Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - building my own?

I am very much interested in acquiring a fixed gear bicycle. Unless eBay really comes through for me in the next day and a half or so, I am probably going to have to either wait six months or a year to save up for something or build it myself.

Here's my question - how do I do that, exactly? There is a program here in Pittsburgh where you can build your own bike from all kinds of parts and you just have to volunteer time in return. But I don't know enough about fixed gear bikes to know what I need to do.

I suppose I ought to just ask some of the fixie riders around here and see if someone would help me out - but in the meantime, do you have any advice or suggestions on what to do?

If you are starting from scratch you might look for a complete bike first. There are plenty of bike boom (late 70's and 80's) racers in used shops looking for a new life as a fixie. The benefit of starting with a complete bike is that you don't have to hunt for old and sometimes hard to find parts. The only part you really need to change is the rear wheel and those can be found from online shops like sheldonbrown.com and bikeworks NYC.

You have found a great resource here. I would recomend using it. The people on this forum have a ton of useful info about building a fixie and can guide you on part selection. Good luck with your hunt and report back

Chris

This should get you started and answer some questions:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/fixed/

Thanks. I read some of Sheldon Brown's site (man he has written a lot!) and really think that starting with a bike and getting a new rear wheel for it is the way to go.

I'll let you know how that goes, and thanks.

Trexlertown PA Swap Meet - Bicycle Flea Market - October 2nd 2004


http://www.lvvelo.org/fleamkt.htm