Meulen

I’m quite new to the fixed gear scene. I started riding with a local group of about 50 people that ride various fixed, road, and mountains bikes on evening rides once a week. I usually just ride my LeTour, but recently I have sold off enough stuff to fund my own fixed gear project, and I’m looking for help/suggestions.

The frame I am going to start with is a 1986 Raleigh Capri. From what I’ve read on the forum it doesn’t seem to be really well liked, but for $15 at a flea market and the shape its in, I figures it’s a good starting point; and I can always upgrade later. I got the cranks off of a bike that I picked up at the local scrap yard for $2. They are Shimano Deore LX cranks, which look to be geared more towards mountain biking, but I figured they would work well enough for the price, and they had a decent sized chain ring. I got a bottom bracket for free from a friend of mine, which helps make this even more inexpensive. The part that took me the longest to decide on was the wheelset. I wanted to get something that was of good quality and would last for years to come. I ended up choosing a set of Velocity Deep V’s that I got for a pretty good price. I chopped and flopped the handlebars, and gave the bike a thorough cleaning. Now I am just waiting for all the parts to arrive so I can start assembling.

The thing I really need help on is deciding what ratio to use. I hopped on one of my road bikes and tried various combinations that I felt were comfortable. I see a lot of posts of people running 60-70 gear inches, and am wondering if the 85 I am looking at is too ambitious. I was planning to run a 48 on the front and a 15 on the back. Mostly were I ride there isn’t a lot of hills, and I like pedaling a gear with a little resistance. But I have no idea what it is like to try and brake with that gear setup (I will be running a front brake for safety purposes)

I guess I am just looking for people’s thoughts, comments, suggestions or criticism. You won’t hurt my feelings, so be honest. Thanks

0hfrankieboy

wow for 15 bones that frame is really clean, on my bike i run 48x18 and for ridding in flat land is not bad i used to run 48x14 and honestly i felt it was overkill but i think its all a matter of muscle strength and personal preference. also make sure that the crank you have is compatible with your bb and that your chainline isn't too off

exhumed

I run 48x17 and really like it. Mostly flats around here with some smal hills on my route so it's a good ratio.

flam

I run the same. There's a few hills around here, but they're not overwhelming.

kmcdon3960

is that a raleigh USA or a raleigh nottingham?
looks like a USA by the lettering but what does the headbadge say?

vegipowrd

The big thing I would say is to expect to switch out the gearing no matter what you start with. 48.15 sounds huge to me only because I live in the hills, carry a ton of stuff and like to accelerate quickly at stop lights. With 80GI I'd have a hellova time using my feet to stop, but you have have better luck there as well.

Meulen

It is a Raleigh USA. From the sounds of it, 48x17 seems pretty popular. I will definately have to consider that... I'm not too concerned about getting up to speed fast (because I'm not really racing anywhere/anyone), but I do like to go fast.

SlowRoller

It's more about if you have to stop a lot on your rides due to stop lights, stop signs, etc. Then, cranking a big-gear inch ratio from a standstill over and over again may become an issue for you.

Thetank

I'm running 46x17 and its nice enough to climb even steep hills and get up to a decent speed as well. Starting from a dead stop isn't slow at all and you won't destroy your knees either.

Meulen

Not a whole lot of stop signs/lights on my route either. Maybe I will just buy a 15 and a 17 and then switch them out if I dont like the current one I'm riding.

JacoKierkegaard

Behold: the wonder that is the flip-flop hub.

Meulen

This brings up another point. The rear hub is a fixed/free combination. Can a fixed cog still be used on the freewheel side of the hub?

bigvegan

48x17 / 46x16 are pretty user-friendly gear ratios.

Make sure your chainline's straight, as a gift bottom bracket and a mountain bike crank could make for a non-standard spacing.

It might be worth the $85 to get a Pake Crank ($60) and a Shimano UN-54 107mm bottom bracket ($25).

If the chainline isn't close to straight, you can throw the chain, and that can cause all sorts of problems while you're riding.

Don't use a fixed cog on the freehub side. Suicide hubs are dumb. Put a granny gear freewheel if you want something to relax with.