Originally Posted by
bicyclridr4life
Question for you single speed riders.
All but one of the posts I've seen in the Fixed & Single Speed forum have to do with light weight high dollar bikes either converted to single speed or fixie, or are actual track bikes from a manufacturer. The one exception was a thread about coaster brakes.
Does a single speed mass marketed "Big Box" store $99 ~ $120 coaster brake beach cruiser count as a single speed for the purposes of this forum, or is the forum limited to the high dollar (forgive the terminology here, please) "Snob Appeal" bikes, and the cheap bikes are a C&V (if even there) subject only?
For what it is worth, I have several geared bikes, including a top of the line KHS "Montana Summit" (triple butted lugged steel frame) from 1989 in perfect condition, and a 2003 Giant Cypress DL, but my "go to first bike" is an old coaster brake Huffy "Key Largo" beach cruiser.
I think the question is not whether they qualify as single speed bikes, but whether they qualify as bikes and not toys. There are a few people who have older coaster brake setups who seem quite happy with their bikes, and while limitted in what those bikes can do they are quality machines. A big box store beach cruiser is typically too crappy to have any useful application other than as a toy to play with for a little while on the weekend. You can't commute on it (it will breakl), you can't race on it (it will break), you can't do tricks on it, tour with it, or ride it for fitness purposes (because it will break break break) so I personally don't think it even qualifies as a bicycle.
"Snob appeal" has nothing to do with it. People have built converted single speeds that cost them a total of 50 dollars from garage sales and bike coops and those are perfectly well received here. But a piece of crap is a piece of crap, regardless of price.