Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Help make my fixie "pretty"

I have a Mercier Kilo TT in whitesplash color in the stripper edition (no decals)

I'm looking for some suggestions on types of tires, bars, rims, etc to get. I'm thinking of going with a light blue with the all white color scheme and even considering the mismatched tire look and a colored chain and going with flat handlebars

This is my 'fun' bike so I want it to look great, but I also don't want it to sacrifice quality for that and I'm pretty clueless when it comes to anything that isn't standard.

Thanks guys

Frost blue deep Vs with the light blue kmc chain I have that everyone hates. I'm pretty sure michelin makes lithions in a light blue as well.

http://www.velocityusa.com/img/colors/latest/frost-150x250.jpg

http://www.bikeman.com/store/graphics/00000001/Alt-imageB/CH/CH4121B.jpg

http://imagehost.vendio.com/preview/be/benscycle/.mids/307-144.jpg

With black or white spokes and hubs :D


Although priceyness/ high end = pretty for most people.... :rolleyes:

To be honest, I think the bike looks fine. Could use some personalize touches on the components but It looks okay like this.

please dont do what post #2 posted

I agree it looks good...don't fall into the trap of wanting to make it super "pretty" it looks good when its functional classy and clean. Those are the bikes everyone thinks are awesome

I agree ^^

All i would change is saddle and stem. Maybe in the long run wheelset.

oh and chop that steerer it'll look better

Do it despite them.

That bike looks just fine to me. When I went from FG mountain bike to FG road I thought having white rims, bars, grips etc was cool. My bike is now black and silver except for my white deep v's which I can't stand anymore.

I regret not getting my current white rims powdered black or got them polished like vento's

But for now, I'll keep em white. :|

rims
You're improving!

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3583/3537736671_2f61ff47f4.jpg?v=0

white honey brown and gold are always a pretty sharp combo too

I agree ^^

All i would change is saddle and stem. Maybe in the long run wheelset.

The saddle from an aesthetic point of view or from comfort? Any stems you'd recommend me looking at?


oh and chop that steerer it'll look better
The bike is already bordering on small for me, will that be an issue?


With black or white spokes and hubs :D


Although priceyness/ high end = pretty for most people.... :rolleyes:
Was thinking of something like this. Or maybe a white rim for the back. I like the white look, but the wheels right now just look like your everyday bike tire.

I've had a lot of compliments on the simplicity of the bike, so I'm thinking of removing the back brakes as well, though it's not hampering the look as much as I thought it would

And yeah I don't want to go overboard, but I'd like to personalize the bike for sure. Right now everything is stock. Think I might start small and just replace that gold chain with a white one

I'm not sure where these are from or if they'd work, but I think they'd look great on my kilo, with something probably different than that red

Ghost bike.

Google that.

looks like a memorial for someone who dies on a bike. the tired won't stay like that once I hit the streets, so I'm not really kidding myself with going white on those or even the handlebar tape

I noticed these rims on sale from the other thread. anyone have any experience with them?
http://www.irocycle.com/irocoldfusionrims.aspx

The white ones look exactly like the ones I have now (hoping for that deeper look though), but I really like that black one they have

I also have no idea if I would want machined or non machined

Is this some sort of trap?

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

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3583/3537736671_2f61ff47f4.jpg?v=0
+50 :lol:

The "please make me tough" makes them extra manly.

I'm leaning towards an all black chainring/crank/pedal setup with white rims. I definitely want to shorten my stem now that I've thought more about it too, still not sure if I should replace the bars though

ugh.

bars are the first thing i'd replace.

and a lot of times you think you want a shorter stem but that just puts more pressure on your wrists and upper back, you actrually want a longer stem and a properly fit frame.

i'd go with black rims and beigewall tires like paselas, black spokes, bright anodized hubs like iros, black cranks, black stem, silver seatpost and bars, and maybe a saddle that's the same color as your hubs.

i dunno. i like bikes with more than one color on them unless it's just one or two key components that are the color. the metal fleck in the white paint can't have too much going on or it will get drowned out... which is why i think sticking to black everything except hubs would be cool.

it also just depends, if you get cheap or popular components it won't look as good because you can tell it's not unique or expensive, and that's what having a 'nice' bike is all about.

why do any of it at all? just ride it how it is and let your calves do the talking.

Thanks for the feedback. I love the heavy black look as well, going to look into those tires. After seeing a black kilo in person I wished in a way I had gone with the black matte or the bare frame.

any recs on the bars?

You should make it black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow.
http://meetthadealer.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Wiz-Khalifa-Black-Yellow.jpg



...but seriously. Do you have any sort of inspiration other than colors? Is there a style you're going for (i.e., mad aero, hip disfunctional, rat rodded, etc)?

There's a lot you could do and changing stuff for the sake of color seems a bit frivolous to me. I usually get an idea of what type of parts I want to change and then pick a color.

I'll be honest, the only term you mentioned that sounds familiar to me is rat rodded. and yeah my main inspiration for this bike is for it to be semi decent parts and easy on the eyes. I'm not looking to spend a lot of money as I'm still new to riding a fixed gear and would probably buy stuff for my cannondale if I did drop a lot of money. If there's a second benefit to be had from switching out certain parts that'd be great, but I just don't know enough about these bikes to make really educated decisions like that (honesty is the best policy~).

brown saddle and brown tape. then done.

You need a Nitto Promenade handlebar, Cetma rack, Acorn boxy bag, and some hammered stainless fenders.

Edit: and of course you must have a Brooks saddle.

I can't tell if you're being sarcastic but I was just looking at Cetma racks actually but it kind of destroys the look for me. I normally take this bike up to the kroger or whole foods near me and there's definitely moments I wish I could put the weight of the bag on the bike and not the person, but mainly I'm thinking of the huge sweat marks the backpack straps are going to leave me once its 102 everyday

realistically still though I'm looking for chainring, rim, bar and saddle suggestions still. not even so much color as I can figure that myself but as what brand, style, etc

You can't see any of that crap when you're riding it.

On the other hand it's important to have the right brands so the hip folks at whole foods can scope your bike.

The singlespeed/fixed gear forums definitely lead the forums in snark.

If you're worried about looking too much like a hipster, you're probably a hipster. I don't worry about having the same components as the guy with the ironic mustache or driving to a grocery store further away because hipsters work there because I'm just more concerned in buying things that I want or like :)

I don't worry about having the same components as the guy with the ironic mustache or driving to a grocery store further away because hipsters work there because I'm just more concerned in buying things that I want or like :)

Well said!

I can't tell if you're being sarcastic but I was just looking at Cetma racks actually but it kind of destroys the look for me. I normally take this bike up to the kroger or whole foods near me and there's definitely moments I wish I could put the weight of the bag on the bike and not the person, but mainly I'm thinking of the huge sweat marks the backpack straps are going to leave me once its 102 everyday

realistically still though I'm looking for chainring, rim, bar and saddle suggestions still. not even so much color as I can figure that myself but as what brand, style, etc

I was half joking with my comment. Whether you deny it in a later post or not, you asked the forum "what colorful components/brands are cool?" You plan to take a classic-looking white/silver bike and build it into the colorway bike of two years ago. That's cool if that's really what you want to do, but the joke is: "Forget yesterday's hipster bike, build today's hipster bike!"

I am half serious in that I want to encourage you not to colorway your bike, but instead spend that same cash to buy useful (rather than just multi-colored) stuff for it. You can still have fun with your bike, and I listed a few damn good companies to check out in that area Later if you hit hard times or move in a different direction I'll bet you get better resale value on the practical stuff than the colored stuff.

Okay maybe 90% joking and 10% serious. That being said: Origin8, Pake, Soma, Sugino, Kazane, White Industries, Paul, All City, etc, etc... and that's just cranks. Give us a budget and some vision, and we will throw specific recommendations at you.

Edit: Snarky yes, but this is a good forum with lots of real helpful peeps. Try be more specific with the questions for better results. Take all responses with lots of salt. For example, I bought the "blue" version of the spoon saddle to go with my blue riser bars, and the blues don't even match. So I should STFU. :)

Spokee dokes... in multiple colours.

And streamers off the bar ends.

This would be my daughters advice on how to pretty up your bike although a few of my bikes also have... cough... stall indicators on the spokes.

realistically still though I'm looking for chainring, rim, bar and saddle suggestions still. not even so much color as I can figure that myself but as what brand, style, etc
130BCD chainrings: Blackspire, Sugino, Salsa, All City, Stronglight
144BCD chainrings: FSA, Blackspire, Miche, Stronglight, All City, Dura Ace, NOS Campagnolo, Sugino Mighty Competition, Suntour Superbe Pro
Rims: Box sections: VO PBP, VO Raid, Sun M13II, Mavic Open Pro, Mavic Open Sport, NOS Mavic MA40,, Ambrosio Excellence
Aero: KinLins XR-270, IRO Cold Fusion/Velocity Fusion, Velocity A23, DT Swiss R450, DT Swiss RR465, IRD Cadence, Mavic CXP22, Mavic CXP33, Alex DA22, Alex DA28.
Saddle: Selle Italia - Turbo, Flite, SLR, SLC, SL, NOS Flite, NOS Turbomatic
Fizik: Arione, Anatares, Gobi, Pave, Alinate
Specialized: Toupe, Romin, Phenom,
Selle San Marco: Concor, Aspide, Zolocan, Mantra, Magma, Regal, Rolls, SKN
Selle SMP: Strike, Evolution, Glider, Dynamic, Forma
Tioga: Spider

I was half joking with my comment.

haha yeah I know how I came off in my original post, I phrased everything pretty badly, but I had hoped I cleared up my intentions later on. Basically I did want to make the bike 'mine' more than just the stock version of a kilo and a large part of my post was thinking outloud and hoping to bounce ideas off people. I didn't want to sacrifice quality for the sake of a colorway basically and was wondering which people liked or didn't in that regard.

I know a lot of it is just tongue and cheek and I'm a sarcastic smartass too and that's why I didn't get all butthurt, but since 40% of the replies at that point were hipster jokes I decided to finally say something about it. Now I just need to shut up to avoid a full on derail of the thread.

130BCD chainrings: Blackspire, Sugino, Salsa, All City, Stronglight
144BCD chainrings: FSA, Blackspire, Miche, Stronglight, All City, Dura Ace, NOS Campagnolo, Sugino Mighty Competition, Suntour Superbe Pro
Rims: Box sections: VO PBP, VO Raid, Sun M13II, Mavic Open Pro, Mavic Open Sport, NOS Mavic MA40,, Ambrosio Excellence
Aero: KinLins XR-270, IRO Cold Fusion/Velocity Fusion, Velocity A23, DT Swiss R450, DT Swiss RR465, IRD Cadence, Mavic CXP22, Mavic CXP33, Alex DA22, Alex DA28.
Saddle: Selle Italia - Turbo, Flite, SLR, SLC, SL, NOS Flite, NOS Turbomatic
Fizik: Arione, Anatares, Gobi, Pave, Alinate
Specialized: Toupe, Romin, Phenom,
Selle San Marco: Concor, Aspide, Zolocan, Mantra, Magma, Regal, Rolls, SKN
Selle SMP: Strike, Evolution, Glider, Dynamic, Forma
Tioga: Spider
ty ty

to address price range. I'm probably looking to be fairly conservative. Budget was part of the reason why I went with a Kilo to begin with, to give me some left over $ to make it my own. I'd love to spend less than $2-300, but I'm willing to go to 500 I would say

lollin at this thread.
-cetma is gonna suck on the kilo, too much trail. i loaded up a wald basket with just like 10 lbs of stuff and that sucked. much prefer keeping it on my back
-saddle is gonna differ person to person. friend that owns the local shop loves the fizik antares, and hates specialized saddles. another friend swears by specialized.
-built a bike for yourself, not to please other people. I know a couple people who always ask if some part will look good on their bike, or what color to get. honestly i couldn't give two ****s about your bike or how it looks. I'll put together a bike with parts I like and if you don't like it, then go build your own ****.

and i still find origin8 to be too hit or miss to recommend. their pro-pulsion threadless stem has been good, as well as some of the pedals i've used (though the sylvan track copies start out absolutely dreadfully). But their chrome quill stem flakes chrome like crazy, their folding tires are garbage, and some stuff they make is just plain ugly.

Yeah I think I'll stick with the backpack method. I don't like adding the weight to my bike and what it'll do to it aesthetically. Have a specialized seat on my cannondale and love it, but I still figure that's gonna differ saddle to saddle since the style will differ from the one I have.

I've pretty much decided to keep a simple black and white combo. I may sway from that if I find something I like, but imagining black spokes/crank/rims just seems like it'll look so nice with the whitesplash. definitely need to find some bars that I like though. I'm not sure I like bullhorns unless I put the front brake near the stem as opposed to on the end. I know nothing about handlebars though outside of their look

so with that said I guess I'll ask for recommendations on all black spokes and bars people are happy with. still not totally sure I want to go with a nonmachined back white or black rim. I'm not comfortable riding without a front brake yet, so I'll stick to a machined front rim. probably just pick up the IRO Cold Fusions while they're still on sale

Some suggestions:

Velocity rims (on Formula hubs)
Sugino RD cranks
Origin8 urban riser bars

Get the colors you like.

I haven't had riser type bars since I rode bmx style bikes when I was 13 years old. Do you just buy grips for them? I notice they come in different colors, but was wondering how much of a pain it is to find grips to match those bars

http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=22457&category=2220 ? both this and my current one are 130 but I'm not sure what powerspline is

As for the drilling of the rims I get (lets say velocity deep Vs), do I just get the same as the mercier stock (36)?

Spokee dokes... in multiple colours.

And streamers off the bar ends.

This would be my daughters advice on how to pretty up your bike although a few of my bikes also have... cough... stall indicators on the spokes.

+1,000,000,000,000,000,003.14

How about you ride it till you don't care what color it is.

+1,000,000,000,000,000,003.14

How about you ride it till you don't care what color it is.

It isn't a fixie but is probably one of the prettiest bikes I have ever built up... and I had a part in building up the pretty little girl too.

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/daniride2010a.JPG

That bike is pretty awsome. Is it a stingray?

http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=22457&category=2220 ? both this and my current one are 130 but I'm not sure what powerspline is

As for the drilling of the rims I get (lets say velocity deep Vs), do I just get the same as the mercier stock (36)?

First off, 65, that bike is cool. That chainguard owns.

Powerspline is a bottom bracket type. I am not a master of kilo tt's but if the website says "powerspline" then that means you will need to buy a new bottom bracket if you buy the new cranks, because they are different mating systems.

Looking at the Sugino you have linked:



130mm bolt diameter
Standard JIS square taper <- this is diff than powerspline

Since the kilo tt chainring is 130 bcd, you can re-use your chain ring if you want.

On the rim question, I would personally buy complete wheels, and then sell the stock kilo wheels after I mount the new ones. There are two sets for sale in the marketplace now (black and white).

I haven't had riser type bars since I rode bmx style bikes when I was 13 years old. Do you just buy grips for them? I notice they come in different colors, but was wondering how much of a pain it is to find grips to match those bars

No mountain bike? Grips will be same as bmx or mountain bike grips.

Hi OP, i built up a Kilo once upon a time. I don't see anything about powerspline with those cranks, they're just your run of the mill square tapers. Do you mean your current bottom bracket is powerspline? If so, i might suggest swapping out your stock bb. Not only can you run the Suginos but the bottom bracket is one of those things where upgrading can make a noticeable difference in performance. Kilo's run 68mm English threaded bb's, and with a Messenger crankset i think a 68x103mm bb would give you decent chainline. Shimano makes very good cartridge bb's.

I'm assuming you're asking how many holes to get drilled, not how many holes you should drill (which you really, really shouldn't do yourself). Search the forums on that, but i don't think anyone really notices the difference between 32 and 36. Another thing: you WILL need the services of a wheelbuilder if you're planning on buying rims only and not a complete wheelset, so remember to factor that into your budget.

Tires: something durable, i have tan walled Paselas but you'll find many people here are devotees of Continental Gatorskins. Aesthetics do not apply when choosing a saddle.

Since you asked for aesthetic advice: mismatched wheels are ugly. Colored chains are ugly. As it is, your bike looks pretty balanced, so adding more black components makes things tricky (a black stem with black bars would look silly with chromed spacers, for instance). I think you'd have to go all-out and switch over everything chrome to black, too--e.g. headset spacers, hubs, pedals, seatpost, these in addition to bars, stem, wheelset, and spokes. At most you can get away with black cranks and rims. That being said, this is all an opinion, so take it for what it is.

Kroger and Whole Foods? You live in Cincy?