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Double Take: The Clinch D10 Folds Up With Dahon’s Slick Lockjaw Hinge

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Dahon clinch D10 in riding position

Upon first look, its silhouette still gives the Dahon Clinch D10 away as a folding bike but you may have to peer a bit closer to find the hinge mechanism itself. No stranger to manufacturing folding bikes, Taiwan’s Dahon has created a high performance folder with one of the cleanest hinge systems seen yet.

Dahon’s Lockjaw hinge technology is designed to hold tight but be almost unnoticeable when in riding position. The Clinch D10 recently won the company a 2015 Taipei Cycle Design and Innovation award, and as a result their winning bike will be on display at this year’s Taipei Cycle Show, from March 18-21st.

Click past the jump to see how the Clinch D10 folds up…

Dahon's lockjaw folding system
No more than a small recess and a bump to suggest what’s happening in there.

Dahon’s Lockjaw hinge system is designed for use on tubular frames. The top and down tubes feature toothed connections at their hinges to fit together snugly and securely, but it’s amazing how little hint is left from the outside of the tube as to what’s going on inside. There are no extra tacked-on parts, just smooth tubing with a small protruding boss for the pinch bolt. The system does require a 6mm allen key to fold down the bike, but it only takes a half-turn to open or close the hinge. Dahon also makes life easy by cleverly building the allen key tool into a bar end cap, so it’s always handy.

The Clinch D10’s frame is made of patented double-butted Dalloy tubing, which Dahon claims is 20% stronger than 6061 aluminum. It’s equipped with a 1.5” head tube and BB30 bottom bracket. Dahon’s fork is made of strong and reliable hi-tensile steel.

Dahon's clinch D10 handlepost, folded down
The incorporated bar end/allen key tool is a cool and clever feature.

The Clinch D10’s handlepost employs Dahon’s inverted clamping system, which they claim saves weight and stiffens the bike’s steering. The handlepost is made of their Dalloy tubing, is height adjustable and can be switched between two riding positions, one more aggressive and the other more upright and relaxed.

Dahon clinch D10 in folded position
If storage space is a priority, you simply can’t beat a folding bike.

The Dahon’s component set up is typical of most folding bikes, but features some high-end touches. The Clinch D10 rides on Dahon’s 20” Controltech Carbon Clincher wheels with sealed bearing hubs. Stopping power is provided by Dahon’s dual pivot alloy caliper brakes, and the ‘quick draw’ pedals easily pop off and store in the seat tube holster. It’s a single ring up front, with 10cogs in the rear negotiated by a Sram Red derailleur. The complete bike weighs in at 21.2 pounds, and folds down to the following dimensions- 27.2” x 15.7” x 34.3”. The frame comes in brushed silver only.

The Clinch D10’s high performance setup and slick folding system brings the MSRP to $4999.00.

To see how the Lockjaw system works, check out Dahon’s Youtube video.

For more information visit Dahon’s website here.

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strikeir13
strikeir13
9 years ago

cool concept but a $5K folding bike??? unless you’ve got money to burn, seems like overkill. any lower-end models w/o carbon wheels and RED?

Gernon
9 years ago

Looks way better than other foldable bikes i’ve seen… and the folding mechanism is pretty cool.
Wonder how long it will hold up

Red
Red
9 years ago

The title of the article is apropos. I had to do a double take when I saw the price tag.

Sam
Sam
9 years ago

ya, I can’t really imagine the person that would want to buy this bike

fervor
fervor
9 years ago

That hidden hinge is very cool. It looks like the frame still doesn’t lock shut, which makes it a complete pain on public transit, not to mention the pedals coming off means one more thing to carry with me when locking it up some where. I get that it isn’t aimed at commuters with carbon wheels and SRAM Red, but I’m not exactly sure who the target customer is for this.

For $5k I can get a Brompton that folds and unfolds without tools or taking off parts and have money left over for a real road bike. You could also get a pretty nice Moulton or Bike Friday for that price if you want a folding road bike.

Micah
9 years ago

That is pretty cool. I’m still not interested in a folding bike, but that hinge is a great design.

I think this would be a great application for a dropper post!

Mindless
Mindless
9 years ago

@Gernon: take a look at Bike Friday folders. Better, stronger, standard parts, such as the from hub.

Not cheaper though.

Adam2
9 years ago

Cool!

thor
9 years ago

The folding is similar to Matrix and Cadence models from years past, and has itself proven to be safe, secure, long lasting, etc albeit not the fastest way to fold a bike.
And that’s where this bike will find customers. Its NOT a Brompton and tries hard to be NOT a Brompton… If you have to fold 4 times each way on your daily commute than Dahon offers ample different models to do just that. This Bike is for peeps who load the bike in the Tesla or Porsche and drive to a great place and than ride fast, maybe joining a group ride, or put it on their yacht to explore far away places. Sure the price tag is horrendous, but well in line with “normal” bikes with Sram red, and Carbon wheels. As a dealer I cant wait for a more sensitive model with good quality components and a much lower pricepoint.

Velo
Velo
9 years ago

I love the looks, but why is it so darn heavy? With SRAM Red and only a single chainring in front, it should be less than 18 pounds.

Samwise
Samwise
8 years ago

One target customer: Pilots or those who fly frequently. Travels a ton, appreciates a nice ride, has 27.2” x 15.7” x 34.3” to spare in his carry on bin (or whatever)

Kent
Kent
7 years ago

I rode this at the LA Bike Festival yesterday to compare it with my Bike Friday Pocket Rocket Pro. The D10 is the most stable 20″ bike I have ever ridden. It is far superior to the PRP (the worst) and the Swift (pretty bad). The price quoted for the model at the Festival was $2499, so they have almost made it “affordable”.

Michael
Michael
7 years ago

I don’t understand how everyone seems to forget that the locking mechanism is quite the same with the obsolete model of dahon dash P18, dahon smooth hound, and other dahon midtown series. I think Dahon try to rebrand the image of this patented mechanism because all the older models are the fraction of the price of this new one. Off course, I get it that there are slight differences in the bike design and the D10 is more compact while folded, but the increase of the price is just too ridiculous. I myself am also a proud owner of a Dahon Dash P18 and already upgraded all the components with the Dura Ace. Even then, the total expense of me buying a new Dahon Dash P18 and upgrading all the components to Dura Ace is less than the new Clinch D10 price. Even if I want to slap in some 22 inch Chinese full carbon wheel, my total expense is still less than $5000.

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