hi everyone,
I'm new, obvious i know. I have been racking my brain on where to start with my first fixed gear.

I started looking at a kilo tt stripper, then surly steamroller to a bianchi pista. The shop with the pista then recommended me the fuji feather, schwinn madison and specialized langster.

Primarily this is a weekender, mild commuter(20ish mile trips) I've ridden a 55cm bianchi pista and a 56 Fuji something of my friends and they felt pretty good aside from being a bit bigger than i like. I prefer a 53 or 54.

I was leaning towards a blue pista i found for about 650, but then i was recommended bikes that were even less cost wise and now a bit more confused.

I do want a complete with a good frame and good enough components to get me by for a bit if i do end up going with a bike around $600. Conversely if it does pan out to be a better to get something like a kilo tt i would have some immediate funds available for some upgrades.

anyway thanks in advance, hopefully this in over my head feeling will pass soon,
ryan

Kilo and upgrade the parts as needed

The pista is the best all around bike out of that list. I think the langster has the best components but it has a more road geometry, which you may or may not like. The langster steel is another one to look into. It is a real looker with descent components. You should also check out jamis' new line of bikes. They look very promising. The kilo is a nice bike but you get what you pay for. That does, like you said, leave you some pocket change to spend on upgrades.

personally I would go for the steel Langster for the hottness

thanks for the quick responses. i do like the look of the langster steel. I wish my LBS would stock a few more fixed bikes but the fixed scene is just not big enough here...

A red one.

buy the kilo or something cheaper. you seriously don't ride enough to justify buying a more expensive bike.

get a Kilo pro.

No need to upgrade anything really.

i've thought about that. But i am trying to weigh that option and make sure that getting one now won't make me want to ride more and later regret not spending a hundred maybe two more.

I see that runs about 480, not worrying about what necessarily looks cooler, but quality wise would it be worth it to spend a 150 or so more? if not the kilo pro looks to be promising.

LIES!!!!
everything should be tinkered with

Pista, just because.

Buy what you can afford. Here is the order of consideration in my opinion.
-Raleigh Rush Hour
-Schwinn Madison
-Langster Steel
-Bianchi Pista
-Alum. Langster
and way, way at the bottom
-Kilo
Buy a bike with nice components on it rather than something cheep and have to replace everything. Than you have crappy bike parts for spares laying around.
EDIT: Of course there are a lot more options.

I hear the pistas shatter into a million pieces as soon as you sit on them.

Might want to do a search for PISTA SEAT STAY FAIL

Because it'll help keep the Pistadex high and keep the economy afloat??

Kilo has just as good, if not better components and has a lugged fork.

Frame quality will be very little difference. The Kilo is cheaper because it is a small company importing from tawainese factory with little overheads compared to Bianchi who have much larger overheads (importing the frame made in the same factory in Taiwan as the Kilo), which is then sold through bike shops or again through an importer for countries where they don't have a presence.

Most bikes come out of the factories in Taiwan. Kinesis is a big one that supplies a lot of companies, they order slightly different geometries and setups, but the end result is a lot of very similar bikes.

Yup!
So pretty much when your buying a bike for around $600 all your really buying is the name (and color specific for that brand of bike.) but just more then a name for the $600 bike its also might be someone’s appreciation for the history/origin of that name.
Or for me I just like the name and I really hate Trek and since I live less then 30 minutes from the Trek factory makes it even harder.
Masi makes some really nice bikes also but a little more $

well if it helps the economy i'll get a pista...ha But seriously, when you mention the kilo, you mean the pro right?

kilo... stripper or pro...
the og kilo tt was my first fixed gear, and it's had roughly 4 different owners since i bought it new about 3 years ago. ridden hard as hell, upgrades here and there. It's an all-around solid frame, especially for the money. i haven't seen or ridden the newer renditions of the kilo (pro and stripper), but it looks like they upgraded the only components i had complaints about... namely the pedals. as homeboy stated, most of these "off-the-shelf" bikes have similar origins, so don't get too hung up on the brand issue, but i'm sure you don't need to be told that.
if i was gonna have an extra bike that was under $600, it would be the kilo without a doubt. for reference, i ride a 1980ish lugged steel track frame with relatively nice components, and i feel like the kilo is well worth the money.

the langster steel is a looker, too, but a little more pricey.

good luck.

One good thing about the extra money you spend on a Bianchi: Warranty. I just got my new frame in Friday. Not too slow of a turnaround. The frame the gave me is slightly better than my old one too! So the $550 I spent a few years ago has now covered 1 complete bike and 1 new frame. Not too shabby.

this shop has a madison for about 450 shipped, which is only 70 more than the kilo stripper. to me it looks like good value, but should i be skeptical because i see most stores selling it for around 600?

How did you like it on the test ride? That should matter a lot more than what some dudes on the internet have to say.

Yeah, that is really the biggest thing. Frames don't break all that often if you are just road riding though.

Specialized give you lifetime warranty, I think Trek do too. By this rationale, they should be the most popular. Other companies give 3-5 year warranties on the frames, and smaller companies just 1 year. I think BD just give one year warranty also.

I currently have a Masi. The frame is nothing special, it is still made in the same factory in Taiwan. If I had had the option, I would have gotten a BD bike, but it costs about $300 for them to ship to Japan. I would have loved to buy their Motobecane Track Pro setup! $800 for that setup is great, and if the frame breaks, you can buy a new frame for $350 anyway! overall still cheaper than buying anything else that is comparable.

i've never got to ride the schwinn or a kilo. only a bianchi pista, some fuji, and a steamroller. this shop can order one though. The local shops dont really stock fixed bikes regularly so its hard to find some locally just to try...sometimes i miss portland

I'd recommend the Bikesdirect Searchfunction.

-1

due to a reevaluation of the budget, I shouldn't spend the extra cash that we have on a bike. So that means I am heavily leaning towards the Kilo stripper. I like the white one but bikesdirect says not to expect a restock until late winter. Maybe i'll just get black magic?