General Cycling Discussion - gearing for doing wheelies?

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nafetsberchtold
11-17-08, 04:24 PM
i just built my first fixie
an Nishiki Olympic 12
ive been trying to do a wheelie for a couple of weeks now

my question is there a certain gear ratio thats more Advantageous to doing tricks like wheelies ?
currently im running a 46-16

how much does your bike weight play into it?

thanks
stefan

rbrian
11-17-08, 07:31 PM
On my mountain bike, I found the best gear for doing wheelies was 2 at the front, 3 at the back. That would be, what, 32-28? On a 26" wheel. I doubt that's much help.
Zephyr11
11-17-08, 08:22 PM
It's easier to pedal the bike up in a granny gear, and easier to keep the wheelie going in something slightly burlier. The key is finding a balance. I suck at getting the bike up, so when I want to wheelie I end up running it ridiculously low...something like 22 up front and whatever the second easiest gear on an XT cassette is in back, and then just pedaling like nuts to keep my front wheel up. But that's not really functional for anything but steeps and wheelies, and would probably suck on a fixie. Most people can run something burlier though.

Weight makes a little bit of a difference, but not as much as you might think. Positioning makes more of a difference...short stem, higher handlebars, and more upright position makes it easier. Short chainstays help too.