Dear all,
I purchased my Strida SX in April and just recently noticed clicking noises under load. I searched the web and found out about the rear hinge problems that I confirmed for my bike. The damage of the tube is quite severe already. Due to the lack of Never-seez and Loctite I just disassembled the parts, removed the burrs on both the cup spring and the tube and reassembled all parts with a white TiO2 grease and a stainless steel washer instead of the original one that was totally deformed. I tried to fix the screw with usual instant glue which did not work so when moving the lower tube now all other parts (cup spring, washer, screw) move together with it.
What brought me to an idea: Maybe this behavior is beneficial for the function of the bike! What if the screw head is fixed to the washer, cup spring and the tube of the bike in riding position after tightening it with the correct torque?
If you then move the tube up to fold the bike the screw is unloosed making it easier to fix the tubes in the folding position since the mechanical stress is reduced. When unfolding the bike the screw is tightened again ensuring a stable hinge during driving.
Any comments to this idea are welcome! 