Single gear bike - where/which model?

Richard53

Tobster86 wrote: »

Please tell me you're all ... in your early teens!

I ***ing wish! I'm 62 next birthday, although I was in my late 20s when I had the Corsair. I might give the idea a swerve these days.

armyknife

Richard53 wrote: »

I ***ing wish! I'm 62 next birthday, although I was in my late 20s when I had the Corsair. I might give the idea a swerve these days.

So you where born in 1953 and might be a !!!!!!?

Tobster86

Well it seems that I'm the juvenile!

The thought of some kind of improvement over the gearing on my 20 year old 10-speed Raleigh is desirable. I had a go on a 6-speed Brompton (3 speed internal hub + two speed derailleur) a couple of weeks ago and preferred it immensely.

Whilst I can see some practical merit to single-speed, the thought of fixed gear is terrifying!

Marco_Panettone

Tobster86 wrote: »

Whilst I can see some practical merit to single-speed, the thought of fixed gear is terrifying!

The first few rides can be a bit 'interesting', but you get used to it very quickly. I find it weird swapping from a fixed to a freewheel bike now, but only in a 'ooh - my pedals aren't going round!' way.

Richard53

armyknife wrote: »

So you where born in 1953 and might be a !!!!!!?

Possibly ...

fred246

I have got a Raleigh Pioneer with a single front chainwheel and six speed rear derailleur. It is lightweight but still has enough gears to cope with most hills. I never understand why people either have one speed or 24 or 27 gear bikes. Land Rover did a Commute Eight bicycle but that has been discontinued. There are a few other similar bikes around but quite uncommon. What is wrong with this compromise?

Johnmcl7

fred246 wrote: »

I have got a Raleigh Pioneer with a single front chainwheel and six speed rear derailleur. It is lightweight but still has enough gears to cope with most hills. I never understand why people either have one speed or 24 or 27 gear bikes. Land Rover did a Commute Eight bicycle but that has been discontinued. There are a few other similar bikes around but quite uncommon. What is wrong with this compromise?

There are advantages and disadvantages to pretty much any gear combination, a 1x6 has the downside of the mechanical complexity and cost of the derailleur without the wider range a derailleur setup can offer (six speed isn't going to have a noticeable weight advantage over a larger cassette). Obviously it works well for your use so none of that matters.

John

fred246

It is a six speed because it is a 1980s bike and they were all either 5 or 6 speed then. Most of my bikes are 27 speed. I only use it when I am leaving a bike at the station for a while. However it is lightweight and the gears are very easy to adjust. I did look at the modern eight speed land rover version however it is out of production so I guess it didn't sell well. The big problem with these older bikes I find is that they go as well as a modern bike but they don't stop like a modern bike. The Weinmann brakes are not good. I think the answer is probably that a lot of people buy single speed bikes as some sort of fashion statement rather than following a careful consideration of all the bikes on offer.

Johnmcl7

fred246 wrote: »

I think the answer is probably that a lot of people buy single speed bikes as some sort of fashion statement rather than following a careful consideration of all the bikes on offer.

I have many friends who ride single speed (usually amongst other bikes) and not one of them rides a single speed bike as a fashion statement. The main reason is for the mechanical simplicity which makes for a very durable bike which is handy if the bike is used as a day to day town bike, long off road riding or endurance racing.

John

fred246

I set up my own 27 speed derailleur without issue, I do however imagine some people would find it difficult at times. However, with just the rear derailleur the set up becomes much simpler. I would say it's pretty durable. It's the original one from the 1980s, still working perfectly.