what to buy

[mickeydrippin60]

right i am 6"2 i have had several road bike and i am thinkin about gettin a fixed to improve my strength and the fluidity of my rideing i am looking at spending a max of £500 but probably cheeper i ride a 60cm frame but i dont know what size gear to get if you need different crank size's or what so any advise would be wholley welcome cheers in advance mike

 

[Oddjob62]

but i dont know what size gear to get

Get on one of your current bikes, stick it in a gear you "like" and ride around without shifting. If you find it too spinny try a bigger gear, if you find some of the hills you usally do impossible, then try a smaller one. That's the gear you should start with. Even on a fixed you can easily change (obviously not on the fly )

 

[Joe24]

Get on one of your current bikes, stick it in a gear you "like" and ride around without shifting. If you find it too spinny try a bigger gear, if you find some of the hills you usally do impossible, then try a smaller one. That's the gear you should start with. Even on a fixed you can easily change (obviously not on the fly )

Thats sort of about right, but on fixed you can use the momentum of it more then what you can on a bike with a freewheel.
As for gears, mid 60" is a good gear. 65" is a good gear for club rides, go slightly larger(high 60") if you want to, or maybe low 70" if you really want. But i think that a 65" gear is a good one to start on. You get good suppleness, better leg speed and more fitness in this gear. It will teach you how to pedal and how to really spin.
I have 2 fixeds, one is worth about £600, thats a really nice one i built up myself. My other one cost me nothing but bar tape, ive called it the £3.09 and a half bike.
If you want an off the peg fixed, then just look around the big companies. They really are pretty much all about the same. Some just have better forks, some a better crankset, but on most they are around the same.
Your crank size shouldnt be different i dont think, 165mm is what i ride on one bike, 170mm on the other bike. No real difference, the extra 5mms wont make a huge amount of difference.
Good luck, have fun

 

[Oddjob62]

Thats sort of about right, but on fixed you can use the momentum of it more then what you can on a bike with a freewheel.

Of course... but it's a good way to get a rough idea. I've only been fixed for a couple of weeks now (and only really been cycling properly for 8 months). Have started off with 67". A lot of my journey is quite flat, but i've got one tough hill. Can get up ok with 67 so might bump up to 70 in a few weeks (I've always been a grinder anyway).

 

[Joe24]

Of course... but it's a good way to get a rough idea. I've only been fixed for a couple of weeks now (and only really been cycling properly for 8 months). Have started off with 67". A lot of my journey is quite flat, but i've got one tough hill. Can get up ok with 67 so might bump up to 70 in a few weeks (I've always been a grinder anyway).

Id stay on the 67 if i were you. Spin that gear more on the flat and you will get fitter and your legs more supple. Then go for 70" if you really want.
Im sort of thinking of gearing back down. I was riding 65" and could get up to 38mph on it down a hill, sprint for signs doing 30mph and get averages of 19mph.
Im now on 72", my top speed is just under 39mph, and when i sprint for signs im not any faster.
On sunday i went down a hill i used to go down doing 38mph on a 65" gear, and i went down it doing 36mph Ive lost some leg speed and suppleness.
Stay with 67" for abit longer before you change to a bigger gear.
I used to be able to go down hills faster or at the same speed as someone on a 74" fixed that had huge legs and was very very powerfull. Because his gear was big, he didnt have the suppleness to spin the gear.
He was no faster up hills either, even with his legs being huge and him having a bigger gear. Only time he was faster was on the flat, he could sit at a slightly higher speed for longer then i could, but i could still sort of keep up.

 

[Oddjob62]

Id stay on the 67 if i were you. Spin that gear more on the flat and you will get fitter and your legs more supple. Then go for 70" if you really want.

Well i'm too lazy to get a new chainring at the moment so i have no choice. I can understand what you say though, but i just don't like fast spinning, I was built for brute strength not speed and finesse