I picked up an older specialized hard rock sport off ebay for 40 bucks and it shifts like crap, the front derailur might not even work (ive only given it a short 5 minute ride and i am a novice when it comes to multi-speed so maybe it just needs a tune up (grip shift is completely foreign to me)...

anyway what would it cost to have a bike shop convert it to single speed? would it be worth it? this is not my main bike, it would probably be a spare for a friend who wants to ride with me... i would like to have a single speed bike but not if it is cost prohibitive

it should really only cost enough to cover spacers and a singleator...I can't imagine it being more than 60 bucks or so.

Free depending on how ghetto you want to be about it.

Like this? Well, it DID end up getting a set of Eggbeaters put on, but those were borrowed from another bike for the winter. I took off the FD and shifters, routed the chain around the middle ring and a 17t cog (my wuss winter gear), routed the chain through the jockey pully only, put in longer screws for the limit screws (scavanged from my screw bin), and shortened the chain. It worked like a champ through the winter, going on 8~10 rides with me and only dropping the chain once . Granted the day it dropped the chain it was less than 20 degrees out.

Hey propagandhi, do you have a close-up photo of the dropouts? If they are horizontal, then all you'll need are spacers, a cog, and a GOOD quick release skewer (beefy steel, not one of the lightweight aluminum types).

bh357 nailed it - you can spend $0 to convert a bike to SS. If you leave the whole cassette intact, you don't need a spacer kit!

we've used this little trick before: get a short piece of old brake cable, bout 3" long, and insert it into the barrel adjuster of the deraileur.
push the deraileur below the cassette cog you want to use, then anchor down the brake cable with the lead end bottomed against the outsiside of the barrel adjuster. You can still use it to trim chain alignment.

At one time, I knew of a website that would give you the gear ratios to use to avoid a chain tensioner.(old derailleur).

You plugged in the chainstay length and it would provide you with what size chainring and cog to use to have perfect chain length, with different ratios.

I played around with my bike and got perfect chain length with a 2:1 ratio!!!!

To me, the idea of converting your bike to a SS is so you don't have to spend money.

here is the link you were talking about

well i definately wont be doing it myself, ghetto is fine since this bike is not that nice but do you think a shop would do a ghetto conversion? what would the labor be?

Go ghettospeed (my friend and I did it to his old bike):

1. Use a chainbreaker and shorten the chain a fair bit so that it's not too saggy, not too tight.

2. Use the old derailer and adjust it so that it will keep the chain tensioned (remove the shifter and all housing BTW)

3. Decide on which gear you want to leave it on, on the cassette and adjust the derailer so that the chain tension is nice and tight.

You should end up with a welfare SS, but it works.....most of the time. All you need to do is buy a crappy chainbreaker from walmart.

at the very least, i would get a singlespeed cog and spacers. part of the beauty of singlespeeding is not having a fat useless cassette in the back (more aesthetically pleasing and will be easier to keep clean). you can reuse your derailleur as others have mentioned, and your chainring, although you might have to keep your large chainring on as well. just grind the teeth off to make a simple bashguard.

Dude you may be in luck, those dropouts look like these
semi-horizontal
A little filing and your horizontal. Pick up a conversion kit from performance. Ditch the tensioner and your money!!!!

Free. Duct tape your shifters.

MAGIC GEAR..... You might get lucky. No dérailleurs, no cassette. 32-16 was my first but 32-17 works also.
Simple (if it works) and sooo much easier on the eyes. This is a gearing that has a front chainring and a rear cog, with spacers. The chain is installed and if you have the "magic gear" you can run the chain without a tensioner just like a factory built ss.