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Dirt Rag Articles
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Tester: Kent Peterson
Age: 47
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 135lbs.
Inseam: 30"
Vital Stats
Price: $499
Weight: 23.6lbs.
Sizes Available (cm): 52, 54 (tested), 56, 58, 60
Country of Origin: China
Contact: www.redlinebikes.com
The Redline 925 attracts comments and questions. A fellow commuter asks me about the bike while we're both stopped at an intersection, a messenger blesses the bike as "sweet" before dashing off on his next urgent errand, and the bike gets serious study at the coffee shop bike rack. But like a well-built woman who wants to be known for her brains, the Redline 925 has a problem. It's what I've come to call "those damn bars."
The 925 is Redline's urban fixed-gear bike and while it's an inexpensive rig, it is definitely more than minimal. The handlebars are what everyone notices first; the 925 is crowned with a swooping moustache bar. I first saw moustache bars back in 1992 on a Bridgestone X0-1. The elegant dual arcs promise a multitude of hand positions, but every curvy spot on the bars make my wrists ache. Yes, I can move my hands to lots of different positions, but I can also toss and turn all night on a lumpy mattress. That doesn't mean I've gotten comfortable. The bars do have one nice flat spot out on the ends that offers good leverage for climbing, but I prefer a narrower bar for riding in traffic. I know many folks love these bars and I really did experiment and try to love them. In the end, I couldn't, and wound up swapping them out for my tried and true, cut-down MTB bars with bar-ends.
Once I got past the bars, I found a lot to like about the 925. The butted chromoly frame is paired with a straight-legged steel fork. Redline frames tend toward the functional rather than the pretty, so there are no fancy lugs or polished welds; everything looks proportional on this bike. The 54cm frame has head and seat tube angles of 72 and 74 degrees respectively. In the larger sizes the head tube angle increases by one degree while the seat tube angle gets a degree or two slacker.
In any size, the 925 will be nimble in traffic. Redline got their start and reputation in the world of BMX. They know how to make a bike that goes where you point it and can do just what you need when it comes to hopping a curb or dodging a pothole. The 925 has a very nice balance of zip and cush. Like all Redlines, maybe the frame is a little beefier than it needs to be, and to hit the very reasonable price point some of the stock components might be more in weight and less in price than what I'd pick. But the 925 delivers a good bit of bang for the buck.
The 925 can be ridden as either a fixed gear or singlespeed. With a bottom bracket height of 269mm and 165mm cranks, the 925 has decent clearance for cornering without being too skittish. Those relatively short cranks also make it easier to spin high RPMs, a handy thing when your top speed is limited by how fast you can pedal. Basic physics tells me that longer cranks give better climbing leverage, but I found I could negotiate all my usual Seattle area hills with the 165mm cranks and stock 42 by 15-tooth fixed gearing. I personally tend to favor the simplicity and silence of the fixed experience, but the opposite side of the 925's flip-flop hub sports a 16-tooth freewheel. Switching to the freewheel side lets you literally buzz down the hills and coast through turns.
The 925 comes with 36-hole Formula sealed bearing hubs laced to Alex Ace19 rims, and the wheels seem up to the daily challenges encountered in our ever-deteriorating urban infrastructure. Like almost all machine-built wheels, it's worthwhile to have a human tension and true the wheels when you first pull the 925 out of the box. Despite those Terminator movies, the machines haven't taken over yet and wheel truing is one of those areas where humanity still prevails. The tough wheels are shod with 30mm wide IRC Tandem 700c tires, a good choice for grim roads.
Redline is headquartered in the Pacific Northwest and a certain damp sensibility is notable in the 925. When you live and work in the Seattle area, you think about fenders. The 925 has eyelet mounts on the fork and rear horizontal (track) ends, and comes with a set of Planet Bike fenders. Like most stock fenders, I wish they'd extend a bit lower for better coverage, but that's a problem easily addressed with a set of homebrew mud flaps. The 425mm chainstays allow the fenders and tires, up to 32 mm, to comfortably coexist. Some folks might wish for a second set of eyelets in the rear for mounting a rack, but by swapping for slightly longer M5 bolts, a rack and fender can share the same eyelet.
The 925 has a bit too much practicality to be perfectly fashionable. Fixed purists will see the dual pivot Tektro caliper brakes as excessive, but they make a lot of sense on this bike. Many 925s will be ridden as singlespeeds instead of fixies and one brake per wheel is what you need on a singlespeed. I must be too old to be cool, because I like having two brakes on my fixie.
And I like the 925. Despite my irreconcilable differences with the moustache bars, I think Redline made very smart choices when they designed this bike. I'm sure those damn bars are just perfect for some folks and lots of people will check out the bike because of them. Smart. Very smart.
| Exclusive Dirt Rag Web-Only Extras For Redline 925 | Make: Redline
Model: 925
Model year: 2006
Type: Road
Country of origin: Taiwan
Wheel size: 700c
Frame material: Double butted chromoly
Handlebar: Redline moustache type
Stem: Redline cold forged 6061
Headset: Aheadset STS
BB: VP 68x110
Crank: Redline Alloy, 42t chainring
Pedals: Wellgo alloy cage
Chain: KMC Z30
Saddle: Redline
Seatpost: Redline cold forged
Front hub: Formula SB low flange 36h
Rear hub: Formula SB low flange 36h fixed/free
Cassette: ACS 16t free/ 15t fixed
Brakes: Tektro
Rim: Alex ACE 19
Tires: IRC Tandem 700x30c folding
Sizes available: 52, 54 (tested), 56, 58, 60
Colors: Grey
Weight: 23.6lbs.
MSRP: $499
Company website: www.redlinebikes.com
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| Comment from sam on 2009-01-11 |
| The mustache bars have to sharp a bend in them to fit hands. There was a guy in the shop when I bought mine raving about his mustaches, so I tried his. They had a larger gentler curve, and you could hold any part of the bar comfortably. I can see why he liked his, but the 925's version of them sucks.
The shop swapped in straight MTB bars in for me.
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| Comment from Cascade 1200 Fin on 2008-10-03 |
| This looks like a totally sweet bike. I agree with you that two brakes on a fixie is worth considering, especially if you have loved ones hoping you make it back in one piece. Don't be a tool... if you don't like brakes don't use 'em. |
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| Comment from Dave Q. on 2008-03-06 |
| Just bought one and love it (especially for the clearance price of $350). I'm going to give the moustache bar a chance...I can always swap it out at a later date. I love how smoothly you can get going from a light, though going downhill certainly takes some getting used to with the fixed gear. Nevertheless...a great deal of fun for not a lot of cash! |
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