decided to go single speed, now what

I have a frame that I will be building off and am curious as to how you decide on the size of the crankset etc...

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Permalink Reply by Tim S on April 23, 2013 at 8:25am
and all of the other pitfalls I may encounter.
Permalink Reply by Lee Roy on April 23, 2013 at 8:47am

If your a novice bike builder, it would be a good idea to build a relationship with your local shop.

Your question is so vague, it is for all practical purposes non-answerable.

Permalink Reply by Amanda on April 23, 2013 at 8:52am

Depends on what you want to be able to do with the bike. Are you planning on putting on brakes, or are you planning on straight skid stopping? If you do plan on skid stopping here is a list of gear ratios that will make things a little easier on you:http://fixedgearwales.blogspot.com/2009/01/ratio.html. I am just about to finish a build that I am using a 46 and 17 ratio. This will allow for easier/smoother skid stopping since I am not planning on adding a brake. I have another single speed freewheel bicycle that has both front and rear brakes, as well as a Schwinn varsity with complete gears. I am a bit nervous about learning to ride straight fixed, but I am looking forward to the challenge!

Hope this helped.  

Permalink Reply by Tim S on April 23, 2013 at 9:11am
I get that LRC, to a certain extent, this is why I am asking so I know what to ask when I do get to the build. What are the things I should look for, ask, be aware of. I have built a few bikes in my day so I am not a novice just new to the single speed and curious. Thank you for your helpful reply.

Thank you Amanda for the info you provided. It will most likely be single speed with brake not a fixie, my knees would not be my friend if I went that direction.
Permalink Reply by Juan Primo on April 23, 2013 at 9:33am

I've done several fixie and single speed conversions.  I like Amanda's gear ratio which gives her 73 gear inches.  (I think in terms of gear inches but there are other ways of calculating your preferred gear ratio).  Anything below 76 is good enough for me.  Anything below 70 and I spin out too much.

One of my limiting factors is the size of sprockets and gears available.  52 tooth chainrings are super-available so once I paired a 52 with a 20 tooth cog, so I got 70 gear inches.

Another thing to think of is chainline... you want your chain to run perfectly between the cog and the chainring.  If your chainline is off then you will lose your chain off the chainring.  Your chainline can be determined by your crank and your bottom bracket spindle.

By the way, you can ride fixed and put brakes on your bike.  No need to kill your knees if you aren't braking with them.

Permalink Reply by Tim S on April 24, 2013 at 7:18am

thanks Juan

Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on April 24, 2013 at 8:09am

If you choose to not put on a brake apply the money you save to future medical bills...

ALWAYS run a brake on the street if you like not getting hurt; two brakes if you run single speed.

Permalink Reply by Tim S on April 24, 2013 at 8:35am

Been riding the bike I want to convert as a single for a while now. Largest front chainring, smallest rear sprocket. It was a 21 speed with the front derailur removed and I do not use the remaining rear shifter. Never had an issue with getting around wind or not.

 

 

 

Permalink Reply by mark stetson on April 25, 2013 at 10:06am

Lots to consider on the gearing including terrain and length of your rides.  There are hills where I ride, so I knew from the start that 48/16 wasn't going to work for me.  I ended up with 44/18, which allows me to get over the hills at the end of a 40 mile ride.   

Permalink Reply by igz on April 25, 2013 at 10:22am

tim, remember what happened to me on the Fire Ride last year? yeah, that was the chain line issue like Juan mentions.  

Crankset - someone of your height/inseam, 175 is good.

48/16 seems to be the standard, but if your frame has an aggressive geometry, you may wish you had a higher ratio.  on the otherhand, a more upright geometry seems to prefer an easier ratio.  its the leg extension you get, what muscles you use.  i was happy with a 50/15 on my pista, but the mountainbike is more comfortable with a 48/16 (and i may need to go to 18)(but, since my chainline is poopoo, i need to drop the chainring smaller (44) and adjust the cog to something even less than a 15.  

its better to think of it in metrics, not sizes, refer to the ratios Amanda points out.

Permalink Reply by Tim S on April 25, 2013 at 10:22am
Only going to be riding in the city so there are no hills to consider.

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