Buy Fixie

If you are serious about biking, then you should consider getting a bicycle maintenance book. There are many options out there for you. One option is
Bicycle! Manifesto which describes how all the parts of a bicycle work together. The book is written in a form that flows well together and should be a pretty enjoyable read.

Being properly prepared for your fixed gear conversion will make the process a lot more enjoyable. If you know more about what your doing it will probably make you a lot less frustrated if something is not working out quite right.

The easiest and most important bicycle maintenance that you can perform on your bike is cleaning the chain. This process is important because a properly lubricated chain will reduce wear on the bike's drivetrain.

Measure your Chain
It is possible for a bike chain to wear out. So the first step you should take before you clean your chain should be to make sure it is still in working order. The way you do this is measure the distance between the center of the pegs on 12 links. This should be right on the 12 inch mark. If it is less than 1/16th an inch different then the chain is in good condition. If it is between 1/16 and 1/8 of an inch different it is time to replace the chain. If the chain is past 1/8 an inch off, then it has probably done damage to some of the sprockets and the cassette should be replaced as well.

Cleaning Your Chain
The easiest way to clean your chain is to use a bike chain cleaning tool:
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To use this tool you simply fill with degreaser, attach to your chain, and spin the pedals. It does the rest.

The lowest tech way to clean your chain is with biodegradable degreaser, a rag, and a toothbrush. First, take the rag and soak it in some degreaser. Then wipe the grime off the chain. This should take a few minutes. The second part is to take the toothbrush, adding degreaser to that or directly onto the chain and brushing in between all the nooks and crannies.

What tool is good to have in your biking toolset, and only costs a few bucks? Thats right, the lockring tool! What do you use a lockring tool for you might ask? Well, in a fixed gear conversion, the lockring tool is good for getting the old hub off and tightening the now lockring.

Thats not all! The best part of having a lockring is to do maintenance on your bike. If you retain a road bike after your conversion, the best way to clean the cassette out is to take it off and clean it by submerging it in a cleaning solution. It is less important on a fixed gear bike, but still a good maintenance item if you like your bike to be in top order.

If you want to be properly stocked up on tools you will need on your fixie project, consider purchasing a chain whip. It will be basically necessary to take off and secure cogs that have been put onto the hub very tightly. If you do not get a chain whip for your fixed gear conversion project then I am not sure how you would take the cog on and off.

So you decided you don't necessarily want to convert your old road bike into a fixed gear bike. You would rather buy a fixie, eh? Fair enough. There are some good options out there. One of the most popular fixed-gear bikes is the Bianchi Pista. This bike is made for going fast, and I think you will agree that it is a very fast bike.

We have located some cheap, low priced Bianchi Pista bikes on ebay for you:
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Just remember, if your going to jump right in on an expensive fixed-gear bike to take it slow if you don't want it to get all scratced up. Of course, scratches on a bike don't really hurt it or anything like that so I say don't worry about it too much, and just enjoy your ride.

If you read the reviews for the Bianchi Pista you will find that most people like to ride it as their main bike in the city. Since it is a fixie, it is very easy to clean and maintain. This is useful in city riding in the winter and such when there is all kinds of salt and muck on the road.

One of the parts you will need in a fixed gear bike conversion project is the back cog. Sometimes, if you buy a fixed gear wheelset it will come with a back cog, other times it will not. You need to double check before you go and buy your rear cog. In order to use a fixed gear cog, you must have a lockring as well.

Picking your gearing is one of the most important parts of converting to a fixie. You want something that will not be too hard to pedal up and down hills. Remember, on the downhill you have to pedal just as fast as your going just like the uphill. But you also want a gear that is low enough to be able to make it up the hills as well. A 16 cog will probably be best if you are beginning.

How a Fixed-Wheel Bike works
Fixed Wheel hubs have two threads on them. The larger of the two threads takes the track sprocket, the smaller reversed-thread uses a special lockring. The way this works is the lockring screws in backwards and if the sprocket tries to unscrew, the lockring tightens. This is important because to slow down on a fixed wheel bike, you push back on the pedals which would otherwise stop the bike from moving.

New Wheel or Old Wheel
For the lowest cost option to building a fixed gear bike, you can use your old rear wheel, and just replace the hub. The faster way to get your fixie rolling is to buy a new fixed-gear wheelset. The biggest advantage of a new wheelset is that you can run a lockring to hold the rear sprocket on.

Spacing
The spacing of a bike is the distance between the two rear fork ends. It is measured in millimeters and when buying fixed gear hubs it is important to know what the spacing of your bike is. The best way to measure the spacing of your wheels is to use a ruler to get the distance between the inside edge of the two locknuts.

Usually a road bike will have a spacing between 120 mm and 130, track bikes between 110 and 120 and mountain bikes are usually 135 mm. It is best to either measure it yourself or look at the bike's documentation.