R-46

Hey guy I am looking into buying my first fixed gear bicycle. Now I do not have a lot of money to spend up to $350. I found a website www.bikesdirect.com which had a few single speed bicycles in that price range. They were the "Motobecane Messenger Track" for $349, the "Windsor - The Hour" $299, and the "Mercier Kilo TT" for $349.00, and the shipping is free to Chicago. They are all 2008 bikes, and i really don't know much about them. All your help will help me, now please remember this is my first fixie and i don't have a lot of cash to work with. I really like the Windsor - The Hour and the "Motobecane Messenger Track".. Please Help with any input or experiences about these bikes.

Thanks in advance

ryansexton

Kilo Tt

operator

The bikes come, unassembled. You know how to put a bike together or have the tools to do it?

curiousincident

assembling those bikes shouldn't be too difficult, don't they break them down just enough to fit in the box? shouldn't take any more than a 15mm wrench and some hex keys.

Live2Die

They include everything to assemble them I believe and you should not be intimidated by that factor. I would suggest the Kilo TT however, getting one can be a difficult task as they go quick! The reason for the Kilo over the hour would be mainly for the fork which is in my opinion much nicer. The components are very similar and you will probably be fine with the stock components for a short period as you learn how to ride. I would suggest new handlebars and certainly new pedals fairly soon. I would also suggest that if you are not to savvy on building bikes that if you do get one of these you should take it to your local bike shop and have them check it all over (this is for the cog and lockring mostly but also the hubs and bottom bracket) just to make sure your bike is assembled correctly. It would be beneficial for you to take some notes on checking the things i listed above, or talk to friends with Fixed gears, or troll around www.sheldonbrown.net that will have EVERY thing you will need to know. If you are very limited in your funds the motobecane may be a good option since it comes with brakes installed and you may want to run a front brake if you want to use the bike as a fixed gear and will need both brakes if you plan on riding it as a singlespeed. Any of these bikes will be great to start on just decide what you want to use it for and if it is fixed gear riding I would suggest the Kilo as will most on the forums. Good luck and ride safe!

R-46

I Know how to put it together, and I have all the tools. I just don't know which one to buy, and I don't know anything about these bikes or brands. I looked at the specs and they all seem to be almost the same. Anyone have any input on which one is better. The only thing I noticed is that Motobecane Messenger Track comes with brakes and a "freewheel" which I don't know what it is. Also I kinda like the Motobecane Messenger Track because it comes in ORANGE.

frankstoneline

Bikes Direct buys up old company names and markets bikes under those names, ie Mercier. That said, the Kilo TT is plenty of bike for your money and to learn on, and I think you will probably find that to be the one most widely suggested. It has solid geometry, decent components and at that price its hard to go wrong. I would agree you should have a knowledgeable person look it over, and learn as quickly as possible how to perform maintenance on it if you dont know already. Hopefully you will find as much enjoyment from your new bike (whichever one you purchase) as most of the people who post here do.

conor

then get that one. they're all entry level bikes, so things're gonna have to be replaced eventually. but if you like the messenger, then go for it.

Live2Die

The Motobecane comes with a "freewheel" meaning you can use it as a singlespeed as in coast, it will also have a fixed gear on the other side of the wheel. as to which is better I gave you my opinion above and will save you the time and say that 99% of everyone here will say get the Kilo if you are riding it fixed. the hour is ok as well but the Kilo is worth the extra 50 for the fork alone. I would only get the Motobecane if you are riding it singlespeed otherwise get the kilo.

Judge_Posner

I'm going to re-post a response I wrote to someone with a similar question a while back..........

If you're trying to keep it under $350, you basically have three options.

1) Find a cheap converted road bike on Craigslist and ride it as is. You can easily do this for $100. This isnt a great option since a lot of cheap conversions are done poorly with crappy parts and a crappy chainline. However, you might get lucky.
2) Find a cheap roadbike and convert it to fixed. Read Sheldon Brown's guide and pay attention to the part about horizontal rear dropouts. Start hitting those yard sales. Also keep in mind that if you're converting to fixed, its worth it to spend a little more to get something that has pieces you can keep. The fewer pieces you need to replace, the cheaper the conversion. Find something with a decent front wheel, headset (do the handlebars turn smoothly?), handlebars, seat, seatpost, and hopefully crankset/pedals (look for three piece cranks that turn smoothly). Then, all you need to replace is the rear wheel/hub, chain, chainring, and probably tires and brake pads. Spend the money to get a new wheelset (or at least a new rear wheel) with a flipflop hob from Iro or someone for $200. All told, you could get the project done for under $300 if you find a nice cheap roadbike to start with. Its a lot of fun if you like gettin dirty and have a little time. Making friends with someone who has bike tools and knows how to use them is a good idea.
3) Find a used entry level fixed gear bike. The three you mentioned are all fine choices with easily discernible differences to fit your needs. Theres a billion threads on here talking about the advantages of each. Kilo TT seems to be the overwhelming preference.

If you wanted to stretch your budget a bit or save up, you have two additional options.

4) Buy a new complete fixed gear. While $350 would put you in the budget bike range, $500-600 would put you in the pista/langster range, and $600-700 would put you in the steamroller/paddywagon/Iro range. The nice thing with this option is that you can get exactly what you want, you get a warranty, and its shiny. I'm not going to recommend a specific model b/c theres other threads for that.
5) Buy a new frame/fork and build it up. This is great b/c you get to handpick each piece. Can get very expensive since you'd be lookin at $300-400 for a nice frame/fork and $300-400 (minimum) for parts.

R-46

So pretty much everyone like the KILO TT. I actually like this bike too but which color looks better, the black or green?? and what is the difference between the forks??

vocaltest

both colors are pretty cool... don't know what you are talking about with the forks.

crustycog

its got the nicest fork out of the three you listed.