear their laughter. They'll be composed again by the time you come round enough to know what's happening around you.

Or at least that's my experience. My only proper crash since learning to ride 45 years ago! And what a doozy! I think I used my arm, hand and face as braking pad on the ground. Only a break near the elbow joint and a facial bruise/scrape. Got away lightly but still took 7 weeks before I felt my arm was right enough to ride it again. Only had it a week too. Only just got used to the small wheel wobble so had to start over again with the added worry of knowing what Potholes do to small wheeled bikes!

 

[T4tomo]

I assumed it had jammed folded, which they can occasionally do if it wasn't quite folded properly

My son borrowed mine once, I think to pick up his car from the garage or somewhere he'd left it. I came home to a heap of steel and titanium origami - he managed to unfold it and "assemble" it no problem but couldn't work out the trick to pop the front wheel back into the clip!

I have set off without properly tightening the handlebar clip (as i was chatting to someone) i pushed off and did a forward roll over the collapsing bars in the middle of King street, Covent Garden! Only dent was to pride.

 

[cougie uk]

There are various daft things you can do with a Brompton. For maximum effect, make sure there are people watching. Best for me was to set off without doing up the main clamp (I didn't get very far). But the daft thing I do most often is to set off without unfolding the pedal.

I have forgotten to unclip the pedal a few times but you can at least unfold it as you go with your foot.

 

[a.twiddler]

It's always puzzled me that Brompton designed their bikes to use just one folding pedal. Practically, yes, it only really needs one. Psychologically, you're less likely to forget to unfold them if you have two, as you just can't start off if you don't unfold them.

It's like a trap for the unwary. You're distracted, or late, or something, carefully unfold your bike and tighten the clamps, leap into the saddle, look behind while pushing down on the fixed pedal, swing your other foot to where you expect the other pedal to be, encounter empty space, wobble, avoid falling off, curse yourself for being an inattentive idiot, stop, unfold the pedal, and proceed. You're probably more likely to be in a hurry when folding it, and that pedal is more likely to get stuck then. Given the right audience, you can make a right mess of folding and unfolding a Brompton even when you've had it a while.

It hasn't happened to me yet, possibly because I rarely have to put it into such a confined space that I need to fold the pedal but it's surely just a matter of time. Once you have got used to folding and unfolding a Brompton it's fairly idiot proof but inside each of us lurks the inner idiot just awaiting its opportunity.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

It's always puzzled me that Brompton designed their bikes to use just one folding pedal.

The other one is tucked under the tyre when folded and stops the cranks being pushed around in that state.

 

[berlinonaut]

It's always puzzled me that Brompton designed their bikes to use just one folding pedal.

Time to unpuzzle yourself as they didn't. You can have a right hand folding pedal if you want one:
https://www.comptoncycles.co.uk/m5b0s258p5419/BROMPTON-Folding-Pedal-(Right-Hand)
Just that in normal usage you would not need it and thus it is not delivered as standard. If I remember correctly it makes unter circumstances usage of the older huge suitcase easier.

 

[cougie uk]

You can get pedals that you take off completely for the Brompton but the one foldable pedal just seems to make sense.