Yep. I’ve done my research. Done my test drives.
This is my new ride.
I’m so psyched!
New shoes, helmet and gloves. I’m so ready for the first warm day! It’ll be a 50 mile ride.
wOOt!
Just kidding.
Congratulations - have fun on your first (and subsequent) rides!
That would be me.
So, how’s she ride?, what’s the performance like?
looks like a nice bike, a little too cramped for me, but you stated earlier that you like the compact layout…
i’m beginning to get Cabin Fever myself, time to drag the ol’ Trek 4500 and Fila Taos Singlespeed out of mothballs…
the real question is, since i love Singlespeeding, is it more logical to retrofit the old Fila with horizontal drops and a new rear hub (tensioners just don’t work right, tried a Surly Singleator and an old broken rear deraileur, neither one worked properly, the Singleator kept eating tensioner springs and the deraileur allows too much chain jumping) or just bite the bullet and just get a Redline Monocog all set to go, a purpose-built SS
OOOOH!! Me likey the Redline 9-2-5 even better, a roadie/commuter hybrid with mustache bars…
I haven’t go the pedals on it yet. Still deciding between Speed Play and Look.
But the bike fits exactly like the Trek Madone 5.2. Hard to say how it will perform over time. I’m hoping as well as it fits.
I’ve got another couple of weeks before the weather is warm enough to ride without winter gear and I’ve got a cyclocomputer still to pick, and a few other add ons (seat bag, pump, cage) to pick out.
Oh, and I’m swapping out the handlebars for these bad boys.
Nice. Like the bars.
Single speed… what’s that like to ride?
Not bad, but my bike was the best bike in the whole WORLD! And then Peewee Herman stole it.
hard to describe, there’s something…simple, and pure about having only one gear
the bike is silent, no clattering of deraileurs
it’s efficient, a crank, a rear gear, and a chain, no power lost through deraileurs, no chain drag
the ride is smooth and pure, two pedals, a crank, a gear and two wheels, can’t get much simpler, much like the bikes of your childhood, before things got cluttered and complicated
it makes you a stronger rider, you have to conserve forward momentum, if you have a hill to climb, no gearing-down to a granny gear and spinning like crazy, you get up off the seat, and hammer those pedals, you may make it, you may not, if you don’t there’s always the next ride, there’s no shame in walking a hill because you’ve pounded your legs to rubber…
it’s tough, it’s tiring, it’s brutal, your legs and lungs will be burning after a good climb
and i love it
there’s no satisfaction quite like climbing a big hill on a single gear, looking back from the summit and saying to yourself "i made it…on one gear
(it’s even better if you pass some gearie riders spinning away like maniacs 
)
SS’ing isn’t for everyone, some will love it, some will HATE it, but there’s typically no gray area, it’s a love/hate kind of thing…
you can simulate SS’ing by shifting to the middle ring on the crank, and choosing a gear on the rear cluster that gives you an almost straight chainline
It’s a beauty … congrats! 
What? :dubious:
It’s not some pink girly bike with tassles, straw basket and a tinkle bell.
It’s a finely crafted Fuck Off Fast and Manly rig.
“Beauty”… Ha!
Skirt.
I think someone’s insecure about his bike’s sexuality…
Oops. I was going to suggest that you get one of these. Guess it’s too late.
If you are deciding between Look and Speedplay, I’d recommend Speedplay. I made the switch from Look to Speedplay a few years ago.
Advantages:
-
Cleats last longer. Much longer. Part of this is due to the fact that the wearing surface on the Speedplay is steel, not plastic. Also, the part of the speedplay cleat that wears while walking in the cleats is not the part that engages the pedal. I was getting tired of changing the Look cleats every month or two (usually a few minutes before the start of a race). Speedplay cleats last about 9 months for me.
-
Lighter.
-
The pedals seem to last longer too. Once Shimano quit making the Dura Ace Look pedals, I tried the Look brand pedals. Never had a set last more than a year. The part the engages the cleat would wear and even new cleats wouldn’t hold in the pedal.
Disadvantages:
- Mud, dirt, or sand in the cleats is hell. Usually not a problem, but sometimes you have to walk in the stuff. Then you have to take the time to clean them out.
I looked at the BMC.
It’s really the business, in’it?!
As for pedals/cleats… I have used the speed plays and spd but never the look system. I like that you can walk in the look better than in speed play. Not that I plan to do a lot of walking. Also, the look cleats are much cheaper.
Really my main concern is how much float is available on the look pedals. I know that speedplay goes from 0 to 15 on the adjustable ones and 25 degrees on the non adjustable.
Also, why the fuck are wireless cadence computers so expensive now? And so hard to find? They used to be cheaper and much more readily available IIRC.
IIRC, the black Look cleats are zero float and the red are 0-9. I’ve used the Look system ever since I switched to clipless in 1990. I’ve got a Bianchi Limited I converted to single-speed about 3 years ago. It has a BMX hub so I can flip it from single speed to fixed gear. I’ve just been too chicken to ride it in fixed gear mode (despite Kevin Bacon’s influence from the movie, Quicksilver, natch).
I have some serious bike lust for the 925 - it looks like a winner, a real quality commuter/fun bike for not too much cash. One of the few new, desirable (to me) bikes that I could really justify to myself. I never really felt the urge to jump to singlespeed or fixed-gear before I saw it.
Quicksilver, nice bike. I’m a fan of old-school, classic geometry and construction, and that bike looks fast without looking grotesque.
[hijack]
My first racing bike was a Bianchi Limited with 7 speed Shimano 600 components. I bought it in 1990. Those parts eventually ended up on other frames, but I still have the brake calipers on my Litespeed today.
[/hijack]
Yes the Look cleats are cheaper, but you’ll be changing them every two months. And while they do float a little bit, be prepared to spend some time fine tuning the cleat position. They are not as forgiving as Speedplay when it comes to cleat alignment.
Oh, I almost forgot. Look cleats tend to squeek at times.
To make matters worse, the 9-2-5 is actually affordable as well, it hits all my requirements…
SS/Fixie flip-flop hub; check
Steel frame (i HATE aluminum frames); check
Brakes (i’m not suicidially insane enough to go brakeless fixie); Check
Mustache bars; Check
and it’s around $400-450 at a local shop, looks like i’ve got my tax refund money spent…