Single-speed Vs Geared Cycles

[JAMSXR]

For the last few years I have been using a 'hybrid' style of push bike for recreational riding and occasionally getting about when I don't fancy the car or bike. The bike I ride is great but as most of my riding is on the road or smoothish canal paths I'm always being overtaken by road bikes so I though I would take the plunge! I also hate gyms and at plan to use the bike for a bit of fitness when I'm not being lazy.

So there are a few guys at work with road bikes, some geared, some single speed / fixe. As I don't use the gears on my current bike much I was planning on going for a single speed, freewheel Trek 2nd District but would be interested to hear from anyone on here who has experience in riding single speed and geared road bikes.

Cheers,
James
____________________
Honda SFX50 > Aprilia SR125 > Aprilia RS125 > Honda RFV400 > K4 GSXR600 > KTM Duke > C1H 636 > K3 GSXR1000 > Aprilia RSV-R > Triumph Street Triple R > Ducati 899 Panigale > Aprilia Tuono 1100 > Triumph Daytona 675R > KTM SuperDuke 1290 2.0

[tvchimp]

wouldn't recommend a 'fixie' to anyone unless I don't like them on any level. I would however recommend a 42 tooth single front gear, and a 9-geared setup at the rear, 42 should provide plenty of kick-down power and 9-gears gives you plenty of range for hills and the flats.

What sort of budget are you looking for? Plenty of very good second-hand bikes you can get, I got some forks recently off www.pinkbike.com in their buy&sell section, really well laid out and the guys on there seem pretty genuine and easy to deal with, had a quick look in their road bike section(click) and there are quite a few good bikes to be had.

Make sure you're in the europe section (top right of the page) as all the prices are shown in dollars, not sure why.

I'd definitely recommend a geared over a fixie anyway, just for ease of use, you can always just sit in one gear if it's your preference.
____________________
Bike: Currently Bikeless... Gahh

[JAMSXR]

Thanks for the advice. I was not intending to go fixie but single speed freewheel.
____________________
Honda SFX50 > Aprilia SR125 > Aprilia RS125 > Honda RFV400 > K4 GSXR600 > KTM Duke > C1H 636 > K3 GSXR1000 > Aprilia RSV-R > Triumph Street Triple R > Ducati 899 Panigale > Aprilia Tuono 1100 > Triumph Daytona 675R > KTM SuperDuke 1290 2.0

[Irezumi aka Reuben]

Gears were designed to replace single speeds. Their superior in every way bar maintanence. And hardly a chore there either.

If it's a bike you intend to use as a bit of light exercise then stick with geared as if you get more adventurous your gonna regret being stuck with a single speed, although you will get mahoosive quads.

Avoid fixies like the plague.

To sum it up.

Fixies = for people trying to be cool, pretending their from Hoxton. Should be left at the velodrome

Single speed = good for training and commuting if your a masochist or live somewhere reasonably flat. Good for ease of maintanence.

Gears = What pretty much everyone should ride as long as they maintain them
____________________
Pictorgraphicalfantastical

[JAMSXR]

[stinkwheel]

I have a single speedwhich to be honest, I really enjoy riding. Almost efortless, all the energy you put in is converted into forward movement. You just need to teach yourself to pedal faster (which isn't a bad thing anyway). I'm running 44/16 because I have quite a few hills about.

Fixies are superb in town, especially if you're threading your way through traffic and pedestrians, you just make smooth progress varying your speed with the pedals instead of stop-starting.

You can get a thing called a flip-flop hub which has a thread for a fixed gear on one side and a single speed freewheel on the other.

Another piece of technology that has come on a long way recently is the geared hub. All the advantages of a single speed, none of the disadvantages of a deralieur. Heavier mind, but I wonder how much heavier by the time you've fitted a casette and deralieur. You get 7 and 8 speed ones now.

Peole have just harped on about gears being the way forwards but you just said you hardly use the gears on the bike you have. That being the case, why lug them about and why waste energy riding a bike with an eccentric chain line and tensioner?

Did this with my fiancee. She kept wearing out the 11 tooth sprocket on her racer bike and every time I went to it, the deraileur was gummed up. Turns out she never changed gear so I made her a fixie with a flip-flop hub. She preferrs it fixed gear. Kat's running 46/14 and wants it geared higher still so she can go even faster.
https://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f216/stinkwheel/chainline.png
____________________
“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[MinhDinh]

Go on here to learn more about it

https://www.lfgss.com/

As for fixed and single speed, my boss had a Felt road bike utility it got stolen. I told him of fixed and single speed before, and he decided to get a Specialised Langster.

He loves it for London, he said it's just easy and free and he would never go gears. You get some on here sayig I prefer a thou because zi can do this in one gear and I like the torque... it is similar for him.

It is also a type of fad for some, but the experience of not having to change gears seems to be a good one for most.

Unless your area is really hilly, then you could ride with the highest mountain bike gear you have. I use to on a fairly chunky GT.
____________________
Hit the G spot.

[The Shaggy D.A.]

Here's what cycling god Sheldon Brown says about single speeds :-

https://sheldonbrown.com/singlespeed.html
____________________
Chances are quite high you are not in my Monkeysphere, and I don't care about you. Don't take it personally.
Currently : Royal Enfield 350 Meteor
Previously : CB100N > CB250RS > XJ900F > GT550 > GPZ750R/1000RX > AJS M16 > R100RT > Bullet 500 > CB500 > LS650P > Bullet Electra X & YBR125 > Bullet 350 "Superstar" & YBR125 Custom > Royal Enfield Classic 500 Despatch Limited Edition (28 of 200) & CB Two-Fifty Nighthawk > ER5

[Nai]

I have the original Langster, at the start of the fixed gear craze. I have nearly always ridden free wheel. Still going strong after about 70k miles. The frames still perfect, have changed the wheels once. I have a straight charge through London traffic and love my super lightweight nippy little thing.

[Rogerborg]

Just chiming in to say that I'm "single curious". I (deliberately) got the cheapest, heaviest POS mountain bike that I could find in order to mash it around in top and blast ze calves, ja, ja but never made the transition to a light single speed, then lapsed when the motor-cyclopathy bug bit. Now that I'm making some time for the pushie, I'm quite tempted to ditch the cheap bikes and go for something a bit more technical, so I'll be following this thread with interest.

Actually, a single speed belt drive might be a lark.
____________________
Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[stinkwheel]

[KLR600]

As said it depends really on what you intend to ride and how many hills you have around you.

I used to have a little singlespeed jump bike which with the seat right up used to make a great commuter into the city. It was without doubt the fastest way into and out of the city for me. I ran it 36/16 as I used it mostly for jumping/BMX tracks so I needed it quite low geared for short bursts of power to get going instead of crunching the miles.

Since that bike got stolen 2 weeks ago my girlfriend has lent me her mountain bike which stays pretty much in 1 gear (42/14 or something like that) and is fine for commuting and city riding as I don't do any jumps or anything on it.

When I'm riding trails in the woods I definitely prefer gears as the uphills would kill me on a singlespeed and I'd probably pedal out the gear on the way back down.
____________________
Now: '00 Kawasaki ZRX1100R - Past: '84 Yamaha DT125, '89 Kawasaki KLR600, '97 Yamaha XJ600N
<My Bikepics Page> <My Yootoobes> <My Websites> <My Photos>
<Take Cool Photos!>

[Sam_Y_93]

I have an 8 speed hub geared carrera to get about on. Very easy to ride and build up speed, living in cambridge there is not a lot of hills but a few bridges and it climbs them easily. I would recommend it, although its more of a commuter than a road bike.
____________________
Bikes Past: Yamaha Aerox (sold) Yamaha R125 (written off)
Bikes Current: Honda VFR 400 (awaiting restoration) Honda CB600f F-4
Theory passed July 21st Mod1 passed August 3rd Mod 2 passed 26th August

[JAMSXR]

Well I bought the Trek and all I can say is - who needs gears!

Absolutely stunning bike to ride, the thing flys and eats up hills. You do need to attack them more so then you would on a geared bike but it's no real issue.

With regards to a carbon belt, my bike has the option of fitting one but for some reason the drop bar version comes with a chain. I'm going to stick with the chain for the moment but it's cool to have the option, they have even thought the tension adjustment and modified the frame.

(not mine)
https://www.spokeapparel.com/wp-content/uploads/trek_3rd_district_rims.jpg
____________________
Honda SFX50 > Aprilia SR125 > Aprilia RS125 > Honda RFV400 > K4 GSXR600 > KTM Duke > C1H 636 > K3 GSXR1000 > Aprilia RSV-R > Triumph Street Triple R > Ducati 899 Panigale > Aprilia Tuono 1100 > Triumph Daytona 675R > KTM SuperDuke 1290 2.0

[defblade]

[Rogerborg]

[fatpies]

What about shaft drive hub geared bicycles? I saw one the other day and wondered where his chain was....

V expensive though.

[njd27]

[defblade]

[stinkwheel]