Okay, so I'm new here and tried searching for this and couldn't find a direct answer. I have a cheapo SS bike that came as a complete build and I want to upgrade necessary parts. First thing is the freewheel since this one sucks. So my buddy is selling me his 18T Eno for cheap, and I am currently running a 16T and really like the gear ration of 46/16. So I want to upgrade the chain ring to a 52T to keep said ratio. So, here is the question, can I use an 52T outer Chain Ring for an 11 speed? I don't want to drop a lot of money because Im not sure I like the setup, and found a cheap $10 chain ring on ebay, just not sure if it would work. Thanks

All that matters when you switch out rings is that the BCD is the same (144 for track cranks, 130 for road, 110 for mtn, I think!) and what size the chainring is.

If you're running track cranks and a track ring, you'll need 144 BCD ring and most likely 1/8 chain. Some track parts are 3/32. All road parts are 3/32.

So if you want to use that 52t ring, your cranks have to be 130bcd, andyour chain has to be 3/32. But now that I think of it, most freewheels are 1/8.

I know my chain is 1/8, how do I determine what the BCD is?

edit: Measured and found it to be 130BCD. So just to clarify, a road chain ring would not be compatible with track cranks?

Nope road chain rings are typically 110 or 130 bcd. Track cranks are typically 144 bcd

Ok, go it. So I have road cranks and could use a road chain ring. Cool, thanks guys. Last question, is there any advantage for track cranks over road on a SSFG? More leverage/power?

the main difference will be chain line. a track crank with an appropriate bottom bracket will be easier to get a good chain line out of the box. it can be done with a road crank though, you just might have to use spacers etc.

You are getting a lot of confusion in here. When people say "track crank" they could mean a whole bunch of different things. Generally they mean a crank that has only one chainring so that it would be usable on a track bike. There are lots of track cranks under this definition with 130 bcd. It doesn't make them a road crank just because they have 130 bcd. For example you can get a chainring that is 1/8th inch with 130 bcd. This would never go on a road bike. That said, it seems like you have 130bcd single crank. 130 bcd is also the bcd for a standard road double. The only reason you may want to avoid getting a "road" chainring is that they often have ramps to improve shifting between chainrings which is not desirable for a singlespeed or fixed gear bike. The best thing to go for would be something labeled as a 130 bcd "track crank". Since you already have 1/8th chain it doesn't really matter whether it is 1/8th or 3/32.

Thanks! This makes a lot more sense now. So this only disadvantage to buying a cheaper road chain ring would be that the chain might jump off?