Fixed - A niche too far ? « Singletrack Forum

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Fixed - A niche too far ?

75 posts & 37 voices | Started 1 year ago by MidlandTrailquestsGraham | Latest reply from epicyclo

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MidlandTrailquestsGraham - Member

Been offered the loan of a fixed 29er rear wheel complete to try in my single speed with the option to buy if I like it.
I'm tempted, but I can't help thinking it will all end in tears.

I'm currently running 34x20 and can cruise indefinitely at 20km/h, sustain 24km/h for reasonable periods and hit 30km/h briefly.
I frequently reach 40km/h+ by sprinting over the brow of a hill and letting it build up speed while coasting down.
Without a freewheel, I'm going to be limited to 24km/h up and down hill.

The guy selling it talked about a smoother pedalling style with fixed.
I don't get it. As long as I'm pedalling hard enough to put tension on the chain, I can't see how it matters if I've got a freewheel or not, while I'm pedalling.

I'm prepared to give it a go, but tell me honestly before I do, what are the advantages of fixed over freewheel single speed on a mountain bike ?

Posted 1 year ago #
Keef - Member

on an mtb,none.
on a road bike,several.

Posted 1 year ago #
_tom_ - Member

Not a fan of fixed at all. Tried to get into it but I just found it a huge step back! Can't imagine it'd be very fun off-road. The only advantage I've found is that the momentum of your rear wheel seems to help you push the pedals round. Still prefer freewheel though, spinning that fast down hills is crap.

Posted 1 year ago #
miketually - Member

Be a fixietwat, you know you want to.

Posted 1 year ago #
thepodge - Member

there is no point, its just fun

Posted 1 year ago #
steve_b77 - Member

Not off road IMHO

Posted 1 year ago #
chris_n - Member

why don't you try it and make your own mind up? it won't kill you.

Posted 1 year ago #
MidlandTrailquestsGraham - Member

I am going to try it.
He works part time in the LBS and he's bringing it in to the shop for me next Saturday.
I thought I'd swap wheels and take it for a spin down the road, but he's happy for me to borrow it for a week.

It's just that I'm struggling to think of any advantages, so I thought I'd ask on here to see if anyone could come up with any benefits of fixed that I hadn't thought of.
They haven't yet.

Posted 1 year ago #
vdubber67 - Member

I ride occasionally with some chaps who ride fixed MTBs. You might think it would hold you back, but they are strong, capable riders, and aren't hampered by it, up or down (even in the Peaks)

Having said that, I can't actually see the point of it

Posted 1 year ago #
miketually - Member

It's a momentum machine. Climbing on a fixed is ace.

The 'dead spot' in the pedal stroke disappears as the momentum of the wheel carries you through it.

Posted 1 year ago #
jools182 - Member

I can't honestly see the point of fixed for off road riding

just seems like making things harder for no reason

you could go the full hog and run a fixed fully rigid with slicks and no saddle

Posted 1 year ago #
thepodge - Member

I have a rigid fixed with slicks and an uncomfortable saddle, does that count?

Posted 1 year ago #
MidlandTrailquestsGraham - Member

The 'dead spot' in the pedal stroke disappears as the momentum of the wheel carries you through it.

See, this is the bit I just don't get.
I can understand how the combined weight of wheel and chainset would give a greater flywheel effect then a chainset alone, but to do that the wheel would need to be putting tension on the bottom run of the chain to carry the chainset through its dead spot.
And if that was happening, then surely a freewheel would freewheel briefly at every dead spot and it doesn't.

I guess when I try it, I'll either get one of those "Wow, it really does do that" moments or be left thinking "Oh, is that it ?".

Posted 1 year ago #
tommid - Member

Riding fixed will improve your general skills as you'll have to nail every line to maintain your pedalling. You pedalling will become more fluant and you'll be much stronger. Just ignore what the STW crew say and give it a go it may well work out for you...

Posted 1 year ago #
69er - Member

miketually - Member
Be a fixietwat, you know you want to.

How very rude! [edit]On reflection, he does have a point though...[/edit]

Or give it a go and have a blast. Works best if you can find someone simple enough to join you. miketually?

Posted 1 year ago #
MidlandTrailquestsGraham - Member

You pedalling will become more fluant and you'll be much stronger

This is starting to sound a bit New Age now...

Posted 1 year ago #
luked2 - Inactive

So what crank length do people use off road fixed?

Posted 1 year ago #
lapize - Member

Plenty of stuff on off-road fixed-gear riding at http://63xc.com/ - website sadly mothballed, but everything still there.

Posted 1 year ago #
Stuey01 - Member

I can understand how the combined weight of wheel and chainset would give a greater flywheel effect then a chainset alone, but to do that the wheel would need to be putting tension on the bottom run of the chain to carry the chainset through its dead spot.
And if that was happening, then surely a freewheel would freewheel briefly at every dead spot and it doesn't.

it's got little to do with flywheel effect and more to do with the fact the you are moving forward, with momentum, and your wheel is in contact with the ground. You are moving forward, therefore the wheel must be turning. There is no freewheel so if the wheel is turning the cranks must be turning. It is your own forward momentum that is driving the cranks through the deadspot.

Posted 1 year ago #
rusty trowel - Member

Ask WorldClassAccident, he's been running his Carver 69er fixed off road for quite a while i think.

Posted 1 year ago #
firestarter - Member

Mine are 170mm on this and 175 when I do it on my 29er

Posted 1 year ago #
TheBrick - Member

There is little point to many things. On the right terrain it can be fun, it adds a new dimension to old dull routes, it can mean a good workout in a short period e.t.c It's not for everyone or for every where all the time, but it's a good laugh.

Posted 1 year ago #
mintimperial - Member

If you're going to get rid of the freewheel, why bother with a chain at all?

With a 36" wheel I think that's roughly equivalent to 26" 32-22, so in theory you'll be able to hoik yourself up most stuff, and you'll out-niche everyone in a 100 mile radius no problem. Going downhill might be interesting though, and you'll probably experience an odd compulsion to grow a large moustache and take up pipe-smoking.

Posted 1 year ago #
shinsplints - Member

Do you have a sister ? If so you will need to borrow her jeans forthwith.

Posted 1 year ago #
aracer - Member

I can't honestly see the point of ~~fixed~~ singlespeed for off road riding

just seems like making things harder for no reason

FTFY

Posted 1 year ago #
singlespeedstu - Member

I've got a fixed wheel which i use every now and again.

It's good fun for making you consentrate one your local everyday trails, but i'm not skillfull enough to ride fixed all the time or on propper challenging trails.

Give it a go and make up your own mind.

Posted 1 year ago #
singlespeedstu - Member

I guess when I try it, I'll either get one of those "Wow, it really does do that" moments or be left thinking **** **** **** i can't spin fast enough to keep up with the cranks on this descent and the bike's trying to fire me over the bars

Posted 1 year ago #
cookeaa - Member

I can see the.appeal if you like the.ultimate simplicity of a fixie but surely it's a total pig for anything more technical than a tow path do people really ride 'proper' offroad trails on a fixie?

Posted 1 year ago #
singlespeedstu - Member

do people really ride 'proper' offroad trails on a fixie?

I've met a few that do yes.

Posted 1 year ago #
xiphon - Member

Off road - no thanks.

On road - been riding fixed for a few years now. It's fun, and have found it benefits riding XC - seem to maintain a higher cadence for longer.

_tom_ ^^ Try your Langster fixed on flat roads, not hills. Take a spanner on your next ride - that's the beauty of the flip/flop hub!

Posted 1 year ago #
bassspine - Member

aracer - Member

I can't honestly see the point of ~~fixed singlespeed for~~ off road riding

FTFY

REDUCTIO AD ABSURDAM

Posted 1 year ago #
epicyclo - Member

cookeaa - Member
I can see the.appeal if you like the.ultimate simplicity of a fixie but surely it's a total pig for anything more technical than a tow path do people really ride 'proper' offroad trails on a fixie?

I do occasionally, but not very well.

Just do it for a bit of fun and prefer it offroad where any stupidity on my part doesn't end up in being squashed by a truck.

Posted 1 year ago #
samuri - Member

blah blah bollocks bollocks.
If you don't like it, don't do it. There you go, the problem is solved.
If you want an answer, then fixed offers no advantage over normal freewheel singlespeed.

People don't do these things for an advantage, they never have and never will, they do it because some part of the experience makes them feel good. If it doesn't do that for you then no problem, find something that does. It's that easy.

Posted 1 year ago #
samuri - Member

do people really ride 'proper' offroad trails on a fixie?

Yep. I do. All the time. If it can be ridden on a normal bike, it can be ridden on a fixed bike, trust me.

Posted 1 year ago #
MidlandTrailquestsGraham - Member

The more I think about this, the more reasons I come up with why it's a bad idea.

My usual rolling remount technique after pushing up a hill is to put my left foot on the pedal, scoot myself along with my right foot to get moving, then swing my right leg over and start pedalling before I roll to a halt.
I can't see how I'm going to do that on a fixed, so it'll be standing restarts every time.

There's a few short flights of steps I bump down on my regular routes (the footbridge over Dowles Brook by Cooper's Mill in the Wyre Forest is as rad as I get, for those who know it).
My usual technique is pedals at 3 o'clock/9 o'clock and hang as far off the back as I dare.
That won't be possible for me on a fixed.

So, along with my earlier comment about being limited to 24km/h, that means it will be slower down hill, slower up hill, and slower over what I consider technical stuff.
The loan of the wheel is looking less like an experiment to see if I like it or not and more like a test to see if it's really as bad as I expect it to be.

Oh yes, I ride clipless too, so I guess the inability to simply take my feet off the pedals will significantly increases the risk of injury when it all, inevitably, goes wrong.

Posted 1 year ago #