Changing flats on a SS/FG
 

I am new to single-speed bikes. I convinced myself to go single speed this winter. I was attracted to this notion of simplicity, and ease-of-maintenance. I bought a cheap Marin Hamilton 29er, which has a single-speed drive train.

I have not flatted yet on this bike, but I am dreading the day it happens.

The reason for this is the rearward-facing track 'dropout' (a common feature on most commercially produced SS/FG framesets). Adjustments to the rear wheel are a major pain. For example, I had my chain fall off once this winter, probably just because it stretched a little. Moving the wheel back to increase tension seemed like it should be very easy, but it is not. Here's my procedure:

First, back off the bolts on each of the the 'chain tensioners' (I'm not sure if that is the right name for this -- a photo is attached). Then loosen the bolt on the wheel. Then move the wheel back and tighten everything. Next, I spin the wheel and (surprise!) it wobbles. Loosen everything up again, and give it another shot. Lather, rinse repeat. Once you've got the wheel rotating nicely, it's time to adjust the rear brakes, because they are no longer hitting the rim where they used to.

In the event of an actual flat, the process is much more complicated, as I have a rear fender that must be removed before the rear wheel can slide out. I am pretty sure I also need to completely remove the chain tensioners.

I carry 4 wrenches with me in case I need to fix a flat. I need 2 different wrenches for the nuts on the rear wheel, another for the chain tensioner, and a fourth to loosen the nuts on the fender stays should I need to remove the wheel. The thought of doing all this in the winter is kind of scary to me.

I compare this to the process of changing a flat on a geared bicycle, which requires no specialized tools whatsoever. Open the quick release, pull the rear wheel out, fix the flat, and put it back.

I guess I am wondering if I am simply ignorant of how to efficiently remove a re-mount a wheel in this bike. Are other SS/FG frames easier? I have looked around a little, and it seems that most commercially available (new) SS/FG frames have these rear-facing track-style dropouts. That design seems like it should be for track bikes, not road bikes! I can't for the life of me figure out why it wouldn't be better to have horizontal dropouts so you can just mount your rear wheel in 2 seconds without removing a fender.

Also, I can not for the life of me figure out how to use Marin's chain tensioner. The sales rep who sold me the bike was 'amazed' that a bike of this price included these chain tensioners. They are kind of maddening to me, and I'm wondering what purpose they serve, and if I can just get rid of them.

There isn't a good reason. The reasoning is kids want to be seen riding "track" bikes, and horizontal ends are indicative of conversions, which are not cool. In actuality, most of the frames with track ends are so slack in geometry that they can't be considered "track" bikes. With fenders, horizontal drops are the way to go. Sounds like you would have been a lot happier with a Salsa frame or a Cross Check.

Your problem seems to be mostly related to the fact that you have a (full coverage bolt on) fender, and do not know how to properly set your chain tension by hand.

It shouldn't take you any longer to take your wheel off than that of a geared bike. The only thing slowing you down is your fender (and maybe a few seconds from un-doing the axel bolts).

Also, it's safe to ditch the chain tensioner, worthless gimicks.


EDIT: everything peabody said too.

Not precisely true, they're useful when you have axle nuts with worn out serrations and chain tension won't hold. Perhaps also when newcomers are learning what tension is good and what is too much, setting a tensioner is a lot easier than fidgeting with the wheel and nuts. Aside from that, if you need a tensioner to get proper tension, you're probably trying to set it too tight.

Just get a skateboard.


1) You will not have to adjust the brakes unless you get a different sized cog or your chain stretches on it's own in the 10 minutes it takes to change your flat.

2) Yes a quick release is faster, that's sort of how it got the name.

3) You don't need to remove the chain tensioner, just loosen the wheel nut then loosen the tensioner a few turns and it will fall to the side then you can move the wheel up and remove the chain and remove the wheel.


So, the only difference between this bike and a road bike is with a road bike you turn the quick release lever to release the wheel. With this bike you loosen the 2 wheel bolts then the chain tensioner. Not rocket science.

I think he gets that, his problem is he's using full fenders with track drops. A PITA for even the most experienced.

I dig chain tensioners. They are great for setting and maintaining tension. Especially when used in pairs.

I rode phil wood hubs for a while and I could never get enough torque down on the allen bolts to hold the wheel. Tensioners helped a whole lot.

You must be so strong that you need a chain tensioner to keep your wheel in place.

Ditch them.

It may also help to cut your rear fender a bit short, and just add a really long mudflap. Then again, with wide enough tires, that might not even be enough. Track dropouts are kinda a pita.

Yes, track ends and fenders are a pain. Some tips:

If you get some M5 wingnuts, you can make your fender quickly removable without tools. See this page: http://www.phred.org/~alex/bikes/quick-release-fenders.html

If you know where the puncture is, don't take the wheel off. Just unseat the tire bead enough to pull out that section of tube and patch it.

You can install the wheel wobble-free in one shot by "walking" the axle back. See http://www.sheldonbrown.com/fixed.html#wheel. Note you only need one wrench to do this. I've never had a use for chain tensioners, but some people swear by them. Ditch them and see how it goes.

It would cost you ~$100 to have normal horizontal dropouts installed by a framebuilder. Maybe worth it to you.

+1 for not taking the tire off at all when fixing a flat. Not as hard as you think it would be...

buy road bike convert to ss. quick release all you want.

the more you do it, the more time saving tricks you will learn.

1 of the biggest time savers would be to ditch the chain tugs. they're really worthless.

its REALLY hard pull a properly torqued axle bolt loose by pedaling....

Yes, it's why I removed the fenders on my San Jose.

When I move the chain on my Dingle-equipped, double chainring Raleigh, I don't have to adjust the brake pads. Another benefit of "horizontal" dropouts(which are actually slanted in relation to the ground).

Sheldonbrown.com says:

"When your install the rear wheel, there are basically three things you need to adjust simultaneously:

The wheel needs to be straight.
This basically means that the tire needs to be centered between the frame's chainstays. If you get it centered between the chainstays, it is properly aligned.

The chain tension needs to be correct. (See previous section )
The axle nuts or quick release skewer need to be tight.
Note: if you have a nutted axle, it is vitally important that the threads be properly lubricated with grease or oil. You should also have grease or oil on the contact surface where the axle nut presses agains the washer that contacts the frame.

Some folks who are used to derailer bikes find it frustrating, especially with a nutted hub. This is usually because they don't know the technique of "walking" the wheel back and forth in the fork ends.
Start by installing the wheel at approximately the correct position and tightening the axle nuts. They don't need to be super tight at this stage, but should more than finger tight. Check the chain tension and wheel alignment.

Most likely, the chain will be a bit loose, but perhaps the wheel is correctly aligned. Loosen one of the axle nuts and push the tire to the side so that the loose side of the axle moves to the rear, then tighten the axle nut you loosened.

Now the chain tension should be better, but the wheel is no longer centered between the chainstays. Loosen the other axle nut and re-center the wheel in the frame. This will actually tighten the chain a little bit more.

The key is to keep one or the other of the axle nuts tight at all times, and "walk" the wheel forward and back.

This takes a bit of practice and getting used to how much axle movement is needed to adjust a given amount of chain droop, but it isn't really hard as long as you keep one side secured at all times."

Tensioners are not a fail safe for bolt/dropout holding problems. Phil makes a bmx type washer for their 6mm bolts that are specifically desinged for this problem. Stop giving out bad advice.

Chain tensioners are nothing but an annoyance and hinderance to removing a rear wheel. Instead of two nuts/bolts to remove wheel you now have four. And in some cases 6. Their only use is for people who have bad setups that require an incredibly narrow range of axle positions due to huge variations in chain tension.

Thanks for the great advice. I've already considered installing some of those SKS fender breakaway clips, which (I think) would eliminate the need to unbolt the fender. And it's nice to know that chain tensioner thing is not useful -- I'll be able to reduce the number of wrenches I ride around with at the very least!

Why do you need 2 wrenches to remove the axle bolts? Are they different sizes (if so, why on earth would they need to be)? I thought 15mm was standard, but I could be wrong. If they are the same size, just use the same wrench for both sides.

Re. full fenders and track ends: I agree it's not ideal, but you should be able to find a workaround. I'd rather not mess with fender bolts, so instead I keep the tube deflated when inserting/removing the rear wheel. It helps if the fenders are set for near-maximal clearance, but I've had no problem at all even with 32c winter tires on my Rob Roy with PB Freddy Hardcores.

If you flat,the tube is deflated anyway - just release the wheel, pull it out and replace the tube, then re-install the wheel before fully inflating the new tube. Doing it this way is about as fast as a "normal" flat repair, the order of events is just swapped around a bit.

If you can switch to one wrench for the axle bolts and find a way to get around the fenders, you're down from 4 wrenches to 2. Remove the tensioners and you're down to one.

HTH!

Oh, also depending on your rear hub, you can probably buy a QR axle for it and forget about the axle nuts altogether. I think Harris Cyclery has kits to do this. As long as you know how to properly snug up a QR, you should be fine.

I've never tried this on track ends, but it might be worth a shot: Use a QR in the rear, but instead of sliding the wheel out of the dropouts, remove the whole skewer and flex the frame open a bit and let the wheel drop straight down. Might help avoid the whole fender issue.

Yep. the only way to make this work is to get your axle as close to the edge of the ends as is safe, which might require a 1/2 link.
once you do this, though, everything works just fine.

In order to get the axle nuts snug, I've been using a 15mm wrench (on the nut itself) and grabbing just inside the non-drive side dropout with a 16mm wrench. Otherwise, things have been spinning.

Tighten up your cones, you shouldn't need two wrenches to remove your wheel. If you have sealed bearings it's pretty easy.

The SKS fenders only have a breakaway in the front, although that's not to say that you couldn't modify something to work. Do it, they're great fenders as well.

Yeah, something is screwed up there. It shouldn't do that. It could be that the cones are loose as one poster said, or that you have stripped or gummed up axle threads. Take it to a bike shop if you can't figure out what's wrong because you could damage your hub riding it in its present state.

Regarding your chain tension issue -- Sheldon Brown has an article that may be useful, if you haven't already read it: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/singlespeed.html

You don't strictly need the axle tugs; some people find them convenient, but it sounds like you don't. Leave 'em off if you don't like them. Sell 'em on eBay maybe and get some $$$ back.

You are quite correct in that rear-facing slots make the wheel hard to remove when you have a full-length fender. Since you already have the frame, it's a little lte to suggest forward facing horizontal dropouts, but you might consider a "shorty" type fender to make wheel changes a little easier.

Unless of course you like the people who you ride with