London Fixed-gear and Single-speed

tynan · 25th October 2007

The mean streets of 'ol London Town + Fixed gear = [color=red]?[/color] crank length.

[color=red][size=40]?[/size][/color]

Cheers.

hippy · 25th October 2007

165mm on Raleigh
170mm on Soma
172.5mm on Ribble (geared)
175mm on GT (geared)

I don't pedal strike on any but I'm slow through corners.

big daddy wayne · 25th October 2007

yes hippy is an expert on being cranky

ro-LAND · 25th October 2007

Unless you are happening to do a TT in the service roads of the Thames Flood Barrier, I would say 170mm is fine.

But 165mm is better.

big daddy wayne · 25th October 2007

hippy feeling a little cranky....

dogsballs · 25th October 2007

on track frames 165mm or 170mm never pedal strike, 170mm on a touring frame + lyotard wide pedals = lotsa strike :(

hippy · 25th October 2007

Quote:

wayne_f14:yes hippy is an expert on being cranky

boom tish! jelly snake for wayno!

tynan · 25th October 2007

Cheers ladies.

165mm it is.

tynan · 25th October 2007

Quote:

dogsballs:on track frames 165mm or 170mm never pedal strike, 170mm on a touring frame + lyotard wide pedals = lotsa strike :(

what 'lyotard' mean boss ?

(Lycra+retard?)

TheBrick(Tommy) · 25th October 2007

= hippy?

rusty · 25th October 2007

Quote:

hippy:

Quote:

wayne_f14:yes hippy is an expert on being cranky

boom tish! jelly snake for wayno!

Aww I'd love a Jelly snake.

Something I heard yesterday:

"I don't associate bears and worms at all. Not until I think of the word gummy"

Momentum · 25th October 2007

You need to think about your height and leg length as well, since that's the main criteria for crank length. People usually go a bit shorter on fixed gears than on geared bikes to minimise the risk of pedal strike and to be able to spin faster (since you can't change gear to stay at a steady cadence). I would say on a fixed gear that most people go for 165mm with people with legs longer than about 33" starting to go for 170s. Some companies do 167.5s which could be a happy medium.

dogsballs · 25th October 2007

Quote:

tynan:

Quote:

dogsballs:on track frames 165mm or 170mm never pedal strike, 170mm on a touring frame + lyotard wide pedals = lotsa strike :(

what 'lyotard' mean boss ?

(Lycra+retard?)

nice vintage pedals ;)

stompy · 25th October 2007

Quote:

roland:Unless you are happening to do a TT in the service roads of the Thames Flood Barrier, I would say 170mm is fine.

But 165mm is better.

I managed on 170 - but I came last. :-(

I hear that shorter is easier for spinning and skidding.

tynan · 25th October 2007

Quote:

dogsballs:

Quote:

tynan:

Quote:

dogsballs:on track frames 165mm or 170mm never pedal strike, 170mm on a touring frame + lyotard wide pedals = lotsa strike :(

what 'lyotard' mean boss ?

(Lycra+retard?)

nice vintage pedals ;)

Gotcha !

badtmy · 25th October 2007

i think about 5-7 minutes should do it.

hippy · 25th October 2007

Quote:

TheBrick(Tommy):= hippy?

I resemble that remark!

tynan · 25th October 2007

Quote:

Momentum:You need to think about your height and leg length as well, since that's the main criteria for crank length. People usually go a bit shorter on fixed gears than on geared bikes to minimise the risk of pedal strike and to be able to spin faster (since you can't change gear to stay at a steady cadence). I would say on a fixed gear that most people go for 165mm with people with legs longer than about 33" starting to go for 170s. Some companies do 167.5s which could be a happy medium.

Cheers, good information, I do happen to have (beautiful) long legs (for my height) - so maybe 170mm might be an option (?)

. . . wait, let me get a tape measure . . . .

How do you measure leg length ??

Is it the bottom of your foot (the floor) right up to the inside of the crown jewels ?

tynan · 25th October 2007

I uses this method:

The procedure is as follows: Stand in an upright position, without shoes, on a hard floor, and with your feet about 25cm (10") apart. Place the spine of a book about 1.5 inches (3.5cm) wide between your legs firmly, but without causing pain. The measure is then taken vertically from floor to the edge of the book.

I came out at 33.75".

If I can find a 675.5mm that would be great, but it looks like 165mm / 170mm should also be fine - (they are going on a track frame).

I normally ride 175mm on my MTB.

kilgore_trout · 25th October 2007

165 on all fixed gears
172.5 on my road bike

certain velodromes mandate 165 cranks.

BringMeMyFix · 25th October 2007

165s probably give you about 10 extra rpm at the top end of your cadence spectrum.

I went back to 170s cos I can still manage 200rpm with 'em, and I can use the extra leverage to get up severe climbs. (I'm 31" IL)

In an ideal world where I had more bikes and money, I'd have 165s on my track bike, 170s on my road fixed, and 180s on my hillclimb bike, but life's too short....

... though in an ideal world I'd have one life a bit longer than my other one to give me more time to get up climbs.

Momentum · 25th October 2007

I'm no expert, but it's the modern world so I was able to google for this which is a pretty good summary. Also Bringmemyfix covers the key points.

http://www.cptips.com/crnklth.htm

Key quote to remember there "Track riders generally choose crankarms up to 5 mm shorter and mountain bikers up to 5 mm longer than the above recommendations"

hippy · 25th October 2007

Every piece of advice with a grain of salt, e.g. "trackies will use 165mm".. yeah sure, that is quite common on the track but what if you're a pursuiter? Some guys are using 180mm cranks on the track! I can feel a difference within the 165-175mm range but it's not massive so it will come down to use of bike and personal feeling of various cranks. Spin to win!

More: http://www.cyclingforums.com/t123442-track-crank-length.html

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25th October 2007	#1
tynan	The mean streets of 'ol London Town + Fixed gear = [color=red]?[/color] crank length. [color=red][size=40]?[/size][/color] Cheers.
	quote reply

25th October 2007	#2
hippy	165mm on Raleigh 170mm on Soma 172.5mm on Ribble (geared) 175mm on GT (geared) I don't pedal strike on any but I'm slow through corners.
	quote reply

25th October 2007	#3
big daddy wayne	yes hippy is an expert on being cranky
	quote reply

25th October 2007	#4
ro-LAND	Unless you are happening to do a TT in the service roads of the Thames Flood Barrier, I would say 170mm is fine. But 165mm is better.
	quote reply

25th October 2007	#6
dogsballs	on track frames 165mm or 170mm never pedal strike, 170mm on a touring frame + lyotard wide pedals = lotsa strike :(
	quote reply

25th October 2007	#12
Momentum	You need to think about your height and leg length as well, since that's the main criteria for crank length. People usually go a bit shorter on fixed gears than on geared bikes to minimise the risk of pedal strike and to be able to spin faster (since you can't change gear to stay at a steady cadence). I would say on a fixed gear that most people go for 165mm with people with legs longer than about 33" starting to go for 170s. Some companies do 167.5s which could be a happy medium.
	quote reply

25th October 2007	#16
badtmy	i think about 5-7 minutes should do it.
	quote reply

25th October 2007	#20
kilgore_trout	165 on all fixed gears 172.5 on my road bike certain velodromes mandate 165 cranks.
	quote reply

25th October 2007	#21
BringMeMyFix	165s probably give you about 10 extra rpm at the top end of your cadence spectrum. I went back to 170s cos I can still manage 200rpm with 'em, and I can use the extra leverage to get up severe climbs. (I'm 31" IL) In an ideal world where I had more bikes and money, I'd have 165s on my track bike, 170s on my road fixed, and 180s on my hillclimb bike, but life's too short.... ... though in an ideal world I'd have one life a bit longer than my other one to give me more time to get up climbs.
	quote reply

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