jpearl

Cycling is my passion, and in this passion are two fetishes: cyclocross and messenger bikes. I submitted to the first, buying myself a CX bike and made the decision to try racing this coming fall. The other one is as of yet unfulfilled. I'm toying with the idea of giving in to that lusty little Specialized Langster that keeps winking at me at the LBS. I want to use it as a commuter bike in the DC area, each way no more than twenty minutes. I don't plan to ride it fixed, and I don't plan to bling it out with TT bars or swanky Mavic track wheels (all that money gets pumped into the CX bike and future blingy road bike). Still, I see a SS as a way to ride to work, be on a bike almost every day of the week instead of being a Sunday warrior, and I also think it'll make me a stronger peddler with better technique.

So, $650 at the LBS, purely a lust thing, bad-ass looking ride ('06 model). Should I do it?

Nouia

Langsters aren't that pretty, in my opinion. Sloping top tubes are gross, man.

blu3d0g

with you on that, but if the man likes his TT sloping, then that's what he likes. to the OP: go for it. out of curiosity though, why wouldn't you have been using your CX bike for commuting? why is that relegated to weekends only? Also, try riding it fixed, it's a blast, I have a rush hour that I road with a freewheel for almost a year before I flipped the wheel around and went "holy ****, why didn't i do this sooner?". It feels so natural, coasting on my MTB freaks me out now.

DC_Emily

Well, you certainly don't need a SS for an excuse to ride to work. YOu can commute on anything you like! If you're into the Langster, go for it. There are a whole slew of people who have them around town and most are set up SS. It always gives you the option to go fixed if you like. But let me second that fixed is a hell of alot of fun.

P.S. If you're looking to race there are alot of great teams in the area if you're looking to joine one. On the other hand, there's absolutely no reason not to ride unattached for a year before deciding. Take a look around.

vw addict

I recently bought a Langster for my 20 mile rt commute. I also said I would never ride it in fixed mode. The bike has never seen the freewheel in the 5 times I have commuted in the past week and a half, one of those days there was snow too. Screw the people that say sloping tubes are ugly, they are just punks. The bike is pure fun.

jpearl

The main reason I don't want to commute on my CX is that I just don't want to give it an unnecessary daily beating. I would like to be using it for post-work training rides, daylight permitting, and either long Sunday CX-esque rides or races only.(Saturdays are out due to Shabbat. Consult your local rabbi for an explaination of that). The SS would be the beater bike; the one that gets knocked around in the office, the one that gets ridden in the rain, slush, and general crap, and gets locked up in my building's bike room (very, very locked up!). As far as graphics, while I like the black and grey treatment, there are really only two acceptable graphics in the bike world: full celeste green and Colnago paint jobs. Everything else should be bare frame.

As for sloping TTs, my initial cycling days happened from '85 until '92, back when the only top tubes that sloped were either on MTBs or on time trial bikes, and those sloped in quite an opposite direction that those of today. Straight TT do look much cleaner, more elegant, but if a TT slopes and makes a frame lighter and more rigid, then so be it. I'm only really concerned about how the road or trail approaching me at rapid speed looks anyway.

bka2

i had the langster 06 for awhile. the crankset is sweet for the pricetag and, if you happen to be as short as i am (5'4"), it's nice because the compact geometry, as much as i hate the way it looks, fits really well. the bottom bracket on my langster gave me a bunch of trouble and i've heard other people say the same thing, so be wary of that. but for the pricetag i think it's a good deal, and it's definitely a good commuter bike since it's comfortable and it has the option to go fixed or free.

.:Jimbo:.

Id say go for it, some people hate it, some, you and myself included like it, and I happened to see even further potential for the bike in terms of asthetics. It served me well for commuting, alleycats, learning the "fixed" ropes, and turning a few heads in the process.

The road geometry lead for a stable and comfy, enough to allow me to do a century with it, without tormenting my body, aside from putting up with the usual nyc potholes, curbs, serwer gratings, etc. On top of that, the price and parts were fair, nothing top notch for me to fear locking it up on nyc streets, yet reliable and efficent enough to get me to where i needed to be.

All in all, it served me well, and did it's job: nice, simple, fun, comfortable, and reliable transportation.

G14Classified

I love my 04' Langster Pro, I tend to feel a little more comfy with the extra space between my nads with the sloping tube. Ride what you like...and a SS is not a bad idea also. I like the 06' but the 07" comes with a carbon fork. Never the less you'll love the Langster...though I never understood the name.

sfcrossrider

As someone who has a sick cross habit... I know where you're coming from. If I were you I'd buy an IRO Rob Roy. You'll be able to use it as a fixed road bike, or as a SS cross bike. It also costs less than the Langster. More money for sweet @ss cross stuff (every gram counts).

The best thing a cross racer can do is trail run. Most cross racers HATE the running aspect of cross racing. If thats something your good at, you'll be five steps ahead of most of the other riders. Also, get comfortable with the idea of your HR being @ 90% for 30 minutes to an hour. The better you can handle that pain the better at cross you'll be. And yes... you'll puke. HAVE FUN!!!

pat dasein

G14's langster is hot, and so was mine before I cannibalized the parts for my new bike. Somewhere people were talking about pedal strike, I never had a problem and I rode it hard. It's a good bike.

666pack

i don't really think the langster looks all that great for all that money.
if you're just looking for a simple, hands down, all around decent commuter i'd much sooner get a iro mark v than one of those langsters.

halfro

I purchased a Langster last week for my commute bike. It's on the freewheel side, but I'm tempted to try the fixed the first time I get a flat.
You might want to look into the schwinn Madison too. I was thinking of getting that bike as well. Since my Langster is not near where I live and public transportation doesn't allow me to take bikes, I might in a few months get the Madison too for around my house.
With no car I can afford having two bikes!

edvin

its a good bike cheap, fast and light. a great commuter.

queerpunk

do it. it sounds like you want a backup bike to be a daily rider, and why not explore the ss/fixed realm? plus it sounds like you like the looks of the Langster. give it a ride at a shop to ensure that you like the feel, too, and then go for it. you don't need our blessing! just your own!

patrick07

These are not terribly expensive from Nashbar. This setup for bars, levers, and tape was about $60

halfro

Did you swap out the cables?

patrick07

Yeah, I had to because of the bar tape they used. I swear they cemented it on there!

EDIT: I got it when the levers and bars were half off. They were 32 bucks shipped.

jpearl

I'm going to my LBS next week to replace the front derailleur that I trashed on my CX bike, and I'll make my decision about the Langster then. I test rode the bike for about ten minutes, taking it up and down hills, on the flats, in and out of pedestrians, and off curbs. It's a tricky ride indeed, no low gears to bail out on and no high gears to pump up the pace; just peddling and technique. I know there are other SS bikes out there, and my LBS only has the Langster and the Cannondale Capo. Looks like if I STFU and just get a SS already, then it'll be the Langster.

Thanks for all the feedback, BTW.

sfcrossrider

Make your CX bike a single in the front. All the cool cross kids do it.

jpearl

I'd do the single ring up front, but my roadie past makes me a big-ring basher, and I'm always working the big ring on flat, hard surfaces like DC's/Marylands C&O canal towpath trail. I do like the idea of trail running though, thanks for that advice.

BTW, I've noticed that some fixies/SS have these (I'm a noobie to this area of bike technology, so bear with me) have these attachments on the rear dropouts. What are they, and what do they do? Also, how does chain tension work on a SS bike?

jpearl

DID IT!

I now own an '07 Langster. I spent a few hours test riding the '06 and the '07, and the '07 had a better feel, due in part to higher quality parts and a lower gearing. Granted the '06 was bad-ass looking, the '07 is cleaner and simpler, basic brushed aluminum. Either way, it rode beautifully. Solid and supple on the open road, nimble and agile carving in and out of traffic, people, and alleyways, dropped confidentally off curbs, and I even rode it up the steepest, most cobbled climbs in Washington DC. I plan to ride it free and stock, so no plans on be being a blinged-out fixie, but I can't wait to make this my dialy commuter and play bike.

Thank you, BTW, to everybody who gave me their feedback in this thread.

Extorris

I wanted one also, but waited and found a used one for less than half that price. The money saved will go towards real components for it.




What I should have done in the first place.

BLACKMARKET

i love mine

trackstar10

i love those axis forks. cheap and sexy. i was actually gonna get one for my road bike but i got an oval instead. maybe ill get one and put it on my new iro