Just in: Pearson Cycles Once More Unto the Breach

Pearson Cycles have made a bold attempt to rebrand their range of road bikes in the past year. We were really impressed with the carbon race bike HammerAndTongs. The Once More Unto the Breach we have here is their singlespeed/fixed wheel offering and costs £799.

Based in London, Pearson Cycles know a thing or two about cycling in and around London and this shows in the Once More. The smartly designed 7005 aluminium frame has double butted tubes to save a bit of weight. It’s finished in a very smart paint finish with some nice contrasting white panels. It proudly wears a sticker on the seat tube that reminds you that Pearson is the longest-running bike shop in the world.

It looks from the geometry of the Pearson that it's aimed at road cyclists who want to ride fixed as a main bike through the winter, as much as their popularity ensures they're the go-to choice for city commuters. A road bike with one gear, in essence. Back in the olden days people might have thought twice about an aluminium frame for riding long distances, but modern alu frames offer plenty of ccomfors and there's not reason to think this one shouldn't be comfortable on the longer rides this bike is surely capable of. The weight and geometry certainly suggest you should get a stable and light ride. Condor's Tempo, a similarly pitched fixed/singlespeed, springs to mind as a good comparison. The head tube on this 56cm size is on the short side, just 128mm, which should ensure a racy position for tackling head winds at this time of year. If steel is your thing, there is also a steel version the Now You See Me which is a chunk of change cheaper at £649.99 and is made from Reynolds chromoly steel. Our guess, and that's all it is, is that the difference in price tag suggests that the Once More Unto the Breach is lighter.

Up front is a carbon fibre fork with a mudguard mount at the dropout. The hubs are the track-style large flange design with 32 spokes in both wheels. Rims are 30mm deep with reinforced eyelets, to add extra strength and robustness. 25mm Vittoria Rubino tyres with a white stripe to match the frames paint job completes the wheel package.

It wears the necessary mounts and has the clearance for fitting proper full-length mudguards.The rear hub is a flip flop design, with a threaded sprocket carrier on both sides. It comes fitted with a singlespeed freewheel on one side and a fixed sprocket on the other, making it easy to go singlespeed or fixed wheel.

The finishing on our test bike comes from Italian company Deda. There are plenty of spacers to allow us to get a good fit.

Brakes come from the TRP stable of components and are RRL Alloy brake levers pulling on R539 black polished calipers.

Geometry on this 56cm example (seven sizes are available) is a 73° head angle with a 72° seat angle. The head tube is short, keeping the bars low, at 128mm.

The Driveline Track Chainset has a 48t chainring and this combines with an 18t fixed and singlespeed sprockets out back. This gives a 70in gear which is good for places like London, but anywhere hilly and you might want to consider dropping down to something smaller like a 67.

The complete bike as pictured costs £799. You can buy the frame and fork for £449.

More details at www.pearsoncycles.co.uk