RaleighSport

Hi again, I salvaged another bike from the dump.. a schwinn le tour IV I was considering using it as a 10 speed, being as all the components are in good shape, the frame has some rust but that I can deal with. Now someone mentioned, that these are a great candidate for SS/Fixie... is that true? I don't anticipate the conversion being hard at all. I just want to know if this would be a good frame to get used to SS on?

Kayce

Its a perfect frame for a conversion.

dontpassthefenc

Love my Le Tour conversion. :3 do et.

AngelGendy

DO IT! DO IT NOW!

and post some pics too please....

dontpassthefenc

Its been a couple hours... Is it done yet? :3

RaleighSport

need a chain breaker and some freewheel cog spacers... then I'll do it.

AngelGendy

got a hacksaw? My LBS has BMX chains for $4.50

and what are cog spacers, and why do you need them?

RaleighSport

for when I take all the other gears off the rear freewheel and need to line up the chain...sorry I'm very newb and these seems like the least likely way for me to screw up

rithem

the gears (freewheel) on that will come off in one big piece ... screw on bmx freewheel re-space & re-dish rear wheel or size the chain and run a ghetto single mid freewheel sans rear mech

RaleighSport

wow... so way easier than I thought, your a lifer saver.

AngelGendy

Just screw on a track cog,(fixed gear) or a BMX single freewheel in place of the stock freewheel.

A lockring from a bottom bracket will help the track cog from unscrewing if going the fixed gear route.

The small chainring on my cranks lined up perfectly without redishing.

Here's how I did mine....

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...-Ross-to-fixed

Robofunc

I love my 84 LeTour conversion:

RaleighSport

wow I was leaning towards painting it black since the paint was botched do to a bad paint over by the previous owner..that's gorgeous. Is that the stock crank set?

cradduck

You can probably go and get that frame sandblasted for pretty cheap by just about any powdercoating or automotive paint shop. Some around me only charge $25. That should take care of the rust problem and give you a clean start for painting the bike. From there you can primer and/or paint the bike on your own for super cheap.

Robofunc

That frame was media blasted and powdercoated black. The crankset is a new SRAM S100--inexpensive but not bad, especially if you're just starting out.

kyselad

fify

Robofunc

RaleighSport

Pictures. So later today I'm hoping to get the deraileurs off, the chain and the freewheel then I'll see what else I can get done today after work.
Does that crankset work automatically with the stock Bottom Bracket?

Robofunc

If you're asking about the s100, no--they use a power spline bottom bracket. You can find the crankset, chainring and BB sold together on line.

RaleighSport

Stupid question! Okay I'm considering using it as a 10 speed again..but I am not abandoning the single speed idea, would it be dangerous to have an alternate rear wheel that is single speed while retaining the deraileurs that I will be using while it is in 10 speed as tensioners?

Robofunc

I guess it wouldn't be dangerous and you wouldn't have to remove links or get a new chain, but then what's the point in converting when you can just leave it alone and never change gears?

If you convert, take off the stuff you don't need and either sell it or keep it around to convert back later.

Otherwise just leave it alone and go for a ride.

RaleighSport

I'm definitely leaning towards total conversion, but I think I'd like to have both options to start and find my preference. My main concern is that for SS I wanted a it to be set for hill climbing without issues but at the same time that doesn't leave many options gearwise for regular road traveling.. there's just so much I don't know, do you guys set your bikes for climbing hills and have good rides despite this?

kyselad

I wouldn't call this stupid so much as pointless. As long as you have the derailer and associated bits in place, why swap in a ss wheel? If you want the ss effect with that setup, just don't shift.

EDIT: robofunc beat me to it

kyselad

Plenty of people ride ss/fg in hilly areas no problem, but as you suggest, you'll want to choose an appropriate gear. Plenty more people are fond of gears, especially where it's hilly and geared bikes are far more efective than ss/fg. Don't get me wrong, my fg was my bike of choice when I lived in very hilly terrain, but for comfort and efficiency, gears win hands-down, and don't be fooled into convincing yourself otherwise.

If you're ambivalent, also consider internally geared hubs. Clean looks, durability, fairly low maintenance, and gears to boot.

Robofunc

I don't know how hilly your area is, but you might want to spend your first few months in the saddle riding geared to give you a feel for what different ratios are like around there. Once you build up your strength and become accustomed to the bike, you should be able to better decide what gearing is appropriate for a conversion.