With how they force your body to adapt, are fixed gear bikes the best overall for fitness and cardio? I have a boomer bike from the '70s I need to fix, and I'm thinking of converting it.
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Do you live in the pacific northwest? is it 2010?
Not really, they're a meme for hipsters but that probably wouldn't stop me from converting it.
I just like the idea of it being lower maintenance and something I can take care of at home with a few basic tools. 80% of my bike riding has been urban and I used one speed most of the time anyway
Those are good reasons for converting it, but not anything to do with fitness. Although a derailleur doesn't require many tools either, but they do require patience.
man I'm reminded of why America is not such a great place once again. You guys are so cucked when it comes to bikes
- shit infrastructure thanks to Big Car
- thus only bike otaku gays really use them
- thus bikes are gaymaxxed race cleats nutcrusher shitbrake homosexualry
you really need to start gassing some C-suites until they unfrick the infra a bit, so you can get sane bike shit
a decent bike should cost 1-200 bucks max, second hand, with a few gears with good efficiency, decent brakes, have bike lanes and non-shit crossings in the city, and so on
The biggest benefit of gears isn't tackling hills better, it's making every single stop easier. You should be shifting down every time you come to a stop, then shifting back up as you regain speed. Fixies are moronic bikes made for morons.
>Fixies are moronic bikes made for morons.
Thanks for the tip. I'm glad you were able to benefit all of us with your experience
You can take care of a derailleur at home with basic tools easily too, especially true of older bikes. The maintenance benefits of a fixie or a ss are not that its easier to maintain but that you can treat it like shit ignore your regular maintenance and it will keep running.
if it's a boomer bike from the 70 you can absolutely fix any part with normal tools you have at home. You just need a readjustable wrench, a chain tool (you might not have this but it's like 10 bucks) and a set of allen keys.
having different gears can be super useful so you're better of just leaving it
i commute on a fixed no clips/foot straps, love the quad pump and adrenaline rush
Throw that Boomer bike in the trash if it doesn't work, sell if it still does. Restoring it will be just as expensive as buying a <10 year old aluminium bike. Fixie conversions aren't any cheaper, plus they are known for causing the type of overuse injury that doesn't heal.
The most expensive thing will be replacing the wheels which he can probably do for under $100 if he can find a deal and isn't fussy about them.
There are no hot deals on 5 speed wheels. It's $ 100 just for that. Say $ 60 to replace the stretched groupset assuming the crankset is ok (big assume). Add new wires, and tape and you're at $ 200, new(er) bike money, not counting tools, not counting labour or your own blood sweat and tears if you decide to go solo. And then you're left with a heavy piece of iron that you'll want to replace anyways. If it has sentimental value go for it it's not a lot of money, if you're trying to save money don't even think about it.
-- This post is based on real life events
Depends if he wants to convert and how damaged stuff is. Likely most of the groupset is ok and just needs a good clean and general TLC. I've got some ancient bikes still on mostly original parts.
>Throw that Boomer bike in the trash if it doesn't work, sell if it still does. Restoring it will be just as expensive as buying a <10 year old aluminium bike.
It's deeply sentimental as it was my dead great uncle's and I rode it all through college when I was a poorgay with no car. I also didn't know how to ride a bike until I was 19, so it represents a kind of freedom for me. Last time I rode it was a few months ago. What it initially needed was new shifter and brake cables along with some other replacement parts, but the local bike shop's labor costs are sky high. I got a $10 single speed cassette off of Amazon and have been looking at YouTube to learn the rest.
When I disassembled parts of it, I saw that the screws on the shifter housing were stripped and corroded. It seems like new cables and a new chain alongside the fixed cassette would be enough.
The current wheels are perfectly fine; they were last replaced when I got the thing in college. I was a jackass who got flat tires all the time riding through campus at first, so I'm used to working with that part.
If it was a regular bike I would have trashed it years ago. But I look at that cracked red paint and remember so much development in my life over the past several years. I can't let that go.
> The current wheels are perfectly fine; they were last replaced when I got the thing in college.
I mean, you need different wheels for a fixie setup because regular wheels will "coast" which makes it not a fixie
You might have issues with the dropouts if you do the conversion.
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/no-derailers.html
Your other option is just to go for a regular singlespeed rather than fixie.
chain tensioners exist
Sheldon advises against it
> Even the chain tensioners used for downhill mountain bike racing are not strong enough to withstand the stress of resisting the pedals. These tensioners have to clamp onto the chainstay, which is more or less round. There is no way to make one that would be secure, short of installing some sort of brazed-on fitting.
>Your other option is just to go for a regular singlespeed rather than fixie.
>fixed gear bikes frick your knees up
>single speeds are better
Sorry anons, brain fart. It's a single speed cassette. The terms get used so interchangeably.
>I mean, you need different wheels for a fixie setup because regular wheels will "coast" which makes it not a fixie
That's what I want. The old cassette was a two spline vintage freewheel.
In that case it's much easier, probably all you need to replace is cassette, chain and probably the crankset. Maybe the bottom bracket too, I'm not sure.
You might have issues with wheel/frame clearance if you change the cassette. Although it's possible you can find a cassette that compensates for that, but it probably needs to be designed for the same "speed" the bike originally had.
Like someone said, even a 4% slope will give you a second thought. But if you live in a city with no major hill steps then go for it.
t. semi-pro mountain biker
Definitely keep it if it's that sentimental. I didn't see anything about your budget or where you live though. What's the elevation like? Can you afford to replace the seat or you're just buying the essentials? I'm kinda moronic and a single-speed is really easy to maintain and does fine even with some hills. Mine came with a flip-flop hub which is nice.
/n/ is a good board for bike advice but can be elitist and recommend stupidly expensive stuff when you just want to ride a bike around.
I'd say it is complete trash.
Long 4% slopes takes a good amount of effort to climb, and if you feel like it is "easy" just go rape yourself and switch to a higher gear.
fixed gear bikes frick your knees up
single speeds are better
Fixed gears are shit for cardio unless you like near accidents to get your heart rate up. Just get a 3 geared hub for the rear wheel and build a new wheel around it. Still kind of shitty.
>3 geared
That's how I rode the entire winter and it's good enough. Although, I did occasionally got on my feet so as to avoid over-sweating.
Your cardio will be 0 when your heart never beats again because you got ran over.
It's true, a lot of places aren't safe to ride and there's a lot of fat people who hate bikes.
I converted an old 10spd to a single speed when I lived in Philly. It's a pretty flat city but only one speed was pretty moronic.
I think I could still fix it the way it originally was, but things like the derailleur screws and such are so corroded, rusted, and stripped. I might put it back in its original configuration one day if I can get those other parts deeply cleaned and replace most of the screws.
Making it a single speed for now would at least keep it in use.
fixies are alright, they 'force' you to plan your every move when going up or down a hill or something. You have a good amount of body weight leaning on the pedals so you don't rocket down too fast.
they're a pretty basic bare bones bike. but well maintained ones with good parts are great to ride. just invest in a good pair of rims and tires. I used to ride on continentals or gator skins because the tires get worn out from all the skid stopping on those pedals.
>Muh Balls
unironically