The Mini125 is a design of

portable bicycle A portable bicycle is a bicycle that has been designed to be small and light enough for easy carrying. It is usually dismantled to make a convenient bundle and the frame often has a folding action to facilitate this. The design of a portable bicy ...

. The current production features four models that have the same frame design but different wheels. The standard model weighs 5.9 kg, folds into a 73 cm × 36 cm × 22 cm package and has

polyurethane Polyurethane (; often abbreviated PUR and PU) refers to a class of polymers composed of organic chemistry, organic units joined by carbamate (urethane) links. In contrast to other common polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene, polyurethan ...

wheels of

diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest chord of the circle. Both definitions are also valid for ...

125 mm or 110 mm. The gear assembly is typical of city bikes, while the transmission uses a

minimoto A minibike is a two-wheeled, motorized, off-highway recreational vehicle popularized in the 1960s and 1970s, but available continuously from a wide variety of manufacturers since 1959. Their off-highway nature and (in many countries) typically enti ...

chain A chain is a serial assembly of connected pieces, called links, typically made of metal, with an overall character similar to that of a rope in that it is flexible and curved in compression but linear, rigid, and load-bearing in tension. A c ...

and

pinion A pinion is a round gear—usually the smaller of two meshed gears—used in several applications, including drivetrain and rack and pinion systems. Applications Drivetrain Drivetrains usually feature a gear known as the pinion, which may ...

. Mini125 is marketed under the MDEbikes brand and was released and presented at the 2003 Handmade Bicycle Show of

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

. The bike is designed and developed by Giuseppe and Paolo Ganio of

Turin, Italy Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

. (Giuseppe is also an

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...

at :it:Mdebikes, Alpignano,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

.) The Mini125_100 has 100 mm diameter wheels, the smallest in the world on a riding bicycle. Made of high-rebound polyurethane, they achieve low rolling friction despite the small diameter. Another model, Mini125_p, features pneumatic tires for riding in historic city districts. The Mini125 was originally designed with

roller ski Roller skiing is an off-snow equivalent to cross-country skiing. Roller skis have wheels on their ends and are used on a hard surface, to emulate .Bryhn, Rolf and Knut Are Tvedt (eds.): ''Kunnskapsforlagets idrettsleksikon''. (Norwegian Encyclop ...

wheels, the only 100 mm quality polyurethane wheels then available. Polyurethane

kick scooters A kick scooter (also referred to as a push-scooter or scooter) is a human-powered street vehicle with a handlebar, deck, and wheels propelled by a rider pushing off the ground with their leg. Today the most common scooters are made of aluminum, ...

wheels became available during development. Since inline speed skates began using larger wheels, such as 100 mm and 110 mm, the Mini125 can use those.

Technical specification

* Weight: 5.9 kg * Wheel diameter: 125 mm or 110 mm * Wheel tire: PU super high rebound * Transmission: 84x8T with free wheel * Dimensions when folded: 73 cm × 36 cm × 22 cm * Rider weight: up to 80 kg * Rider height: 110 cm to 190 cm

References

Cyclesports, issue 34, volume 7, May 2003, "Handmade Bicycle Fair 2003", Page 46
YAESU

Velovision ''VeloVision'' was a quarterly magazine that covered specialised bicycles, utility cycling and human power worldwide since 2000 and was originally published and edited by Peter Eland. The format is 230mm x 280mm (slightly over A4). The headqua ...

, issue 16, December 2004, "The Italian Job", Page 34, ISSN 1475-4312.

External links

Mini125 Web Site
Folding bicycles de:Faltrad it:Bicicletta pieghevole nl:Vouwfiets ja:折り畳み自転車 pl:Rower składany sv:Hopfällbar cykel zh:折叠车

Technical specification

See also

References

External links