single speed advice.

[videojetman]

i am converting one of bikes to single speed, i have ordered the rear cog & spacers.
my question is about the chain ring, i am thinking of using my trusty old deore crank.
but if i just run with the mddle ring will that be adequate or should i buy a specific chainring for the job ?
if i do have to order a specific chainring for this purpose can someone advize me on where is the best place to get one and also what bcd i should use with deore cranks, thanks in advance. jeff.

 

[lewisfoto]

Re:

You can definitely use your current chainset and middle ring, as long as the gearing ratio is something you are comfortable pushing up the big hills. If your current middle ring is 36 teeth then you will want to pick a cog that will give you about 1.8 gear inches as a starting point or approximately 20 teeth. (depending on how aggressive you want to ride and how steep the hills are)

It becomes a bit more tricky when one begins to consider aesthetics. I have always liked to run the chain ring on the outside (big ring) position on single speed builds. This may make the chain line a bit too far off so replacing the BB spindle may be in order. But with a cassette hub you should be able to customize the chain line with the spacers already in hand.

Hope this makes sense

 

[mattr]

Do you have a tensioner, or horizontal dropouts? One or the other will be required, or a magic ratio.

Also, standard rings have shift ramps and pins etc which allow the chain to easily move off the ring, if there is anything at all wobbly about your set up (chain tension or chain line) it *may* cause a problem. Even with magic ratio/tensioner/horizontal drop outs.

A single speed (or DH) ring has none of the cut outs/shift features, and has longer teeth, so is much more tolerant to a slightly wobbly set up.

 

[firedfromthecircus]

Not much to add to the good advice above, but if you do decide to change your ring then the Surly SS chainrings are pretty decent. Long lasting steel and available in a variety of BCDs. Charlie the Bikemonger would be a good place to look.

 

[barry2017]

This is all sound advice. I would want to keep my front mech on fixed in place if I was using a ramped chainring, though. Losing your chain can also mean losing your teeth.

I quite like the Stronglight ones available at Spa Cycles. They're not as good as a Surly chainring, but 1/4 of the price.

Running a single chainring means running narrower bolts, but I've used an angle grinder to take the teeth off a big ring in the past. It was an effective bashguard too.

 

[Chris99]

Re:

After running s SS bike for a few years now, with various flavours of kit. I can recommend fitting Surly parts.
They may cost more but worth it. The main benefit is they last, and the chain doesn't fall off.

 

[barry2017]

The chain won't come off with any unramped ring, unless it is worn out.

Don't get me wrong, Surly stuff is great. But singlespeed is not appropriate for everyone. Better to have more affordable parts just to see if you like it or try a new ratio.

 

[kingoffootball]

Echo the advice above. If you have decent tension in the chain and the chainline correct though there's very little chance of the chain coming, even with a ramped ring, in my experience.

 

[drystonepaul]

Re:

I'll echo what's been said above about chainrings. Normal ramped chainrings do work fine as long as they aren't too worn.
But the extra reassurance you get from non ramped or SS specific rings with their taller teeth should not be sniffed at.

I've used Stronglight rings which are great, have a nice tooth profile and are very reasonably priced. I generally prefer to use these on geared set ups though.

I've also got some Surley stainless steel rings on a couple of bikes. The tall teeth will never let you down and these things last for a long time. To put that into context, I have a modernish 'winter' MTB set up with a single chainring and nine speed cassette.
This bike has had the same Surley 34 tooth chainring on it for what will be it's fourth winter now. In that time period the cassette has been replaced each year, and the chain about six or seven times.
The chainring however is still going strong. I haven't even needed to flip it around yet to get another four or five years use.

Planet X/One-One do some pretty good stainless steel chainrings. Their wide body 'Groove Armada' sprockets are also pretty good.
Much better than the thin pressed steel ones that come in many kits.

The other option if you are using 110 BCD 5 arm cranks is to use inner chainrings designed for compact road chainsets. Typically these will be 34t, have reasonably tall teeth and will be unramped.
You can pick up good quality steel chainrings for a tenner on ebay.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/lasco-34-toot ... 1e7b7bee93

I'd recommend going for the classic 2:1 ratio to begin with. (eg 36t chainring - 18t sprocket or 32t - 16t)
It really depends on the terrain you are riding though. You may wish to gear up or down accordingly.

 

[drystonepaul]

Re:

And under no circumstances buy a half link chain. They are awful. They stretch very quickly as the bends in the side plates straighten out under tension.
A single half link is fine if it's required but not a whole chain made of them.

This is the type I mean: