August 12th, 2008 by 
thien
Schwinn’s Madison is a moderately low cost entry into the world of fixed gear and single speed fun. A complete bike that includes a track inspired geometry frame (double butted Cro-Moly), with an “N’Gauged” straight track fork complete with brazed crown. A 48 tooth chainring Truvativ Touro Track Crank paired with a 18t cog or 18t ACS freewheel keep things moving along briskly. The all steel frameset runs on a pair of semi aero rims laced to standard track fare Formula hubs. Wrapped in Schwalbe Lugano Sport tires, the setup makes for a solid ride. Braking comes via a set of Tektro 510A dual pivot calipers, standard for a bike in this price range. The rest of the components, we’ll just mention are standard entry level parts, matching the rest of the bike.
The complete package comes in at a grand total weight of ~22.5 pounds according to our scale. Maybe not your first choice to go hit up the local climb to try to best your PR, but plenty of bike to roll around town in style.
August 12th, 2008 at 8:45 pm
I’ve been thinking of getting a Madison… Do you know if they are changing anything major for 2009? Any ideas what the new color scheme will be?
August 13th, 2008 at 9:16 am
Not sure about changes, but I’ve heard that the 09 colors will be a yellow and a yellow/black.
August 14th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
No rack mounts is a deal breaker for me.
August 14th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
yeah, I felt some rack mounts would have been sweet too…
August 16th, 2008 at 12:08 pm
the worst track bike in the world!
it feels soooo ugly
August 16th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Looks like Schwinn will be selling another single speed in 2009. $300 is the number being kicked around. Check it out at the UrbanVelo site: http://urbanvelo.org/schwinn-cutter/
Don’t know what this means for the Madison.
August 17th, 2008 at 8:46 am
The Madison is an OK Bike, and I’ve seen plenty of them around. However, after lots of research, I bought a bianchi San Jose. Single speed, horizontal drops, and rack/fender mounts, for about the same price. I road it all year round’ thru the winter with skinny tires and never had a problem. BTW, I live in Madison, WI…
September 10th, 2008 at 1:03 am
I hope these are strong frames if there going for the look of my 1980 Schwinn Voyageur or the other ones with the similiar look just below the Paramounts from the 70’s and 80’s.Who makes the frames ?? Probably not the good makers of the original ones from the 70’s and 80’s from Japan.No lugs so maybe that helps to make them affordable.Hope there on par with the Surlys at least with the steel.
September 10th, 2008 at 8:19 pm
our shop has sold a few of these. mostly to unbearable hipsters. these things ride like they’re made of recycled revolutionary war cannons. which is to say the ride is horrible. _fine_ steel can ride nice. tubing like this should best be left for making lamp posts.
September 20th, 2008 at 12:15 pm
How do they make it so heavy. I ride an old Schwinn Prologue conversion that weigns in at 17 lbs. I don’t get it.
September 21st, 2008 at 8:52 pm
I think its a pretty looking bike. I’m looking to build up a fixie with commuter bars and ride it freewheel with the two brakes. The Madison could be the ticket…
September 25th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
When will the 2009 Model be in the stores? I want one in Black so I can do some additional customization. I plan to use it to ride the San Luis Rey River Trail in Oceanside, CA.
September 30th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
the 09 models should be availiable in november. The black one doesn’t look to bad wit the yellow rims, but the yellow is the ugliest yellow possible.
October 7th, 2008 at 9:48 am
I would go for Lunetten Entrada instead of that one.
October 22nd, 2008 at 12:58 pm
I bought a 2007 Madison (slightly tighter geometry, but roughly the same otherwise) when it first came out, and I’m still very happy with it as my daily ride. I’ve replaced a lot of the components by now, of course, as I had money to burn, but the stock components are decent. Replacing the stem, seatpost, and bars along with removing the rear brake made a good difference weight-wise. I beg to differ with “thejerk” — all these Taiwanese-made off the peg track bikes from Schwinn, Bianchi, Masi, Surly, IRO, et al. are using the same generic 4130 cro-moly. (Those that are not are using Reynolds 520, which is essentially the same thing.) Ride-wise, I couldn’t notice a difference between it and friends’ Pistas, Kilo TTs, Fuji Tracks, and the like. Definitely rides nicer than the Langster I rode around for a few blocks, too.
BTW, the Cutter is going to be made using hi-tensile steel to compete directly with low-priced bikes like the SE Lager Draft, etc. It’s probably going to weigh a good bit more, as a result. Not that I haven’t thought about picking one up as a trick/polo bike…
October 30th, 2008 at 5:43 am
I bought this bike in July, and love it. I picked it up on sale, paid $365 for it. Agree that components need upgrades (I’ve replaced brakes, seatpost, tires, added clipless pedals, and switched rear cog to 16t), but it is a blast to ride. I use it as a daily commuter, as well as for longer rides just for the fun of it. It is a tad heavy, but even when climbing it never really feels it. The steel does a good job of taking the sting out of rough roads. Overall a great bike for the money.
May 13th, 2009 at 7:58 pm
Bike rides fine. Most idiots who claim a bike rides bad have never eve ridden the so called bad ride they are babbling about. Let the white noise clueless comments be just that, clueless white noise. LOL
June 24th, 2009 at 9:19 am
I’ll stick to my 1985 Nishiki 12-speed, but this is a nice late model SS (nee ‘track bike’, I hate that term since less than 1% of these will ever be ridden on a track).
the flip hub is a sweet concept, and I’m not sure why more SS road bikes don’t come with one. I don’t understand why every road bike has to be yellow. to me, this is one of the best (and I normally hate powder blue, but the silver really makes it happen). I enjoy multiple gears too much, but if I had to pick a single, this is one I’d strongly consider. agree with the bloke who said all these generic frames are the same. yes they SHOULD be lighter than they are, but that’s the cost of using such large diameter tubing these days. if you’re going to go with a new bike and want SS, you should be giving this a look.
June 24th, 2009 at 9:20 am
‘best’ should read ‘best looking’
July 9th, 2009 at 10:14 am
I had a 1975 Schwinn Continental that I had fixed. It was nice, but rode like a 30 year old bike with lots of creaks. I sold the old Schwinn and picked up the 2008 Madison. I love this bike and it provides a solid but light ride through Boston each day. I jumped on the 2008 for the color scheme, and it was a lot cheaper than the 2009. I plan on updating a few things, but I’m very happy with this ride.
If you’re interested in the Madison, it’s at least worth a test ride.
July 18th, 2009 at 11:00 am
i rode a white 2007 for 2 years…. they are heavy cuz of the cheap parts. buy the bike for the frame sell all the cheap parts to someone just getting into \fixie\ riding… and put nice cranks.wheels.etc on it. it treated me well. i actually threw it around quite a bit before it got stolen last week. no cracks or anything. good frame. strong.
July 22nd, 2009 at 7:30 am
As “brian s” says, I like gears too much, and I’m less than a year away from being 60…but I bought one anyway and although I’m going to configure the bike as a “Social Security” model (42t chainring, leave both brakes mounted), I will ride it. Once I’m a little more comfortable on the frame, I’ll flip the hub and be “the old man living dangerously”. Mine is yellow, put on cow horn bars and rewrapped with yellow/black cork tape and think it came out n-i-c-e. Be safe, they’re not looking out for us.
August 14th, 2009 at 3:33 am
I raced one of the old, late 70’s, Schwinn Madison’s to many top placings on the track. It did not have rack mounts, brakes, or any other needless accessories. Just straight Columbus SL tubes and Suntour Superbe Pro crankset and wheels. I can’t believe I every parted with that bike. For anyone unhappy with the “new” Madison, go to your local velodromo and check out the used bike listings.
August 15th, 2009 at 6:41 pm
I was almost ready to buy a Kilo TT Pro, now I am going to have to go check out
the Schwinn Madison at my local Schwinn dealer.
October 5th, 2009 at 6:24 pm
Great bike. Great fun. No big deal. I bought this bike one year ago at a dramatic discount, changed the handlebars to Nitto Allrounders, and even added a vintage Schwinn headbadge. Two thousand miles later I still get a kick out of riding this bike around town and even on some half centuries, so much so that it has virtually replaced my “real” bike as my daily rider. It’s a cheap bike but so what? I can’t explain it but there’s real beauty in this Madison.I feel like a kid again when I ride it.