Full-size, folding mountain bike is great for singletrackers and bikepackers that want a high-performance bike but have limited storage space. Dual-tread tires grip hard trails as well as loose gravel, and the cargo rack lets you carry your gear.
Features:
Specs:
The Montague Paratrooper is a full-size mountain bike that offers all the features of a regular mountain bike with the added benefit of the folding design. This means you can take it with you nearly anywhere you go, and you don't need to buy a hitch or bike rack to take it to the trailhead. Off-road adventurers will love it for its adjustable compression fork and trail-ready tires. Bikepackers, singletrackers, and campers will love it for its included cargo rack. It also has a DirectConnect latch that ensures the bike won't fold up and collapse while you're riding. And, unlike a regular bike, you can store a folding bike in a closet or compartment so it's out of sight in your home or RV.
The Paratrooper takes approximately 20 seconds to fold up. You can do it in 4 easy steps. Undo the latch on the back of the seat post and rotate the cargo basket under the rear tire to convert it to a bike stand. Open the quick-release latch on the front hub and pull the spring to remove the front wheel. Open the CLIX DirectConnect latch under the top tube, and fold the bike in half. Use the included hook-and-loop strap to secure the front wheel to the folded bike.
The bike weighs just 32 lbs so it's convenient to carry wherever you go. It's easy to haul up and down stairs or place in your trunk or hatch for weekend excursions or after-work getaways.
Montague Paratrooper
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
Colin: Hi, everyone. I'm Colin from here at etrailer.com. Today we're going to take a look at the Montague Paratrooper Folding Bike. Now this is a full sized mountain bike that has the added benefit of folding up to conserve on storage space. It's going to help eliminate the need for a hitch mounted bike rack or even a roof rack with a bike rack to get your bike from point A to point B.Now the Paratrooper is designed to be mostly off road and mountain biking. But if you're looking for something that's more lighter trails, maybe you can take it on the pavement every once and a while, you may want to look into the Paratrooper Express or the Paratrooper Pro.
Those are going to be a little more suited for both.You may be a little bit hesitant to ride a full size folding bike, and honestly at first, I was too. One of the things I thought about was, "What if I'm riding the bike and all of a sudden the latch comes undone and then the bike folds on me" The thing that put my mind at ease was when I took a closer look at the latch. This is what Montague calls their CLIX quick release system.The first sign I knew it was going to be very safe while riding this folding bike, was that the latch doesn't come undone too easily. And not that it's really hard, what I mean is that you can't just use one finger to pull it off. You really got to get your whole hand behind it.
It's got that nice snap, letting you know there is a lot of tension and that it's going to hold itself together. And even at this point, if for some reason your latch we're to come undone like this, the bike still can't fold. You see I'm really trying to fold it right now It's just not going. You have to push up on the back to get the bike to unlock and to fold up. That just really gave me the piece of mind, knowing that I was going to be safe when riding this bike.Another reason I have a lot of confidence in all the Paratrooper models that Montague makes, is that they actually partnered with the US military to make a bike that was going to be both durable and compact.
They actually get the name Paratrooper because airborne soldiers would jump out of planes with the bike folded up and strapped to their chest. That way when they landed, they could take the bike off, get it folded out and ready to go.Now let's take a closer look at the Paratrooper. It is going to have an aircraft grade aluminum construction, which is going to be very durable and lightweight, so when you have it folded up and carrying it around, it's not going to be too much of a hassle.It also has a 5-layer anti-corrosion finish, which will hold up well to a lot of different weather conditions. It also has a matte cammy green color to it, which does look very nice.The handlebars have great grip, so in any wet conditions you're not going to have to worry about your hands slipping off. I can also access both my brakes and my RAPIDFIRE trigger system that's going to make for easy and smooth transitions when shifting.Now what makes Montague's folding bikes a bit superior to other folding bike companies is that their hinge point where the bike folds is integrated into the seat post tube you can see right there.
Other companies might have the hinge point right here, which could compromise the durability of the bike. If you think about it, when you're sitting on the bike, that seat post tube is where your weight is going. So it only makes sense to have that hinge point right there to be able to support your weight. And it also does a great job of distributing that weight throughout the tubing down below.Now on our gear shifting, on our front we're going to have a turning derailleur from Shimano. On the back we're going to have a Deore from Shimano. Both derailleurs are going to do a great job of making smooth and easy transitions when shifting up or down.Now with the RackStand, I can actually put this down and show you guys the derailleurs at work. I can just start pedaling our bike, and as I shift, you can see it just go right up to third gear, then go back down very easy. In the back you can see the same thing, smooth and easy transitions. It's really important that you have those easy and smooth transitions because when you're mountain biking, if you need to down shift when go up that hill, it's going to make sure that it doesn't miss a beat when shifting.This bike's going to have 24 speeds. We'll have eight different speeds in the back, and three speeds in the front. Now we are going to have a set of mechanical disc brakes on our Paratrooper. These are going to be a bit of an upgrade when it comes to these versus padded V-brakes. The disc brakes are going to give you a bit more power when it comes to braking, be able to slow down a lot faster. And it's also going to be an advantage when it comes to wet conditions. You're not going to have to worry about the pads getting slippery or anything. The discs are going to be just as powerful in wet or dry conditions.The Paratrooper also has a Suntour suspension system, which is great for absorbing impact over rocky trails and rough terrain. It's going to have 80 mm of travel space in the suspension system.Now, we're also going to have two fenders. The first on is on the front. It's going to be folded down when the wheel is taken out, to be more compact when folding the bike up. Or if it bothers you, you can just take the fender off altogether, just by taking off this silver knob all the way. The rear fender's actually going to be integrated onto our RackStand, which is going to help prevent a lot of rock and other debris being thrown up behind you.When you're ready to ride your Paratrooper, the RackStand will lock into place on that latch. All you have to do to get it back out when you're down is to let the latch up and fold it down. The RackStand, while being able to hold of your bike, you can also use it to carry some cargo. There are separate bags you can get to put on top of it and strap it down. Be able to carry you electronics or your water bottle, or anything like that. Just keep in mind, if you do stack cargo on the top of your RackStand, you will not be able to use it until you take the cargo off to get your bike to stand up.When folding it up, the first thing you want to do is make sure your RackStand is holding the bike up. Then we're going to go up to the front and remove our front wheel. The CLIX system is going to be on the front and back wheels, as well. When take that lever off, we're still not going to be able to get the tire off. We have to pull up on this plastic piece right here, and then push to get it to unlock, and we can remove the tire. Just set it aside for now.From here we need to fold the fender down. All we have to do is loosen that silver knob. You don't have to take it all the way off. Once you get it pretty loose, I'm going to pull back on the fender and then fold it down. It's going to go in between the forks right there.Now we'll come to that center latch. Once we pull that off, again, we have to push up on it to get it to unlock. The easiest way to do this, in my opinion, is to flip it around and pull. And then set it on the RackStand. You do want to make sure that your handlebars are folded in. Pull it all the way. Then we're going to come to this hook and loop strap. We're going to pull it, and we're going to wrap around our tire right there, bring it through, and that's going to help secure the handlebars to make sure the bike does not fold out while in storage.From here, we're just going to grab our front tire, set it on the other side of the frame. All I'm going to do is reach through the spokes, grab ahold of the frame, and I'm good to transport it.Now at this point, Montague does recommend removing the pedal on the right side of the bike, just so when you set it down flat, it's not going to be sitting on top of the pedal. However, you can replace these standard pedals with folding pedals from Montague. That way you don't have to take it off. You just fold it up and it does the same thing.Now we also do have reflectors. We have one on top of our handlebars right here, another one on the rear, integrated onto the RackStand, on both sides of both pedals, and then one on each wheel.We're also going to be equipped with an Aero Mountain saddle that is adjustable in height. Like most bike seats, just flip that lever up, bring it up to whatever desired height you have, and then lock it into place.Montague also does have two different sizes of this bike. They have height recommendations for each size, so go ahead and check the description below and see if your height matches the size of this bike.At the end of the day when you're done riding, it's very easy to fold up and stow in your trunk for transportation. You can see, even with my smaller sedan, it's going to be very easy to fit it in. The bike is also going to be convenient for you if you live in an apartment complex. You're not going to have to worry about dragging the entire bike up the steps because you can carry it all in one hand.Now after working with the Paratrooper all day, I can honestly say that it's going to be a great bike. It's going to be very durable and last a long time. Montague did a great job of addressing a lot of the issues I had with other folding bikes out there. But this one's going to operate just as well as, if not better, than a lot of other mountain bikes that don't fold up.Thank you all for watching. That's going to do it for our look at the Montague Paratrooper Folding Bike.
Average Customer Rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars (6 Customer Reviews)
Full-size, folding mountain bike is great for singletrackers and bikepackers that want a high-performance bike but have limited storage space. Dual-tread tires grip hard trails as well as loose gravel, and the cargo rack lets you carry your gear.Got this as a replacement for my 27.5 hardtail mountain bike, currently using as a general get-around bike for RVing. Perfect for folding up and storing in the truck bed under a cover instead of bouncing around on a bike rack at the tail end of an RV. These have been the closest to full size folding that I have found after searching, and I can't say I have noticed the drop to 26" wheels when riding yet.
Has been perfect for some relatively easy singletrack trails, and you can fit two Montagues in a truck bed under the cover! Might be getting the carry cases soon for some added protection.
Great solid quality
I got this 1/3 off MSRP as it was a returned package. Unpacking and assembly took about 2 hours. Only items missing were two nuts and one bolt for fixing front mudguard in place. I used 2 spare loctite nuts and a 1 1/4" bolt from another old bike to complete that, which saved a trip to Home Depot. The rack/stand was slightly bent from a previous impact on the previously-returned package, but it fitted acceptably. I used my hands to pull it a little better into being straight.
The videos make folding/unfolding look easy - it was not, at least for the wheels. The folding frame and saddle were fine. The quick-release clamps on the wheels were quite an ordeal - I was a good 5 minutes working out how to put in and remove the front wheel. I subsequently found it easier to do so with the bike upside down, and gradually wiggle it out, as I couldn't get it to just drop out, like in the videos. Front brake needed adjustment after doing that - just pull the cable through about 1" so front brake works. Rear brake and gears were all set up OK. Later, I spent 30 minutes messing around with the rear wheel and rack/stand - very fiddly, not at all user friendly. I eventually worked out how all that fitted together.
I added a bell to the front handlebar, folding pedals, added slime to inner tubes. I will probably fit some thicker thorn-resistant ones in the near future. Bike is ready to ride. It does fold up tight enough to fit in the trunk of my car (VW ID.4), which is why I bought it. However, it's not in the same league as a very user-friendly and very compact Brompton (I have 3 of those) - but I wanted a folding mountain bike so I can ride on trails as well as city streets, and this will do the job nicely. Bromptons are only good for commuting on city roads. Would have given 5 stars if all parts were present, rack/stand was not bent, and assembly/dissembly was easier, but it looks and feels solid enough once assembled, and is light enough to be carried. Most of the other quality folding mountain/gravel bikes I looked at were $2000+, were not easily found in the USA, and I got this bike plus folding pedals for total cost under $900, so I'm happy with that.
Neat bike if you need a folding rugged mountain bike. If you want it fast then order it from etrailer.
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