What are your thoughts on fixies? Who here has one? Are they better than multi-gear bikes? Or mountain? I'm interested in purchasing a fixie, probably going to custom build the bike. I was thinking about getting green and white double wall rims, with a jet black frame, a white saddle, white/green grips, and black handlebars. I was also interested in flip flop hubs so I can ride fixed and free, so I can also coast on the beautiful bike. Can SOMEONE post a list on items I'll need to custom build a fixie, and their prices. Thank you!

I've been reading about this the better part of the last week.

For your benefit, there's a veritable load of info out there for the taking. No need to reinvent the wheel. Go fish.

The bottom line is, fixies are for experienced riders -- strong riders. And then you should be at least a few marbles short of a set. In a lot of cases they're simply illogical (and potentially dangerous) for anything but competition level track riding, but you'll probably see the occasional crazy bike courier or anti-establishment hipster with one.

Unless you have some years of hard riding under your belt (or determined to get fit), I wouldn't recommend it. If you insist on doing away with a derailleur, get a nice singlespeed bike that has a flipfliop hub (a la Trek Triton) and stick with that. Save time, and probably money by buying a whole new bike.

- F

That's all most of us had when I was a kid. One or two had 3 speed Schwins, but they were out of our class.

Granted, we didn't go mountain biking, but a 3 or 4 mile highway trip wasn't a big deal for an 8 or 9 year old. It beat walking.

It depends on what you want the bicycle for, personally I'd always get a mountain bike, I don't see the point of making life hard in the event you need to go off-road. You might lack the speed of a road bike/fixed-gear bike, but that doesn't mean much to me. It's not like MTBs aren't road-worthy, so I think it's the best choice in most situations.

I think you need to say what you want it for really. Also depends on how much money you have to burn though

What beyond fashion or fitness could anyone that doesn't ride a velodrome want a fixed gear bike for?

As far as I'm concerned, if a person wants to know our opinion on fixed gear bikes and in the same breath wants parts priced so he could build his own, he's not ready for fixed. At this point I'm not sure he's ridden even a single speed bike and those are challenges in and of themselves on anything aside from prairie-flat roads. The best advice I as a person who's more or less in his shoes can offer is to start with a single gear freewheel and ride that for awhile before converting to fixed (if not foregoing fixed altogether). He mentioned that in his opening post, but for some reason he's "fixated" on the fixed gear aspect of a bike capable of both single speed freewheel and fixed.

I say fixed is for advanced riders for several reasons. One of them is clear: if he needs to make a quick change of direction and he leans his bike over too far, he'll probably end up low-siding if he pedal hits the ground.

Secondly, steps hills are pretty perilous for fixed gear bikes. As fast as a decline propels you is as fast as your legs are going to go. One had best have good knees to take that kind of punishment. Another thing is, it seems to be fashionable to ride fixed gear bikes without hand brakes. To an experienced rider that won't pose much of a problem -- in fact it's the order of the day for the hardcoe -- but for someone just starting out on fixed, having no brakes ought to be out of the question.

- F

Get a beach cruiser

True, but he also asked if they were better than other types of bikes.

Well, to that end, they're better if you're svcker for punishment or you're an up-and-coming olympian.

To me, I love the idea of fixed gear bikes as a statement of simplicity in a growingly complex world, but the usefulness of them on anything besides a raised, oval track is a tough one to reason where a single speed with freewheel would be exponentially better, and if you can't help but make that anti-derailleur statement. That way you could make your statement and tell the world that you're smarter than wanting risk your knees and sanity through the uncompromising non-stop pedaling of a fixed gear bike.

- F

I am trying to get in more shape, seeing as my final football season is going to begin.

This. I always chuckle to myself when I see some inexperienced rider on a track bike. You might as well save some money and convert a normal road bike into a fixed gear and see if that's what you really want.