Specialized Langster Impresions
 

So im looking to get into the fixie craze, a buddy of mine at work has just been pushin the fact that riding a fixie is a very rewarding experiance and how it makes you a stronger rider, i am a mountain biker at heart but the fixie would be a nice thing to have for commuting and for training alittle bit for my races. I have been researching turning old hunkers into fixies, but since i work at a bike shop i mean might as well go with an Employee purchase and dish out alittle extra cash for a new machine. You guys have anythoughts on the base Model Specialized Langster. I would get rid of that back brake but other then that i think its a pretty good deal.

Here's mine:


"LOOK MEG....I'M A SPECIALIZED LANGSTER!!!! Get it? When I wave my arms my ass jiggles cause I'm a fixed gear..."

http://forevergeek.com/images/familyguynew.jpg

I have one and like it. The one weakness is the wheels but that is going to be a weakness with any cheap wheels...as a shop employee you can get any tension issues worked out in your shop so that shouldn't even be an issue.

I do fine the ride a bit rough...though I have an 06 with the AL fork and I have Velocity Fusions so the ride is a bit stiffer than a stock 07 which is speced better than the 06 IMO. At the price point you will be paying I would probably go for it...but what other brands does your shop sell?

http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeej440/s...s/langster.jpg

are you getting the one with the skulls painted all over the fork?

I recently got "fixed" and have a base 06 Langster. I bought it mainly for training and commuting. I've had it for 9 days now and so far so good. I have 280 km on it since last Sunday. The stock 48 x 16 ratio is a bit high but I am adapting to it. Riding Fixed is a new and fun experience.

It handles nice. The ride isn't much harsher than my roadie.

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c7...r/IMG_3169.jpg

I have an 07 and love it. I had an old Allez (circa 1982) conversion that I rode before. I ride it single speed and not fixed.

IMHO the Langser is a frame build up project and not that great as a complete bike. As an employee you should be able to do an Employee Purchase through Specialized and get the bike for something close to or under $400 which is what I think the bike frame/fork is worth. The only thing I am using from the stock bike is the headset and seatpost binder collar. Everything else I replaced. (And the headset is going bye-bye as soon as I can find a nice sealed bearing headset that is a direct replacement).

The ride is great and the carbon fork made the bike much more useable and friendly. Geometry is standard compact road (basically the same angles as an Allez) and climbs/tracks well. Old conversions tend to be old steel bikes which tend to have slack-er geometry and steer slow and have nowhere near the stiffness as the Langster (at least the steel bikes I have ridden). The shining star of the bike is the frame and the only thing I wished for was the Langster Comp with a rear brake bridge since I prefer single speed over fixed.

I commute and train on the bike and probably have 500-1000 miles on it and it has performed w/o flaw. It just feels right. The ride is smooth, which I generally don't attriute to Aluminum, but the butt does not lie.

People on this board pooh-pooh the Langster, but I find it to be a competent bike with many positives. For the money I enjoy it very much.

I have an O7 stock, but had the hubs built out with Open Pro rims. I run the Roubaix Elite tires and with almost 1,000 miles on them have had no issues or complaints. Their stock set up with give some chain noise unless you really want to put the time and effort into keeping it dialed in. It is not that loud, but it does not ride as quite as some others.

Most riders are going to get some toe overlap into the front wheel. It hasn't caused me any grief but it may take some getting used to.

Overall I love mine and am very happy with it as a fast and fairly maintenance free commuter.

We can get alot of bikes from a very large array for companies but the reason i go with specialiezed is because i know that i can take advantage of the EP program that they have, i will NOT buy a trek and i dont know many other companies that have a bike like this for this price. The bianchi pista is a real sweet bike but i think that its to much of a track frame and i wont be that comfortable on the commutes.

yes i am.

Is that so Jim? :D

http://i15.tinypic.com/40ps9dd.jpg

I've had mine for about a year and a half and put a couple thousand miles on it. Good bike overall, but like some people said the components aren't the best. After about three months the cog stripped the back hub (nothing a little locktite couldn't fix) and then a couple months later the crank kinda split in half. Other than that, though, comfortable and smooth ride.

Im also checkin out the Gary Fisher Triton, but i dont know how much it retails for but its a pretty sweet looking bike and ive always been a huge fan of Gary Fisher.

IMHO it has better bits, but I like the Langster frame better. Steel is nice, but I like the stiffness of an aluminum compact frame better.

seems nice.....wouldn't buy one though

Any thoughts on the Giant Bowery? I have a giant XTC half composite, i love it to death, so i am pretty biased towards Giants.

I know two people with Langsters...they seem to love them. Maybe not the bike specifically though, just fixed gear. Getting any new alu fixie is going to ride stiffer and be lighter than a steel track bike or conversion.

If I was going to buy a built fixed gear, I would not get a Langster. I would get the Milwaukee Orange One because it's orange and has a beer on the headset.

Ok. Aluminum does not give a harsher/stiffer ride than steel. It just doesn't. Ride my Surly and Langster back to back and look me in the eye and say aluminum rides are harsher. ;)

Depends on the setup, of course. My aluminum road bike has a crappy cushy seat but my steel fixie has a crappy plastic BMX saddle. Of course the fixie is a harsher ride...but the bike itself feels softer when cranking and sprinting.

The Langster is a fine quality bike and a great ride. I have the '07, which has a better ride and parts selection than the '06 had. People will tell you the wheels are a bit heavy. They're not super lightweight, but they're not a hinderence either. I brought mine with the intentions of keeping it stock (except for the pedals), and it's been working fine for me. One thing, though; before you give into the fixie "craze", give the bike a chance with brakes and the freewheel. It's also a very rewarding experience, the ride is silky smooth, and riding is SS versus FG can also make you a strong rider, especially as a mountain biker. With SS, you learn to "pedal the gear that you're in", since sometimes on the MTB you might not always be able to shift into the gear you want when in the midst of super-technical riding when focus needs to be on the handlebars and the trail and not the gears and shift levers. I know the corrolation to off-road riding; I used to race MTB also and I now ride cyclocross, and the Langster as a commuter and road bike is ridiculous amounts of fun to ride, and it does throw some fitness and technique into the off-road riding.

And if you work at a shop and get the discount, then it's a win-win situation. Just dont' get that horrible sienna red paint job with the skulls, stick with the brushed aluminum. It's way more sharp and serious looking.

I'm on my 2nd 2007 Langster. Got the other one today. I broke my frame in a crash and loved it so much that I got it again... just different color. The silver/white one looks way cooler than the "rust" one IMO. I put bullhorns on it and white handlebar wrap, it looks pretty badass. My purchase was at cost as well, I think it costs about $400 or so... pretty good deal.

Things I don't like about it:
The internal headset on it sucks.
The wheel set sucks. (Alexrims 500)
Brake levers are AWFUL! I put on some Tektro carbon triathalon style... much more gooder.
Original brake pads weren't the best.
Original pedals suck... broke them on day 3.
Original chain is cheap.

All in all, I've put about $200 after the fact... most by choice, some I broke. Mine weighs in at 18.5 lbs and rides super smooth. Just expect some upgrades right off the bat.

Edit: I forgot... you probably won't need to worry about the brakes... I'm just a big wuss.

Pictures?

New fixie rider here too, 2007 comp.

http://img405.imageshack.us/img405/1...rmediumtg1.jpg

Sha-weet!

Can you recommend a good replacement headset?

First off, my digi camera is broken. Sorry, I wanted to post pictures of my crimped frame too, but couldn't :( It buckled right after the "r" on Langster on the top tube though. My new one looks super clean.. my whole intention was the white bar tape and silver/white frame. The rust color was hard to coordinate and black tape is just boring IMO.

Second off, to Hiroshima, I'm a bike mechanic myself (relatively new) and I'm going to look into this tomorrow. I'll give you a heads up on what I find. I'd assume Cane Creek makes a higher quality one than what they put on there. Luckily headsets are fairly cheap, and even cheaper if you can install it yourself. Also, I read your post after I posted mine... sounds like we have similar opinions on this bike :)

Thanks. I was a wrench for 6 years in the 90's so no worries on installing myself. Just don't know what kind to buy. There is a glut of them on fleabay but no clue which one is good. Thanks for checking.

The stock headset on the bike really is pathetic...

I spent about 1.5 hours on the headset today. I swapped EVERYTHING off my old frame and onto my new one to keep my used stuff used and my new stuff new. Well, I probably should have left the headset. It still doesn't stay tight. The bearings for some reason don't stay packed. I'll search the bike shops to see what they have, mine has nothin.

The micro sized bearings don't help, but the retainer is really what is to blame. It does not hold the bearings so even with a lot of grease, they still fall out. I actually don't have a problem with mine staying adjusted, I just think the stock set is worthless and can't wait to get rid of it.

Mine doesn't really count since there aren't too many Langster Pros floating around... but keep you eye on Ebay and you might find one. Currently on the bullhorns but it's so simple to swap back and forth to the drops when wanted.. I think I'll do that tonight actually. Anyway, I love this thing. It seems effortless to get up to speed because of its lack of weight (15.62lbs). The only thing I dislike about it at this point is the lack of drilling for a brake on the front since it wasn't meant for street riding, apparently. I'll have to replace the fork with another in order to gain that. The ride is actually more comfortable than my Surly Cross-Check thanks to the seatpost, seat, stem, and fork that all seem to dampen vibration and shock nicely. Stem has been swapped from the generic Cannondale one in the lower pic for an Easton EC90. Handling is quick without being too twitchy. If something happened to it, I would seek out another without question.

http://www.pbase.com/natron/image/77286299/medium.jpg
http://www.pbase.com/natron/image/77081446/medium.jpg

Hi Guys,

I'm toying with the idea of a Langster for commuting because of it's price and easy maintenance, but I'm a little concerned that the frame and wheels may not cope too well with bumping up and down the odd curb here and there, what's the biggest tyre wheel combo that this frame would take? or do you think the the stock setup could cope?