fujiELO6002

OKAY..i was cursed-sorry, BLESSED-by living in the good.old.wet.northwest. where in winter, it ices. in spring it rains. in the fall, it rains some more. and in the summer: suprise showers on the occasional weekend. i have heard alot of people saying that fixed gears ride GREAT in wet/icy weather, and im wondering why. and if i should...look into one. i have to say, the single speed factor holds some cool factor in my eyes.

operator

A fixed gear is different from single speed. Very different.

docbluedevil

Reading this hurts my brain.

roadfix

Fixed gear is black coffee. Singlespeed is coffee with sugar only. Geared bike is coffee with creme and sugar.

KevinF

Fixed gear and single-speed bikes are not the same thing. Fixed gear bikes do not allow coasting; if the rear wheel is turning, so are the pedals. Single-speed bikes allow coasting, although obviously not shifting.

Both versions are mechanically very simple; there are no derailleurs that get gunked up with road grime and likewise no shifter cables to adjust, etc. If you go the fixed-gear route and you have a substantial amount of intestinal fortitude, you can also take the brakes off and make the bike even simpler. Essentially, they're simple! There isn't a whole lot to break / clean / maintain, so they tend to work beautifully in crappy weather.

All kinds of info: https://sheldonbrown.com/fixed.html

USAZorro

Geared bike is a car that works normally. Singlespeed is a car that only has 2nd or 3rd gear. Fixed gear is Fred Flintstone's "car".

ElJamoquio

Everyone else has mentioned the simple thing... etcetera...

But also, in crappy weather, brakes don't work very well. On a fixed gear your legs can be the brakes.

pinkrobe

There's an existing SS/FG subforum on here. You might want to check it out...

steve_wmn

Using your legs as brakes is only goes so far. Some people have mastered the art of skidding a fixed gear bike to a stop by stomping on the pedal and kicking the rear tire out to one side but it's hell on tires. You're better off putting at least a front brake on a fixed gear road bike. Save your brakeless exploits for the track.

Like others have said the advantage for wet and icy conditions is a simple drivetrain. Also, you can feel how slick the roads are with your legs.

yater

My brakes work great in all weather. I don't buy it. A bike with brakes provides better control than a fixed gear in ANY situation. Also, how often is a road bike inoperable because of "road grime"? I've never experienced this (in 25 years). If you think it's cool, go for it....but it's not more functional than a bike with brakes and derailleurs.

Mike_Like_Bike

My single-speed is my foul weather commuter. As previously mentioned less to clean/maintain, it's also a blast to ride! It was pretty much stripped when I got the frame ($75!), so a single-speed it became.



1988 Cannondale Criterium, Surly Singulator, 700x28C tires. I'm running two brakes due to the majority of iPod wearing students that like to walk out in front of me all the time.

Kenal0

I use mine as an alternate means of training and working out. It is a different kind of workout. Legs get hit harder especially on small hills and inclines. I am running a 48 x 16 and it is a good gearing for the relatively flat Illinois landscape. You have a different mindset when riding one and not having any gears to think about.
Pedal and go.
Kenal0

DataJunkie

try riding a road bike in 6" of snow. Your gearing quickly becomes useless.
Hence my SS conversion for my mountain bike.
Plus, simplicy can be a beautiful thing. Not that I would ever give up my 27 speed bike.
There is no reason not to own every type of bike you can get your hands on.

pathdoc

I've got a cheap singlespeed nonfixed road bike that I use to train. Helps builds strength.

bitterken

Fixed is sort of cool, but it's not for everyone or every condition... As people have mentioned, it's fun, simple, and a different way to train for smooth cadence and strenght. But for a strickly foul weather ride, I find my 'cross bike with fenders to be a far better then the fixed gear I used to have.

In fixed, you're connected to the rear wheel, so it makes it easier to detect the loss of traction and give you some warning to correct for it. So I guess you can say it's safer... I don't buy it though. A good pair of tires is the best defense against losing traction in my opinion. There are also some dangers in being so connected to the bike, so try it out before taking out in bad weather.

I would recommend you look to a beater bike with fender eyelets and room for 700c x 28 tires. You'll have the flexiblity to run lower pressure touring tires that are designed for rain and snow/ice.

If you do go fixed for bad weather riding, I would stay away from the track bikes...no room for fenders or fatter tires and the geom is prob not what you're used to. Go for an old road bike frame with horizontal dropouts and fender eyelets. A draw back is that you may need to get a rear wheel built. Oh, and please, install and use a front brake. Even if you learn to not use it, it's there in case of emergency.

Now if you want a fixed gear for fun and coolness, it's a different story and you should just get one...

roadfix

good enough reason...

fruitless

Oh really? Here in alaska we get a little winter riding. I ride on snow more than half the year and I say: bs

like the way you can simply drop-like-a-stone anyone on a fixie on anything that can be described as a real hill? I've heard every justification under the sun for why fixies are supposed to be "better" but the fact of the matter is its just a fad. Like tattoos. Hey. . .strange coincidence?

gurana

That they are. Personally, I feel that the biggest difference is the level of realtive sanity. A person that willingly chooses to ride a single speed is just eccentric... people that ride fixies are insane, as far as I can tell.

Seriously though, I have a lot of respect for riders that rock the ss and fixies. When I say I think they're crazy, it's really a compliment along the lines of, "There's no way in hell that I could ride one of those and still get around. The fact that you do it is a wonder to behold."

ElJamoquio

My brakes don't work so great when I have ice/snow built up on both rims. Where do you bike?

FYI, I would never take off either of my brakes even on a Fixed Gear - where did everyone see someone suggest otherwise?

roadfix

Hmm......and I thought mountain biking was just a fad in the late 70's...

I love riding fixed, but as for tattoos, kryptos, and riding fixed, that combination is not for me.....

brunop

fixed gear is my religion. really.

fruitless

It was/is. The majority of MTB's are ridden on the street which is why so many people have discovered that a cyclocross bike is the perfect compromise, so industry R&D had to reinvent the cyclocross bike also known as the 29er. All the sensation in MTBs currently is in DH which is perfect for the level of involvement most people want, ride a ski lift up a hill and maybe run your face into a tree or rock on the way down.

Fixies are fine on a track, very cool.

It will only take a couple of sensational accidents, where grieving parents initiate some litigation over their parapalegic offspring and then municipalities will start requiring bicycles to have brakes on city streets or enforce existing laws. Not that it will matter to the true fadsters.

Retro Grouch 

I wondered about that myself so I recently built a fixed gear bike to find out for myself.

So far I've only ridden it a couple of times on a rail-trail conversion. It's definitely a different experience. I had no idea how many different conditions I coasted through until I wasn't able to coast. I suspect that riding it is going to improve my bike handling skills. I've been enjoying my fixed gear but, if I had to limit myself to only one bike, this wouldn't be the one.

thurstonboise

These sensational accidents already happen every day. They happen on every kind of bike. They're mostly caused by people riding beyond their skill level and/or not paying attention. The method of stopping has little to do with it.
I ride fixed every day. I use a front brake quite a bit(as do 90% of the other fixed riders I know) and slowing/stopping using leg resistance is way more efficient than the coaster brakes on the cruisers that make up a large part of the people riding downtown here.

cydewaze

I don't know if I agree that they're a fad, since they've been around so long. Trendy maybe, but fad isn't the correct term, imo.