Hello everybody,
Since catching the fixie bug from late Sheldon Brown's site (bless his soul) and lurching in this section of the forum from ages ago, I've decided to build myself a fixed bike.
Here it is:
Now, let me tell you more things about it.
I'm living in Grenoble, France, which is a quite nice and bike-friendly town. There are a lot of bicycle enthusiasts and a lot of bike tracks in and out the city. There is also a local community bike club where members can repair their bikes and use any of the parts lying around. You can find almost anything except a fixed or a flip-flop hub. So, first task: get a hub.
After narrowly missing buying a Phil hub, I've ended buying a new "Quando High Performance (Flip-flop) Hub", two fixed cogs (15 and 16) and a lock ring on eBay. I know, you never find "Quando" and "quality" or "performance" in the same line in this forum, but I've decided to go ahead. In the end, the hub is OK, no obvious problems for now. I've built and redish the wheel by myself using a very nice and old Mavic 700c wheel. It's quite nice at the end, the wheel looks and works OK.
Here is the hub:
The frame is a 1981 Gitane (maybe a Gransport) 102 Aerotub by Vitus. It's a very nice frame, light and strong. I had to repaint the frame for protection against rust. The results are OK for a quick and (very) dirty paint job.
I've kept the original sidepull cantilever brakes (made by an old french company):
and crankset (an 170 cm Nervar):
The gear ratio is around 73 gear inches (42/15), which is a bit higher than my regular MTB (68)
The chain is a SRAM PC-1, quite nice by the way.
The tires are red Michelin Orium 700x23C:
And now, the thing I cherish most is a beautiful Brooks B17 Champion saddle:
I've bought this one on eBay from a Belgium seller. The saddle was made in 1970 and was kept in the storage room of a bike shop. In the end I've payed around 70 US$ for a vintage, never used Brooks saddle.
Instead of the overpriced Proof Hide or whatever, I've used Shea Butter (that I trust to no end) to re-condition the saddle. It worked very nicely, the outer skin looks like new and is quite elastic.
During my first ride (today), I've quite liked the feeling of the saddle, no unsolicited pain in the ass. I hope that the saddle gets even better. I may buy another saddle for the MTB if I found a cheap one again.
Now, the first feeling of riding a fixed gear bike:
I've never rode one before and I was really looking forward to finally enter the heaven of oneness with the bike that you guys promised
First, I've found very difficult to put both feet in the pedal straps without breaking major bones. The thing that works for me is to keep the right pedal with straps and let the left one strapless. Quick mount/dismount and no problems. I'm not very prone to let go the pedals in any case.
Now, the actual feeling is ... interesting. I really have to watch myself and to remind me not to stop pedaling. The need of pedaling all the time and the momentum of the pedals really makes you keep a very sustained rhythm always. (Bike tells: Go forward. And you better abide!) I've been able to routinely reach ~30 km/h (18m/h) without any problem (which is quite exhaustive on my main MTB). I have quite strong legs and the feeling of the effortless acceleration is very nice. I like 42/15 the gear ratio, it seems to be quite adequate for both city and roads. I can ride on small hills without problems.
However, I find that the absence of coast make you tired more rapidly. I had to stop twice for the 25 miles trip (one stop normally). But this is just a first impression.
Otherwise, I don't think I'll have the patience and skill to learn skid braking. I have two brakes in any case.
I cannot stop the bike very fast using only my legs. It takes some time, the momentum of the bike is just too big and the gear ratio is maybe a bit high. Also, I cannot keep the bike at rest on small slopes (10%) just using the pedals, it lifts me from the saddle.
In the end, I found it very promising and I'm waiting to learn this bike better. The start was quite good and I hope it gets better.
As a side note, even if the French have a very good bike culture, they don't know what a fixed bike (pignon fixe) is. I was asked by a lot of bikers why I prefer to have just one speed on a bike that's obviously made for road. Even after a lot of explications, the concept remains a bit unclear.
So, what do you think? Are there any blatant problems in my set-up?
Do you know a guide on adjusting the drop handlebar on a road bike?
Cheers,
Dan