Gears???

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BikeBuilders

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Just a little curious about something here.... I have done a lot of reading, and a lot of lurking here.... You guys do some amazing stuff. And I love the fact that building bicycles is a WHOLE LOT cheaper than building motorcycles. Perfect hobby for me.....

What I have seen is that some of these custom built bikes can end up being pretty darn heavy. Not so much the bikes here that I have seen, but on another site. Chopper bikes with big back tires to be exact. I like that style.

So, onto my question.... With all of the amazing things I have seen you guys do, why is it that all of the bikes I have seen remain single speed? Seems like it would be easy enough to at least add a rear derailer. This would give you at least a few gears. Even if you left the front a single sprocket only. I am sure there is a logical reason, just wondering what it is before I head down a road doomed for failure.

So what's the reason? Mechanically unadvisable, personal preference, oversight on my part????

Thanks
Rob
 
Most like the simple style of a single speed coaster brake. No cables for brakes or gears.

3 speed internal geared hubs are popular or 2 speed kickback hubs.
 
That makes sense.... A cleaner look. But in the event I wanted to use a rear hub from say a 21 speed mountain bike, and the rear derailer (and possibly even front), there is no mechanical or other unforeseen reason it wouldn't work???? Or any experienced builder warnings, tips or tricks I should know about?
 
I built my Monster Trike using an 18 speed gearing to spin the 31" Coopers.
24m6eqh.jpg


One problem you may encounter with a wider rear tire is your chain line. If it is an issue you can employ a jackshaft compensate.
 
BikeBuilders said:
Forgive the newbie question, but what is "chain pitch"??? Please explain....
Click to expand...

Chain pitch is the distance between chain rivets. Almost all modern chains are 1/2 pitch.

The 1/8 and 3/32 that Tank refers to is the Chain Width (between two inner plates). Single speed and three speed chains are typically 1/8. Deraileur bikes are typically 3/32.
 
wheelymarko said:
I like simplicity! Mine is a coaster brake triplespeed. :roll:
Click to expand...

Mine too. And I used an 80 mm backrim (not wider),so I didn't have to alter the standard sprockets into off-set sprockets,because of the chain clearance. Any other wide(r) rim brings along the problem of how get the chain from front to back,in a straight line. So I chose the easy way.
 
Another thing to look at is the spacing of the hub itself. Most coatser hubs have a 118mm to 120mm spacing so the frame is built to match. A 6 spd or greater hubs spacing starts at around 125mm and go up to 135mm so you would have to spread the rear chainstays to make it work. Not a real big deal until but something to look at.
 
kingfish254 said:
BikeBuilders said:
Forgive the newbie question, but what is "chain pitch"??? Please explain....
Click to expand...

Chain pitch is the distance between chain rivets. Almost all modern chains are 1/2 pitch.

The 1/8 and 3/32 that Tank refers to is the Chain Width (between two inner plates). Single speed and three speed chains are typically 1/8. Deraileur bikes are typically 3/32.
Click to expand...

Gotcha.... But if I use all the components (rear hub and sprocket, front spocket and chain) from the same donor bike, I won"t have to worry about changing anything, right??
 
BikeBuilders said:
Gotcha.... But if I use all the components (rear hub and sprocket, front spocket and chain) from the same donor bike, I won"t have to worry about changing anything, right??
Click to expand...

Yep, that'll work. Just be aware, most older and newer, single speed bikes use a one piece crankset, like this;
ic3081.025.jpg


Now, if you can find a donor with a multi-speed rear, one piece crankset front, you're good to go.

However, if the donor has a three piece crankset (which most modern mountain bikes, BMX bikes, etc...use), like this:
fito_modena_lux_7sp_men_blk_crank.JPG


You'll need to get a US-euro conversion kit, like this:
41CKo00lz8L._SL500_AA300_.jpg

http://www.amazon.com/BB-Conversion-Bp-American-To-Euro/dp/B001G8TSPS

Good luck, keep asking questions, there's a LOT of knowledgeable people on here! :wink:

Cheers,
Dr. T
 
Sorry, I just re-read that, it was a little confusing, even to me.. :roll:
Basically, it all depends on the frame you using for your bike (not the donor).

Typically, newer frames that utilize a 3-piece crank with multi-speed rear hubs have a smaller bottom bracket tube compared to the 'classic' single speed frames.

Now, if you can find a vintage '5 speed' donor bike with a single front sprocket, a 1-piece crank and a multi-speed rear, then everything should move over to the 'final' frame with no problem.

If you find a 'modern' donor, like a mountain bike, with a 3-piece crank (the number of sprockets is irrelevant) and a multi-speed rear, chances are you'll need the bottom bracket adapter. The adapter reduces the internal size of the bottom bracket tube down from a 1-piece size to the modern (or euro) 3-piece size.

Hope that makes more sense.. :D

Cheers,
Dr. T
 
Hmmm... How do I explain this where someone who has done such a thing will not try to argue with me on their reason for doing so? This will be a challenge.

If a bicycle is so unergomatic , so heavy and so inefficent that its top speed is only slightly more than a crawl then having multiple gears on it is redundant. Finding a comfortable gear ratio for such a bike I imagine is a very specific task. Having multiple gears on one is pointless.
 
gcrank1 said:
It is the nature of man to find a complicated solution to a simple (or, as some would argue, a non-existent) problem......... :wink:
Click to expand...

Sure is. Thankfully when I have done so I can pass it off as artistic license. Thank God for Rat rod bikes :)
 

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