complience said:
apparently the cannondale badboy 8 is not a fixie.. its got a drum hub with eight gears.
ive got no idea what that actualy is or means?
is it like fixie with a few gears?
does it freewheel?
For the benefit of others in case there is a nomenclature problem ...
A "fixie" has a drivetrain that is "borrowed" from Track/Pista racing ... direct drive ... you can, as on a unicycle, run the rear wheel forward OR in reverse.
A single-speed may be a "fixie" ... in addition, a single-speed coaster brake bike and a BMX bike are also two more examples of single speed bikes.
Apparently, some/many bike messengers DO have true fixies because it is much easier to "track stand" with a fixie than with a bike that can freewheel ...
Now, whether-or-not being able to execute a track stand on your bike is important to you will determine whether you want a "fixie" or simply a single-speed.
The Cannondale BAD BOY must have an internal geared hub ... akin to a 3-speed Sturmey-Archer hub, but with more gear ratios. There are advantages AND disadvantages to an internally geared bike.
BTW/FWIW. The reason that I (in particular) have mentioned the
ACS CLAW single-speed BMX freewheel (in other threads) is because it has 4-pawls ... it is a brick, but I've got to believe that it is the most "reliable" in the normal-people's-price-range. Some BMX freewheels only have 1-pawl. For some reason, BMXers don't like the Shimano BMX freewheel (but, this may be a similar prejudice as the one MTBers have against Shimano). Apparently, you can pay 4x as much for a White Bros. (?) BMX freewheel, but I don't know ANYTHING about it.
... I don't know if the RALEIGH XXIX has a flip-flop hub.