Why fixed wheel? isn't this an anachronism?

hevipedal

I can understand the appeal of a single gear bike; simplicity, nothing mechanical to go wrong on your commute etc.
However why in the 21st century would anyone want to ride a fixed wheel?
It seems to me to be perverse to have available one of the great inventions of the 20th century - The Freehub - and deliberately choose not to use it.
I would like someone who uses a fixed to explain why so I can understand the choice.

terongi

It is a completely different riding experience. You will not know until you try it.

You won't appreciate the full feeling on your first ride, because you will try to ride it like a geared bike.

After that, every pedal stroke fells different - the control of your bike in heavy traffic is seriously enhanced (which is why they are nore commonly used in city streets than country lanes) - there is a mutual feeling of responsiveness and sensitivity between you and the bike, which you will not have experienced before. Relaxing and letting your legs spin down a hill is a unique experience.

None of it is necessary or better than other kinds of bike - it is just a new experience.

The answer to the question: what is the point? - because it is there to try.

It's like a motorcyclist saying: what is the point of cycling since the invention of the combustion engine?

Greenbank

It takes away the chance to freewheel so you just get on with it. Moving = pedalling.

It can help your pedalling action as it forces you to pedal evenly round the entire stroke (with a freewheel you may not notice that you're not applying pressure when the cranks are near vertical).

There's also a contribution from the flywheel effect (of both the backwheel and the cranks) when going up hills. You don't get this with a freewheel.

But, for me, the lack of choice of "do I pedal or shall I coast this bit" is the best thing. I go faster up certain hills than I do on the geared bike because I can't coast along for a bit to catch my breath. I tend to pace myself much better (a useful skill in its own right). It's helped even out my riding.

One possible downside is downhills. It becomes just as much of a workout going down a hill as it does getting up the thing. But then the very high cadence spinning is increasing my suppleness, flexibility and more cardio-vascular work. Most riders can't get up to 150rpm cadence let alone sustain it for several minutes at a time. (Experienced fixed riders can get beyond 200rpm).

It's certainly made me faster (on a geared bike), however I'm not sure how much of this is due to improved technique and improved strength (some at least) and how much is due to the fact that the fixed bike purchased coincided with an increased commute distance and therefore I'm just putting in more miles.

cougie

Fixed is great - direct connection to the power train. Put the freehub in and its completely different.

I've ridden free for 25 years and its great, but fixed is just so different. I love it.

Its one of those things you need to do to understand.

frustruck

Riding fixed keeps you warm in the winter. Fixies are also great on slick or icy surfaces as the rear wheel grips very well due to being constantly driven.

On the downside they are useless on steep hills and rough ground.

cougie

Not useless at all going up steep hills. Most hill climbs are won by fixed wheel.

My steel fixed outclimbs my mates full DA carbon bike, but then he drops me on the way down the hill. :shock:

terongi

cougie wrote:

Not useless at all going up steep hills. Most hill climbs are won by fixed wheel.

My steel fixed outclimbs my mates full DA carbon bike, but then he drops me on the way down the hill. :shock:

I don't mean to be pedantic (actually I do), but if you read Frustruck's post carefully you will see that he says on the DOWNside they are useless on steep hills.

Cougie, you have confirmed this. No complaints about using a fixed bike on the UPside of a steep hill.

frustruck

Perhaps I should have said that *I* can't climb or descend steep hills on my fixie very well, or ride offroad - of course some people do both!

piedwagtail91

i found i'm better off road on fixed, for some reason i feel more in control. as for hills well you either get up them or walk you don't have to think about what gaer you're in. it does make you a lot stronger and better climber i've found on the few occaisions i've ridden gears.. compared to riding gears it's more positive , not like pedaling a wet sponge as one clubmate put it!

cougie

Aha Terongi - v well spotted. Downside indeed !!

andrew_s

Greenbank wrote:

It can help your pedalling action as it forces you to pedal evenly round the entire stroke

It doesn't really.
If you get used to riding fixed, then change back to a freewheel, you find that the pedals keep getting stuck in the vertical position because the bike isn't pushing them past it for you.

oldwelshman

hevi you have opened a can of worms I almost got my head chewed off when i said I thought it might be more dengerous to ride fixed with more traffic than before
I have not been out onmy fixed on road yet just track, but I used to use it in winter for cadence work and also for hill climbs.
Terongi, why are they no good on hills? Unclip and let yourself go just dont try to clip back in until going slow though
I used to ride to maindy track in cardiff from caerphilly which invloled a decending a long steep hill (nantgarw hill) and I used to do it without a front brake (naughty). I eventually got one as it was harder going down the hill than up
This was over 20 years ago though and less traffic.

Greenbank

Fair enough, the "can" was in there as a conditional, but I ruined that by making the rest of the sentence makes it sound like it forces you to pedal completely around the stroke.

I'll rephrase it:

It makes it easier to learn to pedal around the complete stroke if you want to, but you have to make an effort to do this. Riding fixed won't make you pedal more efficiently by magic though.

Tom753

andrew_s wrote:

Greenbank wrote:

It can help your pedalling action as it forces you to pedal evenly round the entire stroke

It doesn't really.
If you get used to riding fixed, then change back to a freewheel, you find that the pedals keep getting stuck in the vertical position because the bike isn't pushing them past it for you.

Agreed! This happens because the rider is just stamping down on the pedals instead of pedalling in circles, and letting the momentum of the bike, which they have created in the first place, pull their pedals back, up and forwards. If a rider does actually pedal in circles then riding fixed and freewheel will feel exactly the same, a fixed will only feel like a fixed only when they are applying reverse pressure or letting the pedals pull their feet round.

I'm afraid the usual stuff about efficiency, flywheel effect etc are all mistaken, the only way a fixed is more efficient is maybe the straight chainline has less mechanical losses but this would also apply to single speed as well, and fixed maybe is faster uphill only because it's lighter or the rider is putting in more effort, not because it's fixed as such.

Fab Foodie

I tried fixed as an experiment back in the early eighties after reading about it in "Richard's Book of the Bicycle". I liked it, I used it for the next 25 years, my only bike, up h;ll and down dale.
The old girl (1949) is just too old to be ridden anymore.
I've ridden geared for the last 5 years or so, but I'm very keen to get a fixed again.

As already stated, it is a different riding experience, maybe it's like Marmite, you either love-it or hate-it.
BUT, you have to try-it to know whether it's for you or not.

I think fixed riding is great, I Iike the "connected" feeling and the rhythmic simplicity of non-stop pedalling and the greater low-speed contol, especially in commuting traffic where I think fixies really score. and urge anybody to give-it a go.
The simple mechanicals are a bonus.

If it wasn't for my dodgy ticker I'd still happily have a fixed as my one and only bike.

e999sam

I was brought up on fixed in the 70's and did alot of my early TT and obviously all my track racing on fixed. I agree with the previous poster that it teaches you to pedal correctly (ankling). If I could aford another bike then I would have fixed wheel . They are great for flat areas but the more hilly it gets the worse they get especialy if riding with over riders on gears. Here in the Peak District I gues you would need something like a 69inch gear which means you are going to be doing over 100 rpm at 20 MPH.

piedwagtail91

i live in lancs./ dales area and use 63.5, it's just about right for most of the climbs, but downhil you're up to 170/180 revs quite a lot.did our clubs 200 mile in 24 hour ride on it last weekend round the dales and lakes and didn't find it too bad compared to the years i've done the same ride on gears.the only place i was at a disadvantage was down dunmail, but i soon rejoined on the flat stuff after.

Monty Dog

Riding fixed helps a lot for building good leg and core-body strength- you're forced to develop strength for the climbs because there's no bail-out and use a lot of arm and core muscles too. I ride many of our fast club runs on fixed - even the one that goes round the Surrey Hills - 180rpm+ on the downhills scares a few folks but you do need 2 good brakes for 20% downhills. To say that it's anachronistic really doesn't appreciate the benefits - you also learn to spin-up a gear quicker for those sprints for the signs!

Big Red S

It's far more fun*. I've been riding a fixie for a little over a year now, and still _every_ time I get on the thing I grin. Even when I'm just riding it to work in the pissing rain having not been able to find my waterproofs or a pair of gloves. I don't think I've had that on any other bike before (aside, possibly, from the mikrobike).

I've also found that I automatically pedal more - last year while I was in Morzine/Les Gets (mud, not tarmac) I found that I was pedalling far more than I'd expect to since it was just natural - where i'd normally think the ground was too rough to pedal and just roll through, i'd find myself almost subconsciously pedalling through it. So it helps you hit trees faster, too.

I also like the complete and utter silence of the thing. Silent freehubs scare me.


*Clearly, this is my opinion, not fact. etc.