Road Bike / Fixie Advice

[pogiboy9]

My Little brother is getting into this scene and would like to keep him out of trouble without interfering too much as far as his purchases.

Any suggestions for a good starter bike and where to look in SoCal area ? Willing to purchase out of state and ship but that's up to the seller :) I know these bikes can be very delicate and who knows how it'd look after shipping companies have it sent to my house :P

Any replies are much appreciated.

[87e30]

Bikes delicate? Whaaa? It's a hunk of metal dude, as long as it's packaged it will be fine.

I wouldn't get a fixie, but if he insists get a flip flop hub, allows you to switch between SS and fixed.

[Burnera]

fixies aren't starter bikes for one. If he isn't already really really comfortable on road bikes already, then he should be before moving to fixies.

For a first fixie, get one with a front brake at least.
the "true fixie" is usually 1 gear with no back pedal clutch, no brakes at all, and really short drag bar handlebars.

[pogiboy9]

got that trek still available Burnera ?

[Burnera]

just emailed you about it.

[pogiboy9]

yeah just got it, thanks! i forwarded to my brother.

[Tbolt]

im looking to get a bike myself, not necessarily a fixie, but something well rounded I can use on the road or dirt. what do you guys recommend? whats a good place to look for advice? maybe just recommend some good models?

[dbruhn]

How much does he want to spend? And if anyone thinks a road bike isn't a delicate thing they don't know much about road bikes, I have more money into road bikes than my e30.

I agree with everyone else on getting into a road bike before a fixie. If he really wants to get into the fixie scene help him find a road bike with horizontal dropouts. Maybe something like a Surley steamroller. He might be able to get something with semi horizontal dropouts that will work well for a fixie also but might be a little more in depth or fickle in making work. This way he can become comfortable on a bike of that nature and move to fixie if he decides to later and can go back.

Get him sized at a local bike shop and then start looking at craigslist you will be able to find something prices reasonably. A lot of people are selling off their previous year bikes on there with the new stuff coming out. I just scored a great deal on a look 461 with full ultegra components for $700, that frameset alone was $2000 add a decent campy wheelset for another $800 and the ultegra group for about $1000 you get the picture.

Do not let him buy a triathlon bike, he will grow to hate riding it. They seems really cool at first the aggressive geometry is not comfortable and unless he is trying to race it, it wont be the right bike for him.


Just my two cents

[325ix]

im looking to get a bike myself, not necessarily a fixie, but something well rounded I can use on the road or dirt. what do you guys recommend? whats a good place to look for advice? maybe just recommend some good models?

I have a giant yukon. It's a hardtail thats mainly for dirt but it's good on the street. If you're looking for a good all around bike get a hardtail but one with a lockout on the fork. I would reccomend Giant. I have one and my dad does and there great bikes.:up:

[Lof8]

ot

[Jon325i]

How much does he want to spend? And if anyone thinks a road bike isn't a delicate thing they don't know much about road bikes, I have more money into road bikes than my e30.

I agree with everyone else on getting into a road bike before a fixie. If he really wants to get into the fixie scene help him find a road bike with horizontal dropouts. Maybe something like a Surley steamroller. He might be able to get something with semi horizontal dropouts that will work well for a fixie also but might be a little more in depth or fickle in making work. This way he can become comfortable on a bike of that nature and move to fixie if he decides to later and can go back.

Get him sized at a local bike shop and then start looking at craigslist you will be able to find something prices reasonably. A lot of people are selling off their previous year bikes on there with the new stuff coming out. I just scored a great deal on a look 461 with full ultegra components for $700, that frameset alone was $2000 add a decent campy wheelset for another $800 and the ultegra group for about $1000 you get the picture.

Do not let him buy a triathlon bike, he will grow to hate riding it. They seems really cool at first the aggressive geometry is not comfortable and unless he is trying to race it, it wont be the right bike for him.


Just my two cents

Great advice - you get :up: x2

As a daily cycler who is looking to get a more appropriate "commuter" style bike for work, I've been spending the last month or so looking on Craigslist, talking to experienced riders as well as a visit a local bike shop to see what's on hand. Your advice is spot on to what several people have already told me.

Jon

[dbruhn]

I try and ride regularly I put about 140 miles on last week but only about 5 this week, work kicks my ass. You guys are lucky to be out of the left coast, I am here in MN where the winters are cold. I was only averaging about 40 miles a week this winter.

[87e30]

How much does he want to spend? And if anyone thinks a road bike isn't a delicate thing they don't know much about road bikes, I have more money into road bikes than my e30.

I don't think delicate is the right word. They take maintenance, and fiddling with. But it's not like anything is going to just break/bend if you pack it up in a box with some padding.

[dbruhn]

I don't think delicate is the right word. They take maintenance, and fiddling with. But it's not like anything is going to just break/bend if you pack it up in a box with some padding.

The big thing is making sure things like derailuers, levers are properly protected and all cables are slack when shipped. It doesn't take crap to bend a derailuer in shipping.

Most people choose to unbolt these things in shipping and wrap them in bubble wrap or put them inside of something like a cardboard tube. When a set of break/shift levers cost $400-$500 you start to worry about things like that. A lot of people selling bikes used over the net don't really care about making sure its packaged in a nice way and that can cause it to be a real pain in the ass when something is slightly bent, chattering gears, chain that jumps between gears, shit dragging in the spokes.

Nice bikes are machines that are built to extremely tight tolerances. People are known to spend thousands to shave grams. A quality bike is going to be built using a lot of aluminum and carbon fiber parts.

Not trying to be argumentative in case I was coming across that way. Just making sure the dude didn't buy a $1000 bike and have it shipped across the country without being aware of what he might run into.

[jefffribourg]

where in socal are you?
talk to kyle are orange 20 and im sure he'd help you out if your in the LA area

i used to ride a track bike from hollywood to manhattan beach and back for work pretty much every day for a few months(25miles one way) and its really fun. on a track bike you have no freewheel which helps keep a steady pace.