Folding things? My bike folds, folding caravans are a thing, what else?
July 24, 2021 8:19 AM Subscribe
I have a folding bike and it's really useful. I came across folding caravans this morning (here if interested, and the short video at the bottom of the page is worth watching IMHO). What other folding things exist and are they any good? Thanks!
I carry a folding knife in my pocket every day. Very useful.
posted by 2N2222 at 8:40 AM on July 24, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by 2N2222 at 8:40 AM on July 24, 2021 [4 favorites]
I love my folding Oru kayak that cooker girl linked.
posted by gemmy at 9:01 AM on July 24, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by gemmy at 9:01 AM on July 24, 2021 [3 favorites]
The weaving studio in my neighborhood has a couple of folding floor looms that they can fold and shove up against the wall when they're not using them. The same manufacturer also makes smaller looms that fold for storage.
posted by moonmilk at 9:19 AM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by moonmilk at 9:19 AM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
The Brooklyn Museum has a piano that unfolds into a bed!
posted by moonmilk at 9:26 AM on July 24, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by moonmilk at 9:26 AM on July 24, 2021 [3 favorites]
nting Oru kayaks. I learned about them here and bought one a few months ago. There are few specific choices made in the design of the one I got (Haven) that I'd have made differently. Specific connectors, mostly. But, in general, it's still really impressive and genuinely works great. Also seconding knives. I very much like my salt-water-proof Spyderco Ladybug.
Every folding photography light box, diffuser, tripod, sheet music stand, instrument stand, and multi-tool I've ever used have been so terrible I wouldn't buy any of them again. Also pocket trumpets, although they're not meant to be unfolded, so maybe it isn't really what the question intends. (To be fair, they're good for practice and easy to carry. But not really much more so than a cornet that actually sounds good and costs less.)
posted by eotvos at 9:42 AM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
Every folding photography light box, diffuser, tripod, sheet music stand, instrument stand, and multi-tool I've ever used have been so terrible I wouldn't buy any of them again. Also pocket trumpets, although they're not meant to be unfolded, so maybe it isn't really what the question intends. (To be fair, they're good for practice and easy to carry. But not really much more so than a cornet that actually sounds good and costs less.)
posted by eotvos at 9:42 AM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
Derail but the guy in the video of the folding camper looks so much like my old boss (now retired) that I just spent 20 minutes googling to see if he had a secret life as a caravan maker...or has a twin brother!
Ahem, how about fozzils folding tableware. 'sea to summit' do similar camping stuff.
posted by sedimentary_deer at 10:41 AM on July 24, 2021
Ahem, how about fozzils folding tableware. 'sea to summit' do similar camping stuff.
posted by sedimentary_deer at 10:41 AM on July 24, 2021
Murphy beds, which can include a folding desk or table. The 1890s-1930s developed a bunch of foldout furniture, IME made of deal plank; I’ve lived in places with fold-out ironing boards and big cutting boards and what I think was the old housing for a washboard.
Extensible tables often fold, though sometimes they only slide.
posted by clew at 11:04 AM on July 24, 2021
Extensible tables often fold, though sometimes they only slide.
posted by clew at 11:04 AM on July 24, 2021
And, adding bending to folding, compliant mechanisms (previously ).
posted by clew at 11:10 AM on July 24, 2021
posted by clew at 11:10 AM on July 24, 2021
Lots of folding boats larger than a kayak. Here is a 31ft folding schooner.
posted by SemiSalt at 11:31 AM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by SemiSalt at 11:31 AM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
Doona makes a infant car seat that folds out into a stroller.
posted by AlexiaSky at 11:37 AM on July 24, 2021
posted by AlexiaSky at 11:37 AM on July 24, 2021
Somewhere along the way, I acquired an entrenching tool with pick and shovel like this M-1943. Gahhd, it's useless. I keep expecting /hoping it will be useful and it always flubs the task.
Since a kid I've always carried a pocket-knife. Current edition is an Opinel #8 [plain French not Swiss-Army].
posted by BobTheScientist at 11:45 AM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
Since a kid I've always carried a pocket-knife. Current edition is an Opinel #8 [plain French not Swiss-Army].
posted by BobTheScientist at 11:45 AM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
I don't know if origami counts, but it's the very original folding thing, aside from perhaps tents.
I initially thought it wasn't that useful, but I've left a trail of small paper boxes across every office I've ever worked in. I've always loved paper folding because you can take a scrap of paper from a recycle bin and make something clever and often useful.
Also inflatable boats. I've got two, neither less than sixty years old, both still perfect. I like them a lot more than any rigid boat I've been on. There are, however, a lot of cheap and worthless ones out there.
posted by AugustusCrunch at 11:52 AM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
I initially thought it wasn't that useful, but I've left a trail of small paper boxes across every office I've ever worked in. I've always loved paper folding because you can take a scrap of paper from a recycle bin and make something clever and often useful.
Also inflatable boats. I've got two, neither less than sixty years old, both still perfect. I like them a lot more than any rigid boat I've been on. There are, however, a lot of cheap and worthless ones out there.
posted by AugustusCrunch at 11:52 AM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
There are guns that fold; the M6 Aircrew Survival Weapon being the most iconic. The Magpul FMG-9, while never leaving prototype stage, inspired a few movie/ anime guns. The Chiappa M6 Folding Shotgun is another example.
Couldn't say if any of them are any "good," would probably depend on the definition of good.
posted by porpoise at 12:26 PM on July 24, 2021
Couldn't say if any of them are any "good," would probably depend on the definition of good.
posted by porpoise at 12:26 PM on July 24, 2021
For car camping with a big group there's those folding canopies that some North Americans call Easy-Ups, and folding tables to go under them, and folding camp chairs, and my friends have a folding two-person loveseat in the same vein...
posted by nebulawindphone at 12:37 PM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by nebulawindphone at 12:37 PM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
I love stuff that folds. I have a Brompton and an Oru Inlet. Both have design compromises that detract from performance but they expand my small-apartment lifestyle by SO MUCH.
If you're working from home, I recommend having a wall desk that closes up. I like that it seals off the workspace from my living space and I don’t need to worry as much about inadvertently leaving a camera on. This is still a WIP (I'll be adding some shallow shelving, an iPad holder, ribbon board, etc.) but has proven to be very functional. I especially like having little drawers for all my chargers and do-dads. I found that my old horizontal desk was always collecting junk and took up a lot more floor space. There are desks on Wayfair and Etsy that fold vertically, which is good because they require less wall space than mine.
posted by bonobothegreat at 1:06 PM on July 24, 2021 [4 favorites]
If you're working from home, I recommend having a wall desk that closes up. I like that it seals off the workspace from my living space and I don’t need to worry as much about inadvertently leaving a camera on. This is still a WIP (I'll be adding some shallow shelving, an iPad holder, ribbon board, etc.) but has proven to be very functional. I especially like having little drawers for all my chargers and do-dads. I found that my old horizontal desk was always collecting junk and took up a lot more floor space. There are desks on Wayfair and Etsy that fold vertically, which is good because they require less wall space than mine.
posted by bonobothegreat at 1:06 PM on July 24, 2021 [4 favorites]
we have this Folding ladder that can be unfolded into an extension ladder or used as a stepladder while folded. It's great!
we use pop up laundry baskets and Pop up Colanders.
I've seen lots of very fancy folding strollers, and I always thought a folding pet carrier would be a nice thing to have because ours take up a ridiculous amount of storage space!
posted by euphoria066 at 1:10 PM on July 24, 2021
we use pop up laundry baskets and Pop up Colanders.
I've seen lots of very fancy folding strollers, and I always thought a folding pet carrier would be a nice thing to have because ours take up a ridiculous amount of storage space!
posted by euphoria066 at 1:10 PM on July 24, 2021
Not a product but I like this antique ladder that folds into a pole.
posted by bonobothegreat at 1:26 PM on July 24, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by bonobothegreat at 1:26 PM on July 24, 2021 [2 favorites]
I'm a fan of folding things - makes storage or moving or portability so much easier!
Things on my search history: folding treadmills, desks, shelves, cots, tables, a potty seat for travel; collapsible baskets, bowls, cups, straws, colander, and more, I'm sure.
I'd love to find a folding camp chair with a tablet arm, or any that folds up flat or small and is reasonably comfortable (not like a plain folding chair).
posted by stormyteal at 1:35 PM on July 24, 2021
Things on my search history: folding treadmills, desks, shelves, cots, tables, a potty seat for travel; collapsible baskets, bowls, cups, straws, colander, and more, I'm sure.
I'd love to find a folding camp chair with a tablet arm, or any that folds up flat or small and is reasonably comfortable (not like a plain folding chair).
posted by stormyteal at 1:35 PM on July 24, 2021
I always have a folding handkerchief and nice big shemagh with me when I hike or camp. The shemagh is really good for portable shade, a light blanket, a pillow, a kneeling pad, a neck warmer, a neck cooler if sprayed with water, a scarf, sling, and basic container.
The handkerchief can be an impromptu mask, impromptu gloves, a way to tie things to other things, a way to clean things up, a compress, a sweat mop, or a sleeping mask. It is also a form of basic identity and it's fun to shop for patterns.
posted by circular at 1:39 PM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
The handkerchief can be an impromptu mask, impromptu gloves, a way to tie things to other things, a way to clean things up, a compress, a sweat mop, or a sleeping mask. It is also a form of basic identity and it's fun to shop for patterns.
posted by circular at 1:39 PM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
Oh, right. Folding kettles.
For an old school version of these, bison stomachs were used to fashion kettles/ cauldrons. As long as there was sufficient liquid in it, they wouldn't burn.
posted by porpoise at 5:25 PM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
For an old school version of these, bison stomachs were used to fashion kettles/ cauldrons. As long as there was sufficient liquid in it, they wouldn't burn.
posted by porpoise at 5:25 PM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
Voyage-Air guitars. Perfectly reasonable moderate priced guitar, which happens to have a cabinet hinge. I own two; they are great for travel, and play like any other guitar. No compromises.
posted by blob at 5:47 PM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by blob at 5:47 PM on July 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
Chadwick folding acoustic bass. No longer being made, but pretty trippy
posted by blob at 5:49 PM on July 24, 2021
posted by blob at 5:49 PM on July 24, 2021
Response by poster: These are all amazing! Thanks for posting.
posted by chr at 3:42 AM on July 25, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by chr at 3:42 AM on July 25, 2021 [1 favorite]
I've got this folding luggage trolley that was part of the standard kit handout for DEC field service engineers, still going strong after 35 years. The horizontal part flips up, and the upper part of the handle slides down into the lower part. It has managed loads that had more sturdy-looking ones folding in unintended ways.
Also, folding sawhorses and their more versatile cousins, the Workmate folding workbenches.
posted by Stoneshop at 5:42 AM on July 25, 2021 [2 favorites]
Also, folding sawhorses and their more versatile cousins, the Workmate folding workbenches.
posted by Stoneshop at 5:42 AM on July 25, 2021 [2 favorites]
umbrellas
posted by Oli D. at 4:45 PM on July 25, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by Oli D. at 4:45 PM on July 25, 2021 [1 favorite]
Laptops and old cellphones. Folding shovels (we always took one car camping when I was a kid, because not all the places we camped had outhouses).
This folding bike is one of my all-time favorite designs - 26" wheels, but comparable to a Brompton in folded size. It was a student project, but Helix did something similar with their helical hinges.
WoodenWidget has some really lovely designs for folding campers (including a bike camper) and boats.
posted by sibilatorix at 2:31 AM on July 28, 2021
This folding bike is one of my all-time favorite designs - 26" wheels, but comparable to a Brompton in folded size. It was a student project, but Helix did something similar with their helical hinges.
WoodenWidget has some really lovely designs for folding campers (including a bike camper) and boats.
posted by sibilatorix at 2:31 AM on July 28, 2021
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posted by cooker girl at 8:24 AM on July 24, 2021 [5 favorites]