So... I'm riding to my parents house in the suburbs last night. As I approach an intersection I see that the light is green, but has been for a while, and thinking ahead, I don't think i'm going to make it, so I try to skip to slow myself down. Well, as soon as I apply back pressure, everything goes loose. I'm using a track cog lictited onto a non-track rear hub with a bb lock ring holding it there. This hasn't created any problems for me in the past. My first instinct is that *****, the cog came loose. I then decided to go faster in order to make the light, and then stop afterwards. Well, the cog fails to engage, no matter how hard I pedal. I end up flying through a red light, fortunately avoiding all cars, and stop my self with my foot on the tire. I get off to find that the cog and lock ring are still in place, but that no matter how much I spin the cog, I cannot tighten it back onto the hub.

I still can't even get the cog off of the hub, but I think this is because the threads on the hub are completely gone, and the metal scrapings have jammed inside of the threads on the track cog.

Has this ever happened to anyone else?

The set-up you describe is called a "Suicide wheel"....though I can't imagine why....
The experience you had is very common for this set-up.
If you are going to go suicide (freewheel hubs, cog, bb lockring) use old steel hubs which have stronger threads. Also use brakes instead of back-pedal.
You were lucky this time. You may want to think about buying a proper track hub before there is a next time.

This is definitly an older steel hub, but i guess it still wasn't strong enough. I think it might be time to buy a track hub. Oh, and I'm putting a front brake back on before the next time I ride...

it has now. get a real hub.

"lictit"? is that pillow talk?

against my adament advice to not use this setup, my friend did so while waiting for a track hub. he never skidded, but did skip at times. during a ride he went to apply back pressure and the cog unscrewed completely along with the bb lockring, despite all locktite attempts. or lictit and you boulder hippies use. luckily he was riding with a brake.

i think the constant forward and reverse pressure sort of kept slightly tightening and loosing the parts, causing wear on the threads. we screwed the cog back on, but it seemed to not tighten all the the way.

why were you running a bumbike fixie setup with no brake?

"why were you running a bumbike fixie setup with no brake?"

Classic!!!

Advice heeded...

But now I have to find a track wheel on the cheap. Anyone know where I might be able to order a cheap (but reliable ) one from? Prebuilt would be a plus as I don't trust myself with building a wheel.

lictit...yeah...apparently I should read what I write before I post it.

i'm just giving you a hard time... i've also had too much coffee today. bzzzzzz

i would check out the bensbikes user on ebay. he always has decent fixie wheelsets for sale. many have those sealed black precision hubs or whatever that look just like the iro ones, but black of course. iro would also be a good source for prebuilt wheels too, as you can just get a rear wheel.

Check IRO hubs. $40 for rear hub alone or $70 for the set. Tny also has pre-built wheels. Check the site

yeah, so I got the cog off. There is absolutley no threading left where the cog was. Ha. Now I have to dig up some cash for a new wheel.

Fortunately, there was pie waiting for me once I got home. Blueberry...

If you want to support a local instead of shopping online, Scott at Salvagetti Bikes in Denver builds nice track wheels and will work with you to get the rim/hub combo that you want, at a fair price.

I definitley prefer to support local shops. I got the wheels on my road bike built at Veccio's in Boulder, and they did a great job. the down side is that I need something cheap. I'll call around and see what I can find. If I can't get anything cheap enough, I''ll just buy the parts and have a buddy of mine teach me how to lace it properly.

I'll be sure to cal Salvagetti though. Thanks for the lead.

Powerjb, I just PM'd you the phone # for Salvagetti. Don't think he made it into the 2004 Yellow Pages. Vecchios is nice, but cha-ching. Gotta love that blue 3Rensho they have hanging in their shop, though. And the Merckx shrine in the back, what a crack-up.

Yeah, they're not the cheapest, by any standards. But the wheels were a gift, and seeing as the hubs are over 30 years old, and campy, i wanted them laced well. And the rim was cheaper there than elsewhere.

Also, consider getting a cog with more threads. I have a setup like that but with no lockring and no loctite on a Sunshine hub, but my cog is really wide where it meets the hub. No problems so far, and I only use the brake when I want to go down hills slowly.

If you use the "suicide setup" temporarily, just stick the cog with epoxy, and maybe also a lockring, if it makes you feel better.

Also works if you have stipped a track hub - Just epoxy on an miche adaptor.
I have tried both. I'm 200+lbs skids a lot, and never uses the brake. Havent had a issue yet.

Relatively cheap, but you have to know your way around wheels (or have a six-pack ready for a buddy that does): https://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.ph...ighlight=boone

Your options for a disc fixed cog are (from cheapest to most expensive): DX cog drilled out, Spicer ti cog, and Boone. For the first two, you can request Gene Spicer drill out the cogs before sending them to you. I use the Boone on a rear Nashbar SS disc hub on my Cross Check (below).

This method will never strip!

scott built one of my wheelsets which are bomb proof. he is a super good wheel builder and a super good guy. he even wears a cape to attest to his superness. and underwear on the outside of his pants.

Thats not a bad Idea. I guess I could try and find a hub for cheap out of the junk pile at the LBS and then have a buddy help me lace it to a 700c rim, that might not be bad. I"m having trouble finding those cogs online though. DO you have a link that isn't to the mtbr forum?

i agree scott builds the best wheels i have had a few wheels built by him and they have all taken a beating and lasted. he is a great mechanic and a great guy. support salvagetti!!

I got a deal from the sporting goods place I work at that I couldn't pass up. Suzue rear hub, shimano ft hub, laced to Sun M13 II s, for $60 total. I wish I could have dropped the dough on scott, or had known him the last time I got a nice set built for my other bike. But money's short right now, so I'll use these until I kill them.

I am going to go by his shop and check it out though. Maybe right now...