# Looking to buy a fixed



## MrGrumpy (29 Aug 2007)

Ok my current road bike is in need of repair after my STI lever gave up the ghost (my fault ). So now rather than spend money on that bike I was thinking of buying fixed for commuting. Whats a good bike, have seen the langsters but quite like the Pearson Touche. Never rode fixed before so its unknown territory. Any other recommendations ? Would like something light and nimble if possible.


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## gkerr4 (29 Aug 2007)

light and nimble? - Langster is right up your street.

I love mine - it's light and fast riding - and a whole lot of fun, it;s even a bargain if you can live with the 2007 model in 'rust' colour - else there is the 08 models in green and the rather garish OTT 'London' model.


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## zimzum42 (29 Aug 2007)

Whatever you do, don't get a Langster. If you want something cheap and off the peg to try it out, get a surly or something, just don't get a langster, it's the fixie equivalent of a burberry tracksuit......


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## MrGrumpy (29 Aug 2007)

I should of added that I would like at least the option of braze ons for mudguards, I know the langsters don`t have those and yes you can use raceblades got a set already, but they ain`t as good.


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## gkerr4 (29 Aug 2007)

well - you could get a surly - but thats light and nimble out of the window!!


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## zimzum42 (29 Aug 2007)

I wouldn't know.........

But whatever you do, don't buy a langster...........

If you can afford it, but a nice classic steel frame....


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## yorkshiregoth (29 Aug 2007)

Condor Tempo.


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## MrGrumpy (29 Aug 2007)

they look nice and expensive !


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## gkerr4 (29 Aug 2007)

do a lot of people have langsters where you are from zim-zum?

does that add to your anti-langster stance?


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## MichaelM (29 Aug 2007)

Over on the On One site, someone is selling a Pompino with a Phil Wood hub and a W.I. crankset.

Not mine I'm afraid - more of a 105 crank and Goldtech hub man myself (i.e. cheap).


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## MrGrumpy (30 Aug 2007)

ok just had a gander at my works Cycle2work scheme and its through hellfords  and also limited to £500 as well boo deckin hoo  It might well be a Langster after all assuming they can source one for me. Thats another question i`ll ask in another forum. Savings still seem reasonable on spending £500, just as well I had not set my mind on a more expensive bike as I can`t even add to it !!????


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## zimzum42 (30 Aug 2007)

London is full of people with an Evans-fresh Langster, such a shame......


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## peejay78 (30 Aug 2007)

you could get a schlongster, and it ride quite well and for about two weeks you'll be so thrilled to be riding fixed that all will seem well. However, your reverie will gradually fade and be replaced by a gnawing feeling in your stomach, the more of the rust-coloured mondeos you see. every now and then you'll catch sight of other lighter, more gorgeous, fun looking machines, and then you'll see yourself reflected in a shop window and the bar shape and frame geometry will look more and more wrong every time, and you'll feel less and less special and zen like, despite the fact that you seem to be the only person to have bought a wrongster who actually rides it fixed. by this point you'll start to plan your next purchase, stealthily, and through tentative forays into the dark arts of internet forums, and after a number of months you'll end up with something like this:







and all will seem well in the world, disneyesque chirping birds will herald your arrival, random strangers and hardened professionals alike will compliment you on your bike. and you will mistake having an amazing bike as a sign of 'completion' and think that those glances of envy and admiration are aimed at you, and not the 631 lugwork. 

i'd go for the latter option.


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## gkerr4 (30 Aug 2007)

zimzum42 said:


> London is full of people with an Evans-fresh Langster, such a shame......




see this is the thing and the problem with london-centric boards like this.

Until I bought my langtser I had never seen one in the flesh - ever. My LBS, who I had to drive a 70-mile trip to see - had never seen one either. 
I can cycle for a 60 or 70 mile loop on my geared bike and not see a single other cyclist - not one! - never mind a cyclist on a "rust" mondeo common-crap wrongster as you would say.

so you coming here and giving it "ooh everyone's got one" - "common rubbish" etc etc - is just a load of bollox to me!


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## peejay78 (30 Aug 2007)

i know. please excuse me, yet again, i woke up, forgot to take anti-psychosis medication. 

how do you like my new bob jackson?


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## MrGrumpy (30 Aug 2007)

tbh i don`t really like the retro look of that example you give, I`m sure its a class bike but not my taste. Had a look at the Pompino and that might be an option it comes in at £500 which also fits in with what i`m allowed to buy with the cycle2 work scheme. Only thing is Helfrauds would need to source it.


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## zimzum42 (30 Aug 2007)

peejay78 said:


> you could get a schlongster, and it ride quite well and for about two weeks you'll be so thrilled to be riding fixed that all will seem well. However, your reverie will gradually fade and be replaced by a gnawing feeling in your stomach, the more of the rust-coloured mondeos you see. every now and then you'll catch sight of other lighter, more gorgeous, fun looking machines, and then you'll see yourself reflected in a shop window and the bar shape and frame geometry will look more and more wrong every time, and you'll feel less and less special and zen like, despite the fact that you seem to be the only person to have bought a wrongster who actually rides it fixed. by this point you'll start to plan your next purchase, stealthily, and through tentative forays into the dark arts of internet forums, and after a number of months you'll end up with something like this:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Or something like this, Bob Jackson, but not advertising the fact........


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## peejay78 (30 Aug 2007)

bob jackson is the new wrongster. 

i'm going to get a pegoretti.


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## zimzum42 (30 Aug 2007)

peejay78 said:


> bob jackson is the new wrongster.
> 
> i'm going to get a pegoretti.



hence why i got them not to put the stickers on........


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## Chuffy (30 Aug 2007)

If I may suggest another possible option....
Sir could always eschew the off the peg fixie option and convert his existing bike to a single-speed with a Hub Jub chain tensioner and hub spacer kit. That's what I did (in lieu of funds for a rear-mech/STI replacement) and voila! single-speed joy for about £20. 
Of course it horrifies the fixionistas but that's not necessarily a bad thing, now is it?


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## peejay78 (30 Aug 2007)

euuuuuuughhhhhh

that's DISGUSTING

NURSE NURSE

I'm gonna throw up.


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## Squaggles (30 Aug 2007)

We don't all live in London though . I've never seen anybody around here riding a Langster . A lot of people have old steel bikes but not as some kind of statement , they've just had the same bike since 1956 . It's Yorkshire , we don't do spending money 




zimzum42 said:


> London is full of people with an Evans-fresh Langster, such a shame......


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## skwerl (30 Aug 2007)

Squaggles said:


> We don't all live in London though . I've never seen anybody around here riding a Langster . A lot of people have old steel bikes but not as some kind of statement , they've just had the same bike since 1956 . It's Yorkshire , we don't do spending money




London's full of fixed bikes full stop. When I switched to fixed about 4 years back I spotted one or two each day. Always courier bikes generally. I rarely saw one on the way to/from work. I saw a brakeless one maybe once a month. Now, they're everywhere and I see several brakeless every day.

I don't give a shoot myself but the snobbery is part of the whole cafe-culture-urban-chic-fixie-blah-blah-crap mode du jour that is the fixed phenomenon at the moment. Give it a couple of years and people will be on unicycles or some such and no one will care.
The "don't buy a Langster, they're crap" thing bugs me a bit. If it was because they are generally a bad bike then fair enough but, wheels aside, it's a decent bike form the money. The A1 frame is well established and very good. So that means it's crap just because there are lots of them around. A victim of their own success I guess.

As an aside - the new London Langster is an abomination. That's based purely on looks - it's heinous.


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## peejay78 (30 Aug 2007)

i agree with everything you say, skewrl. i reckon the langsters ride well. i just don't like them, and this is partly because i value the aesthetic of cycling, certain lines, shapes, etc. the langster doesn't weigh up. it's ugly, but good. 

i bet when these mythical yorkshiremen bought their 1958 bicycle it was top of a fairly limited range, hence the lack of any need to trade up. these days it is more common for people to dip a toe in with a cheap off the peg, before realising the limitations as their riding style changes, then buying a better, nicer bike which probably last the distance. 

as for the london langs... i just threw up again.


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## skwerl (30 Aug 2007)

peejay78 said:


> i agree with everything you say, skewrl. i reckon the langsters ride well. i just don't like them, and this is partly because i value the aesthetic of cycling, certain lines, shapes, etc. the langster doesn't weigh up. it's ugly, but good.
> 
> i bet when these mythical yorkshiremen bought their 1958 bicycle it was top of a fairly limited range, hence the lack of any need to trade up. these days it is more common for people to dip a toe in with a cheap off the peg, before realising the limitations as their riding style changes, then buying a better, nicer bike which probably last the distance.
> 
> as for the london langs... i just threw up again.



I forgot to point out that I don't own a Langster. I have a Condor Potenza but not for aesthetic reasons.


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## MrGrumpy (31 Aug 2007)

what about the Lemond Fillmore, it looks quite nice albeit it doesn`t take mudguards racks etc, but I`m now not so sure thats important, the racier the better


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## domtyler (31 Aug 2007)

This is slightly different again, an unashamed race bike, straight off the track (well apart from the front brake).
I use it for commuting every day and just love it love it love it. So fast and agile, it slips through the smallest of gaps with room to spare.


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## MrGrumpy (31 Aug 2007)

I like that as well, is that an off the peg job ?


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## domtyler (31 Aug 2007)

It's not off the peg. You can buy the frames from terrydolan.co.uk though. The frame is alu and it has not got expensive kit (yet!). The wheels are mavic cxp22s on Ambrosio hubs made by Harry Rowland. All in was about £650.


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## peejay78 (31 Aug 2007)

those harry rowland's rock. i have the same wheelset. really glad i didn't go for velocity rims, they look pretty vile and weigh a ton.


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## Canrider (1 Sep 2007)

So:
1. Buy rust-coloured Langster
2. Repaint it (Hammerite for top marks)
3. ???
4. Profit!

Or source the US-version Langster Seattle or something. Or, just buy a bike and ride it.


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## tomb1960 (1 Sep 2007)

Have you thought about a Genesis Flyer, I am very pleased with mine, but then fixers are very very rare in Birmingham.


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## MrGrumpy (2 Sep 2007)

Genesis looks nice but I think I`ve just found something that fits my budget and looks good http://www.epic-cycles.co.uk/images/Epic Solo Big.jpg anyone no anything about these ?


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## starseven (2 Sep 2007)

A few options for reference......

Pompino

Tricross

Genesis

PaddyWagon

Langster

Pearson

Bianchi Pista


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## xroads (2 Sep 2007)

Good list, also add the giant bowery...
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-US/bikes/lifestyle/729/28462/


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## Will1985 (2 Sep 2007)

MrGrumpy said:


> tbh i don`t really like the retro look of that example you give, I`m sure its a class bike but not my taste. Had a look at the Pompino and that might be an option it comes in at £500 which also fits in with what i`m allowed to buy with the cycle2 work scheme. Only thing is Helfrauds would need to source it.


Send Brant an email asking him what to do - I've seen the scheme previously mentioned in the same sentence as on-one either on the old C+ or the on-one site.

The new black pompino frame looks hot!


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## TimO (2 Sep 2007)

Will1985 said:


> Send Brant an email asking him what to do - I've seen the scheme previously mentioned in the same sentence as on-one either on the old C+ or the on-one site.
> 
> The new black pompino frame looks hot!



I'm busy trying to get a Pompino through our Cycle 2 Work scheme, which is run by Halfords. They were supposed to order it almost two weeks ago, and I've heard bugger all, so I'll probably chase them up this week, and see what is happening. They didn't seem to have an issue with ordering stuff from Planet-X.


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## MrGrumpy (2 Sep 2007)

I`ve e-mailed Brant to enquire about stock anyway and he has told me it will be 4 -5 weeks till large sizes are in ?


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## MrGrumpy (2 Sep 2007)

starseven said:


> A few options for reference......
> 
> Pompino
> 
> ...




is the tricross not just single speed as in not fixed ? Apart from the colour it might actually be not bad. I`vbe used a road bike for commuting for so long and its been fine comfort wise but the roads are a bit rough so do a fair bit of dodging pot holes. A cycle cross bike would eat those up and be fast to boot ?

Just so many choices


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## skwerl (3 Sep 2007)

MrGrumpy said:


> is the tricross not just single speed as in not fixed ? Apart from the colour it might actually be not bad. I`vbe used a road bike for commuting for so long and its been fine comfort wise but the roads are a bit rough so do a fair bit of dodging pot holes. A cycle cross bike would eat those up and be fast to boot ?
> 
> Just so many choices



Just take the freewheel off and put a fixed sprocket on.
If it only has a f/w hub then you won't be able to fit a lockring but that's no big deal (IMHO anyway). I've never needed one.
Tricross looks pretty decent


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## MrGrumpy (3 Sep 2007)

Was in Edinburgh Bike Co Op today to see the bikes but all they had on show was sale bikes. The Langster actually looks feels quite good, nice comfy bar tape and solid looking frame. The burnt orange colour was pure boke  However i was told the green is lovely. They never had a tricross in the store which was really the one i wanted to see. They can get it in for me if I wanted to look at it. Also went down to velo ecosse down the road from the Co op they had a fix for £500, aluminium frame etc but looked kinda plain so doubt I`ll buy that.


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## Gav2000 (4 Sep 2007)

MrGrumpy said:


> Genesis looks nice but I think I`ve just found something that fits my budget and looks good http://www.epic-cycles.co.uk/images/Epic Solo Big.jpg anyone no anything about these ?



I like the look of that but have never heard of Epic before. Is it any better than a Langster though or does it just look better? I don't know the answer to that but I've already taken the plunge and bought a 'brown' Langster in the Evans sale (£140 less than the Epic). I'm very happy with it, it's comfortable, seems well built and is sensibly geared for the undulating Northamptonshire area where I live.

Gav.


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## MrGrumpy (4 Sep 2007)

I`ve been in e-mail contact with Epic about it and they have been pretty helpful. The frame and wheels looks exactly the same as the Pearson Touche, so i reckon any bike shop just buy in the frame and build it up. It looks nice but I`ve been told could have to wait upto 5 weeks. I`m not sure If i can  The Langster I`m in no doubt i could get within a few days but the orange colour is not my cup of tea, the green however looks nice enough. Anyway best not say too much on here, alot of Langster haters


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## Gav2000 (4 Sep 2007)

I haven't seen another Langster around my area so mine is exclusive, I assume the snobbery about them is a southern thing!

The 2008 New York Langster in New York taxi colours looks good (although it has flat bars), a trip to the US to buy one seemed a bit extreme though.

Gav.


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## peejay78 (4 Sep 2007)

langster? did someone say LANGSTER?

<shoots self in face with punt-gun>

nb: punt-gun:


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