Fixed/Single Speed Commuting

wgwarburton

No LiT, It's just that they are allowing for more stupidity than you're giving them credit for. All they are doing is describing what it's like to ride with a freewheel... I think most people have sussed that, nowadays :-)

The idea with this thing is that instead of flipping the wheel to switch from SS to fixed, you use a screwdriver to lock the freewheel. Same gear, but fixed. Switch back by undoing the screw.

Cheers,
W.

graeme_s-2

lost_in_thought wrote:

from that (achingly kewl) site:

As soon as the rear wheel rotates faster than the cranks, the rider's legs can get a rest while the rear wheel keeps rolling

So it starts off fixed, then becomes free, then goes back to fixed? Can you rotate the cranks whilst the bike itself is stationary?

Or am I being stupid?

You're not being stupid, it's just terribly explained. There's a single cog on the back that works as a normal fixed. If you take a screw driver and give it 7 turns one way, it turns into a normal free hub. If you then take the screw driver and give it 7 turns back the other way, it's fixed again.

So basically like a flip-flop, but you don't have to take the wheel off and turn it round, just use a screw driver.

biondino

It makes a lot of sense, tbh. Does it work well, does anyone know? Are there downsides to it? I guess the main downside is you can't have two different gears like you would with a flipflop.

lost_in_thought

Ah, I thought their 'free' side was not as free as they made it out to be!

It's not a bad idea, I guess, but I'd imagine that most people will find they stick to either fixed or free.

This does, however, make it very easy to find out which one is for you.

I wonder how easy/cheap it would be to change the sprocket...

Also, those people who have reviewed the thingy make me angry with their oh-so-hip yah-yah 'go out with friends on a ride S1 and flow' rubbish. Singletrails? What? Trails where you're only allowed to go on your single speed?

Grumble grumble. Old before my years I am.

Oh and somehow it's less offensive in German.

avoidingmyphd

that site gave me a headache. and the explanation of freewheeling was ridiculous (and wrong, I think).

But I agree with Biondino that it looks pretty good. Sure, like WGW says, it means you can't have a lower gear on the freewheel side, but mine are the same anyway. I just never use the free side because I can't be arsed to flipflop the wheel (I know, I know, lazy, but true).

I live in the hills, and my biggest issue on the fixed side is that I can't pedal fast enough. So it would be nice to turn a screw and freewheel home occasionally. Not so nice that I'm prepared to get out a spanner mind.

don_don

I live in the hills, and my biggest issue on the fixed side is that I can't pedal fast enough. So it would be nice to turn a screw and freewheel home occasionally. Not so nice that I'm prepared to get out a spanner mind.

+1

There's a lot of chat about the Sturmey S3X that's supposed to be coming out next year, and the 'original' version that would unintentionally slip into free mode inbetween gears.

I'd be tempted to try one of these when they come out, as long as its not as heavy as the prototype they had at Cycle 08.

ride_whenever

it's a hub gear, it is going to be heavy.

vorsprung

avoidingmyphd wrote:

I live in the hills, and my biggest issue on the fixed side is that I can't pedal fast enough..

You could just use the brakes

vorsprung

ride_whenever wrote:

it's a hub gear, it is going to be heavy.

The current version of their freewheelin' 3 speed hub is a kilogram
A normal rear hub with no gears is about 500g tops

You have a funny idea of what heavy is

Littigator

dude half a kilo for a rear hub is heavy by any standards, but a kilo! Not on my bike!

itboffin

damn you Graeme_S my chain just came off fortunately it was at the very end of my ride.

vorsprung

Littigator wrote:

dude half a kilo for a rear hub is heavy by any standards, but a kilo! Not on my bike!

I dunno what my bikes weigh but I am 80Kg
Having 500g more or less metal on the bike makes little difference compared with the lard on top of it

itboffin

Littigator wrote:

dude half a kilo for a rear hub is heavy by any standards, but a kilo! Not on my bike!

er excuse me LITT's but what's with the "kilo" talk, we'll have none of that here thank you very much...

Back off Brussels!

lost_in_thought

vorsprung wrote:

Littigator wrote:

dude half a kilo for a rear hub is heavy by any standards, but a kilo! Not on my bike!

I dunno what my bikes weigh but I am 80Kg
Having 500g more or less metal on the bike makes little difference compared with the lard on top of it

Fair play Vorsprung, but it's still a worthy consideration...

Vorsprung durch Technik and all that...

graeme_s-2

itboffin wrote:

damn you Graeme_S my chain just came off fortunately it was at the very end of my ride.

Sorry to share the misery around. I thought mine had just "come off" to start with until I realised it was trailing on the floor and no longer in an unbroken loop.

vorsprung

itboffin wrote:

Littigator wrote:

dude half a kilo for a rear hub is heavy by any standards, but a kilo! Not on my bike!

er excuse me LITT's but what's with the "kilo" talk, we'll have none of that here thank you very much...

Back off Brussels!

In the cycling world weight is measured in kilograms, distance in kilometres and gear development in inches.

No, I don't understand it either and I doubt that Brussels could influence it in any way

Littigator

itboffin wrote:

Littigator wrote:

dude half a kilo for a rear hub is heavy by any standards, but a kilo! Not on my bike!

er excuse me LITT's but what's with the "kilo" talk, we'll have none of that here thank you very much...

Back off Brussels!

But Sir...he started it points at vorsprung!

itboffin

I'm going to give the surly chain tensioner a go.

graeme_s-2

Collected my bike, complete with new chain from the bike shop last night. Left for work this morning, got to the first slight incline and the chain snapped again!

Bike shop doesn't open until 9, so I've locked the bike up outside (as the LBS is between where it snapped and where I live) and am working from home today. What a total pain in the ass! Now wondering if something else is causing the chain to go (something else on the drive train that's bent/wonky), or if perhaps I've developed Chris Hoy's legs overnight, and will need to go for some insanely chunky strong chain!

graeme_s-2

itboffin wrote:

I'm going to give the surly chain tensioner a go.

I used one of these briefly. I liked it a lot, but the screw got bent. I couldn't work out how for a while, but I think it was when my bike was leant up against another in my shed. I think the screw must have been leant on the quick release lever of one of my other bikes

Can't find anywhere to order a replacement screw from, although Surly tell me they do sell them.

itboffin

Graeme_S wrote:

Collected my bike, complete with new chain from the bike shop last night. Left for work this morning, got to the first slight incline and the chain snapped again!

Bike shop doesn't open until 9, so I've locked the bike up outside (as the LBS is between where it snapped and where I live) and am working from home today. What a total pain in the ass! Now wondering if something else is causing the chain to go (something else on the drive train that's bent/wonky), or if perhaps I've developed Chris Hoy's legs overnight, and will need to go for some insanely chunky strong chain!

That totally sucks. When you say "slight incline" are you actually referring to a MASSSSSSIVE hill

wgwarburton

Graeme,
> Collected my bike, complete with new chain from the bike shop last night. Left for work this morning, got to the first slight incline and the chain snapped again!

Something's not right, that's for sure. Chains are very strong. Either you've been very unlucky (with the chain itself or with the fitting of it), or there's something badly wrong with your bike.
Do you know what type of chain it was and where it broke? Any idea if it was twisted or unshipped before breaking?
Did it feel wierd when you started riding?

Cheers,
W.

graeme_s-2

I had the bottom bracket and chain replaced a few weeks ago. When I started riding afterwards I noticed I could feel something a bit weird in the drive chain. I can't really describe what it was, and it was pretty subtle, but I could feel something going on down there. Then on Wednesday evening that chain snapped at the powerlink (it was an SRAM chain).

The LBS put a new chain on yesterday, and this morning I still had the sensation that something subtle wasn't quite right, and then the chain went again. I'm not sure if this one had a powerlink but it broke on a normal link. A plate seemed to have bent, and a rivet had come free, allowing the chain to come apart.

Both times it's happened, it's just gone with no warning, it's not unshipped or something first. I'm just off to the LBS now, so will have a chat with them about it.

graeme_s-2

Ok, been to the bike shop. Mechanic A did the bottom bracket and first chain, mechanic B did the second chain yesterday. When I got there today I explained the above to mechanic B, who said he suspected that the new BB may have had a different axle length, which was throwing the chain line out of whack enough to cause these problems. In the midst of this discussion mechanic A appeared and started to defend his bottom bracket installation. I left them to discuss it amongst themselves .

They should have it ready for me this afternoon.

Apollo748

New to fixed.

Can i ask, does anyone else have issues cornering in the wet on a fixed?

Going round a roundabout this morning my back end kept wanting to 'go', is this because of the constant need to pedal when riding fixed and something for a fixed rider to be careful of? Maybe I'm not pedalling as smoothly as I should?

Or maybe it's just that my tyres are sh*t?

don_don

Apollo748 wrote:

New to fixed.

Can i ask, does anyone else have issues cornering in the wet on a fixed?

Going round a roundabout this morning my back end kept wanting to 'go', is this because of the constant need to pedal when riding fixed and something for a fixed rider to be careful of? Maybe I'm not pedalling as smoothly as I should?

Or maybe it's just that my tyres are sh*t?

Could be a combination of things. Possibly diesel on the road etc. You'll find that riding fixed gives you a better feel for what the back wheel is doing, so it might be that you were just made more aware of a very slippery surface. Maybe you'ld have come off on a 'normal' bike?

I find myself riding more smoothly round sharp corners on fixed, partly because you do have to keep pedalling. I think its great on wintery roads because of that increased 'feel'.

biondino

Can I ask how you can tell that the tyres are "wanting" to go? Surely if you're turning, on a wet road, they'll either stick or they'll slide catastrophically? Is it possibly it's worry rather than the beginnings of a slide?

don_don

Someone in C+ wrote that you can tell when the tyre is about to go, but there isn't always anything you can do about it!

Because the cranks are 'fixed' to the rear wheel you can tell instantly if the tyre loses grip slightly. You can feel this through the crank but it doesn't always mean you'll come off. If you're moving slow enough then you can sometimes stop a slide from happening.

I think that might explain what Apollo means about the tyre 'wanting to go'.

Apollo748

Maybe it is just in my head, how do you tell?

It manifested as a lack of confidence in cornering and a feeling of not wanting to lean over anymore because that will be it, like you're trying to keep the bike upright to avoid slipping and as a result not turning very well at all.

All I can really say is that it felt like the back end was wanting to slip away.

It's not a "fixed thing" then? I have Continental Gatorskins on, maybe these are just pants in the wet.

Littigator

It could be your rear wheel. Someone posted here a few weeks ago with a similar problem and most responses were about the rear wheel and spoke tensioning.

I think the guy who posted before was medium/heavyweight and had quite lightweight wheels so the sensation he got was the wheel flexing but only as he turned into a right hander. But with wheels that fit a cassette you have the off-balanced spoke arrangement which may not apply with a track wheel on a fixed gear bike.

Is the bike new, are the wheels the factory ones, you might want to get it looked at to check this. Otherwise MTFU and get leaning into those corners