Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - looking to get my gf a bike

i am trying to get my girlfriend into riding with me and so i have to buy her a bike. most likely a ss, and then maybe ease her into fixed riding. i don't want to spend a whole lot since i'm not that sure if she will even get into it. that does not mean i am just looking for something mad cheap either, just don't want to spend a thousand bucks on one. she is only 5'2 so it would have to be a small one. and i would want it look nice of course since she is a girl. any help or suggestions would be awesome!!

kilo tt striper sounds good to me

+1 A Kilo is a great affordable starter bike. The option of running SS or fixed is a bonus. She can try it and see if she likes it.

yeah i was looking at the stripper since it doesnt have the decals and all. are the components good though?

yeah i was looking at the stripper since it doesnt have the decals and all. are the components good though?

SST may be a bit better for her, more slack geometry is more comfortable for a longer ride.

i just wish the sst had more color options

ibwasteofmoneyshewontride

i know she will ride it at least a little bit, she borrows her moms *** bike to ride with me sometimes. that thing sucks though

Tell you what. Don't do it, every time someone buys a bike for his girlfriend, it ends up with dude with a bike he can't use.

Prime example have a cherry Trek WSD 52cm. almost N.O.S. and now she's gone.

an 26 inch, angled top tube raleigh three speed from craigslist was good for my 5'3" novia.

I was in the same position. Trying to find a decent relatively sporty bike for a girl who was pretty short (5,2 as well) is extremely difficult to do inexpensively since really a bike with 650 wheels makes far more sense than one with 700c wheels. In the end the best solution I worked out was to date another girl who was a few inches taller and already had her own bike.

YMMV

i was thinking today, how easy a 26'' front disc mtb wheel would be to get, try to use it as a rear wheel.

That would work for a really small person. Which doesn't really apply to me

what about the 2010 Motobecane Track and just putting a freewheel on it? not even to be cheap but its the only one that has all black components and no decals. plus the minkblue is a really nice color.

How about a Bianchi Milano with an internal geared rear hub?

looking for more of a traditional type bike

I bet new inexperienced riders would prefer gears. Make her want to ride by letting her want what she wants, whether it's gears or fixed or whatever. I wouldn't force ss/fg on her unless she has shown a little interest in it.

felt has some very cool women's bikes that don't suck and also don't cost as much as a specialized or trek.

she actually told me she wants a ss

Tell you what. Don't do it, every time someone buys a bike for his girlfriend, it ends up with dude with a bike he can't use.

Prime example have a cherry Trek WSD 52cm. almost N.O.S. and now she's gone.

At least you still have the bike. My ex-wife sold my custom XC bike (frameset valued at roughly $2,000 when new) for $500 last month. Someone is riding around on a full XTR bike with a big smile.

she bought it.

Iro HD? Not the cheapest, but designed for shorter riders... I'm considering upgrading my girlfriend's frame at some point to one of those (when I'm less poor).

kilo tt's smallest size is 44cm. Sounds good. Just buy a freewheel and put it on the other side of the hub.

Build her something like this:

http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h170/HandsomeRyan/IMG_0773.jpg

http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h170/HandsomeRyan/IMG_0790.jpg

http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h170/HandsomeRyan/IMG_0782.jpg

I think it's classy.

Mrs. HandsomeRyan didn't and never rode it. Sad day.

HR, you can send that Taco machine to my girl. She'll ride it.

bikesdirect. kilo sounds good. riding w/ the gf is fun. Mine rides every great once in a while *COUGHCOUGH JEAN COMEONA****INGBIKERIDEWITHME**...

I think a classy conversion would be nice. Girls tend to dig an old schwinn, raleigh, or peugeot step-through frame with a cool vintage look. Although... I did lose a nice old peugeot frame that way.... along with a nice raleigh...

Just a thought.

I am going to work on an older Giant road frame for my wife.
The frame is in great shape and it should fit her just right.

yeah she said that the step through frames are ugly haha

well that's good coz all the girls i know have no idea how to ride a bike with a horizontal top tube.

bikesdirect. kilo sounds good. riding w/ the gf is fun. Mine rides every great once in a while *COUGHCOUGH JEAN COMEONA****INGBIKERIDEWITHME**...

<3 YOU'RE the one who says i ride slow. that's not encouraging.

i am trying to get my girlfriend into riding with me and so i have to buy her a bike. any help or suggestions would be awesome!!

ahem, anyways, my boyfriend got me into cycling. he initially bought me an old raleigh that didn't fit me. when that didn't work, we sold it and bought a bikesdirect road bike. that thing is my roommate's now, but it did the job i guess. a kilo would be nice.

of course, if she's anything like i was a year ago, a dawes lightning sport and a kilo "do the same thing", they get you around on two wheels. that dawes road bike is long gone, replaced with another and this is my fg setup [top bike]:
http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs220.snc1/8719_177892794749_631694749_3692259_1424369_n.jpg
and it was roughly $250

maybe ill just get the blue SST in 43cm, id rather it be to small then to big. ill just throw an extra set of risers that i have on there and some bmx levers.

$250 seems like a nice price, especially if it came with the wheels!

take her shopping, or you might run the risk of her not using it. For something as personal as a bike I'd far rather pick out something myself than have somebody else guess what I would like.

$250 seems like a nice price, especially if it came with the wheels!

ahh actually, those wheels came on PedallingATX's sputnik, he just didn't like how they looked so we traded wheelsets. the wheelset that came with mine are long gone, he just recently got the black vs. i don't count the wheels because i didn't pay anything for 'em.

yeah good deal

yeah good deal

i think 43cm is way too short... that's for someone who's like 5 feet tall or something? i'm 5'4 and i ride 52, i want to say she could ride a 48-49cm but yea... go to some bike shops with her just to have a fit then you know what size-ish you're looking for if you decide to buy online.

yeah true

If you want your GF to ride, the most important thing is bike fit. Not 'this bike would fit you if you had guy dimensions', but this bike fits you.

We women (among other things) have longer legs and shorter torsos than men. That means that a very small bike that would fit a 5'4" guy will likely be too long for a woman of similar height, especially if it has 700c wheels.

Her neck will hurt and the bike will gather dust and you will bemoan that she won't ride and I'll have to have another rant. In an attempt to stop that and get a grip right now, here's a few crappy photos of two fixies. http://sandimetz.smugmug.com/Bikes/Fixies

They're both built up on this frame (http://bit.ly/4wFSVf, with the decals removed) in the smallest size, a 49.

The first bike (http://bit.ly/SP3jI) is mine. I'm an extremely tall 5'3", with relatively long arms for a women.

The second bike (http://bit.ly/3on65O) is for a petite woman of 5'2" with normal (for a woman, thus short for a man) length arms.

You may notice that the handlebars are at least as high as the saddles, the cockpit length probably looks short and the leg length long. The seatposts are setback and the saddles are back on their rails to compensate for the steep seat tube angle (which in turn is because a bike this small should have 650c wheels, o don't get me started).

The first bike has bullhorn bars but I had to put an mtb riser bar on the second to make the reach short enough. The cranks are 155 bulletproof mtb cranks. The gearing probably looks astonishing small.

These are bikes that fit normal women and are a pleasure to ride. I know that some women are stronger and some women have leg and arm lengths that are more like those of men, but most women do not. Most bikes are so painful for women, it amazes me that any ride at all.

Not including pedals and saddles, each of these bikes cost about $500 for me to build, buying parts at retail. Just do it, build one. Really, nothing says love like a custom fixie.

Oops, sorry, I misspoke. I have the 48 of that frame. They ain't no 49.

thanks

My wife is 5'3", has one 47cm and one 48 (both 700c) and they both fit her pretty perfectly with the right stems and her saddles dialed in just right.

how long are her stems?

Hard to tell if that was funny or not, A. :p

Her single speed (48cm) is set up with bullhorns and a 60mm stem. Her multi (47cm) has drops and an 80mm stem. 160mm cranks on both.

its hard i really want to surprize her with one but wanna make it fits ugh

Don't go too small. Judging by the fit of my wife's bikes, I would say a 47 will be perfect for your girlfriend if she's 5'2". Just out of curiosity, how long have you been together and do you plan on staying together? Don't go buying bikes for a fling!

Don't go too small. Judging by the fit of my wife's bikes, I would say a 47 will be perfect for your girlfriend if she's 5'2". Just out of curiosity, how long have you been together and do you plan on staying together? Don't go buying bikes for a fling!

just a side note, my boy got me mine when we had three months together. and look at us now, 14 months later :) but i mean i guess at some point you do know if it's a fling or not.

we have been together for near 5 years so, i hope its not a fling haha.......longest fling ever

Very true, jeanatx.

Bike couples rule.

Well yeah, I would say 5 years - your safe in buying her a bike!

I say do it. Get her a Kilo or SST (just remember that Kilos run a little bigger size-wise because of how they are measured) and go for it.