Building a fixie

Eoinzy123

Hey guys, as the title says, building a fixie. Was wondering if people could help me out with a few things.

Here's the bike i'm getting but I want to see if these tyres can fit as i'm not a fan of the skinny road tyres.

http://www.bikes2udirect.com/B3892.html

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/continental-x-king-mtb-tyre/

As well as that i've been looking to get clipless pedals and cleats but unsure of what setup would work together as i'm a noob when it comes to it.

I would be looking to spend around 100 euro on both the pedals and cleats or should I increase this budget?

Also here are the handlebars and grips i'll be getting.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/charge-spit-riser-handlebar/

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/en/c4-lock-on-bmx-grips/rp-prod71464

Trying to keep the bike black unlike most fixies :P

Squidgy Black

You won't get mountain bike tires on those wheels. I'd say the widest tyre you could use would probably be 700x32c. Maybe.

As for pedals and shoes, (cleats are the metal connector that go on the bottom of the shoe to connect them to the pedals), 100 euro is a decent enough budget. I'd go with mountain bike shoes and pedals if you want to walk anywhere in them.

Have a look on Wiggle.co.uk at a pair of DHB mountain bike shoes and a set of Shimano M520 SPD pedals, they'll do the job and fall under your budget.

As for the charge bars, they're fairly narrow and don't leave a lot of space for brake levers. I'd suggest a front brake if it's your first time riding fixed.

lennymc

if you want to build a fixie that will take wider tyres you will be looking at something like a pompino/pompetamine frame (there is a pompino bike for sale (minus wheels and saddle in the cycling adverts section - nothing to do with me just letting you know) which will take up to a 38mm tyre afaik. Alternatively you could get some sort of single speed mtb (i think surly make ss mtb frames and forks). I recently got a surly cross check which will take up to 42mm tyres, and have it built as a singlespeed, but it would easily convert to a fixie with a different wheel.

take a look at lfgss for lots of info on everything singlespeed/fixed

best of luck!

edit - any new bike that costs 159.99 is probably going to be a pile of s***e so i wouldnt waste my money. get a second hand old steel bike and take of the gears and change the rear wheel. much better fixie than the one you have linked. (IMHO)

Squidgy Black

lennymc wrote: »

edit - any new bike that costs 159.99 is probably going to be a pile of s***e so i wouldnt waste my money. get a second hand old steel bike and take of the gears and change the rear wheel. much better fixie than the one you have linked. (IMHO)

Lenny's right, I've seen a couple of those Viking bikes first hand and they're terrible. Ugly welds, terrible finish, ridiculously heavy. The wheels are the same.

OldBean

Chiming in with the others, don't waste your money on the Viking. It'll do more to put you off cycling than anything else. I've an 80's 25" 10 speed with heavy everything, and it comes in near the same weight as one.

You'll get a nicer, better built older frame for the same money.

If you're going to be using the bike for around town, try get used to slick tyres. They'll have far better traction on tarmac than the tractor wheels you're looking at, and if you're looking at riding without a front brake, you'll need traction.

quozl

The Pompino for sale in the adverts section is a good deal, IMO.

Don't worry about mountain bike wheels. If it's grip or comfort that you want then wider slick road tyres are what you want, IMO. You're possibly thinking of skinny 23mm or so width tires. A 35mm tire is a world of difference - around 230% the air volume of a 23mm tire, so more than double the amount of air to act as a shock absorber and slick gives better grip than knobbly MTB tires. Unlike with cars you don't actually want treads on tires you use on roads.

I think that Pompino in the adverts section even comes with clipless pedals. I'd get that if it was a good size for you. It is dark brown rather than black though. I'd love a Pompino but I just finished building a road bike so getting another bike right this moment would be just taking the piss.

happytramp

Plus you can always get a frame powder coated black for not too much money if you want.

Eoinzy123

Thanks lads for all the replies, I'll scrap the idea of the Viking so and look at that pompino now. Colour isn't really an issue I'm just not fond of a multi colour bike, I don't want it to stand out as much when its locked in town

robertxxx

Don't get those grips with the big flanges, they will cause a skin blister on your tumb knuckles. Get ones with no big edge (flange).

Eoinzy123

robertxxx wrote: »

Don't get those grips with the big flanges, they will cause a skin blister on your tumb knuckles. Get ones with no big edge (flange).

Will do, I've just seen a bike now that looks pretty decent, 11kg in total and I would change the grips and pedals. Any comments on it ? Also would I need to replace them wheels to get thicker tyres ?

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Mafiabikes-Manhattan-Silver-Fixed-Gear-Fixie-Racer-Bike-Mafia-Black-NEW-2013-/271245272061?pt=UK_Bikes_GL&var=&hash=item3f277a63fd

Tonyandthewhale

Never heard of mafiabikes but it looks like a bike for 14 year olds who want to buy into the whole 2007 fixie movement and have got their hands on their mums creditcard (so much like the viking only with no reputation rather than a bad reputation).

26lbs is closer to 12kg which is needlessly heavy for a singlespeed bike (they're supposed to be light because there's not much there), I wouldn't be surprised if it was a fair bit heavier than claimed weight either.
Looking at the the spec list I see a lot of guff about 'hi tensile steel' and 'integrated seat clamp'. hi-tensile steel means cheap, heavy no-name steel. Real steal bikes use reynolds, columbus or possibly vitus tubing. Integrated seat clamp means this design was cutting edge in 1901, it's not a design feature worth boasting about. Also, kenda tyres are shit and I don't see any precise specifications about any of the other components so I'm guessing they're crappy too.
By the looks of it you don't have enough money to buy a decent single-speed or fixie new so stop trying to find a magic silver bullet on ebay and just get something second hand and sensible.

Also, as regards the wheels. First of all, are you sure you really need tyres bigger than 28mm? Have you actually ridden 28mm tyres? Do you realise how cushy they can be and how much grip they actually afford?

Secondly, both the bikes you've linked to are designed for 700c wheels so you can't replace them with mountain bike wheels for example (which are 26inch) for the purpose of fitting unnecessarily large tyres. The brakes won't work, the rear hubs won't fit in the drop outs and the tyres will probably be too wide for the frame and fork so the wheels wouldn't turn even if you managed to attached them to the frame.

Eoinzy123

I didn't know about the hi-tensile steel and have been trying to find bikes on adverts but haven't got 500 Cuid to spend. Aswell I've been on a fixie bike and didn't like the thin tyres, it just wasn't comfortable cycling with them

rollingscone

There's a world of difference between 23 & 28mm tyres.

Squidgy Black

Anything wider than 28mm will be sluggish and slow too. I find 25mm to be the perfect compromise between fast and comfortable.

Also, it's harder to skid on wider tires, so if you decide to go brakeless in the future you'll need to consider that. But for the first year or so keep a front brake for definite.

Eoinzy123

Okay grand, can anyone suggest one on adverts.or.something? Saw one on gumtree, are create a good brand? See a lot of em around

http://www.gumtree.ie/cp-sports-leisure-in-dublin/fixie-bike-custom-507753333

endacl

Your average fixie on adverts tends to be advertised at silly money. Why not just pick up an old frame and build yourself over time?

Eoinzy123

endacl wrote: »

Your average fixie on adverts tends to be advertised at silly money. Why not just pick up an old frame and build yourself over time?

Although I would like to, I need it for September and haven't the time to build one by then

endacl

If you need a bike for September, just buy a second hand basher. Loads of them about. Buy the bike of your dreams later. Why does it have to be a fixie?

Eoinzy123

endacl wrote: »

If you need a bike for September, just buy a second hand basher. Loads of them about. Buy the bike of your dreams later. Why does it have to be a fixie?

Well I want to commute on the thing and the fact of little maintenance is a plus really.

endacl

Eoinzy123 wrote: »

Well I want to commute on the thing and the fact of little maintenance is a plus really.

Sure you can commute on any bike! The 'low-maintenance' thing is a bit of a fallacy, TBH. It'll still need a level of maintenance, same as any bike. Drivetrain, brake (if you have one), tyres and wheels etc. It'll be 'lower' maintenance than a non-fixie, but not much. I commute on a fully geared hybrid. It's low maintenance compared to my car. Which would be lower maintenance than a helicopter. I don't have a helicopter, but you get what I mean!

ford2600

Eoinzy123 wrote: »

Well I want to commute on the thing and the fact of little maintenance is a plus really.

With a 2nd hand fixie that has been built up you'd need to know your stuff.
Learn how to measure chain line and make sure it's right.
Is rear hub correct size for dropout spacing.
What gear is he running.
Fixed ans ss hub might be best

Ciann

I'd say go into Rothar in town, they will build a fixed bike for you. €300 was the damage I saw advertised IIRC. Then you also have somewhere to go when something goes wrong too

Eoinzy123

Ciann wrote: »

I'd say go into Rothar in town, they will build a fixed bike for you. €300 was the damage I saw advertised IIRC. Then you also have somewhere to go when something goes wrong too

Grand, i'll do that so any pics of the bike? Is it decent aswell seeing as their parts are reused

happytramp

Eoinzy123 wrote: »

Grand, i'll do that so any pics of the bike? Is it decent aswell seeing as their parts are reused

Not sure what sort of chainsets they use but it might be worth investigating getting something new rather than something pulled off an 80's supermarket bike.

Squidgy Black

300 euro for a bike made of lower end components from bikes from the 80s/early 90s is quite expensive.

I'd suggest keeping your eye on adverts for something like a Specialised Langster or a Charge Plug. Have you thought about the Pompino in the classifieds?

Eoinzy123

stetyrrell wrote: »

300 euro for a bike made of lower end components from bikes from the 80s/early 90s is quite expensive.

I'd suggest keeping your eye on adverts for something like a Specialised Langster or a Charge Plug. Have you thought about the Pompino in the classifieds?

The pompino comes without saddle and wheels so that'd be a bit expensive, nothing good I can see on adverts that's not over priced

Squidgy Black

You could get a wheelset easily for €150 or less and a saddle for €20.

If you want a decent bike that's the way to go.

G rock

stetyrrell wrote: »

You could get a wheelset easily for €150 or less and a saddle for €20.

If you want a decent bike that's the way to go.

I agree! (I'm selling the pomp!)

Inquitus

I picked up an old 80's Raleigh off adverts.ie with a steel frame in rag order, frame, cranks and brakes were sound though for 35 yoyos, some flip flop track wheels off the cycling adverts forum for 50, a new chain for 20 quid, I had some bar tape, and tyres lying around, and now have a nice Fixie I commute to work on for 100 yoyos. It's not much of a looker as I wanted it to look unattractive to would be tea leafs as I use it as my run around.

rollingscone

I recently resurrected a 1990s mtb as a single speed beater for very much the same reasons. It's dead handy but not all that nice to ride.

That's the trade off, I'd say Rothar are your best bet for solid quality on the cheap but you're not that likely to fall in love with the experience like you might with a higher end option like the Charge or Pompino.

Then again if you find a classic road bike frame and source your wheels and drivetrain carefully you might find a happy middle ground budget wise that is fantastic to ride.

Edit: not to be condescending but just to be clear single speeds have no gears but a freewheel whereas a fixie has a direct drive so the wheels cannot move unless the pedals are turning. I've met a lot of people lately who thought single speeds were fixies.

As someone said above you can get a flip/flop hub that offers the option of both.