Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - whats the deal?

Alright people, enlighten me. Whats the deal with everybody riding fixed gear? What are the advantages/disadvantages? Why do you all do it?

Gotta get around somehow, right?

Because we have discovered the true secret to cycling... Simplicity.

Try drinking coffee, black.... no creme, no sugar....

George

Try drinking coffee, black.... no creme, no sugar....

George
Creme? Crap, I have been slummin' my whole life, just adding cream. Dammit...

Alright people, enlighten me. Whats the deal with everybody riding fixed gear? What are the advantages/disadvantages? Why do you all do it?
It keeps my anger genuine.

Advantages: General simplicity, quiet ride. Very direct connection to the bike: when your legs are going, the bike is going.

Disadvantages: Steep inclines. Fixies work very well in flat, urban areas. I think that's why there's so many folks from Chicago on this forum. If there's a real hill in Chicago, I've never managed to find it. If you're in a hilly town, go with gears. I won't ride my fixie to the bottom here in town (steep, and I mean steep, hill-- why else call it the bottom?) but I ride it to the fan all the time (very flat).

I don't drink coffee at all.

I guess simplicity is a common explanation for riding fixed. Though that's true, that doesn't quite explain it completely, at least for me. A coaster brake bike is just about as simple. And easier to master. To me, riding fixed is kinda like walking, but faster.

To me, the simpicity argument often goes out the window, since going fixie often involves buying more stuff. Seems most folks don't just own a fixie. They own a fixie in addition to the rest of their gear.

For some folks, there are bragging rights. Either in terms of the nice, specialized gear and/or the hardass attitude of gears being for *******.

Ultimately, I ride bike because it's kinda fun. I'm not a masochist, nor do I have anything to prove. My bike isn't much for showing off, at least not in the traditional sense. I run a fairly low gear, and at least half of my riding is at a fairly low speed, well below 10 mph. Fixed gear is just kinda fun.

There are big downsides. It's a lot of work. One gear can be a real pain in hilly areas. If you ever manage to "forget" you're on a fixie, you're liable to end up on the ground. And if you decide to go brakeless, the downside is obvious.

after spending way too much time trying to answer this in the past, the best way of doing it i've come up with is this:

why not?

sure, there's the simplicity, the hard ass attitute, being able to thumb one's nose at someone who's drivetrain cost three times as much as your bike, the "connected" feeling, etc. but it's really not about any of that.

i love that a fixed gear bike nearly eliminates the "vehicular" sense of transport. it really becomes an extension of your body more than a vehicle you drive or ride. i love the quiet of a fixie. i love the heightened sense of awareness of your surroundings you need to ride one, especially brakeless. plus they're so sexy.

gotta say after seeing my first fixed-gear I knew it was for me. must be innate. I've noticed everyone I've met who's into fixed/ss usually share a lot of the same personalities/interests. it kinda freaks me out.

how many fixies:

listen to non-mainstream music?
are vegetarians/vegans?
any more...

The answer grasshopper are many and varied as the sands on the beach, for one man's transport is another man's answer to low maintenance riding, or another's answer to better spinning when on the geared bike. You do know LA trains on an FG. Pick your flavor and then ride. I started riding FG cause it looked cool, and then I was like hooked to the endorphin rush that a 25 mile ride could give me pushing big gear like a 52x16, and I thought I was the s**t. Now it's all about just being. There's no pretence with an FG you bring your game when you ride FG, you can win some sprints and get dusted. My current set up is 48x17, but tonight with fresh snow I rode 48x20 my best top speed was 15 mph. My average for the commute to work was 10.3 miles over 25 miles through 4 inches of snow and slush. My FG was right there, with no coasting, and no letting up, with full control. I may not go back to geared (what am I going to do with 15 geared bikes?).

I like the simplicity, the quiet, and the feeling of control. On a fixed gear when you need to slow down or stop you can ease down by holding back on the pedals a bit. I have both brakes in place for insurance, but I really seldom use them. To me fixed gear also is a taste of what cycling was like 100 years ago, a connection with our history. But most of all it is FUN!

some good explanations/testimonials are at
http://sheldonbrown.com/fixed-testimonial.html
reading them about a year ago got me started building and riding fixies, and I'm now hooked like many others here...

If you're in a hilly town, go with gears.Disagree, there's plenty of hills where I ride, one that's 17% that I do on a regular basis and plenty more that are pretty close to that. I've also ridden it in the Blue Ridge Mtns. around Roanoke. It hurts sometimes, but that's what makes you stronger.

I don't want to discourage people from riding fixed just because they've got some hills.

Initially I thought it would help me build strength. I was always switching to an easier gear on my geared bike. Now I find myself on one of the fixies the majority of the time and I find that not only does it build strength, it also builds character. Nothing quite like blowing up midway up that hill...thinking about giving up and despite all the pain, snot and slobber seeing yourself through to the top.

Did that sound good?

I ride fixie for the Zen-like experience, being connected to the bike, me and the bike as one entity. Hard to explain, you really have to experience it for yourself.

It frees your mind from worrying about what gear you're in so you can spend more time enjoying the scenery. Also with the momentem of the pedals, it actually helps you up moderate hills faster.

1-Spinning is easier and faster than on a geared.
2-Climbing provides the same benefit that resistance training does on any piece of fitness equipment, where you can change the incline on a treadmill or the resistance on a stair climbing machine. The idea here is to get stronger, not to seek ultimate efficiency.
3-The legs both increase and decrease momentum, that is where the more connected feeling arises from.
4-Since the chainline is near perfect, and the chain is not navigating through two pulleys, fixies are usually quieter while pedaling. When the geared rider is coasting and the fixed rider is pedaling, the fixie is much quieter. You find that you do not miss the ticking sound of the freewheel. Off-road this provides a much better situation to observe wildlife etc.
5-In snow conditions, you have more confidence with speed modulation working both ways with the legs. Brakes can get you into tricky situations on icy corners etc; slowing with the legs provides more confidence.
6-"Raging against the machine" anarchist tendancies (against the marketing world) plays a part in the satisfaction, although money usually is still trading hands.
7-The rear deraileur on a geared bike usually takes a beating and gets out of alignment often, especially off-road. The drive train is shorter and easier to clean.
8-Lastly, there is a feed back effect from the moving rear wheel to the pedals, that is interrupted by the introduction of the freewheel. To me it is a symbiotic relationship with the result that flat-road riding especially, is faster ( I am not sure that this has been proven however.)

Hi,
knees wear out. Looks to me like fixies will wear them out faster. There is also an extra hazard or two they don't talk about much.

barnaby reminded me of this. I was climbing a bastard of a hill in New Lennox, IL when I saw a baby deer less than 6 feet away. The hill was soo deep I was almost stopped dead and we just looked at each other. The minute my friend rolled up on his totally loud geared bike the fawn bolted. Off topic, but super awesome nonetheless.

jeff

*****.

Did somebody just say something? Hullooo?



Looks like I'm just hearing things, again....

Hi,
knees wear out. Looks to me like fixies will wear them out faster. There is also an extra hazard or two they don't talk about much.
Despite people repeating statements about fixed gears tearing your knees up, I have yet to actually hear or read proof of this. Anyone have any?

Late-
What gear are you running on your fixie? I think a low, spinnable gear makes knee injury a non-issue. Some of my friends that have had knee problems said that spinning on their fixie has helped with building up knee strength. Might be something for you to consider.

Unless you can be more specific, you're on your own with your other non-talked about "hazards"

I would think pedals would have more to do with knee problems than the drivetrain, especially if you didn't gear the bike 53/11 or anything like that. Get speedplays and be in knee heaven.

After riding fixed, coaster bikes feel slippery and disconnected, like you can't really feel the road. Spinning in a non-optimal gear teaches you control over how much force you're applying and how evenly you spread that force over the pedal stroke. Being able to downshift or coast any time you want encourages wussiness. Fixed brakeless in city traffic is a good high.

I believe that fixed gear road bikes are the most efficient machine for transport. Yes, you have to get up and muscle up the hills and spin down them. But the incredable efficiency of a fixed drivetrain has to be expericenced to be believed. I often let friends try mine and most immediately comment on it. The effort to produce 20 mph on my fixed would only produce 18 mph on my geared ride. Even with hills, which I have here, the efficiency is still high. While climbing, your power output must be high with a fix, but you get up the hill much faster as well; so the total amount of work done more or less equals out.

I ride my fix commuting every day and on long Saturday rides, including centuries. I love the "flow" of the ride on the fix. I would say the only downside is the lack of freewheeling on the longer rides, to allow one to take a butt break from the saddle. On longer rides, I always like to see some hills later in the ride so that I can get up off my butt!

Dave

I ride fixie because it's a bombproof bike. I do almost no maintainence on my bike other than a monthly wheel-truing, chain-cleaning/tensioning, and weekly chain-lube. No cables to get loose, nothing to worry about. The parts never break and even if one does break, it's generally cheap to replace.

I also like the feel of it. I feel confident on it.

I agree with all the other reasons that the other posters gave. I'm surprised no one mentioned this however.

Personally, I ride geared bikes most of the time. However, there are days when I've got limited time to get in a ride, like an hour or so. If I take a geared bike on an hour ride, I get back feeling like I hardly got a workout. If I take my fixie road bike on an hour ride, I feel like I get a better workout. I would estimate the factor to be about 1.5. That is, for every hour you ride a fixed gear you can get about as much exercise as riding a geared bike 1.5 hours. All that from not coasting.

I guess I could get a similar effect from riding my MTB on the road with knobbies inflated to 30 - 40 psi, but that would be noisier and not as much fun. I like the position on the road bike better. Plus it's so quiet and smooth.

Bonus - when I first started riding fixed I was forced to pedal through turns instead of coasting. This is a good method of improving your cycling technique. Put low gears on and force yourself to improve your spin if you like, too.

In conclusion, in addition to being fun and being one with the bike, it is also a great training tool.

I ride fixie because it's a bombproof bike. I do almost no maintainence on my bike other than a monthly wheel-truing, chain-cleaning/tensioning, and weekly chain-lube. No cables to get loose, nothing to worry about. The parts never break and even if one does break, it's generally cheap to replace.


IMO, any bike that requires a monthly wheel-truing, chain-cleaning/tensioning, and weekly chain-lube is far from what I would call bombproof.



I also like the feel of it. I feel confident on it.

I alwya feel confident on a bike... until it fails. ;)

IMO, any bike that requires a monthly wheel-truing, chain-cleaning/tensioning, and weekly chain-lube is far from what I would call bombproof.

I alwya feel confident on a bike... until it fails. ;)

I understand your misconstruation of my post Shecky. Please allow me to explain what I said a little more in depth:

I do wheel-truing and chain maintainence not because it is a fixed-gear, but because I ride in a dense, urban environment. Riding over pot-holes every day can put your wheel out of true pretty easily whether your bike be geared, single-speed, or fixed. As for the chain, when one rides in a city you'll definitely get grit in your chain which needs to be cleaned out regularly. With regards to tensioning the chain monthly, there are two reasons for this: First, when you take your wheels off to true them you need to retension the chain as you put the rear wheel back on. Second, by putting a lot of torque on your chain (starting and stopping with it) it'll naturally get stretched out a little faster than a geared/ss chain might. Therefore you should retension your chain and replace it about once per year on a FG bike.

I hope you can see that this routine maintainence has very little to do with the fact that I ride a fixed-gear and has more to do with my love of my bicycle and my desire to have it last until the end of time. In fact, if you ride a geared bicycle in the city you'd probably have to do maintainence in ADDITION to what I do (including derailleur maintainence and brake systems) to have it last just as long.

As for trusting my bicycle? With a little bit of maintainence, I trust my bicycle completely.

i agree with DV. it sounds like routine maintenance to me, rather than the effects of a bombing on the ol' bicycle. i doubt if DV's wheels require a truing each month,in the sense that a very wobbly wheel requires a truing, but by making tiny adjustments to the trueness (truth?=P) of your wheelset frequently, you help assure a longlife of the wheelset.

as for chains, EVERYone who rides regularly needs to keep that chain loobed and clean if they want their bicycle to function properly. as for chain tension issues, i find it's easier to get the tension right on my fix than it is to put the rear wheel back on my mtn bike, with the jungle that resides in those dropouts.

so, yeah, if DV is brakeless, that saves some of maintenance. as does a lack of derailleurs (goshdurn pulleys!). the maintenance DV described is of the sort that any meticulous cyclist will perform on their bike. unless they have one of those shaft-drive bicycles. do they make shaft-drive fixies?

-rob

The reason I started to ride SS/fixed was many moons ago I was on my MTB and somehow my rear derailleur got sucked up into my wheel and pretty much crapped the bed. Luckily this happened at the tail end of the ride just before it started getting dark. A friend called me later that night and asked if I wanted to do an early morning ride the next day. Of course I said yes. But being young and having very limited funds and wanting to ride the next morning I picked a set of gears, shortened my chain and crossed my fingers.

That early morning ride was the best ride I'd had since I started biking. I climbed hills that I've never gotten all the way up before. I navigated the rocky trails like a bloodhound who has "cought the scent". Granted it wasn't a true fixed gear. I could still coast if I wanted to but I don't think that I did that much. Having the freedom of just looking at your surrounding concentrating on the course and not being concerned about what gear to be in and becoming "one" with the bike.

Eventually I bought a new derailleur form my bike, but that was long after I built myself a real FG bike.

I do wheel-truing and chain maintainence not because it is a fixed-gear, but because I ride in a dense, urban environment. Riding over pot-holes every day can put your wheel out of true pretty easily whether your bike be geared, single-speed, or fixed. Only if the wheel wasn't built properly. I constantly bomb stuff on my fully rigid SS MTB that is far worse than any urban environment ever dishes out and my wheels rarerly need to be trued. If I true them twice a year that is out of the ordinary. Even when I flat spot or dent a rim I barely have to touch the rim. The fixed gets thrashed on the streets, bunny-hopped, jumped and even taken on the trails sometimes and it holds up just as well.

As for the chain, I frequently lube mine. If you ride your bike a lot you need to.

Actually, a FG rear wheel should require less frequent truing than a multispeed cassette/freewheel type since it is dishless. There were shaft drive (via bevel gears) fixies about 100 years ago...Columbia made them (maybe other brands too?) and Major Taylor rode one ...don't know of any modern ones though...

for modern shaftbikes check out this:
http://www.biomega.dk/
those are "high-end". there are also some cheap
models from other companies but they are ugly.

Only if the wheel wasn't built properly. I constantly bomb stuff on my fully rigid SS MTB that is far worse than any urban environment ever dishes out and my wheels rarerly need to be trued.


unless you're riding your SS MTB out on the trails 150 miles a week, you're comparing apples to oranges.



The fixed gets thrashed on the streets, bunny-hopped, jumped and even taken on the trails sometimes and it holds up just as well.


*shrug*
maybe you ride better quality wheels than he does. maybe he weighs more than you do. maybe he's more meticulous about keeping his wheels in true than you are.

or maybe you're exactly the same weight on exactly the same bikes in exactly the same environment with exactly the same amount of anal retentiveness, in which case yeh, your comparison is valid.

unless you're riding your SS MTB out on the trails 150 miles a week, you're comparing apples to oranges.You're right. Riding high speed through rock gardens is harder on your wheels.



maybe you ride better quality wheels than he does.My point exactly concerning wheel build. Because I'm certainly not running any high zoot wheels.

Ask any competent wheel builder and I'm sure they'll agree with this statement: If you are trueing your wheels monthly they weren't built properly.

DV I command you to stop trueing your wheels on a monthly basis! Also, because of your over zealous wheel trueing, it has been decided that you must immediatly submit a notarized bike maintenance schedule to this forum for approval. If you do not comply with this order we (Bikeforums members) will condemn you to 5 years Huffydom in which no amount of maintenance will keep you rolling. :rolleyes:

I do wheel-truing and chain maintainence not because it is a fixed-gear, but because I ride in a dense, urban environment. Riding over pot-holes every day can put your wheel out of true pretty easily whether your bike be geared, single-speed, or fixed.

There are millions of bikes out there doing daily heavy duty in similar environments going through life without ever getting their wheels trued. And are still reasonably true. Some of these put in decades of use like this. I have one myself. Many of these bikes are single speed coaster brake or three speeds, live outside 24/7, and are lucky to get a shot of WD-40 when the chain squeaks. I personally am a little nicer to my bikes. My three speed gets a few drops of 30wt motor oil now and then. :)

If you must have your wheels absolutely true, or just like messing with your bike, I can fully understand. But any bike that needs monthly truing doesn't fit into the bombproof category. Or at least has to get in line behind the afore mentioned coaster brakes and three speeds.



As for the chain, when one rides in a city you'll definitely get grit in your chain which needs to be cleaned out regularly. With regards to tensioning the chain monthly, there are two reasons for this: First, when you take your wheels off to true them you need to retension the chain as you put the rear wheel back on. Second, by putting a lot of torque on your chain (starting and stopping with it) it'll naturally get stretched out a little faster than a geared/ss chain might. Therefore you should retension your chain and replace it about once per year on a FG bike.

If you replace the chain once a year religiously, I suggest you might be able to omit ever really cleaning the thing at all. Unless it gets caked with mud or something. I have a pet theory about cleaning being worse than replacing.

In the end, I think of single speeds-fixed, free or coaster-as just simpler. I like to mess with bikes, too. But it's interesting, I find when I decide to stop repacking, readjusting and generally stop messing with one, it gets along fine without all the extra attention.