[Mayo]

Can i change my bike from a 9 speed to a singlespeed.
im sick of buying new derailers and hangers because i bash it on rocks,
is it possible to change to a bmx like chain setup on a downhill bike with 8inch front and rear. anyone done it b4?
interested in any info on it
im curently on an 02 norco team, and sick of going through up to 5derailers a month.
From Mayo :heart:

 

[WTGPhoben]

Originally posted by Mayo
Can i change my bike from a 9 speed to a singlespeed.
im sick of buying new derailers and hangers because i bash it on rocks,
is it possible to change to a bmx like chain setup on a downhill bike with 8inch front and rear. anyone done it b4?
interested in any info on it
im curently on an 02 norco team, and sick of going through up to 5derailers a month.
From Mayo :heart:

in theory you could, but you'd have to get one of those chain tensioners that goes ob the chainstay or where the derailleur used to be because the effective chain length changes when you go through the travel, and somethnig has to take up the slack

 

[Shibby]

http://www.surlybikes.com/

blammo. these things work great!

 

[Motionboy2]

What kind of bike?

Some bikes take up more chain than others. So therefore some bikes you would have better results with than others. If you have a GT DHI you would have a much easier time than if you have a Super 8.

 

[MikeD]

I'd recommend using at least a short-cage derailleur vice the surly tensioner...the tensioner is NOT made to deal with the suspension action you'll have. You don't need to run a cassette...just adjust the derailleur to run on the rear cog you choose. Make sure it's at max. spring tension and run a fairly short chain, but don't stretch it out till it's pointing straight forward... (All conjecture, but it's what I'd try 1st...)

Then again, have you tried using a short-cage derailleur (or road der.) and road cassette on the bike? A road derailleur tucks nicely up there out of the way of rocks and the like. The cassette is such a small range that you can run a really short chain and it allows the use of the ultra-short derailleur. They're a lot less susceptible to damage, though they don't have the gear range of an mtb setup. But I'm guessing gear range isn't very important to you, eh? (Cheap road stuff is really cheap, btw...)

 

[MikeD]

By the way, to singlespeed your rear wheel, you'll need a Shimano DX cog, which will fit right over your freehub body. Then you'll need to disassemble (prolly require drilling out the pins) 2 cassettes to get the spacers that fit between the cogs. Sandwich the DX cog between these spacers (in whatever configuration gives a good chainline; that's the beauty of this method) and tighten down a cassette lockring on the end, and viola...instant singlespeed. (I have done this...works like a charm).

Remember, you will need something, whether a derailleur or a singlespeed tensioner, to take up chain slack. You'd need this even on a hardtail, b/c you don't have horizontal dropouts.