Re: [CR]A nomenclature question

(Example: Framebuilding:Restoration)

In-Reply-To: <310DF80C-64E6-11D8-87F1-000A95EEDD74@earthlink.net>
References: <310DF80C-64E6-11D8-87F1-000A95EEDD74@earthlink.net>
Date: Sat, 21 Feb 2004 23:53:46 -0500
To: Russ Fitzgerald <velocio@earthlink.net>, classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
From: "Sheldon Brown" <CaptBike@sheldonbrown.com>
Subject: Re: [CR]A nomenclature question


Russ Fitzgerald wrote:
>Fellow listmembers, and most especially those across the pond,
>
>I have a question regarding nomenclature. When
>describing bicycles that feature a rear cog
>threaded directly onto the hubshell, with no
>options for coasting, my understanding was that
>"fixed gear" was the American term, while "fixed
>wheel" and "fixed gear" were both used in the
>U.K. Recently, someone suggested on another
>site that "fixed wheel" refers to such machines,
>while "fixed gear" merely denotes a cycle with a
>single gear, and to use that term to describe
>machines that do not coast, etc., is incorrect.

That is an error. "Fixed" means not coasting. I've seen this error once before, but it is such a rare usage as to be clearly erroneous, and the result of a misunderstanding.
>Before anyone starts shouting, I'll note that
>yes, language changes. Certainly in the U.S.,
>and for that matter in the U.K., "fixed gear"
>has been used pretty freely to describe our
>non-coasting obsessions. I dug through several
>vintage cycling books I have to gather more
>data, and this has been used for at least 50
>years as a general term.

"Pignon fixe" in French, too!

From http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gloss_e-f.html#fixed:

"Fixed Gear

"A rear hub in which the sprocket is rigidly connected to the hub, without a freewheel. See the entry on "Track Hubs" for details.

"The pedals of a fixed-gear bicycle revolve whenever the rear wheel turns; coasting is impossible. This type of gearing is usually associated with track racing.See my article on fixed-gears. "

joel metz, ifbma/sfbma wrote:
>
>i wouldve said that "fixed wheel" is more logical.

I don't agree, since it could be interpreted as indicating that the wheel is immoble. However, I don't object to this usage, which is, indeed quite common in Britain.
>theres nothing about the term "freewheel" that
>implies multiple gearing - it simply implies
>that the wheel is free to spin, as opposed to
>being fixed with the drivetrain.

Right.
>"fixed gear", to me, only implies the "gear" is
>fixed - meaning that the bicycle is set in one
>gear, whether free or fixed wheel.

That depends on your interpretation of the meaning of the word "gear."

If you interpret "gear" to refer to the gear _ratio_, which is a common usage, then that's true.

If, however you interpret "gear" as a synonym for "sprocket", "fixed gear" is perfectly descriptive.

I sometimes see people, usually those who are not very familiar with the technology, using the term "direct drive" when they mean "fixed gear." This is clearly incorrect when applied to a chain drive bicycle. Actual direct drive bicycles became obsolete in the early 1890s.
>"free wheel" = "freewheel" for all practical purposes,

Right.
>though technically the opposite would be
>"variable gear" (as in "variable hub gears").

No, the opposite of freewheel is fixed gear.

In common U.S. usage, a "freewheel" is distinct from a "coaster brake" even though both permit coasting.

"Freewheel" is also distinct from "Freehub." but that's another discussion.
>in french, "roue libere", eh?

"Roue libre." This is an exact translation: "roue"="wheel" and "libre"="free"
>of course, theres no "roue fixee"... (its "pignon fixee" or somesuch)

"Pignon fixe." "Pignon"="sprocket", "gear" and "fixe"="fixed."

(Ze leetle pignon, he is male, zo eet ees "fixe" and not "fixee.")
>
>these days i consider "fixed wheel" and "fixed
>gear" interchangeable though - if you talk about
>a "fixed gear" everyone assumes you mean a
>"fixed wheel". but some of us occassional
>pedant-types will call people on it if were
>feeling especially uppity. :)

"fixed gear" and "fixed wheel" are both correct, but "fixed gear" is preferred in the U.S. (and more likely to be understood.)
>"track bike", i agree, though - is yucky, but
>now part of the common vernacular... as
>typically used, its inaccurate.

I agree, "track bike" should never be used to describe any frame that wasn't designed specifically for velodrome use, and most especially not to a converted bike that was originally a coasty (coastie?)

Sheldon "No Doubt On This One" Brown Minneapolis, Minnesota +-------------------------------------------------------------+ | I still feel that variable gears are only for people over | | forty-five. Isn't it better to triumph by the strength | | of your muscles than by the artifice of a derailleur? | | We are getting soft...As for me, give me a fixed gear! | | --Henri Desgrange, _L'Šquipe_ article of 1902 | +-------------------------------------------------------------+ --
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