crashtheparty

UPDATE:So I'm going through some tough financial times currently (as I'm sure lots of other people are) and it turns out I may have to sell my bike. How much do you guys think I could get for it if I put it on craiglist or something?



Original Post:

So today I bought a fixed gear from a girl at my school who had to sell it off quick, so I picked it up for 50 bucks. My original plan was to sell it on Craigslist for more than that and save up money for a road bike, but since it fit me I decided to give it a spin on my commute.

I love this bike. I thought for sure that a fixed gear would be too weird/hard to commute on (the whole way there is uphill) but I actually found it easier to get up the hill than the last time I tried...I really like that there is nothing to think about, and no way to wimp out...you either ride the bike or you walk. Awesome.

Anyway, I just wanted to share my newfound appreciation for fixed gear bikes...and I'll definitely be keeping this one around for awhile. =)

(And I'll probably put up some picture of it/me riding it as soon as I can get to that.)

steveymcdubs

pics go

hegenbarth

That's great! I similarly stumbled into the fixed gear world (although I had the misfortune of overpaying for the first one out of ignorance, an educational experience which you seem to have avoided). Now I'm building my next bike up the way I want it, and though its taking a while (and having the frame sitting around, unused while I gather bits and pieces, is torture) I can't wait to eviscerate the asphalt on a steed of my own breeding.

HandsomeRyan

FG is awesome, that is for sure.

I'm curious to see pics but can you at least post some specs on what you are riding?

crashtheparty

I wish I were more knowledgeable on bikes to post all the info, but this is what I can figure out:

Frame: Focus SS-100(Made in Japan, with a sticker that says sold at Wheels Unlimited, which actually happens to be in my hometown!), lugged steel
Front Brake: says Schwinn Approved
Front wheel is Shimano Deore
The crank arm says Schwinn Le Tour
And the handlebars say Sakae Custom Japan on one side and Road Champion on the other with a laurel wreath thing around the words.

The person I bought it from said her roommate's boyfriend worked on it at the Bike Oven. And now for a picture!

dsh

That's a pretty cool looking bike! Definitely worth $50, although the saddle looks pretty gigantic on it

skinnyland

Not a bad score at all. Now, before everyone hassles you about it, let me recommend that you change out the pedals in favor of something with foot retention. It's not the biggest deal in the world in your case, since you do have a brake, but I think you'll find that it adds a whole new dimension of control to your FG riding.

crashtheparty

Thanks y'all! I train for work this weekend and hopefully start up on Monday, so once I get my first paycheck I'm heading straight to the LBS and changing out the saddle (it's bloody awful! pain...lots of pain), probably the grip tape (I'm thinking yellow or orange to go with the Focus color on the frame) and something for the pedals. I rode with cages on my last bike and I liked those alot, so I'll probably just pick up something like that. Oh, and dhs, that saddle IS huge. I honestly don't know who would fit on that size frame and need a saddle that large, haha.

devilshaircut

$50? Nice.

steveymcdubs

is it just me or does that look like a heeeyooge gear ratio?

definitely worth the $50. grats.

crashtheparty

Thanks! How do I find out what gear ratio it is?

steveymcdubs

x/y

where x is the number of teeth on the front gear
and y is the number of teeth on the back sprocket.

just guesstimating from the pic, it looks like the fronts somewhere around 48?

dsh

I honestly think the bar tape looks great as is. It's got a really nice classy look to it. Orange or yellow would make it a lot louder.
That front is a 52. The back looks like a 15 or a 16, haha.
Good thing there's a brake

crashtheparty

Spot on dsh, it is 52/15. I don't even know what that means for me, but I suppose it's good to know!

HybridPilot

52/15! wow thats huge. glad to see thats working out for you.

crashtheparty

Nevermind, I just read sheldon's page on fixed gears and I am officially enlightened on the subject. I feel quite proud of myself for making it the 2 miles uphill to school yesterday!

steveymcdubs

Here's how I think about it. One full rotation up front = how many rotations in the back?

In your case, one crank rotation = 52/15 = 3.46 back rotations. So every time you pedal a full circle, the back tire rotates 3.46 times.

dsh

The question is probably less about whether you made it, and more about how your quads feel today.

crashtheparty

Good luck with your build! And I just wanted to say I loved the last bit of what you wrote, I can't remember the last time I heard someone use the word 'eviscerate'.

caloso

Yikes. That's a humungous gear. I have a teammate who built up a FG to do timetrial training. He uses a 52-16.

crashtheparty

Ok, that makes alot of sense. Thanks!

Haha, my quads feel fine. I managed about 11 miles on the bike yesterday (1 of those miles downhill), but I've played soccer my whole life, plus some rugby, dance, running and swimming thrown in there, so my legs are by far the most fit part of my body. It's nice that these thighs are good for something!

Now I'm glad I did that ride before I mentioned the ratio to anyone or I probably would have wimped out thinking it was going to be too hard!

crashtheparty

In case you missed the update at the top of the first post, I'm going through some tough financial times currently (as I'm sure lots of other people are) and it turns out I may have to sell my bike. How much do you guys think I could get for it if I put it on craiglist or something?

oldfixguy

$50 for enjoyable, solid, dependable, low to no maintenance transportation. Are you sure you can afford to sell it?

REMspeedwagon

Yeah you could sell it.. but not that much over what you bought it for.
Just throw up a price to see if anyone wants it.

If not, get some cheap pedals, clips, and straps and keep riding!

hairnet

Keep it. As a co-op bike it isn't worth that much because everything there is probably used and old except for maybe the rear wheel (hard to find fixed wheel at the co-ops) and bar tape. Not to say it's a bad bike, but it will be hard get another bike that seems good for $50 and I don't think you can even make a bike at the co-ops for $50 unless they understand you have little money. What are you going to use for transportation without the bike?