Single Speed to multi speed?

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motor34

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Hey all,

New to the list, so excuse me if this has been gone over before.

Just picked up a single speed cruiser bike - hoping to get these old bones in shape. I'm 47 and this thing is kicking my ....

Is it feasible to add a few speeds, or should I just grin and bear it?

Thanks in advance - the stuff on this site is amazing.
 
I'm 48. I understand. Yes, you have a few choices. You can buy a multispeed hub and lace it into your wheel. Or you can buy another wheel already setup and just swap your tire. If you post a photo of your bike and a description of it also with tire sizes and number of teeth on the front sprocket you will get better information and guidance.
 
I'm 53 and am still able to ride like I always did, but the seat must be good, and the height must be exact for a good ride. It may take a little time to get acclimated again.

If your bike already has hand brakes, that's good.
If not, get a multispeed hub with coaster brakes so you wont have to install brakes, unless you wanted to install handbrakes. Routing the shift cable may be the only thing that takes any effort. Go with the same size wheel and you keep the existing tires and tubes. A 3 speed with coaster brake and handle bar shifter would probably be the easiest way to go mutlispeed. I'd keep the single speed wheel with a tire aired up for a spare if you ever had a problem with the geared hub.
 
I'm 17 and i say GRIN AND BEAR IT!

Just kidding-
But if you have no coaster brake-Your set- you can either relace a 3 speed into there...and theres tons of other solutions...
 
Thanks for the posts! Man, that was quick!

Will get a picture in the next day or so. I appreciate all your assistance.
 
Depends on your capabilities, finances, and desires. Geared bikes are definitely less work to pedal, and better at covering distance over time. I'm about to be 53, I've had gears aplenty, and I still love my 1-spd coaster bikes. If I don't ride for a while, the first few hills can be tough. The methods mentioned in previous posts can all work, depending on money, or your luck in finding donor bikes/parts and ability to wrench.. If you should stumble across an old trashed or yard sale 10-12 spd MTB style bike from the late 70's-early 80's, you could probably swap the parts over with minimal effort. viewtopic.php?f=6&t=18006 For the price of modding with new parts, You can probably pick up a pretty good second hand ATB/MTB, and have 2 bikes, 1 for putzing around, and 1 for getting somewhere. :wink:
 
One other thing. If you don't already know, any bike is less work to ride if you set your seat high enough so that you can straighten your leg on the down stroke while seated. :|
 
motor34 said:
Hey all,

New to the list, so excuse me if this has been gone over before.

Just picked up a single speed cruiser bike - hoping to get these old bones in shape. I'm 47 and this thing is kicking my butt.

Is it feasible to add a few speeds, or should I just grin and bear it?

Thanks in advance - the stuff on this site is amazing.
Click to expand...


well- somebody's got to do it, so i'm going to play 'devil's advocate' here and say a cruiser is no way to "get in shape".....if you're a sedentary 47 who hasn't ridden in a while searching for cardiovascular fitness a cruiser bike may be the path to injury and discouragement. a light weight bike (a shop quality, sport oriented hybrid bike for example) with a full complement of gears and reasonably efficient ergonomics will enable your lungs and heart to take over the majority of the workload, at a level of your choosing, without the stress of overloading your knees when you expand the horizons of your riding beyond the neighborhood, the wind blows, or the hills steepen. :)

will your butt be sore for a while? yes.

will it cost a lot of money? if $400 or so is a lot of money, then yes.

will it take you beyond 'good intentions' ? yes it can.

should you keep the cruiser anyway? heck yeah!!


don't get me wrong, (i can feel the rat rod keyboards heating up already :D ) you don't have to play lance armstrong, but be realistic. i have at least a half dozen regularly ridden single speed coaster brake bikes. they are great fun and riding one for a few hours is a heck of a lot of work, but i realize they are not the right tool for actual goal-oriented fitness riding. have a blast on the cruiser, but please remember- they are what they are and they ain't what they ain't!


:mrgreen: bonus points if anyone knows what song that last line paraphrases :mrgreen:
 
In general terms, geared bikes are definitely a better exercise machine, especially in terms of steady rate calorie burn and elevated cardio, but it also depends on individual use, gearing, and terrain. 1-spd bikes with relatively high gearing can be great for full body static strength, and even stamina, but you've got to do distance and/or hills, and no getting off when it starts to be tiring. Even cruising around on easy rides, on ANY bike, is way better (health-wise, anyway) than sitting on your butt with a bag of chips and a beer. :mrgreen:
 
I'm swapping my single speed to a 3 speed coaster and adding a drum brake hub on the front. It should hopefully serve my needs a lot better when I'm done.
 
I have several Schwinn middleweights that I put a lot of miles on. I have one of them set up with a few things that make long distances easier to handle.

Long seat post
http://www.bikepartsusa.com/bikeparts/i ... =seat_post

Smooth tires
http://www.outsideoutfitters.com/p-1137 ... tires.aspx

(Careful when ordering tires, though. If you roll Schwinn wheels, then these tires won't fit.)

In my opinion, the tires make the biggest difference. Smoother and skinnier will make for a MUCH easier ride....
 
If using the Wald post, be aware that it is not as strong as an original Schwinn long post. It worked for me OK until I moved the seat all the way back in the clamp. It wasn't long before my 170 lbs or so started heading towards the back wheel. I was using it right at the minimum insertion mark, and it bent right where it came out of the seat post clamp. I cut it down and used it elsewhere, if you're not using it at full height, you might never have a problem. If you can, I recommend using the long post from an S2Typhoon or Stingray instead.
 
I have an old Schwinn with a new 3 speed hub laced in new chrome rims which I love and a newer light weight Huffy with the single speed hub from the Schwinn which I enjoy riding more because of the lighter weight of the frame and rims. Weight makes a big difference in a bike and once you get over 50 you need all the help you can get.
Bikes are meant to be fun so play around with it.
 

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