mike12511

I am a recent commuter (about a year now) and have been riding for about twenty five years. I have had several bikes over the years. I am using a Giant Hardtail with slicks for my current commute of twenty two mile round trip. I have a Raleigh Super Grand Prix that I bought new in the early eighties and thought I would convert that. Being new to this - I thought I would get some much needed advice from the forum after going through some of the posts. Money is an object at this point. Looking at the picture, first of all, is it doable? second - suggestions on parts, etc... Or should I save and get something off the rack. I was checking out the options on BikesDirect.com as well.

Thanks

Sizzle-Chest

its doable baby! other people will have better suggestions for parts. i would scour craigslist until you find something very cheap, but thats just me. initially, the first thing you should do is start by first taking off everything you won't need: gears, shifters, cables. very satisfying!

MrCjolsen

You have a near perfect candidate for a fixed gear conversion.

Two questions. 27" or 700c wheels? That makes a difference. With 700c, it's easy to find a ready to go fixed gear wheel with a "flip flp hub." I got lucky and found one at a shop for $100. That was my main expense.

You can put 700c wheels on a 27" frame, but you may need to buy new brake calipers.

Next question. If it is 700c, what kind of hub does the rear wheel have? If it's a freehub, then a singlspeed is very easy but making it a fixed gear wheel is not doable. If it's a threaded hub that takes a freewheel, then you can go super cheap and "re space and re dish" the rear wheel.

This type of wheel is often referred to as a "suicide hub" but that term only applies if you remove both brakes from your bike. Don't remove both brakes.

A proper fixed gear wheel has two sets of threads, inner threads for the cog and outer, reverse threaded section for a lockring. If your bike is 27" and you want this option, you will most likely need to build a wheel yourself.

Basically, you can probably convert this bike for around $100-$200. If you go for the "suicide hub" option, it could be far less.

One potential expense with fixed gear is chainrings and cogs. Yes, you only need one of each, but you will purchase many until you find the gear ratio that is just right. When you have only one gear, it better be a good one. My preference is to take the gear I use the most on my road bike when the ground is flat and the air is calm. I want my fixed gear to be just a teeny bit higher than that. For that purpose, this website, will become your new best friend.

Kol.klink

the suicide hub, dangrousness, is a bit overated if you ask me, but dont forget the Red loc-tite on cog and BB ring, i would onestly do up the sucide hub, if you can redish the wheel yourself or if the LBS will redish it for cheap, you could be looking at like 50$ on this one

MrCjolsen

A few more things ...

Minimal shopping list:

BMX chainring bolts.
Fixed Cog.
Axel spacers.
Singlespeed chain (optional if the cog is 3/32)

Tools:

Chain whip
Allen heads
Tool to hold the other side of the chainring bolts. (chainring come loose=very bad)
Spoke wrench


Don't scrimp on the fixed gear cog, especially if you get a proper fixed gear hub. Cheap cogs strip hubs.

I noticed that you have a quick release rear wheel. You may want to consider re-doing the hub with a nutted axel. It's very important that your wheel stay in it's place when you run fixed gear. In fact, a lot of things can come loose on a geared bike without major incident that will cause a crash on a fixed gear. Since you're going to be messing with the bearing cups and cones anyway when you re-dish the wheel, it might be a good time to re-do the hub. If you decide to keep it quick release, make sure that you have a super good quality skewer with no issues. Chain tension is paramount with fixed gear. If your chain comes off while riding, it could likely result in a rather ugly crash.

It's also very, very important that your chailine be perfectly straight. This is probably the most tricky aspect of building up a fixed gear. It's the part that may have you getting a different bottom bracket spindle or crankset. A good way to initially check your chainline is to hang the bike by it's front wheel and drape a chain over the chainring you are going to use. It should fall dead center on the rear cog. Most people who use road cranks on a fixed gear end up bolting the chainring on the inside of the cranks.

One more thing, when you post here with questions, ignore the people who say "use the search engine." 95% here are glad to help. We don't mind answering dumb questions as long as we can make a few jokes at your expense while we do it.

mike12511

The wheels are 27". Sounds like going 700c is also an option.

Thanks for all the replies. I have been out to the Sheldon Brown site and https://www.fixedgeargallery.com/ for inspiration as well. I am going out of the country for a bit of time. I may have time to check some of the referenced URL's while I am away. I just won't be able to start on de-constructing the bike quite yet. I am curious as to some of the ideas that come out of the post. Once I come back I may start taking it apart and looking for parts. I promised the wife a bike before I did anything else (I have three in the garage) so I am picking up her bike when I get back and then I can start on my FG. It needs to hold up well for commuting.

mike12511

Thanks MrCjolsen... This is what posts are for - posting. I do use the search engine but like to get fellow cyclists feedback and thoughts as well. I am looking forward to the removal process... albeit I have mixed emotions - I have a lot of miles in this bike because it was my first road bike. I think if I bought another bike my wife might freak!

Brian

We used to have a sponsor here that had single speed conversion kits for road or MTBs. Anyone recall their name? I want to convert my MTB to single speed, and want something cleaner than a pvc spacer and old derailluer for tension.

mike12511

OK - I am back. I am ready to take the bike apart. First item up - wheels. I broke a spoke on this and fear that all spokes need to be replaced due to age of the wheels. It is a 27in wheel. Getting them both rebuilt in shop would run about 60-70$ per wheel. The rims seem fine but the spokes are most likely stressed. I was interested in going with a flip-flop hub. Is it worth it to have them rebuilt or invest in something new (say 700c)? I need to keep it on the cheap. I have researched a little bit with rebuilding wheels but do not have the equipment for truing, etc. I most likely will need to have an LBS do the work for me. Suggestions on options for the wheels? Thanks.

vasracer

I was actually on ebay before coming on and was searching for ideas on a similar project. There is actually a pair of 27" wheels with flip flop hubs available, if you want to keep your brake setup. As far as i know, besides having a set built, this is the way to go. There is also a rear single, if you want to keep the front and just replace the rear.

https://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-27-ROAD-BIKE...QQcmdZViewItem

mathletics

Wheels:
https://shop.greatdealsonbikes.com/me...tegory_Code=TR


Harris (Sheldon's shop) has crazy reach calipers for all sorts of conversions. I think they have reaches up into the 90s. In my experience, you'll need 65-75mm reach calipers for a 27" to 700c, though sometimes you luck out and it's much shorter. It's really easy to measure though, so don't guess. Just grab a ruler.

Bikeforumuser0004

The wheel site mentioned above only lists 120mm hubs. My Azuiki is around 130mm. How can I get around this??

vasracer

The dimension hubs have a super long axle specifically for this reason. I believe their 173mm which means you can add 5mm spacers on each side. This could be a thin lock nut or even a washer but preferably the lock nut because it will screw on and stay tight. Everything else will work perfectly.

skinnyland

Perfectly do-able.
Don't buy a new bike. Why promote production of new items, and all of the expenditure of resources that entails, when there are plenty of perfectly usable items already in existence?
Easy way: Take off the derailleurs and rear brake, get a new rear wheel with a track/flip-flop hub, shorten your chain.
Next step (optional): Take off the extra chainring, and get shorter chainring bolts.
More complicated: Learn how to re-dish the rear wheel, instead of buying a new one.
If you wanna drop the loot: Get a new, lighter-weight front wheel, too.
You have a steel frame, so don't worry about axle length. The stays and fork can flex and still be perfectly safe.

humancongereel

not that sponsor, but a surly singleator?