FFG - Fugly Fixed Gear. The Langster is not alone. I like the fork though.

See what a fickle species we are? The fork, to me, is fugly.

It's an extremely well thought out bike with a proven design (not Soho's; the FX series), and is going to do well in its target market, which I'm terribly sorry to say is not internet-hipsters.


omg fixie brah culture not 4 sale.



Oh and..





HA!

I'm liking it less after the closeup.

I don't know about that. It's a single speed comfort bike - not a good idea.

That is an odd bike. Not a terrible bike--but I'm guessing it wouldn't be that much fun.

The descip sez:

"Soho S
Ride

* Lightweight Hydroformed frames maximize aerodynamics and outlast day-in/day-out city riding.
* Saddles made for all-day commuting comfort
* Explore the city in style

Fit

* Natural, head-up riding position maximizes comfort.
* Five frame sizes for a precision fit.

Technology

* Long-lasting, lightweight and responsive Trek Alpha Black Aluminum.
* Efficient, fast-rolling 700c wheels.
* Corrosion-resistant hardware encourages all-weather riding.
* Built-in top tube bumper defends against city-wear, like pole parking
* Disc brakes (on all models except single-speed) for stopping power in all weather conditions."

what is hydroforming? Can I get a vaccine?

I dislike style.

what is a top tube bumper and where is it? sounds like a narcotics delivery system.

It's not a comfort bike.. and that's not an opinion, it's a fact. A comfort bike looks more like this:

http://www.rainiercycle.com/embedded/nav30.jpg




And how could this urban bike (the Soho) possibly be worse and more marginal than the track bikes that people ride in the street already?

It is a well thought out bike. And it will do extremely well in its target market. That doesn't necessarily mean that it's a quality bike. It doesn't even mean that it's a good "deal." walmart bikes are well thought out and do incredibly well in their target market as well. but they aren't the greatest bikes.

care to elaborate?

Actually, I'd rather you elaborate on what you'd prefer to alloy wheels on a $500 and up city bike like this.

ahh.

The website only specifies "Alloy flip flop high flange hubs; alloy rims" for the Soho S, while all other sohos are specd with bonty rims and shimano hubs.

I'm saying that the Soho S seems like they took the soho frame and stripped off parts and rebuilt it with less than high-quality parts, but they're black and it's a "fixie." I'm no longer working at a shop that sells Trek, so i haven't seen the bike in person, but based on countless models I've built and sold, I wouldn't be surprised if the hubs and rims are generic and of mediocre quality, very possibly unsealed. The brake is generic as well.

And at the above $500 price point, most other bikes are spec'd with higher quality components. For example, the Redline 925 (with a cheaper msrp) comes with Formula hubs & Alex rims, tektro breaks, and fenders.

The bike isn't bad. but at that price point, I have a very hard time justifying it. It just doesn't make sense. And it doesn't really have any feature that makes it close to worth it.

ok. CAn somebody make a "check-list" of what i need(even frame etc and what tools?) ???
thanks

Are YOU going to fscking tell us what YOU want? Do you have any idea of what kind of bike you want? You could start by answering what I asked you on the previous page.

oh didn't see it


1. are you sure you want a fixed gear, or you actually want a singlespeed? if im right a flipflop you can change from fixie to ss? yes i want a fixie

2. you're in scandinavia, so I guess you DO want fenders! But if you are sure you don't want them, tell us. i'm a newbie and my vocabulary isn't good, what's fenders??

3. would you consider a second hand bike, or a conversion, or must it be new? no it must not be new

4. yes i can moundt a wheelset on a frame i think.

5 and one question i'm a short guy 165 cm. Who big frame shall i get. My last bike was a kona blast 17". If that will help

Finally, we are getting somewhere.
Yes, a flip-flop will enable you to go SS and fixed, but if you can't mount a rear brake, you're pretty much stuck with fixed. Fenders, also known as mudguards, stänkskärm in swedish, skærm in danish, they protect you and the rest of the bike flom water and mud splatter as the wheels turn.

For your height, depending on how long your arms and legs are long, a 49 or 50 cm frame would be appropriate, maybe even 51 cm. This is the distance measured from the center of the bottom bracket to the top of the seat tube (on MTB frames, to the center of the crossing of the top tube and the seat tube). If you found a 17" mtb frame comfortable, I guess your road bike size is to be found somewhere between 49 and 51 cm. There are many factors to consider, and frame sizing is a religious argument on these boards (I fully expect to be lynched by part of the crowd after posting this) but I think that 49 to 51 is the ballpark for you. It is critical that you try to ride it or a similar bike before you commit money to it, as things like top tube length are as if not more important than just frame size expressed as the frame size as defined previously.

OK, so do you need fenders, now that you know what they are?

My new favorite word.

yes i under stand i and i need it:) thanks

The Soho geometry looks very similar to that bike. The Soho is a single speed FX. The FX is a comfort bike (albeit maybe more performance oriented, but comfort all the same).

See here.. Trek even says so...

From http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes...an/soho/sohos/

Bike Details....

"Soho S
Ride:
Lightweight Hydroformed frames maximize aerodynamics and outlast day-in/day-out city riding.
Saddles made for all-day commuting comfort
Explore the city in style

Fit:
Natural, head-up riding position maximizes comfort."

It's the manufacturing process used to create abnormal tubing shapes.


From Wikipedia:
Hydroforming is a specialized type of die forming that uses a high pressure hydraulic fluid to press room temperature working material into a die. To hydroform aluminum into a vehicle's frame rail, a hollow tube of aluminum is placed inside a negative mold that has the shape of the desired end result. High pressure hydraulic pistons then inject a fluid at very high pressure inside the aluminum which causes it to expand until it matches the mold. The hydroformed aluminum is then removed from the mold.

Hydroforming allows complex shapes with concavities to be formed, which would be difficult or impossible with standard solid die stamping. Hydroformed parts can often be made with a higher stiffness to weight ratio and at a lower per unit cost than traditional stamped or stamped and welded parts.

On a comfort bike, while in the saddle, your feet reach the ground at stops. The seat tube is that relaxed.

Ready? You don't know what you're talking about. And I'm not going to labor the point past this post, but first of all of course Trek is going to sell a relatively casual bike such as this to people who may think these bikes are uncomfortable.

That's because, again, he target market here is not ******bags on the internet who think they can tell the difference in ride between a couple degrees in seat tube angles, but don't realize things like that comfort bikes have 26 inch wheels rather than 700c... for instance.


And no, the geometry is not similar between these two bikes. Understandably, you're making that mistake because they... both have two wheels and are photographed from the side.


The component setup is fundamentally different as well. To see these differences, take for example the seat tube angle, the type of saddle--which accommodates a different rider position, the wheel and the tire size, the suspension fork on the comfort bike, the type of brakes, the head tube angle and the saddle-to-handlebar height difference.



This is not a subject I'm very interested in so I'm not going to keep bothering with it, but it is always entertaining to see the way people guess at something and then try to back up their points on this forum.

I didn't say they were exact, I said SIMILAR. The sloping top tube, the nearly vertical riser, the low seat tube. If you lined them up along with a proper road or track bike, which one wouldn't belong? As to what category the bike belongs in... THE STATEMENT ON TREKs WEBSITE THAT INFORMS THE SOHO S IS DESIGNED FOR COMFORT most definitely puts it in that category.

Enjoy your Soho I'm sure it's a very nice bike. IMO it would be nicer as a three speed.

BTW, this statement is false...

"comfort bikes have 26 inch wheels rather than 700c."

Rider position and gearing dictate comfort - not wheel size.

Sent PM to OP.

I don't and won't own a Soho, though I have ridden them. I ride a track bike mostly, brakeless (ooOOo).


And you can't seem to wrap your head around the difference between "Comfort Bike" and "comfortable bike." Give up.

2 questions to both ralphm2k and Negative Force:

1st: would you agree that a comfort bike is one where the position is more upright?

2nd question: would you agree that a comfort bike is one that offers a less-harsh ride, perhaps by using fatter tires, sacrificing some performance?

Agreed.