Single or not to be single?
 

Hi there.

I've been commuting in London for the last 2 years on a hybrid.... I'm looking to switch as the riding angle and style of the bike doesn't work for me. It's far too upright ( which is a ***** on a windy day ), and it doesn't give me the right movement on hills either. I like to get out of the seat and think a road bike frame will improve this. I took out two sprockets as i was hardly using most of the lower gearing too. It worked well and made me look into single' a lot more. I ride about 20 miles a day.

The choices i'm looking at is a full road bike or a road bike styled single speed. Anyone got any good advice out there on this subject or has made the switch? Also, how is it commuting on a fixed wheel? I like the idea of it a lot and it's simplicity, especially when it comes to maintenance during the winter which i also found a ball ache.
Are full road bikes ok to live with all year round commuting, and do they work for the task of getting around London?

I was looking at the Wilier Pista and the new Felt Footprint.

Cheers,

J.

Hi,
Welcome to the forums.

I'm not the right person to answer your questions, but I'll pitch in just because I'm on a similar time-zone.
I really love all my gears, but I have serious hills (and only hills, no flats). I haven't ridden a SS since I was a kid. But you do mention all the correct reasons for looking into SS/FG, i.e. quite flat landscape (if I remember correctly), quite high mileage, willingness to stand up from the saddle from time to time and pray for being relived from future maintenance.
My suggestion is that you look here for a cheap used bike to have a peek into the SS/FG world, before you spend your savings on a new bike. Just remember that bike fit is important, and more so if you pedal with power. It's hard to find reliable advice on bike fit over the internet, so when you have made up your mind on which way to go, you should visit a good bike shop for advice on this.

I have also thought of going with a fixed gear or single speed because of ice. I'll probably be going with a 3 speed internally geared hub instead.

I commute year round on a single speed and I have only tried fixed twice and never in traffic. I am never convinced fixed in the city is good but plenty of people swear by it. So if you buy something make sure it has a flip flop hub so that you can switch.

The reality is you can commute on any bike, some are better than others but even that it is an individual choice. I think a commuter should have room for at least 28c tires to absorb some road shock and most roads are crap to ride on. Fenders should also be a consideration to keep you and your bike clean. As for the two bikes you posted, I personally don't like either of them for commuting. One is a carbon fiber bike which I think makes a lousy material for day to day, locked to sign post, getting scratched and banged around bike. Unless you can bring it inside into your work etc. The Willier which is a nice bike all around doesn't have room for fenders or bigger tires. They would be fun to ride and that would be the trade off.

I am biased because I own one but something like the Masi Speciale Commuter is something worthy of consideration. But as I said, any bike can be a commuter. It all depends on your needs.

I was in downtown London two weeks ago, and I couldn't believe the amount of traffic and how narrow the roads were and to see cyclist sharing it with those buses. I am a well seasoned cyclist in a large metropolitan city and just watching it scared me. I don't know how you guys do it, at least downtown.

Lots of commuters swear by single speeds and fixies. I had one built up a couple years ago for occasional commuting, as a change of pace. It looked great and was a blast to ride, but it did a number on my knees. The roads are pretty hilly where I live and it is often chilly or cold during my morning commute, and I wasn't able to warm up properly on the SS before hitting the hills. Basically you have to charge all the hills on a SS/fixie, and that didn't agree with my knees. I started developing knees pains almost immediately, which I stupidly ignored and didn't attribute to the SS, until the pain got so bad that I ended up in physical therapy and missed two months of riding. I put the gears back on that bike and sold all my SS/fixie parts.

How long and how hilly is your commute? Do you carry much stuff with you? Do you need bike it every day, or just when you want to? These all play a role in your decision.

Also, welcome to bike forums!

Fixed gear and single speed drive trains can be a lot of fun, especially in the city, and I use both on my flat 30 mi RT commute. However I don't think it's worth spending much money on them, and I wouldn't want one as my only bike. If you do want to start going on longer rides, or riding with a club, it'll hold you back. I've done a century on a single speed (out of necessity, my geared bike was in the shop), and I have no desire to do it again.
Still, I love ss/fg bikes for the city. If I were you, I'd buy a new road bike and cobble together an ss/fg from an older road bike. If you're the slightest bit mechanically inclined, making your own ss/fg from an older road bike is really satisfying and very easy.

I second the notion of getting a flip-flop hub, though I will add that I've ridden mine fixed all along and don't intend to switch to the ss. YMMV, however, and this gives you more options.

It certainly is simpler, what without derailleurs and shifters -- things that don't always do well in the cold. In other words, less chance for ball ache.

I doubt there's much in the way of hills in London. Hills would be one reason either to stick with gears or go ss.

As for the 2 bikes you mentioned (Wilier Pista and the new Felt Footprint), I'd think you could get something for a lot less than either of those, especially if you are willing to settle for used. FG/SS isn't for everyone, so you might want to check it out inexpensively first.

I sure like my FG, and I ride a comparable distance to what you mention.

It definitely depends on how steep your hills are, especially for fixed gear riding. You can gear down low enough to make the hills managable, but on a fixed gear you end up spinning wildly going back down the hill, and on either type you end up needing to spin like crazy to go fast if your gearing is too low. A good way to judge is to coast down your biggest hill and see how fast you end up going without pedaling -- over 25 mph/40 kph and I think gears are in order.

If your route is flat enough, you should definitely give fixed gear a try. It takes a little getting used to, but it's a lot of fun. Just be sensible and install brakes.

Hills don't matter much to my SS/FG experience. I have it geared low enough so I can climb everything I face, and while I do lose some top end going down the other side of a couple of those, it's never enough to cost me a traffic light.

I don't find descending a hassle, FG, one learns to spin, but coasting is fun too. I found the stop/go segments of my commute, especially riding w/ my kids at the beginning or end of the day, more of a hassle w/ FG. I have been flopped over to the freewheel side for a couple months now...

I've used all my gears on my flat 24 mile round-trip commute out of 50-34x13-14-15-16-17-18-19-21-23 except 50x13. There's enough gear there to hit 28 MPH sprinting for a light or spin up highway over passes at 10 MPH with a lot of fatigue and I really wouldn't want to do without any of them.

Yes, although you want something more touring than racing

- Rack eyelets and chain stays long enough to provide heel clearance on panniers are a great idea, especially if you need to haul along a laptop, wet weather clothes, cold weather clothes, etc.

- You want clearance for fenders if you plan on riding in the rain.

I made the switch last night!

I had kinda messed up my derailleur/chain while transporting my bike in the back of my gf's car. It was rideable, but acting weird, then the chain came off the front sprockets yesterday and as I tried to "pedal my chain back on" by adjusting my front derailleur, (which I've done many times) the chain caught and bent the rear derailleur and itself, rendering my bike practically useless.

I don't have the best job right now, so I'm not currently into buying a new rear derailleur, chain and now cogset (I ride all year in all conditions and let the chain and cogset wear together, rather than replace the chain at regular intervals, call it laziness if you wish). I ended up just removing the derailleurs, shifters, cables/housing and cogset, slapping on my ss adapter and cog onto my freewheel, taking out the bent portion and resizing the chain, and voila! a perfectly good rideable single speed. Runs great, and I think it'll even work well here in hilly Pittsburgh with the 42-18 gear combo. You might want something with a little larger ratio for the flatlands.

I guess my point was that you can get a geared bike and go to SS if you want. It's really not too difficult. But buying all the stuff to go from a dedicated SS bike to a geared bike if you decide to do that in the future (and if the frame you choose even allows it) could be a lot harder. I would go geared out of the gate.

Never had a fixed gear so I can't comment on them. During your commute will you be carrying things? Also, like Drew Eckhardt mentioned you want clearance for fenders. The bikes you mentioned don't look like they would provide much room.

For me, commuting bikes should fit a wide variety of tire widths, have room for fenders, and mounting options for racks (rear and/or front). If you are carrying items I think being able to shift gears would be a plus.

The two bikes you mention seem extremely track-y. I'd go with a simple road conversion, or a ss/fixed bike with geometry that's a bit more relaxed. Don't know what's available in the UK, but something like a Bianchi San Jose, Redline 925, Raleigh One Way makes the most sense to me. Leave the track bikes for the velodrome.

I agree with the above commenters who recommend getting a flip/flop hub - especially if you haven't ridden fixed much before (sounds like you haven't, though I could be wrong). For the record, a hub that is fixed/fixed (threaded for both cog and lockring on both sides) is actually the most flexible, as you can run a standard ss freewheel on the fixed cog threads, giving you the option of fixed/fixed, fixed/free, or free/free. My memories of London don't include much in the way of hills (though it's been a while since I was there), I imagine any standard gearing should do well for you. (46/17 and 44/16 are on my fixed and ss bikes right now for flat Chicago).

I would also second any comments about running brakes, and about having a sensible bike that you can rack and fender easily, as well as fit a reasonable sized tire with those fenders (28 or 32c). And for a fixed gear, foot retention of some kind - clips and straps, clipless, Power Grips, those big goofy velcro things that fixie riders like to put on BMX pedals, whatever. Really, it's helpful.

Converting an old road bike is also pretty easy (sheldonbrown.com can tell you how), and gives you the option to put your derailers back on if you decide you want gears. A bike like the San Jose, 925 or One Way are also reasonably easy to convert to an IGH hub if you want to try a 3,5, or 8 speed in the future. You've got a lot of options, and as long as you hold on to the hybrid you've got a backup bike to use in case you need to make some changes to whatever new ride you end up buying. Have fun!

I considered singlespeed for a while as a commuter and I had a singlespeed bike I really liked to ride but it wasn't really a good bike for commuting. Ultimately I decided gears came in handy with a bike loaded down with fenders, racks, stuff, lights etc and the occasions I pull my trailer its nice to have the lower gearing. Other cases when having gears is good is when its windy. Its not that hilly here and I could go the singlespeed route, but for now I'll take the gears.

Singlespeeds are a blast to ride around though and would be an awesome no frills commuter. If you want to try making the switch purchase a much cheaper singlespeed road bike and give it a whirl.

Adding on to the previous post if you wanted to go cheap you could throw dropbars on your hybrid which would make you more aero and also make it a singlespeed. Doing this might cost a bit of cash, but you might end up with a killer singlespeed cross bike when you are all said and done.

I have an 80s Raleigh Record converted to a single-speed. I do have a flip-flop hub, and I tried fixed for a while. Fixed is different, but caused me knee pain. I still enjoy the simplicity of single-speed though. My single-speed is becoming my primary commuter bike.

As far as "road bike", yeah, mine is an old, lugged-steel, drop-bar, road bike. Being from the 80s, I can fit 700x32 tires (converted from 27" wheels) and fenders. It makes for a comfy ride, and no skunk-stripe.

Can I assume that London means London U.K.? If so, there's a really good magazine called Cycling Active that you might want to look at. They have multiple bike reviews every month and a lot of good advice for commuting.

IMHO - based upon OP's brief info - suggest a cyclocross style bike with 1x9 [8 or 10] gearing. I know the SS/FG trend is popular in urban areas, there are times when a few gears are very nice - when there is a bad head wind or when the powerplant isn't feeling well or carrying an extra load [groceries or beverage]. IGH are nice - probably a trend of their own lately - I have two which work well and are great in traffic - but they are just not as "zippy" as the deraileur set up. The 1x9 set up is pragmatic and reliable for commuting, provides a good range of gears and easy to maintain. The cyclocross or similar bike accepts a wider range of tire sizes, 28-32 mm tires often provide a better ride and less subject to road abuse than 23-25 mm road bike tires. If you go with a road bike, suggest getting one with relaxed geometry vs. racing - easier in traffic and on your body parts & get a good fit.

You will have to experiment to find the most appropriate gearing system for your London commute.
I suggest you hunt around for a frame that is compatible with most systems.
Look for a road frame with horizontal rear dropouts. I would also go for one with threaded eyelets for reack and fenders (mudguards). get these even if you dont currently use them, one day you will need them.
My preference is for generous tyre clearances, esp for winter commuting. A frame that takes long-drop calliper brakes can accept narrow or medium 700c tyres (usually up to about 32mm). Cyclo-cross style cantilever brakes can often accept slightly wider but of the 2 systems, I find callipers work better.

Once you find a frame, fit it with any components you like to make a totally custom bike. You may want to dress-down to avoid it becoming a thief magnet. I painted my old steel frame a garish green.

I can't speak for London, but I can speak for riding fixed or single on flat or hilly/mountainous route. I love it. I currently have 3 bikes: a fixed gear Bike Friday Pocket Rocket, a single speed Surly 1X1, & a geared Surly Cross Check. I'm leaving the Cross Check geared but I have been tempted to switch it to single as well. My Pocket Rocket has a flip flop rear wheel fixed on both sides. It is my main commuter as well as my main training ride for fast aggressive groups. Fixed/single in bad weather works really great. That is one reason my 1X1 mountain bike is a single speed. If single speed 100 mile mountain biker racers can complete a mountainous (12,000 -14,000 feet of climbing) course almost as fast as the open racers, then commuting on one can be no problem.

I made a decision about whether to go SS by choosing a gear ratio on my road bike and NEVER changing from it for at least a week.

I have both an Xtracycle/Trek Mountain Track and a Motobecane Single Speed. No Fixed, not in the mountains with tourists.
I love my single speed for commuting, even up hill. I have a pretty short commute so either works but when I have a lot to carry or its snowing I have to ride the X. On light weight no snow or ice days the single speed is how I roll as its so much faster.

Geared bikes are safer than single speed bikes (and much safer than fixies) in traffic, because they can accelerate much faster from a slow speed or standing start (unless you use a single gear of 43" or less, in which case you'll spend most of your ride coasting) . This can be crucial for when making difficult turns, getting away from traffic lights before the cars, or responding to a suddenly perceived danger.

They're also much easier on your knees.

Absolute nonsense.

Ditto. By this logic I would actually say single speeds are safer, because you'll never boff it and forget to downshift before you stop, leaving you in a huge gear when the light changes. Fixies maybe a slight bit more dangerous, just because not being able to stop pedaling sucks if you get a shoelace caught in your chain or a branch caught in your forks.
Still, cycling is an innately dangerous activity, you're at risk no matter what you ride, and quibbling over which drive train is safest seems silly.

I commute 40 KMs roundtrip on a singlespeed freewheel bike which formerly had an 8 speed Shimano gear cassette mounted. I converted both my Dahon folding bike and a Softride (carbon suspension beam bike) into singlespeeds.

The Dahon has 20" wheels, runs slicks and is fendered and racked. The Softride does not have fenders and runs 650c x 23 slick tires. The Dahon is geared at 66 gear inches while the Softride is at 69 gear inches. I would normally cruise around 90 rpm and between 28-32 km/h on either of these bikes. A converted SS freewheel bike tends to be simpler, lighter and marginally more efficient to ride.

In my opinion, riding a SS:

- provides safer, less distracted cycling for the rider. There are no gears to change. Instinctively, you feel the proportionality of effort. Faster cadence, faster speed. Never have to worry if you are in the right gear. The right gear is the gear inch you have chosen which allows you to climb the highest hill on your route while maintaining a reasonable speed on the flats. You are therefore, never in the "wrong" gear.

- provides better reliability. A better chainline which is shorter and straighter yields better reliability. On my bike, the chain could derail when the chain bounced as I crossed railroad tracks. Having a chain derail is not a a big deal as it is soon fixed but it is a hassle as either your glove or finger is going to get dirty. A shorter and perfectly straight chainline yields a pleasant sensation that is absent on a derailleur bike. With SS, the front or rear derailleur never needs trimming to avoid contact sounds. If you have ever broken 3/32" chains, you can run slightly stronger 1/8" chains.

- a converted SS running a generic cog is cheap - $6 Canadian is what I pay. Contrast this to replacing a set of SRAM or Shimano or Campy cassette gears. In all fairness though, a cassette of gears I bought last year cost $40. Most of us could afford that without breaking the bank.

- makes you stronger. You get off the saddle and learn to feel the bike and handle the bike through various cadences. The connection with the bike feels more alive rather than merely sitting in the saddle and changing gears to spin within a narrow cadence window like a recumbent. For this reason alone, I feel a singlespeed bike whether freewheel (SS) or fixed gear (FG) provides a richer and more textured riding experience than a geared bike. One could mostly duplicate this by never changing gears on a derailleured bike, but that would be the difference between dating a girl while Facebooking for potential hook ups and commitment. ;)

- all other things being equal, you will climb hills faster on a SS\FG than on a geared bike. On a geared bike, riders tend to gear down and spin. Whereas on a SS\FG, the rider strengthens their muscles and cardio by learning to pull on the handlebars for leverage while seated or stand on the pedals with the aid of gravity to aid their climb up hills and bridges. This movement provides a rest from being seated allows for variation during the ride. With SS you can coast down a hill while on FG you will have to spin down the hill. I recommend using brakes on an FG.

- SS\FG bikes are easier to clean especially in winter.

- SS\FG bikes are cheaper to maintain over the long run.

Remember that SS\FG are atypical and unconventional. Consider it an extension of your personality or an expression of your right to think for yourself rather than following market patterns driven by manufacturing goals.

I think we can agree here. A geared bike ridden by an unskilled rider who hasn't trained themselves to automatically downshift before a traffic light or the bottom of a hill is less safe than a single speed ridden by the same rider. But for the reasons stated previously I maintain a geared bike ridden by a skilled rider is safer than a single speed ridden by a skilled rider.

I don't think I can agree with that as it suggests that once you make the decision to ride on the road there is no point in making any further decisions that might affect your safety one way or another. eg why have brakes? why wear a helmet? why use lights? [amazingly, it's quite trendy where I live to ride fixies at night on busy roads with no brakes, no lights, dark clothing, no helmet and both buds of an ipod jammed in the ears. Still, live and let live (die?) I suppose]

I agree with all the points about cost, reliability, ease of maintenance and increasing static muscle strength though. There's no question a single speed wins there. Safety is just one of the considerations that the OP would want to take into account. If I had a place to put it I'd probably rig up a single speed just to ride around the neighbourhood for fun, or perhaps to play bicycle polo.

+1

I commute regularly on my fixed gear, but I live in the city and ride my road bike in the same traffic. I do just fine dealing with traffic on both bikes, sometimes I feel like the fixed gear gives me better control, but that can change day by day. Your knees will be fine as long as you don't ride a stupidly high gear( I go < 70G.I.) and have a good bike fit.