What You Need to Know to Buy a Fixed Gear Bike

So you've decided to buy a fixed gear bike. Could it be the simplistic look, the good control, or the lighter-smoother-faster performance? Are you seeing to commute, do tricks, race, exercise, or just plain kick it colse to the neighborhood? anything your reasons for buying a "fixie" there are a few things you must know before you purchase. You will need to know what type of fixed gear you want, how to size the bike for you, and what type of power you will need. Fixies, or a 'skinny bike", are the hippest bike going, and I am sure if you think these points before you buy a fixed gear bike it will help you find just the right one for you.

On the Road or colse to the Track

Fixedgear Bike

There are commonly two types of fixed gear bikes: road and track. It seems like the differences would be significant, but for all practical purposes they are not that much different. The main variation between the two is that track bikes have no brakes! That's right, when you are racing colse to the velodrome you have no need for brakes. Know this before you buy your fixie, because being able to brake might be prominent to you. Most track fixies have the selection to add a brake so you can do this when you buy your bike. The other major variation between the two is that track bikes sit up a slight higher and the frames are made to have steeper angles. Here is what I recommend, if you are going to commute or ride your fixed gear distances to rehearsal then get a track bike. If you are riding colse to town or campus, want to do tricks, or just have a bike to kick colse to with then get a road bike. Either way, when you want to buy a fixed gear bike you won't be disappointed with either.

What You Need to Know to Buy a Fixed Gear Bike

One Size Doesn't Fit All

It is very prominent that you get the right size fixie that fits your size and frame. It is very prominent that you are comfortable when riding your bike. There are two methods to form out the size you will need. The technical way: quantum the inseam of your pant leg and multiply by 0.67. If your inseam is 81 cm then multiplying this by 0.67 gives 54, or a 54 cm bike (notice that cm are used instead of inches, 2.54 cm equals 1 inch). The other formula is the rule of thumb: when you stand next to the bike, the cross bar should be about one inch below your privates! Either way, both methods will get you to the right size bike for you. If you can, test drive the bike, or try a friend's fixie, to see how it feels for you.

Gain as a quantum of Power

Finally, you should know how powerful the bike is before you buy it. We are going to use a quantum called "gain" to help us understand the fixie's power. Basically said gain measures how far the bike will travel for every inch you move the pedals. The higher the gain the faster the bike will go, but with a lower gain you have more control. You need to understand what it is you want to do with the bike so it will perform to your expectation. The gain is measured by multiplying two ratios together. The first ratio is the whole of teeth for the front gear divided by the whole of teeth for the back gear. The second ratio is the radius of the wheel divided by the distance of the crank. Take these two ratios and multiply them together and you have the gain. For racing you would want a gain that is bigger than 5, and for road use you would want a gain from 3 to 6. As you can see there is some over lap here and finally you should try riding a few fixies with separate gains so you can "know" what gain you will need.

What You Need to Know to Buy a Fixed Gear Bike