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Old 12-01-07 | 09:10 AM
  #53  
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I-Like-To-Bike
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Joined: Oct 2004
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From: Burlington Iowa

Bikes: Vaterland and Ragazzi

Originally Posted by Sammyboy
It's not nonsense - if you ride a fix, you'll find that it IS more tyring to have your legs carried round. The real source of the extra work out is slowing yourself by applying back pressure - more work, but also, more muscle groups.

For ILTB - a fix does have a very small advantage over a single speed with a coaster brake in terms of simplicity, and that's the lack of freewheel. I'm sure you can't believe that a machined cog threaded onto a solid hub is equally as complex as a freewheel. It isn't. In practise, I've never had a situation where that mechanical simplicity was an actual advantage, but that doesn't mean it's not simpler.
I believe it is a "small advantage"; an infinitesimally small advantage. Almost as good/practical as saving a gram of weight on a utility bike; but if that is what floats the Zen boat for some, swell!
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