A fast definition: A fixed-gear bicycle (or fixie), just like the very first security bicycles launched in 1885 by John Kemp Starley in Coventry, England, is the best and, some (like me) would argue, the purest type of the bicycle.
A fixie has a direct drivetrain by which a single chainring is linked by a sequence to a single sprocket with out a ratchet system. Which means the bicycle has a single gear that turns the drive wheel in sync with the pedals with out the choice of freewheeling (a pernicious behavior in any case). In the event you’re transferring ahead, your pedals are turning. No exceptions.
And why are they so nice? Let me clarify…
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ToggleThey’re low upkeep and dependable
The pared-down simplicity of a fixie means they want little or no common upkeep. Apart from an annual check-up (you may’t be foolish), you simply must pump the tyres and lube the chain.
Fixies typically run a 1/8” chain, chainring and sprocket, so there’s simply extra metallic to absorb any put on and tear. A fixie will take loads of neglect (not advisable) earlier than it stops working altogether.
The mechanical simplicity of a fixie additionally interprets into reliability – with no derailers and attendant cables and shifters, there’s simply little or no to go fallacious. And with no choice for shifting gears, there’s additionally zero likelihood of dropping a sequence.
The wheels of a fixie are bolted on. ‘So, how do you repair a flat on the highway with out a fast launch or thru-axle?’ I hear you say. A fast launch or thru-axle is clearly extra handy when a tyre goes squirrelly on you, however carrying a 15 mm spanner turns into second nature as a lot as packing an additional tube or bomb on lengthy geared rides. And a few are simply attractive, just like the Campagnolo ‘peanut butter’ observe spanner.
They’re light-weight and environment friendly
Fixies are usually lighter than comparable geared bikes as a result of they’re lacking loads of the standard elements: derailers, gear shifters, a chainring, a brake caliper and brake cable (in the event you’re operating a entrance brake solely, as per UK legislation), gear cables and a little bit of chain. This will trim 1 to 1.5kg out of your bike, a weight saving that may value you this facet of an arm and a leg to attain on a geared carbon bike. My Eighties steel-frame fixie ideas the scales at simply north of 8kg, which isn’t to be sniffed at.
Lighter weight provides you elevated effectivity, as any hill climber will let you know, however the single-speed setup itself will increase effectivity. The one gear signifies that the chain line is all the time lifeless straight, so that you’re not dropping any vitality to friction from cross-chaining. Nor are you dropping vitality from operating the chain by way of two derailers and the accompanying jockey wheels.
Consequently, fixies are amazingly responsive, and so they’re quiet, like a name for volunteers at a Dad or mum Instructor Affiliation assembly.
They’re value efficient
A fixie does not require many substitute elements through the years
(Picture credit score: Future (Joe Baker))
Fixies are fairly darn low-cost. You’ll be able to splash out on a Cinelli Vigorelli for over a grand, however you may also choose up a good fixie for lower than the restaurant invoice on Valentine’s Day. And the cash you spend will get you extra bike to your buck than a geared equal.
Due to their mechanical simplicity, shopping for second hand is a extremely viable choice. The rise in reputation of single-speeds within the 2010s, adopted swiftly by the COVID bike growth, signifies that on-line categorized websites are awash with pre-loved choices from manufacturers like Fuji, Quella, On-One, Genesis and extra.
Or (and that is the place I discover the best satisfaction) you may construct your personal bike. Beginning with a good observe/fixie body or a highway body with horizontal dropouts (normally older steel-frame bikes), you may construct a fixie with little or no effort and fewer elements, supplied a kind of is a rear wheel with a observe or flip-flop hub.
And fixies simply scream for customisation, particularly in the event you’re constructing one up from scratch, which brings me to the following level.
They’re lovely
The bike trade is transferring inexorably in the direction of making bicycles as ‘clear’ as potential, principally by introducing inside cable routing, which is a superb thought till it’s important to substitute a brake cable/hose. A fixie constructed up from a observe bike body, for instance, doesn’t even have bottle bosses, which is about as aesthetically clear as a motorcycle will get (and why God made hydration packs).
Whether or not they’re joined by lovely solid lugs, fillet brazing that’s as easy as a carbon monocoque or Taiwan’s neat TIG welding, metal frames have an innate class of their slim metal tubes silhouetted within the double diamond of the standard bike body. And you may construct on this spare aesthetic by assembling a fixie from your personal elements bin, your native bike store or eBay; or you could find a unicorn Cinelli Lazer body (or equal) and construct it up with deep-section Zipps and drip it with Chris King hubs, Paul brakes and a SRAM Omnium crank (the holy grail).
A steel-frame fixie turns into a canvas for self-expression, nevertheless it additionally connects you to some fantastic biking traditions.
They have their very own tradition
Fixie tradition is rooted within the messenger scene
(Picture credit score: Getty Photos)
Fixie tradition is rooted within the bike messengers and couriers of Eighties New York. They weren’t the primary to do it – bike messengers have been plying their commerce for the reason that security bicycle was invented – however they had been the primary to make it cool. When a number of riders rolled their observe bikes off the velodrome and onto the streets, they sparked a biking tradition that has grown from energetic vocation into unsanctioned city alleycat races and now the Purple Hook Crit collection.
Using fixed-gear bikes on metropolis streets, it appears, has a much wider enchantment than quick deliveries. And there’s undoubtedly an affinity with that form of life-style while you swing a leg over a fixie.
Using fastened introduces adversity which is a pleasure to beat
Henri Degrange, founding father of the Tour de France, mentioned, ‘Is not it higher to triumph by the power of your muscle mass than by the artifice of know-how? We have gotten weak. … As for me, give me a set gear!’ This is similar man who mentioned his ideally suited Tour can be accomplished by just one rider, so take his masochistic views with a pinch of salt, however he highlights a standard trait amongst cyclists – we prefer to endure. And a fixie provides greater than ample alternatives for doing so.
(A sure kind of) biking is about enduring ache for so long as you may, or a minimum of longer than the rider subsequent to you. However whereas beating your buddy Clint in your weekly membership experience is a victory of kinds, it’s beating your self that actually counts – using a quicker time, climbing an area hill a contact faster, pushing a number of okay’s additional when your quads are screaming. It’s why cyclists are drawn to apps like Strava a lot.
Though it’s uncomfortable, using fastened is nice train. You might be by no means actually within the ‘proper’ gear, so that you’re all the time compensating by pushing more durable up the hills or spinning quicker on the flats and descents than you’d on a geared bike. And you may by no means cease pedalling, so there’s no actual relaxation. Which means you achieve power and health fairly rapidly.
Why do I experience a fixie?
Pete’s personal fixie, with baggage from his 1300km experience to Inverness
(Picture credit score: Pete van der Woude)
Whereas using a fixie is maybe the head of biking masochism, it’s a pinnacle constructed on the deep foundations of ego.
Biking is a fairly trustworthy sport while you get right down to it. In the event you don’t put within the time within the saddle, you don’t get the outcomes. There may be nice satisfaction in beating your biking buddies on the weekend membership experience or setting a brand new private finest, however there’s maybe much more in doing so on a bicycle that strips away the ‘shopping for velocity’ facet of biking – ‘the artifice of know-how’ so despised by Henri Desgranges. The less complicated the bike, the nearer you get to pure human effort, and the extra the ego is stroked.
Using a fixie is about simplicity, effectivity, cost-effectiveness, aesthetics, tradition and struggling. However there’s rather a lot to be mentioned for the exhilaration of pumping up a hill on a fixie previous a rider on a motorcycle that prices as a lot as a small household automotive. Or the look on an individual’s face while you inform them that you simply rode 1300 km to Inverness. On a fixie (sure, I did that).