Fixie Inc. Blackheath vs Betty Leeds

[Gwiz]

Hi all,

After some advice please, as I don’t know a lot about bike parts and quality. I’m after a cheapish fixie for London commuting, and ideally one that will last. Want a fixie due to the low maintenance and better workout over short distances.

Ive found these two options from Fixie Inc. I can see that the blackheath is a lighter aluminium frame, but would like to know if theres a considerable difference between the rest of the bike parts. I believe steel is more durable and might be a better cheap option.

https://www.bikester.co.uk/fixie-in...P1ODCEE6Hzf5LcTA6qsF8mr0m5ax55VRoCnlgQAvD_BwE

https://www.bikester.co.uk/fixie-in...eqrecqid=91cf69f2-d671-11eb-8f02-000094fb7d5e

Thanks in advance for the help !

 

[DRM]

Are you sure you want a fixie to ride in London, if you’re not an experienced rider I think it would be a death trap, you do realise that the rear wheel is fixed, it won’t freewheel, so you have have to keep pedalling, do you mean a single speed bike? At least it will freewheel so you will be able to adjust your speed to allow for traffic conditions and stopping for traffic lights/pedestrian crossings

 

[Gwiz]

I believe these have a flip flop hub, so it can be either right? When i say I’m not experienced, I’m pretty comfortable on a bike and have always ridden them. I just couldn’t tell you what a good bike look like!

 

[DRM]

As far as I know, a flip flop hub has a harder gear one side, and an easier one on the other, you just swap it round to get gearing more suited to where you’re riding, both sides are fixed.

 

[Xipe Totec]

I'd assume a flip-flop hub would be fixed one side, freewheel on the other. I built up a single-speed back in the day (when I lived somewhere flatter!) and the rear hub had a standard freewheel thread on one side, and the other for fixed gear with a reverse-threaded lockring. Wouldn't have been safe to put a fixed sprocket on the plain-threaded side.

Not sure how representative the pics are of the product you'd actually get but the photos show a freewheel, rather than a fixed gear with lockring. They do appear to be double-sided.

As for which one - the alloy/dearer/lighter one, if you're really set on this sort of thing. The idea of a bike as basic, simple & stripped-down as this tipping the scales at 12kg is frankly quite shocking!

 

[battered]

In practice there's little to choose between them. The steel one might ride better on rough roads and be less harsh than the ally, but they are just cheap bikes. I'd buy a use d bike for similar money, I recently got a giant defy for £120 on here, it's in great shape and will knock either of the bikes you show into a cocked hat. Better components, more durable, lighter, big brand backup etc.

 

[battered]

And you can turn a geared bike into a singly in an afternoon with hand tools and a chain tensioner.

 

[DRM]

Having had a quick look, it would appear a flip-flop hub is threaded to take either a fixed cog, or a freewheel on either side, the answer depends on how the manufacturer has specced it.

 

[vickster]

In practice there's little to choose between them. The steel one might ride better on rough roads and be less easy than the ally, but they are just cheap bikes. I'd buy a use d bike for similar money, I recently got a giant defy for £120 on here, it's in great shape and will knock either of the bikes you show into a cocked hat. Better components, more durable, lighter, big brand backup etc.

Only for the original owner though usually

if wanting SS, I’d look for a used Pearson Touché or similar.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/393319049776?hash=item5b93a46a30:g:a3IAAOSwtk9gnjoN

Try the LFGSS forum classifieds too