Brakes on a Fixie

Eric St. Mary <[email hidden]> wrote:
: I use 74.9"(when I'm feeling slow) or 80.3"(4 out the five days of the week) and 92.8" or 99.4" on
: the way back.

those are f'ing huge gears, man. what's your cadence? i stay around 72 or 76 inches even on the
flats of minneapolis (there are some hills). come to think of it, tho, i have gone as high as 86 but
not very consistently. your gearing will also impact your ability to stop the bike using only
reverse pressure.

one front brake is enuf (my bike can't physically take a second and most track frames can't). if you
really think you want to go w/o any brakes put one on anyway and after a good long time take it off
if you're still feeling, umm, crazy. think of it as a training brake.
--
david reuteler [email hidden]

"Eric St. Mary" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My question is should I run a brake or brakes? There are usually only two places I have to come to
a complete stop on the way there. But I ride at night on Tuesday and Thursday, and am unsure if I
should have brake due to the reduced visiblity.

All those with massive fixie knowledge and experience please advise.

Cheers, Eric

It doesn't take massive fixie knowledge and experience to answer your question, just a little common
sense and knowledge of braking physics. The answer is: you should have at least a front brake. Even
if you never use it for routine stops, no amount of backpedaling and skidding is going to stop you
as quickly as a front brake in an emergency.

--Josh

Get a bigger cog. The 42/14 gives a 42/14*27 = 3*27 = 81". Common practice is to just multiply by 27
even though everyone knows the tires are smaller than that. I'd suggest a 16, which still gives you
a big gear of 70.8".

And use a brake for those emergency situations where you need to stop. Your stopping distance
with only a rear brake (through the fixed or with a rim brake or whatever) is about twice that
with a front.

-Bruce

"Eric St. Mary" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'm in the final stages of building my Fixie . I'm using a 42/14 gear with 23c tires for 78.8 gear
inches. I went with this beacuse I bought the 14t cog when I planned on using a 39t ring on
another set of cranks I had but, things changed. I think it should work out fine as; I ride my
bike 13km to uni in one gear on the way there it is slightly up hill and I use 74.9"(when I'm
feeling slow) or 80.3"(4 out the five days of the week) and 92.8" or 99.4" on the way back.

My question is should I run a brake or brakes? There are usually only two places I have to come to
a complete stop on the way there. But I ride at night on Tuesday and Thursday, and am unsure if I
should have brake due to the reduced visiblity.

All those with massive fixie knowledge and experience please advise.

Cheers, Eric

--

Quoted message said:

--------------------------<

Posted via cyclingforums.com cyclingforums.comcyclingforums.comOpen ↗

<<<snip> My question is should I run a brake or brakes? <snip>>>

Eric, if you have to ask you can't afford it. Thousands of sketchy dudes ride track bikes with no
brakes in heavy traffic all day long, but a vastly different riding style is required to pull this
off. Your 42/14 is a little large but doable, and gives a perfect 3.

cheers, Robert

<snip>

"Eric St. Mary" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'm in the final stages of building my Fixie . I'm using a 42/14 gear...

My question is should I run a brake or brakes?

For starters, by all means do use at least a front brake. Your big gear will make it harder to
stop via back-pedaling than if you had a smaller gear, and you probably don't know yet how to
skip your rear wheel. After you have some time riding your fixie, you will be able to answer your
own question. BTW, I hope you have a short enough crank so that you won't have to contend with
pedal strike.

Regards, Larry

Eric St. Mary said:

I'm in the final stages of building my Fixie . I'm using a 42/14 gear with 23c tires for 78.8
gear inches.

Um, bad idea.

Quoted message said:

I went with this beacuse I bought the 14t cog when I planned on using a 39t ring on another set of
cranks I had but, things changed. I think it should work out fine as; I ride my bike 13km to uni
in one gear on the way there it is slightly up hill and I use 74.9"(when I'm feeling slow) or
80.3"(4 out the five days of the week) and 92.8" or 99.4" on the way back.

I'm perfectly happy riding crazy [censored] like 52x13 on a single speed, but fixed is a totally
different game.

Realize that every bit of mechanical advantage you have working toward you when you turn those
wheels to get up to speed is working AGAINST your legs when you're trying to slow down.

Get a 40 or 39 tooth chainring.

Quoted message said:

My question is should I run a brake or brakes?

First, see above. Stopping with that gear ratio has the potential of sucking.

Second, why NOT run with a brake? Are you so worried about the weight?

emergency. One more thing that can't hurt unless you use it wrong.

Quoted message said:

There are usually only two places I have to come to a complete stop on the way there. But I ride
at night on Tuesday and Thursday, and am unsure if I should have brake due to the reduced
visiblity.

If you only had to stop when you planned to do so, brakes or no brakes would be a simple matter of
personal preference. That's just not realistic.

Quoted message said:

All those with massive fixie knowledge and experience please advise.

It only takes a little experience to learn what I've written. Elmo King

Eric St. Mary said:

I'm in the final stages of building my Fixie . I'm using a 42/14 gear with 23c tires for 78.8
gear inches.

A little higher than I would go with, but to each his own.

Quoted message said:

My question is should I run a brake or brakes?

Yes

Quoted message said:

There are usually only two places I have to come to a complete stop on the way there.

There is that third one, when some car pulls a stupid move in front of you, or you suddenly come up
on a kid in the road, etc., etc.

I've ridden my track bike as a commuter, off and on, for a very long time. I have always had at
least one brake, and now I have two. I like having the brake hoods to hang on to, and I like the
brakes for the downhills, if nothing else. But in an emergency --- and they do happen --- it really
is a lifesaver.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | More people object to wearing fur than leather because it is _`\(,_ | safer to harrass rich
white women than motorcycle gangs. (_)/ (_) |

Eric St. Mary may have said:

My question is should I run a brake or brakes?

Front's a must in my opinion; make up your own mind about a rear brake, perhaps after the first time
some idiot cuts in front of you. Maybe you won't need it. You *can* stop a fixie with legs alone,
but often not soon enough...and a front brake is more effective than a rear in most instances.

(I built an accidental fixie unintentionally once, and had to ride it that way for several days
until I had time to undo my own screwup without anyone to critique the task. It was educational. I
learned to love front brakes.)

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail. Yes, I have a killfile. If I
don't respond to something, it's also possible that I'm busy.

Eric St. Mary <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

My question is should I run a brake or brakes? There are usually only two places I have to come to
a complete stop on the way there. But I ride at night on Tuesday and Thursday, and am unsure if I
should have brake due to the reduced visiblity.

i would say yes. run a front brake. the back one is ugly and boring.

i built up a new fixie a few months ago. it was a trick looking bike, homemade frame, and pretty
everything. i figured id run it brakeless as it would make it trhat much more fun, and i didnt plan
on really ever going fast. well, it was fun, but i misjudged how much i appreciate speed now and
again, and speed with no brakes means a lot of close calls, no matter how good your skid/handling
is. i put a front brake on her, and feel safe bombing trafficky hills again.

i had a coworker who rode his fix to work, as i do. the stretch of road to the shop we work at is
darn busy during opening and closing hours, with a lot of frenetic cars pulling onto and off of the
road at speed. i cruise in traffic, draft off the SUVs, and feel pretty secure with a poweful front
brake. my coworker has far better bike handling skills than me, with his phenomenal trick skids and
his no hands trackstand. but he says he's always petrified on that road. its 'cause he has no
brakes. he just doesnt know it yet.

anthony

Quoted message said:

All those with massive fixie knowledge and experience please advise.

Cheers, Eric

-Eric, My fixie experience may not be massive, but it's just enough to advise that you would be wise
to run a front brake. --Jim

Bruce said:

Get a bigger cog. The 42/14 gives a 42/14*27 = 3*27 = 81". Common practice is to just multiply by
27 even though everyone knows the tires are smaller than that. I'd suggest a 16, which still gives
you a big gear of 70.8".

What's the fun in that? I'm running a 53x16 on my fixie (89+"😉. It's lots of fun climbing with
that gear! ;-)

Quoted message said:

And use a brake for those emergency situations where you need to stop. Your stopping distance
with only a rear brake (through the fixed or with a rim brake or whatever) is about twice that
with a front.

Anyone who rides in traffic with a fixie soon realizes that your stopping distance is MUCH longer
than on a bike with "real brakes". I wouldn't dream of riding mine without a front brake.

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

Quoted message said:

-Bruce

"Eric St. Mary" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'm in the final stages of building my Fixie . I'm using a 42/14 gear with 23c tires for 78.8
gear inches. I went with this beacuse I bought the 14t cog when I planned on using a 39t ring on
another set of cranks I had but, things changed. I think it should work out fine as; I ride my
bike 13km to uni in one gear on the way there it is slightly up hill and I use 74.9"(when I'm
feeling slow) or 80.3"(4 out the five days of the week) and 92.8" or 99.4" on the way back.

My question is should I run a brake or brakes? There are usually only two places I have to come
to a complete stop on the way there. But I ride at night on Tuesday and Thursday, and am unsure
if I should have brake due to the reduced visiblity.

All those with massive fixie knowledge and experience please advise.

Cheers, Eric

--

Quoted message said:

--------------------------<

Posted via cyclingforums.com cyclingforums.comcyclingforums.comOpen ↗

Eric St. Mary said:

I'm in the final stages of building my Fixie . I'm using a 42/14 gear with 23c tires for 78.8 gear
inches. I went with this beacuse I bought the 14t cog when I planned on using a 39t ring on
another set of cranks I had but, things changed. I think it should work out fine as; I ride my
bike 13km to uni in one gear on the way there it is slightly up hill and I use 74.9"(when I'm
feeling slow) or 80.3"(4 out the five days of the week) and 92.8" or 99.4" on the way back.

My question is should I run a brake or brakes? There are usually only two places I have to come to
a complete stop on the way there. But I ride at night on Tuesday and Thursday, and am unsure if I
should have brake due to the reduced visiblity.

All those with massive fixie knowledge and experience please advise.

Do install a front brake. I'm sure many wags will tell you why you don't need it but add it anyway.

You spin a 92? and a 99???
--
Andrew Muzi www.yellowjersey.org Open every day since 1 April, 1971

"Mark Hickey" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

What's the fun in that? I'm running a 53x16 on my fixie (89+"😉. It's lots of fun climbing with
that gear! ;-)

Fun is doing 50km/h down hills with my 68". What a blast! Fixies are for making you learn to spin,
not to bust your knees.

Regards,

Suzy

Not bad, 31.0 mph!...I haven't hit 30mph yet. I pushing a 52/20 with my fixedgear,(70.2"😉 also added
a front brake. I'm good for about 35 miles, non stop with hills. The upper front portion of my legs
are usually sore the next day from back pedaling, anyone else have this problem?....trying not to
use the front brake as much. -tom

"Suzy Jackson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Fun is doing 50km/h down hills with my 68". What a blast! Fixies are for making you learn to spin,
not to bust your knees.

Regards,

Suzy

Quoth Tom Nakashima:

Quoted message said:

I pushing a 52/20 with my fixedgear,(70.2"😉 also added a front brake. I'm good for about 35 miles,
non stop with hills. The upper front portion of my legs are usually sore the next day from back
pedaling, anyone else have this problem?....trying not to use the front brake as much.

That's not good! It is _harmful_ to the legs to use them for serious "braking" on a fixed gear.
The fixed gear is good for modulating your speed, not for serious stopping or resisting on
major descents.

The physiological name for this is "eccentric contraction", referring to using muscles to resist an
overpowering force that causes them to stretch while you're trying to contract them.

This is supposed to cause micro-tears in the muscle tissue, making you weaker! Use the brake when
it's appropriate. If your legs get sore from _resisting_ it's a bad sign, not like when they get
sore from propelling the bike.

Sheldon "Front Brake" Brown +-----------------------------------------------------------------+
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Sheldon Brown said:

Quoth Tom Nakashima:

Quoted message said:

I pushing a 52/20 with my fixedgear,(70.2"😉 also added a front brake. I'm good for about 35
miles, non stop with hills. The upper front portion of my legs are usually sore the next day
from back pedaling, anyone else have this problem?....trying not to use the front brake as much.

Quoted message said:

That's not good! It is _harmful_ to the legs to use them for serious "braking" on a fixed gear.

Very much like mashing a very tough gear; so tough that you can only resist, without mashing
it really.

Sergio Pisa

Sheldon, I highly respect your opinion on this matter. I thought the opposite at first, that you
could build different muscles by backpedaling, which may aid with road riding, but perhaps not. You
guys are the experts and have gone through this stage of cycling....I'm listening. I'll be using the
front brakes from now on as often as I can. thanks again for the help, -tom

"Sheldon Brown" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoth Tom Nakashima:

Quoted message said:

I pushing a 52/20 with my fixedgear,(70.2"😉 also added a front brake. I'm good for about 35
miles, non stop with hills. The upper front portion of my legs are usually sore the next
day from

back

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

pedaling, anyone else have this problem?....trying not to use the front brake as

much.

Quoted message said:

That's not good! It is _harmful_ to the legs to use them for serious "braking" on a fixed gear.
The fixed gear is good for modulating your speed, not for serious stopping or resisting on major
descents.

The physiological name for this is "eccentric contraction", referring to using muscles to resist
an overpowering force that causes them to stretch while you're trying to contract them.

This is supposed to cause micro-tears in the muscle tissue, making you weaker! Use the brake when
it's appropriate. If your legs get sore from _resisting_ it's a bad sign, not like when they get
sore from propelling the bike.

Sheldon "Front Brake" Brown +-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|ÊÊ This message has been sent to you using recycled electronsÊÊÊ | ÊÊÊÊÊÊ exclusively.Ê Please do
|not discard them after use,ÊÊÊÊÊÊ | ÊÊÊÊ send them along and help conserve these
|irreplaceableÊÊÊÊÊÊ | ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ sub-atomic resources for future generations.ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+ Harris Cyclery, West Newton,
Massachusetts Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041 harriscyclery.comharriscyclery.comOpen ↗ Hard-to-find parts
shipped Worldwide captainbike.comcaptainbike.comOpen ↗ sheldonbrown.comsheldonbrown.comOpen ↗

I believe it's different Sergio. I don't get sore from pushing big gears, but do get sore when I
backpedal to brake a fixie. -tom

"Sergio SERVADIO" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

Sheldon Brown said:

Quoth Tom Nakashima:

Quoted message said:

I pushing a 52/20 with my fixedgear,(70.2"😉 also added a front brake. I'm good for about 35
miles, non stop with hills. The upper front portion of my legs are usually sore the next day
from

back

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

pedaling, anyone else have this problem?....trying not to use the front brake as

much.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

That's not good! It is _harmful_ to the legs to use them for serious "braking" on a fixed gear.

Very much like mashing a very tough gear; so tough that you can only resist, without mashing
it really.

Sergio Pisa

David Reuteler said:

Eric St. Mary <[email hidden]> wrote:
: I use 74.9"(when I'm feeling slow) or 80.3"(4 out the five days of the week) and 92.8" or 99.4"
: on the way back.

those are f'ing huge gears, man. what's your cadence? i stay around 72 or 76 inches even on the
flats of minneapolis (there are some hills). come to think of it, tho, i have gone as high as 86
but not very consistently.

In my younger faster days I used to run an 81" single-speed on the gently rolling hills of Austin
TX. I would never have considered a fixed gear this tall without brakes, though.

Now that I am fat in steeply hilly Seattle, my single-speeds and fixies are all 60" to 67". I still
have to walk them up the worst grades, often.

Chalo Colina