Hipster bike acquisiton complete

[spacekraken]

So as I opened the garage door to go ride today, this fell over into the garage... thanks fedex for blocking the door?!

After quickly confirming all was well (lots of box damage), got to building the bike. Went super fast, though tightening down the ring to hold the gear was a bit tricky without proper tools. Will be adding a chain/gear tool shortly, as well as generally adjusting the seat position and bar angle over time to get a better fitment.

Once all together it was naturally time for a quick ride. The thing is FAST on flats. And climbing some little hills wasn't so bad either.

Couple other observations:
-I definitely am going to need some time to get used to braking with my legs, wasn't able to lock a skid without brakes yet. Very glad to have the rim brakes for now, although they aren't particularly potent. Figure my long term setup will keep at least the front...
-People REALLY were not kidding about the whole "steel is more comfy" thing. 80PSI on tiny 25c tires and it's considerably better damped on road than my aluminum gravel bike with 2x the sidewall and tire width.
-The bullhorn bars were exactly what I was looking for, and despite being considerably lower and a bit shorter wheelbase (I maybe should've gone up one size) than the kona it's still very easy to handle.

Post ride, covered in muck per usual. Probably gonna use the plastic rear mud guard since the gravel bike is getting fenders.

Overall, a very solid N+1 and happy to have a different way to ride local paths. Now, to try not to buy any more gear for a while...

[jminer]

@spacekraken love the color!

I'll admit I was drooling over them when you mentioned them the other day. Decided I'd better get serious about riding my current bike before I buy another!

[beefchips]

@spacekraken yep, steel is real! Nice color, reminds me of the old bianchi green

[pyroholtz]

@jminer said in Hipster bike acquisiton complete:

@spacekraken love the color!

I'll admit I was drooling over them when you mentioned them the other day. Decided I'd better get serious about riding my current bike before I buy another!

I felt the same way about building a new gaming rig, I should probably get serious again about PC gaming before building a new machine. I had hoped 2077 was going to be good enough for me to pull the trigger but I haven't heard enough good reviews to get really excited about it.

Truth be told, I just finished replaying Quake OG (gLQuake) and now I'm going through some of the add-ons, it's a fun game.

[spacekraken]

@beefchips turquoise is also real! Yeah blown away by how smooth the whole bike is cause of that frame.

[spacekraken]

@jminer N+1 is always good! I've been riding a ton lately, so it seemed reasonable haha

[ITA97]

@spacekraken

Nice!

Get either some nylon straps or some toe clips and leather straps STAT! You won't be able to effectively resist the pedals for general, gradual braking without being able to pull back on the pedals, and skidding requires being able to yank back hard on them to instantly stop the rear wheel (shifting you weight forward is part of it to initiate the skid). In general, the narrower the pedal you run the better on a fixie, as they give more ground clearance leaning over cornering. Pedal strikes are no bueno on a fixie.

Steel does ride nicely. I'm sure what those tires are rated for, but 80psi sounds a bit low for 25c road rubber. I ride at 110psi for my 160lb self on 25c rubber on my fixie. Those tires have a recommended pressure range of 130-100psi.

[spacekraken]

@ita97 Thanks! Any recommendations on straps that work with basic flat pedals like I've got? Or cheap pedals+straps?

Also yeah tires are rated to 120, so planning to take them up to 100ish psi pretty soon.

[VincentMalamute]

@spacekraken said in Hipster bike acquisiton complete:

@ita97 Thanks! Any recommendations on straps that work with basic flat pedals like I've got? Or cheap pedals+straps?

I can't quite see if your stock pedals have slots for the strap to go through. I suspect they don't in which case you need new pedals. I only see slots on the very lateral part.

Any cheap pedal with the slots are fine. Like these which I used 40 years ago. If you're going to spend money on new pedals, clips, straps, consider investing in clipless pedals and shoes. https://www.amazon.com/MKS-18092020213-Sylvan-Road-Pedals/dp/B001GSSNH2/ref=asc_df_B001GSSNH2/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312065280674&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16167842006428470316&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1014573&hvtargid=pla-442614891335&psc=1&tag=&ref=&adgrpid=62425943472&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvadid=312065280674&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16167842006428470316&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1014573&hvtargid=pla-442614891335

[nowhere]

@vincentmalamute MKS pedals are great and reasonably inexpensive.

On my Cannondale Track I just used the Shimano Deore pedals that came off my M800 mountain bike. They had just been sitting in a box ever since replacing them with clipless pedals about three months after buying the M800 in 1994. I intended to replace them someday with "proper" pedals but never got around to it. As the saying goes: "This is only temporary... unless it works."

I'm OK with braking by just resisting the pedals but what still catches me out if it's been a while since I last rode the Track is that my body tends to forget I can't coast with a fixed gear. I've never had a pedal strike on the Track (a benefit of the velodrome specific frame geometry) but there is a bit of toe overlap which has to be watched out for when maneuvering at slow speed (a con to the velodrome specific frame geometry!)

[Chariotoflove]

@spacekraken

“and I even like the color”

Well look at you! First on the mods list is adding a wicker handle bar basket, eh? Just ribbing you. And yes, steel will always beat aluminum for comfort.

[VincentMalamute]

@Chariotoflove I still say that geometry is more important. Very few people are able to compare a steel vs alum frame with identical geometry. My aluminum Canyon with 38mm tires, mild gravel geometry is more comfortable than my steel Raleigh with a race frame. My ti/carbon Seven is comparable to the Raleigh in tire and geometry but I don't remember what that feels like.

@nowhere I was surprised to see those MKS Sylvans are still being made with no change in 40 years!

@spacekraken Blowing up your photo, maybe I can see that your stock pedals have the slots for the straps to go through? In which case you only need to buy the clips and straps.

You can still fall over with clips and straps but you can prepare for clipless by riding with very loose straps for a while.

I love the color of the bike.

[ITA97]

@spacekraken said in Hipster bike acquisiton complete:

@ita97 Thanks! Any recommendations on straps that work with basic flat pedals like I've got? Or cheap pedals+straps?

Also yeah tires are rated to 120, so planning to take them up to 100ish psi pretty soon.

My current, temporary setup is some old VP components 535 cheapie plastic pedals I had laying around and some Holdfast Nylon straps. It works, but the pedals are wide and not great, and the straps aren't the easiest things to get into. You'll need pedals with slots on both ends for any strap setup work, which doesn't look to be the case on your current pedals from what I can see.

What I migrating to is a track pedal and toe clip/leather strap setup. Last night I borrowed an old set from a friend to use until my parts get here. Riding bikes with this setup, I like it a whole lot better. The pedals flip around nicely with a flick of your toe and then your foot just slides right on in. Its easier than the straps, and that's a plus in urban/suburban fixie riding where you're coming in and out of the pedals when you choose to stop for intersections or cars and pedestrians that can factor into riding around the city.

This is an MKS Sylvan track pedal. Good, made in Japan, and light for what they are. If you go the toe clip route, I would recommend a track pedal over something like the normal MKS Sylvan road pedal. Track pedals will be narrower for better ground clearance.

As I mentioned before, I wouldn't go clipless for fixie riding on the street. It works on the track, but that's a very different environment than riding fixed gear on the street. Track guys never have put everything they have into controlling speed down a steep hill at 25mph while your legs are moving at max cadence or throw out the ebrake in locking the rear wheel when a car or pedestrian does something unexpected in front of you. The only people I know of that ride clipless on fixies on the street do so only with front and rear brakes.

[spacekraken]

@chariotoflove LOL!

@VincentMalamute and @ITA97 thanks much for the info. Definitely am rethinking my whole "oh i'll remove the brakes after a couple rides" plan haha! Will look into a set of those track pedals that work with street shoes, my roommate ran a similar setup I think. Clipless still scares me a bit versus something I could pull my foot out of fairly quickly in a pinch, and I have some crazy hills near me to slowly work up to.

[lokerola]

Velo-orange sells a few sets of cool flat pedals that look a ton better than the chunky black plastic ones:

https://velo-orange.com/collections/pedals/products/vo-road-pedals-sealed-bearing

[ITA97]

@spacekraken said in Hipster bike acquisiton complete:

@chariotoflove LOL!

@VincentMalamute and @ITA97 thanks much for the info. Definitely am rethinking my whole "oh i'll remove the brakes after a couple rides" plan haha! Will look into a set of those track pedals that work with street shoes, my roommate ran a similar setup I think. Clipless still scares me a bit versus something I could pull my foot out of fairly quickly in a pinch, and I have some crazy hills near me to slowly work up to.

That reminds me about shoes. I've learned that something with a flat sole and a smooth, narrower toe box works a lot better for fixie pedaling than the athletic/trail running type shoes I normally wear. It turns out all of my fixie riding friends ride in a similar shoe to this of one flavor or another.

[beefchips]

@ita97 said in Hipster bike acquisiton complete:

@spacekraken said in Hipster bike acquisiton complete:

@chariotoflove LOL!

@VincentMalamute and @ITA97 thanks much for the info. Definitely am rethinking my whole "oh i'll remove the brakes after a couple rides" plan haha! Will look into a set of those track pedals that work with street shoes, my roommate ran a similar setup I think. Clipless still scares me a bit versus something I could pull my foot out of fairly quickly in a pinch, and I have some crazy hills near me to slowly work up to.

That reminds me about shoes. I've learned that something with a flat sole and a smooth, narrower toe box works a lot better for fixie pedaling than the athletic/trail running type shoes I normally wear. It turns out all of my fixie riding friends ride in a similar shoe to this of one flavor or another.

Totally! I've been wearing Adidas Sambas for like 15 years solid for this reason. They're great for driving too.

[jminer]

@beefchips Same! I alternate between Sambas and Converse when I need something with more structure (the sambas) or lighter (the chucks).

[Chariotoflove]

@vincentmalamute That is true. I come from the age of steel racing bikes when aluminum started to come on in the same geometry.

[spacekraken]

@lokerola Funny enough I actually got a set of theirs to replace the cheap plastic on the gravel bike! Will have to play around with them and straps.

Thanks for the shoe recs all!

Just did a 7mi ride and it went great. Wickedly fast for me for this route. Other than there's a squeak and the wheels both could use a decent truing haha. Debating running it to a shop or getting the tools since I've wanted to start doing that on my own...

[VincentMalamute]

@spacekraken said in Hipster bike acquisiton complete:

or getting the tools since I've wanted to start doing that on my own...

You're braver than I am.

[MisterButtercup]

That's awesome! I've been wanting to get a steel frame fixie ever since riding one a friend of mine had a few years ago, was the most fun I'd had on a bike since I was a kid.

And I'll echo everyone else, that color is amazing!

[drVanTraveler]

The term, "N+1" may not be familiar to all here, so I'm going to provide a link to "The Rules".
The "N+1" is rule #12.
Warning, following #12 will quickly overwhelm your storage space for bikes.
Enjoy
Rules

[VincentMalamute]

@drvantraveler said in Hipster bike acquisiton complete:

so I'm going to provide a link to "The Rules".

I'm old enough and slow enough that I don't follow most of the Rules. Frame pump, visor, etc. Except 5. I like suffering.

[spacekraken]

@drvantraveler I had actually learned N+1 from other hobbies, thanks for the official copy of the Rules. I break a lot of them, but that is part of the fun...

@VincentMalamute fool's errand to try truing? I've done it before but at a volunteer shop with skilled supervision.