Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Is this frame a good candidate for SS conversion?

I've had this Trek 8700 since it was new in 1991 or '92. It was a VERY nice bike for the time. The bike always fit very well and was comfortable. I road it hard and put a lot of miles on it, but I'm ashamed to admitt, I didn't take as good of care of it as I should have and ended up stripping the bike to just a frame. Most of the components are either gone or beyond practical usage. The frame has been taking up space in this state for about nine years now. The frame itself is in great shape and was never abused or involved in a severe crash.

I could buy a much nicer, new mtn bike for what it would cost to build this back into a multigeared bike. I neither want or need for a multigeared mtn bike, but I'm thinking maybe I could build it into a singlespeed round-towner on a realatively small budget......say $500 max. I still have the original fork and quill stem, but would like to swap to a threadless headset and fork with fender provisions if it's within budget.

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z137/breathegood/Bikes/IMG_1378.jpg
http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z137/breathegood/Bikes/IMG_1380.jpg

What I have: frame, fork, stem & handlebars (both the orginal and threadless), rim brakes & brake levers.
What I will need: Crank and bb, wheelset, ss freehub or flipflop for fg, chain, chain tensioner.

Tell me what I'm missing, or if I shouldn't even bother with this frame.

nice frame, but those vertical drops are gonna give you trouble

nice frame, but those vertical drops are gonna give you trouble

he said he'll be using a chain tensioner.



edit: missed the part about maybe using a flip-flop hub.

short answer: not really

but if you like the frame, you'll need to find a "magic gear" with whatever crank/chainring/cog combo you have and/or get an eccentric hub or bb, but at this point it's no longer a conversion on the cheap.

he said he'll be using a chain tensioner.



edit: missed the part about maybe using a flip-flop hub.

I'm not dead set on a flip-flop, I just thought it would be an easy introduction to fg. Since I would like to be able to use the bike on a nearby singletrack, I'd rather stick to ss anyway.

It's alright for a single speed freewheel, but it's going to be a pain for fixed wheel.

Magic gearing is easy. Do it.

If you decide to use it as a single speed only then it is very easy and very cheap. Any cassette hub with a cog and spacers will remove most of your headaches. They are cheap and take care of the chainline issue so you can use any crank of your choice. You can try to get the magic gear for fixed riding but may have to settle for whatever gain ratio that setup provides. Though you can probably get it pretty close- especially with half links.
Also as you put miles on the bike and you get chain stretch, the lack of a tensioner may become an issue.
Pluses and minuses.

I'd rather rollerblade.

I'd rather rollerblade.

FACEPALM! commeee on.

Another option is an eccentric hub,
If you really have that much of a sentimental attachment to the frame and want it to be a fixed gear, that's an option.
It's just costly and from what I've heard from owners of eccentric hubs is that using it to tension your chain can be a pain.

Turns out it is a great frame for SS with a free hub. I've been commuting on it for a couple of weeks now.
http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z137/breathegood/Bikes/IMG_1632.jpg
http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z137/breathegood/Bikes/IMG_1628.jpg
http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z137/breathegood/Bikes/IMG_1640.jpg

:thumb::thumb::thumb::thumb::thumb: Nice work!

whats your gearing? THat chainring looks unbelievably small!
great job tho!

whats your gearing? THat chainring looks unbelievably small!
great job tho!

Looks like ~40.

Looks badass. You got some nasty climbs in your commute?

whats your gearing? THat chainring looks unbelievably small!
great job tho!

36x15 gears, running 26x1.75 Forte' Gothams, gives me roughly 61 gear inches. I'm spun out at a MUP friendly 17-19mph, but can maintain 16mph all day long. That chainring and crank are the original Suntour XCpro without the other two chainrings. On some of the local single tracks, I have an 18t cog to make short, steep assents in the dirt a little easier, but as it is, I can climb just about any paved hill I am likely to encounter.

very nice :)

I'd ride that any day and twice on sunday.

Not sure what's going on with the "aero bars" though.

:thumb::thumb::thumb:That is nice!! I like the look and colors. I want to do a mountain bike frame like this someday. Great job :thumb:

I'd ride that any day and twice on sunday.

Not sure what's going on with the "aero bars" though.
Yeah, I had those in my parts bin. I don't think they'll be on there too long. They just happen fit into the orange and black them of the bike. They do give me some extra hand placement, I just don't see myself using them that much.

Ya not really feelin them bars, but rest is sick!

That thing looks fun!

whats your gearing? THat chainring looks unbelievably small!
great job tho!

Have you ever seen bikes outside of this subforum..?

New cockpit. Profile Design T2 wing bars and stem. Cane Creek TT200 tri levers. Cinelli tape. Quill stem adapter.
http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z137/breathegood/Bikes/IMG00042-20100924-1042.jpg