Single speed setup..

[Sithlord]

Just about to embark on my first single speed project,, not quite sure if its the right way to go but going to give it a try..

What I would like to know is how to setup the bike for this, the frame has normal dropouts(Not horizontal) I have bought a chain tensioning device to screw into the der. dropout, but looks really ugly , I noticed on a few bikes in here that some of you dont use such a device, so how does this work.. ? do I need a chain with a half spacer etc ?

Would I be able to retain the Q/R skewer etc ? or would I need to use a nut on a threaded axle ?

Going to use single ring on front and single on rear on a 7spd cassette body.. using appropriate spacers to achieve the best chainline.. any problems with doing this ?

Any help would be much appreciated on this please.. many thanks in advance...

 

[andy.l]

The bikes with no tensioner have more likely to have horizontal dropouts mate so chain tension is done by moving rear wheel.You can buy half link chains from CRC if you want to,even though they are ugly the tensioners are your best options.

Ive use a pair of XT HG hubs and spaced out the rear hub body with spacers,works fine,youll have to fine tune the chain line though but its not hard.And i use my q/r 's,just do them up a bit tighter.

 

[IbocProSX]

Another option without tensioner is to determine the "magic ratio" for your bike. Certain combinations of chainstay length and chainwheels work with the exact length of x number of chainlinks, perfect for singlespeed.

Sheldon Brown's site, may he rest in peace, contains a lot of good info, that helped me a lot on my project.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/singlespeed.html

Enjoy!!

 

[ededwards]

Sounds like you're on the right route and have good advice above.

Re. the rear q/r make sure you do it up really tight as you'll be putting some major force through the rear end

 

[Sithlord]

Thanks for your assistance fellas, really appreciate the feedback,links etc.. been toying with the idea for years but finally plucked up the courage or madness :roll: :?


Watch this space , hopefully she'll be built within the next two weeks

 

[xizang]

Have a look on the singlespeed bike thread below. You'll get some ideas from the pix on there as to what tensioner you'd like/need. If in doubt though you could ask more questions on here, almost always good advice, or contact Charlie at www.charliethebikemonger.com/ or he's got a shop on e-bay http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Charlie-The-Bi ... esstQQtZkm . I've had some good advice from him and good kit to

 

[Will Palmer]

Re. the rear q/r make sure you do it up really tight as you'll be putting some major force through the rear end

Forgive my potential ingorance, but why would a single speed be putting any more force on the back end than a normal geared bike where the rider likes to push big gears rather than spin lower ones?

 

[ededwards]

Re. the rear q/r make sure you do it up really tight as you'll be putting some major force through the rear end

Forgive my potential ingorance, but why would a single speed be putting any more force on the back end than a normal geared bike where the rider likes to push big gears rather than spin lower ones?

You're of course absolutely right that in the same gear the amount of force will be the same whether geared or ss. The bit I was thinking about is when you are at the moment of about 5rpm, just shy of stalling - this arrives more often on ss as on a geared bike I'm most likely to have changed before getting to that point.

(Personally I'll also push a little harder on an ss than a geared knowing that the gear won't slip, although I think this says more about the way I set up the geared bikes than about ss)

 

[Will Palmer]

I was thinking about is when you are at the moment of about 5rpm, just shy of stalling - this arrives more often on ss as on a geared bike I'm most likely to have changed before getting to that point.

Ahh, I see your point!!

(Personally I'll also push a little harder on an ss than a geared knowing that the gear won't slip, although I think this says more about the way I set up the geared bikes than about ss)

LOL! I'd be inclined to agree... says something about my gear setup too I guess!