Sizzle-Chest

So, you guy's win, i just couldn't stay away. I started to get sick of the fixed gear thing and I bought this 1990 miyata 600gt touring bike to use as a commuter and put my fixed gear up for sale. After only one day of riding it I got so annoyed with the gears (not working sometimes, constantly having to shift) and decided that I loved riding fixed too much. It was like I had to see for myself that fixed gear is really the most fun way to ride. Anyway, luckily nobody bought my bike and I was able to use the wheels to turn my new miyata into a fixed gear touring bike. However, I saved all the parts so that I can convert it back to go touring next summer! I think it needs a white saddle?

fix:

you can learn to adjust your derailleurs so that they shift correctly

and theres really no reason you have to constantly shift, if you can ride everywhere you go on a fixed gear, you can presumably ride everywhere in the same gear on your road bike

andre nickatina

likewise, i get bored with track bikes after awhile but going back to freewheel/gears always makes me appreciate the hell out of the fixed gear drivetrain again. however, it's nice having brakes and gears when you're tired / out of it. riding fixed gear is like a caffiene rush where i'm wired and attentive, freehwheels / brakes is more akin to getting close to the stage of passing out after a night of beers and just want to be lazy.

Sizzle-Chest

is that what those limit screws and adjustment barrels are all about? it's just a pain to have to adjust and fine tune things like that in comparison to something that requires so little maintenence. don't get me wrong, i have several geared bikes and i like riding them, but for commuting, fixed makes more sense for me.

efficiency

Hmm . . .

I just ride. Both fixed and geared. There are some places that are plainly not as fun on a fixed gear.

dijos

Hills, for example.

mander

Descents, to be precise. On long rides thats where I always wish for a freewheel.

OTOH: After getting a bit of singlespeed knee I took my well adjusted gearie out for some commutes a few weeks back. Coasting and a higher top end of speed was definitely a fun change but i notice that since I got better I havent touched the geared bike for weeks.

cc700

that is a sweet frame.

nice convo. i would have kept it geared though. i miss having a geared bike now that mine's wrecked.

trons

you should try fixed with brakes, the best of both worlds

cc700

a front brake and soft touch scrubs off speed nicely. long descents are still bothersome, but you won't complain about your knees.

moki

Rode 90 klicks today on my road bike. Much fun, no complaints about gears and the ability to coast. Being able to hit good speeds on downhills in a stupid aero tuck is a big plus.

and hitting gravel roads and little dirt trails is def less fun on a fg with 23mm tires. up the knobbies.

fibergoldfish

my fall winter project is building a felt f75 frame into my daily ride....i want a geared everyday bike from now.

dms1818

I converted a 1984 Panasonic to SS. 46X18, flat bars and Oury grips. I,m looking for a flip flop wheel so I can go fixed also. I liked SS on the road so much that I converted my MTB to SS. (34X16) I can't see going back to gears anytime soon.

Re-Cycle

I would have left the gears on that baby. Bar end shifters are the ****. At least you left the rack and the rear brake on, that part makes me happy. Is that a blackburn rack? I incidentally have one on a miyata mountain bike and dig-dug© it.

asherlighn

It has been said by someone else on this board, but every time I get on one of my bikes after riding the other for a week or more, I really appreciate the unique characteristics of it. Like when I have been riding my fixed gear around for a week or more and get on my road bike, I LOVE being able to go really fast (30mph +) and to spin up hills. When I get on my fixed gear I like the simplicity and fun factors (skidding, trackstands, wheelies).

Some of my friends think I have spent too much money on my bikes, but I really don't think I would be happy with anything that is a "happy medium".

lvleph

Try riding a road bike for a month and then get on your fixed gear. I forgot I couldn't coast; it was quite funny.

asherlighn

lol I have had that happen. You do the pogo thing for a second until your brain catches up

sorsha6

I really like the original drop bars... they look like they flared out quite a bit?

Landgolier

Funny, I feel the same way about canti brakes, and you kept those

What is that triple crank that came on it?

Also, barcons completely rule.

Landgolier

Randonneur bars. Very old school. Most people have gone to ergo drops for the same purpose, but they're a nice alternative to track bars if you want flare but not huge drop.

eskachig

Road bikes certainly have their place. Whenever I'm on one of the modern 17 pound beasties with miraculously precise drivetrain I feel like I'm riding a rocket. Also, sometimes I forget what it's like to properly lean into a turn - fast sweepers are amazing.

Sizzle-Chest

i love the mechanical advantage of canti brakes, which make the extra effort worth while. that triple crank is a sugino MP, and i love the barcon index shifters. like i said, i have all that stuff stored in a plastic baggy for safe keeping until next summer.

Landgolier

I'm sure I could get into cantis, but I don't have them on any of my bikes so whenever I work on them it's always some friend's POS with the pads worn in all weird and kinks in the cables.

Hmm, never seen an MP triple, though they may be common and I'm just a dumbass. Was it a real triple, or did it have some tripleizer ring setup? If it's a legit triple, I'd think it's a pretty special piece.

Sizzle-Chest

i'm not sure what you mean by real tripple but it's a tripple in the sense that the crank has three separate places to attach rings. it is not a tripple that thas the third ring attached to the second ring. why would that be special? are sugino tripples hard to come by? it seems like a piece of junk to me. the left side crank stripped out when i tried to pull it and i ended up having to remove it with the spindle still attached, and the drive side crank weighed as much as a small bike.

MrCjolsen

I like to ride fixed during the summer when it's flat and there's no wind. In the winter, I tend to hang up the fixed gear and ride my 27 speed Crosscheck.