So I have never ridden either but am going to be in Australia for quite a while and am looking into buying a bike there. I think it would be really fun to have a single speed/fixed gear. Then I realized I always hear the two terms used (a lot of bike savvy buddies) but I don't really know what the difference is. Does it have to do with a fixed gear not having a freewheel?

Dan

Yes!

www.sheldonbrown.com/fixed.html will get you started. Learn.

singlespeeds coast. fixed gears do not coast - the cog is screwed directly on to the hub and held in place with a lockring. if the wheel is spinning, then the cranks are turning, and you can apply forward or backward pressure to the wheel.

you'll probably want a flipflop hub on your bike so that u can have both. a lot of new people start out with single speed and then go fixed later. you can wikipedia both for a good explanation too.

fixed is like black coffee
s/s is like with creme
geared is creme and sugar

think of it that way.

but +1 on readin' sheldon brown

how much do you like pedaling
?

haha

Ok, that all makes sense. It sounds like like the flip flop hub would do nice. I know a lot of people on my campus have one but I don't know what side they are using. Starting on the single speed makes sense and then moving to the fixed gear, versatility.

I like the analogy. I am not much in the way of coffee but I can appreciate it none the less.

Dan

Oh, and something I forgot. Are there standard gear sizes or pairs that are used? There is a recyclery in Brisbane that said they could build me up a bike and I am not sure what gear sizes I would want. I told him between 52 and 42 on the front and something around a 14 for the rear. How is that? I am pretty fit, I mean hell, I am college soccer player (well I guess that actually isn't saying a whole lot).

Dan

52/14 is a track gear: too high for the street. Try 48/17 or lower to start. Read all of this before buying anything. And use a brake.

I use the coffee analogy too, when asked.

Funny, I see the coffee analogy the other way around.

I love coffee with cream and sugar (sweetener), and I love riding fixed gear; so, to me, fixed gear corresponds to coffee with cream and sugar.

I consider geared bikes and single-speed bikes, because of their lack of feedback and controlability, the black coffee, without the character and subtleties of flavor that cream and sweetener reveal in coffee.

If in the original poster's place, I would start out with a fixed gear and a front brake, and forget about the single-speed altogether.

Look at a Surly Steamroller Complete, and ask the bike shop if they'll put a bigger cog on the hub for you as part of the deal.

For gentle terrain, meaning no long, horrific hills, I consider 72 gear inches or a little lower good for someone learning about fixed gear.

Pre-assembled fixed gear bikes tend to come with a 48 tooth chainring and a 16 tooth cog, which, with 700 X 23 tires, gives 78.8 gear inches.
A seasoned rider on gentle terrain can handle 78.8 easily.
A new rider might find this a little intimidating at first.
And then again, he or she might not.

Myself, riding in hilly terrain, I went up to 82 gear inches the first month without trying, and FLEW around town.

Consider an 18 tooth cog for 70 gear inches.

This will let you cruise comfortably well above 15mph, the speed at which world class milers run the four minute mile nowadays.

I prefer a 47 tooth ring and a 17 tooth for 72.7 gear inches, but I doubt if a bike store will change both ring and cog for you, without charging you significantly more.

Also, consider putting a flat resistant tire on the back wheel, such as an Armadillo or a Gatorskin, and save yourself changing a few flats.

I've never had a front tire go flat on me, but now that I've said it, I'll probably get two in the next week.

and for further explanation: a tricycle is juicy juice, a mountain bike is mountain dew (obviously), and a unicycle is liquid crack.

fixed is black coffee because its for people who aren't wusses. but lately there have been a lot of people trying to pour sugar in it and still call it black.