Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Why single speed?

I've been considering making my Kona blast a SS. Would it work for freestyle? And why do you prefer SS over a multi speed bike? or do you?

I'm building up a new bike as a single speed even thought it has vertical dropouts. My reasons are to save money, save weight, and have a stronger rear wheel. Also, it's relatively flat around here so I don't see the need for all those gears.

would it be good for DH, just put some really low gears on there?

Originally posted by mountaindew
I've been considering making my Kona blast a SS. Would it work for freestyle? And why do you prefer SS over a multi speed bike? or do you? If you mean freestyle as in freestyle BMX, sure it will work.

There reasons riders prefer their SS over their multi-geared bike (if they have one) are many and personal. For me it started with simplicity and maintenance - I'd rather ride my bike than work on my bike. With as many miles as I was logging and the conditions I was riding in it was more hassle than I wanted. And I'm not even a maintenance fanatic. The single speed reminded me of my BMX roots. You can build a light bike without even trying or spending much. It frees your mind so you can concentrate on the ride. I could go on and on, but you just need to try it. It's not for everyone, but many try it and are hooked.

If you build up a single speed specific rear wheel, it will be stronger so that would be an advantage for a DH hardtail. If you have a front shock, that will make climbing harder unless it has a lockout. If you want it for DH only, I guess that's not a concern and you would definitely want lower gears.

one speed is all you need

Why SS?????????? Why is the sky blue?? :crash: It's explainable, but takes way to much work.

just lookin for a simple answer like, its lighter, easier to maintain... stuff like that.

Maint. is next to none. They are pretty light..depending on the frame and whether or not you have a sus. fork.

SS is funner to ride, but then having only one gear puts you at a disadvantage during group rides with geared folks.

Originally posted by tFUnK
SS is funner to ride, but then having only one gear puts you at a disadvantage during group rides with geared folks.

Yeah... it's hard work having to ride slow so they can keep up with you :P

-Andy

I ride a single speed because it is fun. I only have one bicycle, a 20 year old trek 720 road bike. About 4 years ago I was forced to stay in one gear because of worn cogs on the rear and a bent rear derailleur. When I would go into bicyle shops looking for a derailleur (friction shifting) and a 6 speed maillard heliomatic freewheel I felt like a dinasaur. They explained to me the need for more gears and something called index shifting plus the parting of some well earned cash. All the while I was enjoying riding my bicycle as much as I ever had. So a couple of years ago I converted the multi speed bicycle to a single speed and havent regretted it one time.

I would think about it...but too many nasty hills around here :p volcanic activity lol

Brendon
:beer:

Last weekend at the Sea Otter Classic I saw a dual slalom competitor running a SS cog with a derailleur. :confused: Maybe he was in the middle of switching it out but ran out of time?

a derailler can act as a chain tensioner if you have vertical dropouts

I've converted two dept. store bicycles to single speeds,the heavy one I use 2nd. gear and the aluminum bicycle you got to go with 3rd gear cause it is far lighter bicycle...This is all I will ever need in my life...no headaches low enough fo hills also.Do any of you think I'm nuts?

I've got a neglected 1981 Murray SS coaster brake, and I ride up a dirt road 180' in elevation at least once daily. I still prefer it over my Diamondback 21 speed mountain bike. My maintenence schedule is before I ride, fill up the tires, hose every moving part down with PB Blaster. I never worry about mechanical failure, and I can run circles around the dept. store 21s mtns. that I ride with. I'm getting my speedo soon so I'll be able to give you some numbers, but I'm guessing I can cruise at about 15-20mph with 1-2 cases of beer strapped to me. And remember West Virginia is the mountain state; the only flat ground we have comes in 100yd long, well trimmed grassy sections.

But bottom line: try it. My friends think I'm crazy, and they might be right, but I can't go back.

Yeah... it's hard work having to ride slow so they can keep up with you :P

-Andy

Okay Andy, you just won today's lunacy prize!

Geared road-racing bikes are faster than fixed gear and singlespeed bikes on group rides.

Sorry, but that's the way it is. You will either A.** wear yourself out on the hills (if your area has HUGE hills like Atlanta does). or B.**spin out on the fast downhills in a smaller gear.

It's just facts, man. I've done the group ride with hardcore racers (talkin' Kalahari/Jittery Joe guys, etc.)
on a fixie/ss enough times (with a couple of team guys on ss as well). Guess what? Light, fast road racers drop SS'ers eventually. Just the way it is, man...enough with the anecdotal "I dropped a roadie today" stories. Oh really? Who was he? How long did the ride last? Any hills?

Anybody can drop any other random person unawares at any given time. But the facts remain. Geared bikes are faster and more efficent on long hilly rides or races. Period.

I ride singlespeed for a lot of reasons, but none of them involve delusions of winning road races.

I've been considering making my Kona blast a SS. Would it work for freestyle? And why do you prefer SS over a multi speed bike? or do you?
SS is for your siSSy girlfrind. Kick it up a notch with a fixed gear bike.
edit: I admit, I was SS for a month before goiong fixed.

http://img38.photobucket.com/albums/v117/jimmyd13/IMG_3159.jpg
they are just better.
Gary Fisher running a 48/15 with no chain tensioner on verticals. Weighs in at just under 20#

SS is for your siSSy girlfrind. Kick it up a notch with a fixed gear bike.
edit: I admit, I was SS for a month before goiong fixed.

Who need a girlfriend when we can just pass you around???:D
[edit] I just read your edit, but you are still an ass.:p

Okay Andy, you just won today's lunacy prize!


take another look... he won March 30, 2003's lunacy prize....

I have more fun on a single speed. With a geared bike, i think to much about riding, but with only one gear, i just ride. If you don't have any crazy steep hills, and you don't mind going a little bit slower, SS is an eye-opeing experience. Plus, you'll never have to adjust a deraileur again.

dh anf fs mountain have you heard of a mon cog or a jackal c'mon and why single speed because your week and need a work out get to the converting ness you need it and have fun a good gearing is 36 - 13

it always worked well when I used to jump bmx

dh anf fs mountain have you heard of a mon cog or a jackal c'mon and why single speed because your week and need a work out get to the converting ness you need it and have fun a good gearing is 36 - 13

it always worked well when I used to jump bmx

The SS/FG forum is for proficient users of English only. Please go back to the BMX forum until you finish middle school.

The SS/FG forum is for proficient users of English only. Please go back to the BMX forum until you finish middle school.

:D Thank you Zach, associate ed. SS/FG!:)

And March 30, 2003???:eek: Doh!:crash: (yet another nice edit):p

sorry I am not so good with my english as you see when your from the back woods its hard to learn how to talk straight in the back woods of georgia sorry mister gee you really put me in my place darn I am going to have to really reevaluate my life and social standinds as I am not really part of this society now am I after all most of our business is done in english and spanish and hmong and cantonese and arabic and a plethera of other languages here in california but please please help me learn proper english and grammar skills I am sure you could enlighten me as it is your aim in life to bring it to my attention....

Dude, I ran that **** through Babelfish and it still don't make a lick o' sense.

sorry I am not so good with my english as you see when your from the back woods its hard to learn how to talk straight in the back woods of georgia sorry mister gee you really put me in my place darn I am going to have to really reevaluate my life and social standinds as I am not really part of this society now am I after all most of our business is done in english and spanish and hmong and cantonese and arabic and a plethera of other languages here in california but please please help me learn proper english and grammar skills I am sure you could enlighten me as it is your aim in life to bring it to my attention....


Gee, mister - I have a friend from the backwoods of Georgia who works in biotech and writes like leo ****ing tolstoy. You probably should reevaluate your social standards.

Punctuation also helps...

My most recent bike was born during the peak of my brokeness this summer. i live in brooklyn and my old bike had gotten stolen and whilst hanging out on my friends roof i found an old road frame just chillin up on the roof. I was really surprised, it was a 1987 dawes eschelon and it weighed almost nothing. A few days later i went to the lbs and appraised new parts to put on the frame. in choosing to make it a single speed, i saved probably a hundred fifty dollars off the bat. From my experience, i've had to replace dereillers a few times due to my riding style (kinda jenky and reckless) and didn't want to have to deal with dereillers, and the added weight from both dereillers, extra gears, larger gear cog, etc. At that point, my bike weighed probably 5-6 pounds and a few months ago i converted it to fixie, simplifying it greatly, getting rid of the brake calipers, levers, etc. I would say the appeal of fixie/ss is the absolute simplicity you get from it. No brake maintenance, dereiller adjustment, puting chain back on when it falls off the crank. so yeah. SIMPLICITY

being from the middle of nowhere is no excuse for not knowing your own language. maybe it's the years of inbreeding or something, but for real dude, go take an english class
Gee, mister - I have a friend from the backwoods of Georgia who works in biotech and writes like leo ****ing tolstoy. You probably should reevaluate your social standards.

being from the middle of nowhere is no excuse for not knowing your own language. maybe it's the years of inbreeding or something, but for real dude, go take an english class

The irony of your post amuses me. Especially since you dragged up a thread more than three years old.

It's a different ride than a multi-geared bike and you approach the ride differently. I have several geared bikes but got a Schwinn Cutter SS for Christmas. I have more fun riding that than the geared bikes. Short rides are more challenging, having to more actively gage the terrain. Also it gets my butt up out of the seat on the steeper hills. In a sense it's kind of like the difference between driving a 4WD truck in the mud, and driving a sports car on a track. Both are fun activities. Both require driving skills, but they require different driving skills. SS is kind of like that.

Riding my 1st single speed in over 30 years has made me a much stronger rider. And beyond a simple increase in muscle strength, I've become a better rider. You are forced to develop a wider useful RPM range and better climbing technique.

But none of this is "Why" I got back into riding SS. My 1st vintage British road bike was a '76 Raleigh Super Course with plain gauge Reynolds 531 main tubes and 2030 forks and stays. Since then I've added 5 much nicer vintage road bikes with butted 531 tubes, forks and stays. I wasn't riding it any more so logically I should get rid of it. But it's just such a fine looking and handling bike I couldn't part with it.

So I decided to turn it into something that would give me a type riding experience none of my other bikes did. With no braze ons or derailleur hanger and long horizontal dropouts it would be a perfect SS. The stiff frame I didn't like as a road bike is just... ...right... ...for... ...grunting... ...up... ...steep... ...hills. Because I have a large and diverse fleet of bikes, I expected I'd ride it only a few times a year, as a novelty. But it turns out I ride it more often than any other. Usually shorter rides, under 20 miles, but the 1st day on it as an SS I did 61 miles.

My SS is wonderful for when I'm riding alone, with slower riders on derailleur bikes or with other old farts (I'm 63) on their single speeds.

But when I've tried riding it with similarly fit riders on road bikes, I've had to work my ass off. Meanwhile they had to take it easy to avoid dropping me.

Zombie thread.