Question for the Single/Fixed Guys
 

My experience with single gear bikes comes from my childhood. They were fun. Still, I left them for geared bikes. After checking out this forum for the last month or so, I noticed a couple of commuters using single gear bikes to commute. I will admit that at first I found the idea absurd, but now am becoming rather attracted to it. It just looks so simple and easy to maintain. The one thing that I am confused on though is this: How efficient are those things?

It seems that having 20-some gears lets you find the right gear whether you're going up, down, or are level. Thus you can maintain a decent speeds on inclines without feeling like you're doing weighted lunges and push a nice speed once the road allows you. My theoretical thinking is that having only one gear the bike would be good at one thing or the other, but not all of them. Is this true? Like said, I haven't been on a single in over a decade and I would like those who have some experience to enlighten me on how it is to commute on them.

Thanks. :)

well the attraction of the single speed is definitely the "less stuff to break" aspect. it is, of course, a trade-off when you have a serious hill in front of you. once you find the right gear, it isn't that big of a deal though, you just have to find a balance between being able to get up hills and still being able to get speed on flats. it's not the quickest or the most efficient, but it's simple, and there's something to not having to do a lot of thinking.

if you want to know what it's like, just find a good middle gear on your bike and don't change it. you'll get a sense pretty quick of whether or not you want a SS of your own.

I've commuted on one before because even on my geared bike I almost never change gears. So most of them go to waste.

Sometimes i am faster in my fixed gear "townie" that i am on my road bike.

It is like asking a poet why he prefers a sonnets or haikus over free-verse.

i have been commuting fixed since april and all of last year on a singlespeed...it's great

There is some compromise depending on how you set it up, but there are also some advantages over a geared bike. All of this is of course, subjective.

For me, the way my bike is set up it's compromise is downhill sprinting. With my gearing (70 gear inches) I lose out on top end speed going down steep hills. Since I rarely find myself bombing really long hills, there's really only one route where I lose out on a fixed gear. To me this isn't much of a sacrifice weighed against what I've gained from riding a fixed gear.

What I've gained is riding what IMO is the ideal urban traffic bicycle. Weaving through multiple lanes of stopped traffic is ideal on a fixed gear bike with steep geometry. There's alot more low speed control with a fixed gear drivetrain, and the steeper geometry makes tight turning far easier. This balances out the loss of top end speed for me which isn't really practical in heavy traffic conditions anyway, so I'm not losing out on much IMO and gaining quite a bit in turn.

All of course is my subjective opinion. Try it out, you may really like it. I originally wanted to go single speed, tried fixed and haven't had any desire to look back

Thanks for the tip. I shall try that in a few minutes.

And that to the others for their responses, as well.

Most of my shifting is to handle stops/starts. Madison is pretty flat, with few hills even hitting a 5% grade. The main reason I don't go for a single speed is that I'm the designated cargo person... cause those shifts that don't involve a stop almost always involve me hauling a lot of weight and needing a low gear to keep the load moving. Even there, I'm running more gears than I need for in town... I could get by with a 3 speed for most of my riding.

So I have a 7 speed IGH bike, and most of the time I don't really use all the gears. Head out of town tho, and they do come into play.

Singlespeed testing was really helpful tho... without trying it, I'd probably have spent years convinced I needed tons of gears.

I find that riding a SS is inherently inefficient, which is a good thing IMHO. My legs are far stronger than when I was doing multi-gear commutes, and I credit that almost entirely to SS riding. When I go out for rides on my geared bikes, I'm able to hold a higher gear for longer, and summon a bit more power to get over obstacles. The maintenance issue is unimportant for me, as I barely do any maintenance on the geared bikes. Hauling cargo can be painful, but I usually just tough it out.

I'm a dyed-in-the-wool singlespeeder and will never go back to a geared bike for anything but long rides with lots of hills, for which I have a magnificent old 18-speed Raleigh tourer. I told my singlespeed conversion story recently in another thread so sorry to rehash, but: When I was test-riding bikes with no prior knowledge or prejudice, I rode on a Bianchi Volpe and immediately after a Bianchi San Jose, which is the same bike as the Volpe but without gears. There was no comparison - the San Jose was much easier and faster and more fun to ride. I asked the bike shop dude if I was imagining this. He said, probably not, because:

- under conditions for which the one gear is more or less correct, the singlespeed will outperform the same bike with gears because all the force is going directly from pedal to chainring to gear in a straight line; and
- the multi-geared bike is carrying 3-4 pounds of equipment the singlespeed doesn't have.

What's more:

- the singlespeed bike is easier to maintain;
- the singlespeed bike is more reliable in snow and mud and other adverse conditions;
- the singlespeed bike is quieter and smoother;
- the singlespeed bike has a cleaner, cooler look;
- the singlespeed bike is less expensive.

I was ridiculed as a faddist and poseur for getting involved with singlespeed bikes. The detractors have all tried my singlespeed Surly Cross-Check now and they've taken back their words; my significant other, who thought I was crazier than anyone, is saving up for a new one-speeder like mine. It is a very quick and nimble bike and a blast to ride. Even going up hills, you get out of the saddle and expend some extra effort, but the climb is over so fast you hardly care. The main thing you give up, as a previous commenter said, is speed down a long or steep decline. But I don't spin out that regularly. I have to be on substantial hills one after another before the singlespeed starts to seem like a burden.

I'm not trying to evangelize. I don't own stock in one-speed bicycles, and I've never tried fixed (though I will as soon as I get up a little more courage). I'm just so sold on singlespeeding and so excited about it I like turning people on. I think that in another 10 or 20 years the derailleur will be a specialty item for riding over terrain, and most everyday cyclists, such as commuters, will have bikes with one good speed that works for most of where they ride.

On a single speed you're frequently in the "wrong" gear. When it's too tall for the situation, you're forced to push harder thus building strength. When it's too short for the situation, you're forced to spin thus building supplesse. Overall, you'll widen your power band.

P.S. Because of the difference in efficiency achieved by a direct drive between chainring and gear, riding a singlespeed is not equivalent to riding a derailleur bike in a similar gear and not shifting. The singlespeed bike will perform better in that gear than the multi-geared bike.

Fixed isn't for me but I do love my singlespeed.

In my mind I do dread the hills a bit, but when I get to it the mindset kicks in and you know you have 2 choices: Pedal or walk. So you start cranking, and things get harder and you crank harder and get passed by a 50+ dude on a mtn bike ( :rolleyes: happened last week on a big hill) But when I get to the top I get an immense feeling of accomplishment.

I guess to me there's just something kinda cool (masochistic perhaps) about knowing in your mind that you've got nothing but your legs and the only gear you've got to get you there. If things get tough, HTFU and pedal.


Its not like I wave it in other's faces or drop guys on 10 speeds while pointing to my single cog and laughing...but when i conquer a big hill or keep pace with the pack of superheroes I feel like an ass kicker.

Personally, I prefer riding fixed to freewheeling singlespeed.

So...no one else snickered when they read the thread title? I'm so embarrassed. :o

I once turned an old ten speed into a ghetto singlespeed by taking off the gear and shortening the chain to a cog that made for a good chainline. Loved it. The bike was lighter and more responsive. I should break that bike out. Haven't ridden it in a while.

I am married, but yes, I'm fixed. I had the surgery a few years ago after the birth of my second child.

Yes we did.

Rub my feet ... your embarrassment will go away.

All of the other issues aside - better spinning, stronger legs, widening your power band, less to break or be stolen, riding the pure essence of a bike - there is the all important coolness factor of a perfectly executed track stand in the middle of the intersection of Lafayette & Houston while waiting for the light to change.

Hmm...seems as if rubbing your feet cures many ills. Interesting.

One thing in addition to that tip. Yes, try it in one set gear but also try it without stopping pedaling. That will give you some idea of what a fixed gear is like as well. I prefer fixed to SS. I tried SS the first week and found myself out of habit trying to reach to the shifter lever. Once I switched to fixed I have not done that since.

W/a 40 mi rt daily commute I use my singlespeed conversion w/my loaded commuter. M&F I use the multi-geared commuter to carry a week's worth of work clothes and food. T-Th I ride my singlespeed w/a fanny pack(yeah a fanny pack...ya gotta problem w'it?) for essentials. Glasses, keys, wallet, etc. I like the speed and simplicity. The gearing is 46x16 w/no wb cage and my pump, patch kit, tools, etc. are in an mtb frame bag though it's a road bike. It works. When climbing a hill the other day I suddenly 'got' how having a fixed gear would make climbing slightly easier. But, overspinning or holding back on the decends would be murder. The 'powerband expansion' and coolness aspects of riding a fg or ss are secondary, but there nonetheless. :p I'm a stronger rider now that I've been riding a singlespeed for a couple of months w/consistancy.

It took me about 3 seconds to get that. :roflmao2:
Tomorrow. :thumb:


The idea is becoming more and more attractive. I'll have to check out some shops and see if they have any bikes around to try.

When it comes to getting a single or fixed gear bike, given the simplicity of their design, it must be very simple to build one, right? Or is one (economically) better of buying one?

It's cheaper to buy one than put one together from parts.

I'm also a fan of the narrower wheelbase and twitchier handling on most manufacturer "fixed gears" that make a nice balance between the handling of a true track bike and the comfort of a road bike. Something like a JAMIS sputnick or I personally have the MASI speciale fixed are the bikes I was looking at although there are alot of others in that category (either the Surly Steamroller or KONA Paddywagon or maybe it's both of them, and the bikesdirect "Windsor the Hour" are similar).