Fixies... What's the attraction?

noisemonkey

Forgive my ignorance but I don't get it? Sore knees, sometimes only one brake, ,loads of wear on your shoes from foot braking. Is it only a retro thing or is there more to it?

Harveytile

This has been done to death. Do a search. Oh and at the same time you might want to try stir up some interest with a comment about helmets or RLJ... :roll:

pst88

If you're getting knee pain you should look at your bike fit and/or consider a lower gear. For me the attraction was less maintenance (although the same probably holds true for hub gears), simplicity ie. less to go wrong, and the ability to control the speed of the bike just with my legs. Some people will tell you it's some sort of Zen like spiritual experience where you become 'one' with the bike. Those people are idiots.

Mark Elvin

It's far better excersise than a geared bike in my opinion, and very simple.

I wasn't sure when I bought one, but now it's the only bike I have.

Try it sometime, the whole "ohh, am I in the right gear of the 30 I have" thing dissapears & you have more time to simply enjoy the ride. When it comes to hills you just have to MTFU as you have no granny gears.

pst88

Leg braking shouldn't wear your shoes down any faster than any other form of braking. You're just resisting the movement of the bike through the pedals, not dragging your foot along the ground to stop.

edit: I meant shouldn't

Mark Elvin

pst88 wrote:

Leg braking should wear your shoes down any faster than any other form of braking. You're just resisting the movement of the bike through the pedals, not dragging your foot along the ground to stop.

I think he's under the impression you use you feet to drag on the ground :shock:

Imagine doing that on a fixie, OUCH

pastryboy

There's no hidden bits that can go wrong (like you get with a freewheel) and it saves money on brake pads.

I started riding fixed for the first time a few months back (for the winter - low maintenance an all that) on a fairly large gear and it's not made a jot of difference to my knees.

owenlars

pastryboy wrote:

There's no hidden bits that can go wrong (like you get with a freewheel) and it saves money on brake pads.

I find it wears chains quicker though

Mark Elvin

owenlars wrote:

pastryboy wrote:

There's no hidden bits that can go wrong (like you get with a freewheel) and it saves money on brake pads.

I find it wears chains quicker though

There's no reason this should be the case, that is assuming tooth geometry to be similar.

gtvlusso

Pros'

Fitness - constant pedalling
Strength - hills and starts off the lights in one gear
Virtually no maintenance
Lightweight bike
agile frame
cheap to build and run (assumed you build from an old frame)

Cons

Nightmare in windy weather if you run a big gear
Have to pick your route and avoid very steep hills
Comfort can be an issue on the more hipster bikes
getting gear right for your trip/commute
very nickable at the moment.

I prefer my fixie for commuting as I dono't have to do any maint. On the geared race bike I often have to adjust gear cables for stretch to keep accurate shifting.

Fixed gives you more feel for the bike and the road - it is difficult to explain, but you feel more connected to the bike than with a freewheel.

Butterd2

owenlars wrote:

pastryboy wrote:

There's no hidden bits that can go wrong (like you get with a freewheel) and it saves money on brake pads.

I find it wears chains quicker though

I run an 1/8th" chain, that takes some wearing out and it doesn't stretch either. I actually brake quite a lot on the front brake still so I do use pads pretty quickly.

Oh yes and it's a Zen like experience

iPete

I'm yet to come across any fixies or even single speeds that have a weight advantage vs cost of a regular alu road bike (40-600), that pro can go out the window unless someone can prove otherwise?

Mark Elvin

iPete wrote:

I'm yet to come across any fixies or even single speeds that have a weight advantage vs cost of a regular alu road bike (40-600), that pro can go out the window unless someone can prove otherwise?

My £350 fixie weighs in at around 17lb.

Butterd2

iPete wrote:

I'm yet to come across any fixies or even single speeds that have a weight advantage vs cost of a regular alu road bike (40-600), that pro can go out the window unless someone can prove otherwise?

Mines an 18 year old ex-MTB so weighs slightly more than me.

jonny_trousers

It's just a different way to ride and quite fun. That said, I've gone back to riding my SS on the freewheel as I feel it is all round more comfortable for the commute.

iPete

Mark Elvin wrote:

iPete wrote:

I'm yet to come across any fixies or even single speeds that have a weight advantage vs cost of a regular alu road bike (40-600), that pro can go out the window unless someone can prove otherwise?

My £350 fixie weighs in at around 17lb.

Is that off the shelf because I can't find much..

SimonAH

Just a massive grin factor. Don't know why but it is.

Utter simplicity and connectedness. Once you get your head around the gearing then you'd be surprised how fast you get - yesterday lunchtime I went for a seven miler with my MD on his geared road bike and found myself waiting at the top of all the hills (and I ride a fairly big gear).

Plus if you go belt drive then aaaah ZERO and I mean ZERO maintenance dude (other than love-fettling)

Oh yeah, the most important bits are the fixie dismount and the ease of trackstanding.

gtvlusso

iPete wrote:

Mark Elvin wrote:

iPete wrote:

I'm yet to come across any fixies or even single speeds that have a weight advantage vs cost of a regular alu road bike (40-600), that pro can go out the window unless someone can prove otherwise?

My £350 fixie weighs in at around 17lb.

Is that off the shelf because I can't find much..

Mine is just over 6kg in weight.....

Built up by me - the frame is Reynolds 531 SL

£75 for the frame.
£120 for wheels
£39 for Nitto RB018 bars

The track crank I already had as with the brake, lever, bar tape and ITM Goccia stem.

pst88

There is one reason why riding a fixed gear bike will wear your shoes out faster: from walking up all the hills!

wgwarburton

pst88 wrote:

There is one reason why riding a fixed gear bike will wear your shoes out faster: from walking up all the hills!

Wuss.

Cheers,
W.

vorsprung

I think we all need to watch this video again

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vn29DvMITu4

pastryboy

owenlars wrote:

pastryboy wrote:

There's no hidden bits that can go wrong (like you get with a freewheel) and it saves money on brake pads.

I find it wears chains quicker though

You can get a KMC 1/8 chain for under £3.

Mark Elvin

pst88 wrote:

There is one reason why riding a fixed gear bike will wear your shoes out faster: from walking up all the hills!

Hmm, somebody needs to keep taking is daily dose of MTFU!

EKE_38BPM

[thread hijack] What are the pros and cons of 1/8th" and 3/32" chains for fixies? [/thread hijack]

Mark Elvin

1/8 is stronger.

Butterd2

Mark Elvin wrote:

1/8 is stronger.

And no con unless you are trying for superlight.

Gussio

EKE_38BPM wrote:

[thread hijack] What are the pros and cons of 1/8th" and 3/32" chains for fixies? [/thread hijack]

A bit of 6 of 1 and half a dozen of the other. More important considerations are probably tension, chainline and quality of chain. I have 1/8 chain on 3/32 chain ring and 1/8 sprocket.

If you are converting a geared bike, might be an argument to stick with 3/32 (to match existing components) otherwise I think that 1/8 makes more sense. Arguably more availability of 1/8 fixed-specific components. If you use cheap BMX freewheels rather than fixed track sprockets, I think that these generally come as 1/8.

Note that that you can use a 1/8 chain on 3/32 chain ring or sprocket, but not a 3/32 chain on 1/8 componentry.

pst88

Mark Elvin wrote:

pst88 wrote:

There is one reason why riding a fixed gear bike will wear your shoes out faster: from walking up all the hills!

Hmm, somebody needs to keep taking is daily dose of MTFU!

I didn't mean me walking up all the hills. I blaze up in just a few turns of my massive gear leaving mere mortals quivering in my wake. Unfortunately not everyone can be as awesome as me.

MrChuck

gtvlusso wrote:

Pros'


agile frame

What does this mean?

gtvlusso

MrChuck wrote:

gtvlusso wrote:

Pros'


agile frame

What does this mean?

Short wheelbase, turns on a sixpence.

gtvlusso

pst88 wrote:

Mark Elvin wrote:

pst88 wrote:

There is one reason why riding a fixed gear bike will wear your shoes out faster: from walking up all the hills!

Hmm, somebody needs to keep taking is daily dose of MTFU!

I didn't mean me walking up all the hills. I blaze up in just a few turns of my massive gear leaving mere mortals quivering in my wake. Unfortunately not everyone can be as awesome as me.

Bianchi Via Nirone 2010 - isn't that the "cheap" one? Thought they came with a compact chainset.....50/34 and a 12/25 cassette - could climb everest with that!

At least take the pee and use a 53/39 11/23 range.......

Sorry - cheap shot on my behalf :-)