Fixed gear growing in popularity?!!?

Ken Marcet said:

http://www.registerguard.com/news/2005/03/20/ol.fixedgear.0320.html
I would never have thought this would make a comback! I can barely

remember

Quoted message said:

riding a fixed as a small child. Although I must admit I do see a lot

of the

Quoted message said:

older people down here in the Sunshine State riding fixed adult

trikes.

Quoted message said:

Maybe it isn't just a Florida thing.

Fixed gear bikes have been popular for ages for off-season riding. The
idea was to improve your high-speed pedaling. A lot of people ride them
because they're fun, others because they're considered hip. The article
above was wrong about a few things, especially brakes. If y ou relly
want to know about fixers, see Sheldon Brown's site.

"Peter Cole" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ken Marcet said:

http://www.registerguard.com/news/2005/03/20/ol.fixedgear.0320.html
I would never have thought this would make a comback! I can barely

remember

Quoted message said:

riding a fixed as a small child. Although I must admit I do see a lot

of the

Quoted message said:

older people down here in the Sunshine State riding fixed adult

trikes.

Quoted message said:

Maybe it isn't just a Florida thing.

Fixed gear bikes have been popular for ages for off-season riding. The
idea was to improve your high-speed pedaling. A lot of people ride them
because they're fun, others because they're considered hip. The article
above was wrong about a few things, especially brakes. If y ou relly
want to know about fixers, see Sheldon Brown's site.

Yeah, I know that Sheldon likes the fixies, but I thought it might just be
him, I really don't think I would enjoy riding one, perhaps maybe someday, I
will do a project fixed or something.

Ken

What appeals to me is the simplicity of it. I would not want to give up
my gears, but I have been thinking of building up a fixed gear extra
bike using Sheldon's directions. It would be fun to rescue an old frame
and update it with modern brakes, etc. I am not quite confident enough
yet to tackle it, but maybe I will try it this summer.

I ride a fixed gear and I LOVE it. Simplicity is nice -- I mean, you
have so few moving parts, that what can go wrong with it?

I've been commuting on one, and recently took it on a couple of long
rides. A 60 miler, because I figured it would handicap me sufficiently
to do a lesurely ride with my girlfriend. This weekend, a friend
needed a bike, and I had my regular bike and my fixie. He wasn't going
to ride the fixie, so I did 75 miles on it. Well, I wound up Pulling
my friend for the last 15 miles, even though he was on an indy-fab ti
crown jewel with campy record 10.

Although it seems like it must be more difficult -- I didn't find the
ride to be much more challenging than a regular ride. You do need to
anticipate road conditions and other riders' actions a little more
diligently -- and you CANT hang in a hard sprint. But, it is a ton of
fun, and its nice to not ever be thinking about your gears. Its just
you, the road, the chain, and your legs.

catzz66 said:

What appeals to me is the simplicity of it. I would not want to give up
my gears,

There is also another aspect to it. With a geared bike, getting up a
steep hill is more a matter of technology than strength. On a fixed gear,
it's you against the mountain.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | The lottery is a tax on those who fail to understand
_`\(,_ | mathematics.
(_)/ (_) |

I commuted all winter on a converted road frame set up with a 42x20. It's
low enough to get into a headwind here in OK and also carry baggage. One
other plus - when it's cold, the lower speed and higher cadence keeps me
warm. Fixies can't be beat for simplicity. This one has sealed bearing
hubs and a conventional bottom bracket assembly. Basically, the only
maintenance is seeing that the wheels are true and applying some chain lube
every week or two. Gotta love it!

--

alan

Anyone who believes in a liberal media has never read the "Daily Oklahoman."

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

Quoted message said:

I ride a fixed gear and I LOVE it. Simplicity is nice -- I mean, you
have so few moving parts, that what can go wrong with it?

I've been commuting on one, and recently took it on a couple of long
rides. A 60 miler, because I figured it would handicap me sufficiently
to do a lesurely ride with my girlfriend.

David L. Johnson said:

catzz66 said:

What appeals to me is the simplicity of it. I would not want to

give up

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

my gears,

There is also another aspect to it. With a geared bike, getting up a
steep hill is more a matter of technology than strength. On a fixed

gear,

Quoted message said:

it's you against the mountain.

--

Another nice advantage is that when you're trying to motivate a newbie
- you can tell them "look, if I can take this bridge on this bike, you
can take it on yours!" Although it's a little dishonest -- if a little
fib gives a newbie self-confidence, I consider it worthwhile.

alan said:

I commuted all winter on a converted road frame set up with a 42x20.

It's

Quoted message said:

low enough to get into a headwind here in OK and also carry baggage.

One

Quoted message said:

other plus - when it's cold, the lower speed and higher cadence keeps

me

Quoted message said:

warm. Fixies can't be beat for simplicity. This one has sealed

bearing

Quoted message said:

hubs and a conventional bottom bracket assembly. Basically, the only
maintenance is seeing that the wheels are true and applying some

chain lube

Quoted message said:

every week or two. Gotta love it!

I also commute on a fixed gear. Another advantage when riding in
traffic is that it limits my downhill speed (here in San Diego there
are a lot of hills), giving me a little more time to react to bonehead
actions by motorists.

An additional advantage, not related to commuting, is that in the rain
you can control your downhill speed without using your brakes.

Tom

Ken Marcet said:

http://www.registerguard.com/news/2005/03/20/ol.fixedgear.0320.html I
would never have thought this would make a comback! I can barely remember
riding a fixed as a small child. Although I must admit I do see a lot of
the older people down here in the Sunshine State riding fixed adult
trikes. Maybe it isn't just a Florida thing.

Are you sure you aren't confusing "fixed" with "single-speed"? On a fixed
gear bicycle you cannot coast at all.

When I was little my first bicycle was a single speed with a coaster brake
(in other words, you stopped the bike by applying back-pressure to the
pedals).

--
Benjamin Lewis

A small, but vocal, contingent even argues that tin is superior, but they
are held by most to be the lunatic fringe of Foil Deflector Beanie science.

Quoted message said:

There is also another aspect to it. With a geared bike, getting up a
steep hill is more a matter of technology than strength. On a fixed

gear,

Quoted message said:

it's you against the mountain.

--

David L. Johnson

Here is the t-shirt you seek....
<http://www.velo-retro.com/teeshirt2.html>

Scott G.
What would Fausto Do ?

sg8357 said:

Quoted message said:

There is also another aspect to it. With a geared bike, getting up a
steep hill is more a matter of technology than strength. On a fixed

gear,

Quoted message said:

it's you against the mountain.

--

David L. Johnson

Here is the t-shirt you seek....
<http://www.velo-retro.com/teeshirt2.html>

Scott G.
What would Fausto Do ?

shirt has the classic quote:

"I still feel that variable gears are only for people over forty-five. Isn't it better to triumph
by the strength of your muscles than by the artifice of a derailleur?
We are getting soft... As for me, give me a fixed gear!"
--Henri Desgrange, 1902 L'Equipe article.

MJR said:

Another nice advantage is that when you're trying to motivate a newbie
- you can tell them "look, if I can take this bridge on this bike, you
can take it on yours!"

"Take this bridge"??? --- please?

--

David L. Johnson

__o | Some people used to claim that, if enough monkeys sat in front
_`\(,_ | of enough typewriters and typed long enough, eventually one of
(_)/ (_) | them would reproduce the collected works of Shakespeare. The
internet has proven this not to be the case.

catzz66 said:

What appeals to me is the simplicity of it. I would not want to give up
my gears, but I have been thinking of building up a fixed gear extra bike
using Sheldon's directions. It would be fun to rescue an old frame and
update it with modern brakes, etc. I am not quite confident enough yet to
tackle it, but maybe I will try it this summer.

I'd start with an old freewheel bike--have your LBS pull the freewheel,
move the axle, and redish the wheel. Then screw on a bmx freewheel. If you
want fixed, use a track cog and some loc-tite. Since you're not using a
lock ring for the cog--you must leave both brakes installed!

As for brakes, I did what many suggested here and upgraded my circa '78
Shimano 600 calipers with a set of Kool Stop Continental brake shoes and
they stop better than I need them to. I found mine on ebay-- 11usd for two
sets. 😄

Another cool thing about using an older frame is that many had clamp-on
shifters--I always think it looks nice when a single doesn't have shifter
braze ons on the down tube.

Shouldn't take you more than a couple hours to build one.

MJR said:

Another nice advantage is that when you're trying to motivate a newbie -
you can tell them "look, if I can take this bridge on this bike, you can
take it on yours!"

I find my single to make noobs grin in the sense that a lot of newcomers
think the sport is so complicated and the essense of it really isn't.

They always ask "why one gear"? And I answer usually, "because it's all
you need. "

I do also love the fact that I haven't had to wrench on my bike since last
October. 🙂

An aside to those building SS bikes at home while it's on my mind: DO get
a single speed chain for your project--they're cheap and will keep the
chain from derailling. I use a KMC nickel plated chain--they sell them at
most xmarts for under a tenner.

maxo said:

catzz66 said:

What appeals to me is the simplicity of it. I would not want to give up
my gears, but I have been thinking of building up a fixed gear extra bike
using Sheldon's directions. It would be fun to rescue an old frame and
update it with modern brakes, etc. I am not quite confident enough yet to
tackle it, but maybe I will try it this summer.

I'd start with an old freewheel bike--have your LBS pull the freewheel,
move the axle, and redish the wheel. Then screw on a bmx freewheel. If you
want fixed, use a track cog and some loc-tite. Since you're not using a
lock ring for the cog--you must leave both brakes installed!

As for brakes, I did what many suggested here and upgraded my circa '78
Shimano 600 calipers with a set of Kool Stop Continental brake shoes and
they stop better than I need them to. I found mine on ebay-- 11usd for two
sets. 😄

Another cool thing about using an older frame is that many had clamp-on
shifters--I always think it looks nice when a single doesn't have shifter
braze ons on the down tube.

Shouldn't take you more than a couple hours to build one.

I still have the 20+ yr old Fuji 12 speed I first bought. That might work.

catzz66 said:

I still have the 20+ yr old Fuji 12 speed I first bought. That might
work.

Perfect!

bmx freewheel: 15
chain: 10
new tires: 20 (20 y/o I'm assuming dry rot)
labour: 15 redish wheel and move axle

shouldn't cost more than a hundred even if you freshen all the brake shoes
and cables.

maxo said:

catzz66 said:

I still have the 20+ yr old Fuji 12 speed I first bought. That might
work.

Perfect!

bmx freewheel: 15
chain: 10
new tires: 20 (20 y/o I'm assuming dry rot)
labour: 15 redish wheel and move axle

shouldn't cost more than a hundred even if you freshen all the brake shoes
and cables.

Sounds like a winner to me. It had new tires and brake pads on it
already, so I am down to the freewheel and chain. I'm glad I kept it
around.

maxo said:

catzz66 said:

I still have the 20+ yr old Fuji 12 speed I first bought. That

might

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

work.

Perfect!

bmx freewheel: 15

Fixed gear is more fun.

Quoted message said:

chain: 10

May not be necessary.

Quoted message said:

new tires: 20 (20 y/o I'm assuming dry rot)

Dry rot doesn't happen to any tires made since the 1960s when Nylon
replaced cotton canvas. 20 year old Japanese tires may be treasurable,
if they're not worn out or lumpy.

Quoted message said:

labour: 15 redish wheel and move axle

That sounds low, but maybe your shop works cheap.

Quoted message said:

shouldn't cost more than a hundred even if you freshen all the brake

shoes

Quoted message said:

and cables.

Brake shoes, cables _AND HOUSING_ are a good idea.

See also http://sheldonbrown.com/fixed

Sheldon "Coasting Is A Pernicious Habit" Brown
Newtonville, Massachusetts
Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com
Hard-to-find parts shipped Worldwide
http://captainbike.com http://sheldonbrown.com
+--------------------------------------------+
| If you haven't yet discovered the novels |
| of Neal Stephenson, don't wait! |
| Start with Snow Crash or Quicksilver |
+--------------------------------------------+

CaptBike said:

Quoted message said:

labour: 15 redish wheel and move axle

That sounds low, but maybe your shop works cheap.

That's what I always paid my wheel guy in Chicago--he could dish, true,
and move the axle in fifteen minutes tops. Seems like a fair price for
fifteen minutes work--even if you consider the other costs of staying open.

YMMV of course. 😉