Fixie gear ratio poll

Try www.bikeman.com - I got my dura-ace cog for $20 shipped
or so, IIRC. I did the conversion on my campus bike, and
it's way fun - go for it!

Where will you be riding? How hilly? Like Sheldon says,
higher gears are more fun as long as you can still hammer up
the steepest hill you need to
climb. You might consider a flip-flop hub with two cogs of
different sizes. Even the 'cassette' side can be used
for a track cog if you prefer that. Use the higher
one for normal tooling and switch to the lower one in
a real emergency.

I use 42-15; my semi-pro racing friend uses 42-18 I think,
and campus is essentially flat.

song

"Michael Press" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie
(see recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog
size to use.

-snippage

Quoted message said:

But I know the typical fixie is 42-16 or 17 (66 gear
inches), so the 39-21 (50 gear inches) seems out of whack
for an experienced (though heavy, 210#) rider. Fixie cogs
seem expensive at $25-35 each (gee, you can get a whole 9
speed cassette for that), so I'm looking for opinions from
the experienced before I take the plunge.

I use a 40-15, and I'm 220#. I ride around the neighborhood
with my son on his trike, go on long weekend rides, and take
a daily flat lunch ride. It's a good gear. If I did more
hilly stuff I'd probably have a bigger gear, not smaller, so
I can get down the hills again. I had a 14 on there for a
while, but it was a $5 no-name cog, and it tried to strip
all the threads off my hub. So $25 seems pretty good.

Philip

Michael Press said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie
(see recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog
size to use.

I nearly always use a 49 chainring, and then use either 21,
19, or 18 cogs depending on how fit I am. I also have a 44
chainring for very hilly routes.

Jay Hill <[email hidden]> wrote:

I use 60" for commuting (it's flat round here, but I like an
easy gear for the days when I'm trashed after a
race/whatever and it's windy etc).

I suggest starting with that.

Arthur

--
Arthur Clune clune.orgclune.orgOpen ↗ "Technolibertarians make a
philosophy out of a personality defect"
- Paulina Borsook

Michael Press said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie (see
recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog size to
use.

I've followed Sheldon's advice and found 42-15 to work quite
well for all but the steepest here in Sonoma County. Mine is
a flip flop and the free side is a 17, though the only time
it's been used was to let a friend try my bike out for size.
It gets carried along though in case of bonking.

Ride it, you'll like it.

Phil

Michael Press said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie (see
recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog size to
use.

I'm running a relatively freakish 53-16. It's my favorite
road gear, and what works best for me on the flat. Doesn't
help the rear braking much though...

Mark Hickey Habanero Cycles habcycles.comhabcycles.comOpen ↗ Home of
the $695 ti frame

I have a fixed gear with two sizes of chainrings and 4
different cogs. 42 and 39 tooth chainrings. 15, 16, 17 fixed
cogs. And 18 single speed freewheel. The most used is the
42x17 combination. Good for anything up to about 20 mph. I
use the 42x15, on the other side of this wheel, when the
expected pace is above 20 mph. On my geared bike I spend
about 99% of the time in the 42x15, 42x16, 42x17, and 42x19
gears. These gears can easily handle 14 to 24 mph with a
comfortable variation in cadence.

39x21 or 39x19 seems way to low.

Michael Press <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie
(see recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog
size to use.

I tried the "ride around the neighborhood in a single
gear" trick and settled on a 39-21t - far too big for
downhills but big enough to get me up hills and
comfortable on flats. The 19 seemed a bit harder than I'm
used to; I prefer high-cadence, low gears on hills. I ride
53-39 with 12-27 on my double road bike.

My test was on a road bike with my commuting rack and bag,
so not necessarily a good fixie comparison, but it's what
I've got. I wasn't trying to hammer at all, just kind of
touring speed, since much of my intent for the fixie will
be riding around the neighborhood with kids.

But I know the typical fixie is 42-16 or 17 (66 gear
inches), so the 39-21 (50 gear inches) seems out of whack
for an experienced (though heavy, 210#) rider.

Fixie cogs seem expensive at $25-35 each (gee, you can get
a whole 9 speed cassette for that), so I'm looking for
opinions from the experienced before I take the plunge.

Thanks, Michael

Michael Press <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie
(see recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog
size to use.

.... But I know the typical fixie is 42-16 or 17 (66 gear
inches), so the 39-21 (50 gear inches) seems out of whack
for an experienced (though heavy, 210#) rider.

Fixie cogs seem expensive at $25-35 each (gee, you can get
a whole 9 speed cassette for that), so I'm looking for
opinions from the experienced before I take the plunge.

I'm also new to fixed gear. I put one together last December
and now have about 1100 miles on it. I have a 42-22 gearing,
too easy for most people but I live in a very hilly area.

Tom

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I'm also new to fixed gear. I put one together last
December and now have about 1100 miles on it. I have a 42-
22 gearing, too easy for most people but I live in a very
hilly area.

I, too, live in a very hilly area-Marin country-and I ride a
45 chainring and a double sided hub with 17 and 20 giving
70" and 60". I can climb anything around here on 60". 42-22
wil spin you out on even the gentlest downhill. You can
usually clinb fixed on a gear 10"to 15" higher than you use
with a freewheel. Phil Brown

Michael Press said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie
(see recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog
size to use.

I tried the "ride around the neighborhood in a single
gear" trick and settled on a 39-21t - far too big for
downhills but big enough to get me up hills and
comfortable on flats. The 19 seemed a bit harder than I'm
used to; I prefer high-cadence, low gears on hills. I ride
53-39 with 12-27 on my double road bike.

My test was on a road bike with my commuting rack and bag,
so not necessarily a good fixie comparison, but it's what
I've got. I wasn't trying to hammer at all, just kind of
touring speed, since much of my intent for the fixie will
be riding around the neighborhood with kids.

But I know the typical fixie is 42-16 or 17 (66 gear
inches), so the 39-21 (50 gear inches) seems out of whack
for an experienced (though heavy, 210#) rider.

Fixie cogs seem expensive at $25-35 each (gee, you can get
a whole 9 speed cassette for that), so I'm looking for
opinions from the experienced before I take the plunge.

66" is an old standard (about 42 x 17 or 52 x 21). It's good
on the flat and will get you up the drags (not the real
hills, unless you are incredibly strong).

Michael Press said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie
(see recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog
size to use.

I tried the "ride around the neighborhood in a single
gear" trick and settled on a 39-21t - far too big for
downhills but big enough to get me up hills and
comfortable on flats. The 19 seemed a bit harder than I'm
used to; I prefer high-cadence, low gears on hills. I ride
53-39 with 12-27 on my double road bike.

My test was on a road bike with my commuting rack and bag,
so not necessarily a good fixie comparison, but it's what
I've got. I wasn't trying to hammer at all, just kind of
touring speed, since much of my intent for the fixie will
be riding around the neighborhood with kids.

But I know the typical fixie is 42-16 or 17 (66 gear
inches), so the 39-21 (50 gear inches) seems out of whack
for an experienced (though heavy, 210#) rider.

Fixie cogs seem expensive at $25-35 each (gee, you can get
a whole 9 speed cassette for that), so I'm looking for
opinions from the experienced before I take the plunge.

Lots of good answers, so I'll just add another data point:

I built up my fixie a few weeks ago, and have so far been
using a 40x14 (about 75"😉. This has been fine for the riding
I've done so far, which has been quite short rides (< 10 km)
with a few medium-ish hills. I also have a 16 tooth cogwheel
(got them both used for really cheap), which I have not yet
tried, but I'll probably put it on if I ever try this bike
on my commute, which is fairly hilly and ends with a 350
meter climb.

I used to spin up hills in a *really* low cadence, but I've
been gradually moving to higher gears as my strength and
knees improve.

Hill climbing on a fixie has a surprisingly different
feel to it; it's difficult to predict what it will be
like by sticking to a single ratio on a geared bike. It's
probably partly psychological, but it feels a lot easier
on the fixie.

--
Benjamin Lewis

Keep on keepin' on.

Michael Press said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie
(see recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog
size to use.

I have 42-16 on my Surly Cross-Check. Although it's a
single-speed setup, it should be valid as I don't really
coast much.

URL: pp.fishpool.ficrosscheck.htmlOpen ↗

I used to run 42-18 on the same bike, but I found out that
it was on the small side even on the flat with a good
tailwind. 42-16 for me seems to be big enough up to about 42
km/h (26 mph), and it gets up the local rolling hills, some
of which are steep but none are very long.

In practice I seem to ride at about 30-32 km/h average speed
(19-20 mph), usually about 1.5 hours at a time. For me these
are hard, short training rides. If I used the bike for
commuting or other casual riding I would certainly use a lot
smaller gear.

-as

47-17 (75"😉 is my sweet spot but i only ride my fixed around
relatively flat areas (not downtown seattle but downtown
saint paul). i'd optimize your preferred cruising spead
around your preferred cadence and if you can't go up hills
reduce your gear to suit.
--
david reuteler [email hidden]

"David Reuteler" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

47-17 (75"😉 is my sweet spot but i only ride my fixed
around relatively flat areas (not downtown seattle but
downtown saint paul). i'd optimize your preferred cruising
spead around your preferred cadence and if you

can't

Quoted message said:

go up hills reduce your gear to suit.
--
david reuteler [email hidden]

46-18 (69"😉 for me. Flats, ascents, descents. Limitations, I
tray to stay away from anything over 8% grade. -tom

Michael Press said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie (see
recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog size to
use. Fixie cogs seem expensive at $25-35 each (gee, you can
get a whole 9 speed cassette for that), so I'm looking for
opinions from the experienced before I take the plunge.

Thanks, Michael

42x15 or 42x16 on my training bike, 49x17 on my race bike at
the moment, will go to 49x16 in a week or two, then 49x15 if
I feel like
it. There are no monster hills around here, 70" gear is
practical for climbing as slow as 10mph and
descending at 30mph.

Shop around for sprockets, $25 seems pretty high end for a
hack bike Kinky Cowboy*

*Batteries not included May contain traces of nuts Your
milage may vary

Michael Press said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie
(see recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog
size to use.

I tried the "ride around the neighborhood in a single
gear" trick and settled on a 39-21t - far too big for
downhills but big enough to get me up hills and
comfortable on flats. The 19 seemed a bit harder than I'm
used to; I prefer high-cadence, low gears on hills. I ride
53-39 with 12-27 on my double road bike.

My test was on a road bike with my commuting rack and bag,
so not necessarily a good fixie comparison, but it's what
I've got. I wasn't trying to hammer at all, just kind of
touring speed, since much of my intent for the fixie will
be riding around the neighborhood with kids.

But I know the typical fixie is 42-16 or 17 (66 gear
inches), so the 39-21 (50 gear inches) seems out of whack
for an experienced (though heavy, 210#) rider.

Fixie cogs seem expensive at $25-35 each (gee, you can get
a whole 9 speed cassette for that), so I'm looking for
opinions from the experienced before I take the plunge.

Thanks, Michael

My fixed gear city bike 50 x 18 with 27" clinchers.

I'll be using 50 x 16 when I get well again.

I live in flat to rolling country where the only steep hills
are short and I can usually grunt my 200Ib ass up them using
the anaerobic stepping machine approach.

39 x 21 sounds like a fun off-road gear to me.

Marcus

Arthur Clune said:

Jay Hill <[email hidden]> wrote:

No I didn't.

Michael Press said:

But I know the typical fixie is 42-16 or 17 (66 gear
inches), so the 39-21 (50 gear inches) seems out of whack
for an experienced (though heavy, 210#) rider.

Fixie cogs seem expensive at $25-35 each (gee, you can get
a whole 9 speed cassette for that), so I'm looking for
opinions from the experienced before I take the plunge.

I'm a heavy fellow at 230lbs and I ride 46x16 w/ 170mm crank
arms on a 700C rear wheel in and around Portland, Oregon.

I've taken that up to Hoyt Arboretum (above the zoo) and
back down again (not quite the Zoobomb route, though). I
take it every day to an office about 10 miles from my home
that includes a descent down to river grade, a long trek
along the river, then a climb back up to each destination.
Riding it out to Sandy, however, was brutal. Blame that on
it being Christmas Day (midwinter, so poorer conditioning
and freezing wet).

I can go down a hill at 30+mph without being thrown from the
saddle. I can cruise at 20 pretty comfortably.

All in all, I'm really happy with it and don't think I'll be
changing anytime soon.

EK

Calling in from the Clydesdales....

Quickbeam with 40/16 fixed

Bailout freewheel option on flip flop of
40/18 or 32/18

Ted

"Michael Press" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'm about to convert an old road bike to a fixie
(see recent post) and I'm trying to decide which cog
size to use.

I tried the "ride around the neighborhood in a single
gear" trick and settled on a 39-21t - far too big for
downhills but big enough to get me up hills and
comfortable on flats. The 19 seemed a bit harder than I'm
used to; I prefer high-cadence, low gears on hills. I ride
53-39 with 12-27 on my double road bike.

My test was on a road bike with my commuting rack and bag,
so not necessarily a good fixie comparison, but it's what
I've got. I wasn't trying to hammer at all, just kind of
touring speed, since much of my intent for the fixie will
be riding around the neighborhood with kids.

But I know the typical fixie is 42-16 or 17 (66 gear
inches), so the 39-21 (50 gear inches) seems out of whack
for an experienced (though heavy, 210#) rider.

Fixie cogs seem expensive at $25-35 each (gee, you can get
a whole 9 speed cassette for that), so I'm looking for
opinions from the experienced before I take the plunge.

Thanks, Michael