[Closed] SingleSpeed - Its pants......

It can be pants ,it depends where you ride really

I live in and mostly ride in calderdale (steep sacking hills)

i liked it for a bit, but it became my only ride for a while as i stripped my FS and i quickly got over it. it was killing my knees and i actually hate it on anything other than ups and downs. looking to ditch the frame and SS components to build a geared HT.

would probably have one again at some point, i do love the simplicity and reliability.

Yes its utterly pointless. Stop trying to be a weirdbeard & fit gears.

Works well for me - ride mostly in Cannock Chase - no big hills and lots of mud most of the year. Wouldn't go for it in a lot of other places. Horses for courses etc etc.....

Love it on my commuter.

gets me to work. no faff, no fiddle.

Tidy!

sure - I liked the simplicity of it, that was the idea. I've seen a few people up and around localy (inc some of the singletrack guys) Mr cozy gears are back

I loved it...for a bit. Then my knees started to get sore, and it felt great when I went back to gears. I still kinda like that punky, "**** all this faffing around" edge that it's got tho.

er... 'm_cozzy' :::: how do you know B@arney even has a beard ? lol and the fact that its 'wierd'...lol
i too ride those big hills around caldedale,glad ive got a decent bike and gears.phew.....killer hills...

I'm not sure I understand what part of it "doesn't work"? The bit where you don't have variable gear ratios to deal with changing terrain? 🙂

I like it as an option. Less hard work on some rides (if you're used to it), and seems to be good for recovering legs that are sore from running. Even enjoyed last night's spin despite having removed my beard now!

If I had only one bike it would probably have gears though.

If you're experimenting with different gears trying to get "the right one", I don't think singlespeeding is for you. It takes a while to get used to working around having the wrong gear all the time by hamster wheeling/grinding at 1RPM more effectively.

I don't understand the sore knees comments... I never had any trouble with my knees, none of the lot I ride with had any trouble with there knees, and there were several folks on here who said their knees got stronger from riding singlespeed...

Are you just staying sat on the saddle too much?

I like the idea of it but my fitness levels are too low to ride it all the time I think. Still, if my gears give me much more hassle I'm going SS as I can't be bothered trying to get my gears to run smoothly!

Might actually force us lazy people who rely on gears to work a bit harder, haha.

In all fairness I've already got knee issues, always have, so it's exacerbating and existing condition rather than causing it.

I have considered it, put some fat tyres on, take the bike up somewhere, have fun! (rigid, v braked) it's still gonna be fun right? **** what the kids ride!

I sold my SS cos it was rubbish.

I bought it to commute to work on along a fairly flat run.

Boring once you reached top speed, which was too slow to be entertaining.

Luckily sold it for more than I paid though.

Nope - no beard, mrs won't let me. Nope not sat in the saddle. I just think I like to 'put the hammer down' pretty often and the simple lack of gears makes for a slow/er journey??

I've been at it for only a month or so and can't get enough of it. It may be a fad (I hope not) and I wouldn't take an ss everywhere but I just loves it. I have only ridden a geared bike once since my new toy arrived and the ss bretheren encourage the consumption of alcohol and cheese which luckily I can tolerate 😉 ps have you tried a ss 29er ?

Just started and at the moment my local loop has a couple of lung busting climbs that used to be granny ring spins but it feels great to get out of the saddle and heave up them. Still a couple of bits that I can't make it up, yet but it is a fun challenge and something different. Don't imagine it will become my only choice but it is fun for a local blast, hard workout/short time thing.

Nah, you are wrong... I think its ace.

If mountainbiking was meant to be easy, it would be called something else... like "sofa sitting" (something I am pretty damned good at)

But hey, I am biased

Of course it's not for everyone and for others just some of the time.........but when you can ride somewhere in near silence without the hassle of constantly fiddling to find the 'right ratio' and just accept what you have available is all you've got, then it stops being an issue and you can enjoy just riding along 😀

Yer its crap and me and 350 other folks will be doing it this weekend YAHOOO !!!! Charles we will have a beer with you my man 😉

I'm not saying I want an easy life, I love a challenge like the next bloke. When I take a 'hill on' I don't spin like a nutter anyway. But when I get to the top I like to take it on the flat then take on the descent...? maybe not needing all 27 odd gears etc but a middle ground like the 2x10 or the 1x9 people seem to be going down...

it used to be good,but now 'everyone' is doing it's pants,obviously.
(sticks nose in air,and wonders off )

Your right it's shite don't bother.

It's great on my commuter and I've thought about it for local loops, but keep binning the idea

I don't think I'd get on with it but I like the idea of simplifying things. My FS will soon have only 2 chain rings on the front. The front gear changer on my hardtail broke this week and I've been managing OK just using the middle chainring since.

[i]but when you can ride somewhere in near silence without the hassle of constantly fiddling to find the 'right ratio'[/i]

Eh? It's like driving a car, you just go into the right gear naturally, at least I do. I never find myself 'fiddling' to find the right ratio. And 'noise' what noise? TBH I've never had any bother with any of the 27 single speeds on my bike.
Yours, a non SS'der.

And 'noise' what noise?

No big deal and each to their own etc.etc

Mr Woody - put correctly.... Horses for Courses.... Just wanted to know if others have tried and failed...

I don't think it's rubbish but it did not suit me at all.

Felt too restricted and inefficient.

I still don't know what you mean by 'noise' though. My tyres make more noise than my drivetrain & I can honestly say that in 21 years of riding I've never had any kind of problem (enough to remember)thats made me want 1 speed.
27 is excessive though, I reckon even 15 would be far too plenty.

funkynick - Member
I don't understand the sore knees comments... I never had any trouble with my knees, none of the lot I ride with had any trouble with there knees, and there were several folks on here who said their knees got stronger from riding singlespeed...

Are you just staying sat on the saddle too much?

well i never suffered from knee pains until i started riding solely SS.

sat in the saddle too much? nope. lots of peak and lake district riding = big hills.

i can't 100% put it down to SSing, but it the pain seems to have alleviated since i started not SSing!

I wouldn't look upon it as a 'failure' that you prefer gears. I've gone back and forth over the years for the same reasons you have given above and have settled (finally ??)on having both options depending on how I feel, route planned, weather etc.

when you can ride somewhere in near silence without the hassle of constantly fiddling to find the 'right ratio'

I guess some people are just a bit more challenged in life than others. I find changing gear to maintain a comfortable cadence second nature. Tell me - are you baffled by the technology they call 'spd' as well? Do horseless carriages upset you with their magical propulsion?

Grinding up hills in a high gear must put more strain on your knees. whether this has any effect is down to the individual but as the cadence is lower and the power required remains the same to torque must be higher = more force thru your knees.

If your drive train is noisy you haven't set it up right. I never fiddle to get the right ratio - I just keep on changing down till I am there.

Either you are very fit, you have no serious hills where you ride or you spin out all the time.

I never thought that I'd get on with it but after a few weeks I'm loving it. It's a 29er rigid SS and it makes trails that were just a straight line blast on a FS geared bike into something more of a challenge and much more interesting.
Flat fire road and slight downhill sections are a ball ache though.

OK !!!!

Constantly fiddling was a bad choice of words, please substitute with 'regular changing' if it offends you 🙄

By 'noisy drive train' I was referring to chain clatter when riding on less than smooth sections occassionally encoutered offroad, something blissfully absent on a s/s.

It works VERY well for me. I wouldn't want it as my only bike, it'd spoil the novelty. Sometimes it's a right pain in the neck. Sometimes (like tonight actually) everything comes together and it's the best feeling in the world.

On the right day it pushes me harder and feels so much faster. It gives me a warm, happy feeling inside (and an equally warm but slightly less happy one in my legs).

Woody has it right. It's no failure to not like it, it's clearly not for everyone and somewhere like calderdale which is typically steep sharp climbs followed by steep sharp descents is not ideal singlespeed terrain by any means.

Not very fit, not exactly flat round here and only ocassionally spin out. SS does me fine. But its not the most sociable way to ride a bike.

I like it as a training once a week bike, makes me work harder than the geared bike and I reckon it's helping teach me to be a better climber, expecially trying to get the balance right with popping the front wheel on a climb or spinning the rear wheel.

There is a really steep climb on my local loop, on the single speed I have 4 or 5 goes at it till I can get up without dabbing, on the geared bike chuck it in the granny ring, up first time with no where near the effort.

To much on it does hurt my knees though.

I like it, but Cannock Chase lends itself well to it.

It nearly always gives me a good feeling although I wouldn't want to commute on it.

Makes my offroad routes more challenging but it's ace in the winter 'cuz you can ride it, leave it covered in shite and then just grab it and ride it the next time with no seized gears or stiff suspension (yes it's rigid too).

Still use geared bikes for racing and riding out with geared mates - well apart from the outings to the velodrome anyway -

Here goes, and after several pints ....... single speeding is shite, as is single speeding on a rigid hard tail. You need to purchase the most expensive blinged up kit you can with lots of gears, lots of travel and massive disc brakes. There nuff send.....dashes of to put rim braked,rigid single speed in van for run to SSEC 2mora YAHOO !!!! here we come, fun times and only one gear......

I agree with SSS it's shite keep your gears it's not worth bothering with.......

Think of all the lovely people you'll never get to meet also singlespeeds have one thing in common do you know what it is ?

Enjoy what you do however you choose to do it tho !

As takisawa2 suits Cannock a treat.

All those saying its shit chill out and post something useful

I did it for awhile. Then realized it was purely a fashion thing for the geeky types.

Singlespeeds are so 1990s now though.

I just dont get it. It holds all the attraction of exploring someone else's nostril with my index finger. Shove it up yer arse.

Ooh that's more like it a few people who have been dusted by a singlespeed probably ?

my commuter is a single speed fixed gear, it's very good for low maintenance and relatively flat terrain, good call in the winter as well

but in the summer or if you are in a hilly area then gears are where it's at

I went onto 1x9 recently and it was surprisingly good (got round the llandegla black ok), maybe it's the sensible solution for those wanting simplicity but need to save knees/get up a 1 in 3

My my we appear to stepping on some toes here boys... at the end of the day its all about ridding bikes and lets all just play nice and accept the hard fact that we band of good single speeders are actually gods sent to earth to stick it to you techno freaks who no matter how much you spend will still be crap but will continue to line the pockets of the marketing men.

Only time a singlespeed passes me is if its strapped to the back of a car.

I tried 1x9 as "best of both worlds" but the easiest gear is still pretty hard on steep climbs and due to poor chain line, wears out chains really quickly if you're on the extreme ends of the gears a lot.

Only time a singlespeed passes me is if its strapped to the back of a car.

Round of applause for mooman ................

.................for missing the point entirely 🙄

Oh, I forgot .. the point is to look different 🙄 .. like one of those people who says "Im mad I am" and your just looking at then thinking "no, your just sad" 😆

Wrong. That is [b]your[/b] perception. The reality is, I couldn't give a **** what you or anyone else thinks of what bike I ride.

Did it for a few years - went back to gears as an experiment and liked it so much I stuck with em.

I don't know if it's my imagination but I'm sure ss components have got pricier as it's got more popular. But then I guess components have as a whole.

Space Hoppers, Clackers, Rubik's Cubes, singlespeeds...
Fads come and go.
Not that I've got anything against them. They're OK for peasants who don't like derailleurs, but can't afford a Rohloff.

When golfists go out for a round, they have a selection of golf bats for different Batty jobs

Surfers have quivers of boards for different waves and styles of surfing.

We need a variety of bikes in our stables. And a ss is a great bike to have.

It's possible to only ss but it obviously has it's limits - I rode from the English channel to Aviemore on a ss and found it ok, tough but doable.

It's also not really a "them and us" thing. We are not that different. If you want to have a go at anyone it should be those damned midgets. I have had it up to here with them (holds hand at hip height)

Bow to charly's wisdom.

SS in south of the UK yae... SS in south of France nae...

Rohloff.

Oh so you want to look like a singlespeeder then but haven't got the legs for it. The 'Hoff it's like a turbo trainer but more draggy. 😆

Re Charlie;

There is a golfing equivalent of SS. One club and a putter (could do just one club but the greenkeepers get shirty when they see you putting on their manicured greens with a 5 iron)

We used to do this as kids when I played golf regularly, and just like bike ss-ing it's different, a bit of fun and improves certain aspects of your technique at the same time.

Yeah its crap, its hard, and makes you ache, But i get bigger smiles and that post ride ale always tastes better

If i wanted the easy option i'd get a bike with a motor

Singlesped LLandegla Black/Red yesterday, and felt like a god amongst men.

Until this morning, when my legs failed to work and I fell out of bed 😀

Surely there's nothing stopping you from standing up and heaving up a hill in a high gear when you have lots of gears? Seems that if you mix up sitting and spinning in a low gear and standing up and pumping in a high gear you also mix up the muscles you're using.

yes, geared people can be ssers, but ssers can't be geared, so just get gears.
PS fair play to you charlie, that's a long way way, and a funny height joke 🙂

How about bodging up a 1x2, 1x3 or 1x4 or whatever with ss cogs and spacers. Better chainline than a 1x9 but you've still a selection of ratios.
You can change or pseudo-ss if you want by not changing. Best of both worlds?

I've been thinking of converting to ss for a while now but the long commute to any of the trailheads would pretty much suck with ss. This seems like a plausible solution. Draw back is that it would probably cost more than just to buy a regular 9speed freewheel though. But buying new shiny gear is good...right? 🙂

Keyboard warriors in "must take polarised positions" shocker!

I love the simplicity of a SingleSpeed but it kills my knees, I still own 2 (29er Rigid and a Cross) but they are only used for flatish rides now.
As a compromise I ride 1x9, which works well for me.

Doug

I think a lot of people who are anti-SS for some reason are trying to over-rationalise it. If you look at it sensibly and try and talk about working muscle groups, etc then it doesn't make any sense at all to take of your gears.

You can't explain the fun of a SS like that. Because it doesn't make sense, kind of like taking the long way home to ride over that big, rocky hill that's over -> there doesn't make sense either.

I can see why some people don't like it, it hurts, you can't have much of a rest without stopping and when you're running low on energy it's positively gruelling. But, if it works for you then it's bloody ace. It gives you a bloody great rush and you'll buzz like a kid at christmas.

more force thru your knees.

don't think so tj - the force is defined by the size of your quads is it not?

i really dont't get on with gears on flat terrain - they work in the mountains but not on the south cosat of the uk. was out last night 3 singlespeeders 3 gearies (me included) all i wanted all night was my singlespeed ratio back 🙁

oh and my knees are killing me from riding gears 🙁

if i get out work early enough today the gears are off and its SS for tonights bivvy 🙂

gears are for the indecisive! SS riders are dynamic, sex gods of riding, who know what they want and how to achieve it through only the power of manly thighs, facial hair and few pints of something cheeky.

you wishy washy gearie riders with your clunky chunky oingly boingly bikes are just jealous 😉

I'm off to pack for pushing my bike round some woods with some other bearded ramblers

It's also not really a "them and us" thing.

Check the posts above to see how much more chilled the pro s/s posts are compared to the rather 'stressed' rantings of some in the the 'you must have gears' brigade. I know which attitude I prefer and who I'd rather go for a ride and a beer with.

Surely there's nothing stopping you from standing up and heaving up a hill in a high gear when you have lots of gears?

On my little bridleway/road loop at home, there's a big hill I always power up in the highest gear I can as I can carry momentum as there's a downhill just before it. Many times have I been cranking hard up it and my gears have skipped or chain snapped, and it totally ruins it as I'm always worrying whether its gonna break or skip! With SS there'd be no worry as I'd run a stronger bmx chain and have no derailleur to be poorly adjusted!

Dunno why I'm "defending" SS as my bikes currently got a 2x9 on it and I'm loving it apart from aforementioned issues 😆

I sold my ss awhile ago, and i miss it. 🙁

Defo going ot build one up this summer, but it will defo not be a rigid this time, it will be a hardtail.

I bought a ss to cover commuting and off-roading for a while, as my commuter frame broke and the forks packed up on my hardtail at the same time.

A year later I still haven't bothered to fix my hardtail, as I'm enjoying ssing more now. It's ideal for forestry riding (Cannock, Wyre Forest, FOD, ) which make up the vast majority of my cycling.

I'd still want gears and front sus for trips to the Peak / Lakes etc, but I haven't been travelling to ride much of late.

I miss my 69er SS but was too rubbish to ride it in the Peak for any distance. It was also hopeless for the 15 mile road approach.

Gears for me round here and big rides, but SS is something fun to flirt with IMO.

Still- if I lived somewhere SS appropriate I'd probably be more enthused as the 'no pratting about with gears' approach to climbs was fab, unlike the feeling of imminent collapse if it was steep enough.