Re-do an Old Bicycle
 

HI! What all do I need to replace to have a single speed? New back wheel and new gear that the chain links onto? The derailleur is junk.
Sharon

If you want to do it on the cheap, then just remove the derailleur and run the chain around one of the chainrings in the back, and one of the chain rings in the front. A good combination would be small ring up front with a middle ring out back.

This way you won't have to replace the wheel or buy new stuff.

So then the only additional thing you would have to do would be to remove the correct number of links in your chain. If it is an old bike with horizontal slots (slanted, actually) where the rear axle fits in the rear dropouts, that makes it easier because you can use the slots to make minor corrections in chain tension. Post in the single speed/fixed gear forum for advice on chainlength adjustments, or I am sure there is probably an explanation somewhere on sheldonbrown.com


Oops - here you go:http://sheldonbrown.com/singlespeed.html#tension