I'm currently running a 46-17 and I see that i can add a cog on the opposite side of the hub (iro hub), although i probably won't flip it much. I was thinking of adding a 15 tooth cog on the other side rather than an 18 since the 17 gets me up the hills ok. Do most people gear down or up with their extra cog?

Where can I get some good cogs? Lockring? Tool to put the lockring on?

Also since I've been riding I am starting to get some chain slack from either chain streatch or the wheel settling into place. How much slack is tolerable? I assume I just loosen up the wheel and pull it back as far as I can while trying to keep it straight, is this correct?




How the hell do i track stand? By the time the light is green I have either inched my way out into the middle of the intersection or just barely unclipped before I fall over on the street.

the other side of your IRO hub is for a freewheel, you won't be able to thread a lockring onto it.

You can get IRO hubs in fixed/fixed, although it's highly unlikely that yours is. Check to see if it has the extra reverse threading for a lockring.

ahhh ****, well how about that you can. on to phase two of the question then. if it is fixed/fixed, you can gear the other side however you want. if you like an easy gear but want to be able to flip it to something harder so that you can start mashing and putting the speed down, put a smaller cog on the back. if you think youre gearing now is alright, but wish you were able to flip it to something easier on those hilly rides, put a larger cog on the other side.

make sure there is enough chain to be able to tension your wheel with both sizes of cogs.

you can get cogs and lockrings from your LBS if they carry that sort of stuff. if not, click on the bike nashbar advertisement on the side of the page. they have all kinds of neat stuff.

note: if you get a 1/8" cog, you will need a 1/8" chain as well. if you are putting on a new cog, you will need to get a chain whip (or you can rotafix your paint away) and a lockring tool. or you can always have your LBS do it. where are you located anyhow?

but back to the other questions. do people gear up or down. i have a suze hub fixed/fixed/ i run 46/16 and it's fine. i get up hills, up bridges. but lately, i've been getting way to tired b/c im carrying so much weight in my bookbag and my heavy ass winter jacket. so i wanted to put another cog on there. what size would work with a 46 chainring and would allow me to go up hills much easier.
as for trackstanding. u need to watch somebody do it. i was practicing for 4 months and it was not happening. then i saw some cat do it and i understood how i was supposed to stand and what not. now i do it all the time.

46/17. that's what I run. It's about 71 GI

I never use the other side of my hub.

You can get good cogs, lockrings, and tools at your LBS.

You put the lockring on by threading in the opposite direction of every other thing you've ever threaded on in your life. Righty-loosey, lefty-tighty. Using the wrench doesn't require a lot of explanation.

This assumes you've never threaded on a left pedal or anything else with a left hand thread in your life.

I don't know about the rest of you, but I change pedals WAY more often than I mess with a lockring.

i rather do it myself also, but my understanding was that besides the specific tools, u need a lot of torque to place the cog on and if i wasn't careful, i could kill myself. but then again, how wasn't to carry a chain whip to change cogs and i could just flip my wheel on those really winding days.
yea, i was thinking it was a 17 cog. thanks mattface.

Oh GODDAMN this is pedantic. I said left = tight, right = loose. Get over yourself! MNAGH!

allright, I may gear up to a smaller cog(I think its up not gear down) So far riding fixed has been fun as hell and not too scary except when i am leaving out of the house when I have to go down the big hill cause the spin gets to be way to fast before i even hit the steep part. i think i must have said holy s*** like rain man the whole way down. i even said it to the bum that was poking a piece of paper with a stick as i blazed by.

I also learned that to tighten the cahin tension that I need to keep one nut tight on the rear wheel and work the otherside back, tighten it and then work the next side back until its tight, centered, and doens't bind.

Sorry, I had to look that up because I didn't know what you meant by being pedantic, but I'm afraid I still don't understand. Anyway I didn't mean to dispute your information, only the assumption that left hand threads are so terribly uncommon. They are in fact quite common on bicycles most bikes have at least 2. If you meant I was being unnecessarily argumentative, then you'd be right. It IS Monday and this IS the intarweb after all.

Alright, since we're getting into a goddamn snit on the internet (that's what it's for), and totally derailing the thread: I said "opposite of everything you've ever threaded in your life", not "opposite of everything on your bike". Ever open a bottle of soda? Do any basic carpentry? Open a jar of mayonnaise, peanut butter, et al? I guarantee even a professional left-pedal installer uses right-handed threads exponentially more than left-hand threads. They are uncommon. Off the top of my head, I really can't think of any place I've used them OTHER than on a bike, and how often do you muck with your left pedal and/or lockring?

I suppose it was the "ever... in your life" part I disputed. Not the idea that left hand threads are rare and counter-intuitive. I change pedals all the time, but then I'm kinda twisted the wrong way myself. In fact I might just be the left hand thread of humanity.

you guys need to take a bike ride on your lunch break and get the crybaby out of your system.