SS mtb conversion

[dej]

gday,
bought some bits to convert my old shogun mtb to SS the otherday..
was wondering tho, it has vertical dropouts and i had planned to use a
half-link to get the chain tension correct, but are these ok for off road
use? Would a tensioner be better if i was planning to still use the bike
offroad etc?

If tensioner is the way to go, which one? reviews ive read on the surly
singulator suggest its no good, but im not sure what else is available..

thanks,
graeme

[Donga]

Graeme
I've been looking into this myself. Sheldon Brown's website has a lot
of good info.
Donga

[Paulie-AU]

dej Wrote:
> gday,
> bought some bits to convert my old shogun mtb to SS the otherday..
> was wondering tho, it has vertical dropouts and i had planned to use a
> half-link to get the chain tension correct, but are these ok for off
> road
> use? Would a tensioner be better if i was planning to still use the
> bike
> offroad etc?
>
> If tensioner is the way to go, which one? reviews ive read on the surly
> singulator suggest its no good, but im not sure what else is
> available..
>
> thanks,
> graeme
There are a number of tensioners on the market that are similar to the
surly but tend to be cheaper. Chain bounce off tends to be a bit of a
problem in rough terrain and this is possibly where the bad rep comes
from. I rode with a guy who solved this by using a cable tie and
tensioning the chain up towards the frame, it was a little crude but
did the job.

Personally I do not run a tensioner on my SS MTB and played with gear
selection to get a good chain tension. This has resulted in me running
a gear that isn't quite optimal (32-15) as I would prefer (32-16) but
cannot get away with it reliably. I have also made a small chain
device for the rear hub with 2 x 23T cassette rings with the teeth
ground off. These are spaced either side of the 15T ring using a
standard and a really slim cassette spacer on either side. I have
found this has allowed pretty loose chain tension on other frames in
the past.

I am considering a move to a tensioner to allow some different gear
ratios for different areas around Brisbane. I guess then I will have
to deal with some of the inherent problems.


--
Paulie-AU

[dej]

"Donga" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Graeme
> I've been looking into this myself. Sheldon Brown's website has a lot
> of good info.
> Donga
>
Yeah i couldnt find much (any) info on the half-links vs chain tensioner for
off-road use though..

[flyingdutch]

TimC Wrote:
>
> Flyingdutches now come in little minature versions that can be put in
> place to stop the chain from coming off? Where do we get them from?
> How do they attach?
>
>

they attach with a death-like grip, as used by FD on muffin.

you attain them thru ascending to a 'higher place' or on the same shelf
as Unobtanium.


--
flyingdutch

[TimC]

On 2006-04-03, Marx SS (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:
> I suppose the advantage in a chain tensioner set up like the Rohloff is
> that you can vary your ratios & have the chain slack to take the large
> of smaller cogs without changing the chain length.
> [image: [image:
> http://www.cyclingforums.com/gallery/data/521/medium/DCP_2627.JPG]]

With all these complicated expensive *heavy* *unreliable* tensioners,
you might as well just get gears.

<gd&r>

--
TimC
Yesterday, after years of trying, I finally managed to take a photo of a
subway train that said "INSTRUCTION CAR" just so that someday I can caption
it "...but where's the DATA CDR?" when I'm ready to make a joke that's
nerdy even by the standards of jokes about LISP. -- James "Kibo" Perry

[Sheldon Brown]

dej wrote:
> gday,
> bought some bits to convert my old shogun mtb to SS the otherday..
> was wondering tho, it has vertical dropouts and i had planned to use a
> half-link to get the chain tension correct, but are these ok for off road
> use?

Half links are as strong and reliable as any other link, has nothing to
do with on/off road use.

>Would a tensioner be better if i was planning to still use the bike
> offroad etc?

No! Tensioners are a mono-buttocked kludge to make a singlespeed out
of a frame that is not really suited to it. They are almost as
fragile and easily damaged as derailers, and you are much more liable
to have chain skip if you use a spring-loaded tensioner.

If you can possibly get proper tension without a tensioner, that is a
MUCH better setup.

See: http://sheldonbrown.com/vertical

Sheldon "Straight Chains Are Best" Brown
+------------------------------------------+
| The lower your gear, the more of your |
| riding time will be spent going uphill. |
+------------------------------------------+
Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com
Hard-to-find parts shipped Worldwide
http://captainbike.com http://sheldonbrown.com

[Peter Signorini]

"Peter Signorini" wrote:

<dumb things>

Now to include the link (d'oh!):
http://www.sjscycles.com/thornwebsite/enlargeravensporttour.html

--
Cheers
Peter

~~~ ~ _@
~~ ~ _- \,
~~ (*)/ (*)

[Marx SS]

It’s funny.
When it comes to having to old MTB or roadie in the shed & the desire
comes over you to make it into a SS, there are those out there who
reckon that tensioners shouldn’t be used & offer a long list of frames
that have horizontal dropouts as a worthwhile option for your project.

Following this advice, at the end of the day when you’ve finished your
project, you still have that old MTB or roadie in the shed, it’s just
that it’s a frame only now & you have all this old gear bolted to that
new steel frame you picked up from the LBS with the horizontal drops or
adjustable b/b.

It’s kind of like getting your girlfriend to dress up in your
grandmother’s clobber.


--
Marx SS

[Theo Bekkers]

Peter Signorini wrote:

> Now to include the link (d'oh!):
> http://www.sjscycles.com/thornwebsite/enlargeravensporttour.html

Doesn't come with pedals?

Theo

[Peter Signorini]

"Theo Bekkers" > wrote in message
...
> Peter Signorini wrote:
>
>> Now to include the link (d'oh!):
>> http://www.sjscycles.com/thornwebsite/enlargeravensporttour.html
>
> Doesn't come with pedals?

Hehe! I can only guess they leave it up to you - toe-clips, SPD, rat-trap,
or rubber.

--
Cheers
Peter

~~~ ~ _@
~~ ~ _- \,
~~ (*)/ (*)

[Theo Bekkers]

Peter Signorini wrote:
> "Theo Bekkers"wrote
>> Peter Signorini wrote:

>>> Now to include the link (d'oh!):
>>> http://www.sjscycles.com/thornwebsite/enlargeravensporttour.html

>> Doesn't come with pedals?

> Hehe! I can only guess they leave it up to you - toe-clips, SPD,
> rat-trap, or rubber.

Nah, it's a photo/marketing technique. Some idiot marketing guru and
photographer got together and decided that a bicycle looks somehow "sleeker"
without pedals. I've seen it many times before.

Theo

[phamcam]

dej Wrote:
> gday,
> bought some bits to convert my old shogun mtb to SS the otherday..
> was wondering tho, it has vertical dropouts and i had planned to use a
> half-link to get the chain tension correct, but are these ok for off
> road
> use? Would a tensioner be better if i was planning to still use the
> bike
> offroad etc?
>
> If tensioner is the way to go, which one? reviews ive read on the
> surly
> singulator suggest its no good, but im not sure what else is
> available..
>
> thanks,
> graeme

My 2 cents...

I just had a set of track drop outs put in my steel frame by Peter
Morre, about $70.00 problem solved.


--
phamcam

[Resound]

"phamcam" > wrote in message
...
>
> dej Wrote:
>> gday,
>> bought some bits to convert my old shogun mtb to SS the otherday..
>> was wondering tho, it has vertical dropouts and i had planned to use a
>> half-link to get the chain tension correct, but are these ok for off
>> road
>> use? Would a tensioner be better if i was planning to still use the
>> bike
>> offroad etc?
>>
>> If tensioner is the way to go, which one? reviews ive read on the
>> surly
>> singulator suggest its no good, but im not sure what else is
>> available..
>>
>> thanks,
>> graeme
>
> My 2 cents...
>
> I just had a set of track drop outs put in my steel frame by Peter
> Morre, about $70.00 problem solved.
>
>
> --
> phamcam
>

$70 to have trackends brazed in? I think the fixie's due an upgrade!

[TimC]

On 2006-04-03, phamcam (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:
> dej Wrote:
>> If tensioner is the way to go, which one? reviews ive read on the
>> surly
>> singulator suggest its no good, but im not sure what else is
>> available..
>
> My 2 cents...
>
> I just had a set of track drop outs put in my steel frame by Peter
> Morre, about $70.00 problem solved.

Wow! Inflation! 2cents becomes $70!

;P

Neat solution though. Steel is real, I guess.

--
TimC
My other car is a cdr

[Parbs]

flyingdutch wrote:
> be sure to use a 'downhill' chainring ie one without shifting ramps.
> this'll negate the need to keep your FD on to keep chain in place...
>
>
If it's a conversion use what you've got, decent tension will negate the
need to keep your front deraileur.

Having said that these are nice
http://www.surlybikes.com/parts/chainrings_pop.html
and should last you a long time.

Parbs

[dej]

"Theo Bekkers" > wrote in message
...
> Peter Signorini wrote:
>> "Theo Bekkers"wrote
>>> Peter Signorini wrote:
>
>>>> Now to include the link (d'oh!):
>>>> http://www.sjscycles.com/thornwebsite/enlargeravensporttour.html
>
>>> Doesn't come with pedals?
>
>> Hehe! I can only guess they leave it up to you - toe-clips, SPD,
>> rat-trap, or rubber.
>
> Nah, it's a photo/marketing technique. Some idiot marketing guru and
> photographer got together and decided that a bicycle looks somehow
> "sleeker" without pedals. I've seen it many times before.
>
> Theo
>

thanks for all the tips/advice guys