fixed/single speed project

nick_ish

hello there
thought i would post up my first fg/ss build never rode eather but i thought i would be fun to try here where im up to so far



got rid of the derailleur and shortened the chain.


thrown on some old grips and bmx lever

to do:
*new tires.
* flip flop hub.
*another brake/brake lever.
*paint/wrap forks.
*remove gear change
*maybe new rims.

any tips or advice as far a building goes would be much appreciated


cheers nick

stickman

Tip: don't pay any attention to all the rubbish written about not fitting a rear brake.

nick_ish

thanks got one fitted yesterday and whent for a quick ride feels really nice just cant wait to get some FG action xD

EKE_38BPM

I'm fresh to riding FG (done about 60 miles so far this week) and I've had a go at riding in three different gear ratios.

I did about 45 miles in 34/16 (55.8"), 10 in 50/16 (82.1") and, finally, 5 miles in the ratio I actually want, 50/18 (73").
Its a bit like Goldilocks. 34/16 is too spinny, 50/16 is too grindy, but 50/18 seems to be about right (so far).
Going downhill in too spinny a gear is hard work and I had to feather the brake to keep my speed down to rate my legs could cope with spinning at, but going up was fine.
Going uphill/starting off in too high a gear is also hard work but for different reasons. I felt more in control when decending, but climbing hills was more effort than I wanted to put in.

In the right gear I could climb reasonably and decend comfortably. Working out what that gear is on my road bike paid dividends.

I'm only running a front brake and (so far) I've not felt the need for a back brake.
In any vehicle most of the retardation force comes from the front brake and it feels the same on my fixie: Leg braking to control speed when in motion, front brake to stop sharpish.

No brakes is just stupid.

NIck_ish, have you sourced your wheels yet? If not, they guy I got my wheels from did a great job. PM me if you want his details.
Any idea what gear you'll be running when fixed? How will that affect your chainring/sprocket.
My fixie was built from a bike which had been abandoned in a garden for around 15 years, so I needed wheels, BB, chain, chainset, new brake assembly and cable, pedals, saddle, sprocket and many tools.
Yours looks in much better nick than mine did, but the build was fun. It would have been much cheaper to buy a bike ready made, but where is the fun in that?

nick_ish

Hey good to know your enjoying it!
So far i have no idea what gear ratio i will run. Its gonna be tough findin just right for me (lots of steep hills but also quite flat in the town) but i think i will also use my road bike to wOrk out what gear would work
Totaly agree that no brakes is stupid! Like those bmx (brakeless) kids who cant stop even if they have to.

nick_ish

EKE_38BPM
hey do you know how much a rear wheel would be off this guy whith a flip flop?
Cheers nick

gaspode

The thing that caught me out when I switched to fixed was the downhill part - I assumed that the best gear ratio would be all about getting up hills, but actually found that spinning out going downhill was far more of an issue (perhaps my creaky old knees have a lot to do with that...). I was running 42/16 and while uphill/flat were fine, long downhills were far from ideal - I recently switched to 48/18 and find that better (I can still get up the hills, but don't struggle on the downhill - it's also added 2-3mph to my top speed....).

EKE_38BPM

nick_ish wrote:

EKE_38BPM
hey do you know how much a rear wheel would be off this guy whith a flip flop?
Cheers nick

I don't know how much a rear wheel only is, but as a guide (FWIW) I was charged £175 for a track wheelset, with tape, tube and tyres, delivered.
The wheels have 40mm rims (very deep profile), the rear is a flip-flop and comes with a 16T sprocket and lock ring.
I ordered the wheels on Wednesday and (as they are handbuilt) I wasn't really expecting to get them until Monday/Tuesday at the earliest, so was very pleasantly surprised to get them on Saturday.

As the wheels are hand built to your spec (choice of rims, hub and spoke colour as well as different hubs and rims), I'm sure he will be able to do you a good price.

Sending the £s to a bloke I don't know was a bit daunting but he gets very good feedback on lfgss.com and a few on here use him too, so I bit the bullet and I'm now one of those that would give him good feedback too.

nick_ish

Sounds good to me but i can order a flip flop a 18 tooth & a lock ring for under £30
So 30-40 quid sounds good to me! (asumeing it woulf be half the price of a full set)
Can you pm me him details?
Thanks
Nick

Drfabulous0

stickman wrote:

Tip: don't pay any attention to all the rubbish written about not fitting a rear brake.

If it's fixed there really is no point, leg braking is more effective and it is the front brake that does all the work anyway, the level of control and feel on a fixie makes the front brake more potent than on a freewheel equipped bike, but even when I rode SS free I took off the rear brake when it seized up through never being used.

stickman

This is very irresponsible, a novice could go out riding in heavy traffic without a PROPER rear brake, get into a tricky situation and end up dead.

gaspode

Drfabulous0 wrote:

stickman wrote:

Tip: don't pay any attention to all the rubbish written about not fitting a rear brake.

If it's fixed there really is no point, leg braking is more effective and it is the front brake that does all the work anyway, the level of control and feel on a fixie makes the front brake more potent than on a freewheel equipped bike, but even when I rode SS free I took off the rear brake when it seized up through never being used.

I wouldn't recommend anyone (particularly someone new to Fixed bikes) to ride without a rear brake until they are fully used to the way the bike feels and confident in their ability to stop it using the front brake and their leg strength. I hardly ever use my rear brake during 'normal' fixed riding, but if nothing else, it offers 'insurance' to help you stop in an emergency. Boasting about riding SS without a rear brake suggests extreme foolishness and not someone who's advice should be taken too seriously....