Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Making a SS out of an old beat up 10 speed

Picked it up over the weekend for $6, lugged steel frame and 27" wheels. 5 speed freewheel in the back. I pretty much know what to do with the drivetrain but am looking for guidance. Its got a 52T chainring on the front. I imagine the second ring is a 42 but I haven't counted it out. Which one would make the better chainring to use as the primary? Also, assuming I use the 52T in the front, what is a good cog in the back for a beginner to SS riding?

I already am going to strip the frame of everything I have tools for (not much LOL) and give it a sanding and shoot with black spray paint, and its already black anyway. I'm also going to go nutz with my grinder and take off everything but the brake cable bosses. Derailer hanger comes off too :D.

This bike will also mark my first attempt at truing wheels. I plan on keeping the drop bars and stripping the crappy padding and taping them. Anything else I should worry about? Any suggestions?

[editid for speeling and clairidy]

Since it's got a 5 speed cluster in the back, you can just take that off and screw on your freewheel. You may only need to redish the wheel slightly. Depending on your area, you may want to go with the 42 in the front matched up with a 16 in the rear if your area is hilly. A 52 up front is good for flat areas. Since your singlespeeding it, keep both brakes, which I'm assuming you're doing since you're not grinding the brake cable bosses off.

Yep SS only. I was just going to pull the 5 speed cluster apart, keep one of the cogs, and use spacers to space it out, without having to re-dish the wheel, as I don't know how to re-dish wheels. How hard is that?

BTW in the Reno area the only way out of town is UP since we're in a valley, so I was going to keep a not-too-high gear in it. Is 52/20 too high? Its main use will be as my commuter, and its relatively flat.

Picked it up over the weekend for $6, lugged steel frame and 27" wheels. 5 speed freewheel in the back. I pretty much know what to do with the drivetrain but am looking for guidance. Its got a 52T chainring on the front. I imagine the second ring is a 42 but I haven't counted it out. Which one would make the better chainring to use as the primary? Also, assuming I use the 52T in the front, what is a good cog in the back for a beginner to SS riding?

I already am going to strip the frame of everything I have tools for (not much LOL) and give a sanding and shot with black spray paint, and its already black anyway. I'm also going to go nutz with my grinder and take off everything but the brake cable bosses. Derailer hanger comes off too :D.

This bike will also mark my first attempt at truing wheels. I plan on keeping the drop bars and stripping the crappy padding and taping them. Anything else I should worry about? Any suggestions?


JUST SELECT THE GEAR YOU WANT, AND DON'T SHIFT

sorry, just kidding, why not go fixed?

JUST SELECT THE GEAR YOU WANT, AND DON'T SHIFT

sorry, just kidding, why not go fixed?

LOL yeah right. The derailer on this thing is so beat that it doesn't even hold tension. That's why its getting chopped into a SS beater :D I don't have the $$ to go fixed. If I like and can handle SS then eventually I'll go buy a flip flop hub and try it out. But for now SS is the way to go for me :)

Yep SS only. I was just going to pull the 5 speed cluster apart, keep one of the cogs, and use spacers to space it out, without having to re-dish the wheel, as I don't know how to re-dish wheels. How hard is that?
Here's a link that deals with converting a 5 speed rear into a fixed. Can be used for a SS freewheel as well. http://www.63xc.com/dennb/redish.htm



BTW in the Reno area the only way out of town is UP since we're in a valley, so I was going to keep a not-too-high gear in it. Is 52/20 too high? Its main use will be as my commuter, and its relatively flat.
That should be fine for where you are.

LOL yeah right. The derailer on this thing is so beat that it doesn't even hold tension. That's why its getting chopped into a SS beater :D I don't have the $$ to go fixed. If I like and can handle SS then eventually I'll go buy a flip flop hub and try it out. But for now SS is the way to go for me :)
You don't really need much money to go fixed. You can use you current 5 speed rear, a track cog, a BB lockring and some blue Loctite plus the link I provided in my post above, you'll be fixed in no time.

Whatever you decide, make sure your chainline is straight as a jumped chain is bad news for both SS and fixed!

Interesting reading about converting to fixed. I'm gonna stay single speed though, I just haven't been transfixed (pun intended) by the whole fixed gear thing. Maybe another bike ;-)

couldn't you just pitch the derailleur and shorten the chain til it fits with the middle
front gear and whatever back gear it's in line with?

couldn't you just pitch the derailleur and shorten the chain til it fits with the middle
front gear and whatever back gear it's in line with?

Yes, I could but I want to do it *right* and get the gear and chainline I want.

I did the same thing, used the 42 ring and 16 on the existing freewheel and the chainline is ok. It is ok on the 18 also. In this way You can test what gear You´ll like and then remove the old frewheel, buy a BMX freewhell cog and enjoy it.

When I did this kind of thing before fixing my 10-speed, I just put the chain on the big ring in front and on the middle ring in back, resulting in a near-perfect chainline. The cogs were bigger than they needed to be, but it resulted in around 70 gear inches. I took off the spare chainring in front, and I just left the freewheel the way it was. That's probably what I'd suggest.