Three-speed from triple chainring?

Bike Wall
Shop deals on ebay
BOXKARS
shop deals on amazon
Rat Rod Bikes Bicycle Forum

Help Support Rat Rod Bikes Bicycle Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
UncleKudzu

UncleKudzu

Joined
Aug 10, 2008
Messages
347
Reaction score
0
Location
Deep in the American South
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
hey y'all, i found a decent old mountain bike frame that i was thinking about putting a coaster hub wheel on (yes, it has horizontal drop-outs). while looking at it i started wondering if i would have a three-speed if i left the front triple chainring and deraillers in place. i guess a coaster brake wouldn't work with a derailler, would it? what other problems might i run into with such an arrangement?

i kinda hesitate to be seen on a diamond frame bike after discovering the aesthetic joys of ratty old cruisers, but truth is, it might be nice to go a little further in more comfort sometimes. i realize that i could get a three-speed coaster hub, but that's money.

TIA
 
You would have to have something that takes up the slack in the chain when shifting to the smaller chainring.
 
Big Tony said:
You would have to have something that takes up the slack in the chain when shifting to the smaller chainring.
Click to expand...

would the rear derailer do that? or were you thinking about some kind of tensioner?

i realize that the coaster brake wouldn't work going through any kind of tensioner/derailer, and that's a shame.
 
If the chain will work with the coaster sprocket, it will work as long as you have the rear derailler aligned with the sprocket. You won't have coaster brakes though, it would take up all the slack in the chain before the brakes applied. So it won't be any different than leaving the original wheel with the rear derailler stuck in one gear.
 
thanks for the input, guys! i think i'll scrap this notion, though. even if it would work, i don't like the idea of all that derailer and cable clutter. i'll just slap a rusty coaster wheel on it for the time being and save up for a three-speed coaster hub.

i'll have to rat that diamond frame bike up a little, though, so's i don't look like i'm trying to be one of them Single-speed Coffee House Hipsters :wink:
 
here's a two speed murray made a while back

Picture002-1.jpg


it's an interesting little bike, but truthfully the first bike like this i came across the first thing i did was pop off the freewheel and put on a cluster and derailleur.
 
Philphine said:
here's a two speed murray made a while back.
Click to expand...

so, it was sold as a two-speed? even a two-speed sounds like a good idea for what i have in mind.

there are so many hills to tackle where i ride that i've put smallish chainrings on a couple of bikes. it seems like even just one higher gear would be nice sometimes. but, then, that's probably how it starts :wink: if two gears sounds like a good idea, then why not 18 or 27?

anyway, thanks for posting the photo; that is very interesting.
 
yep, sold just as you see it.

it might not be too hard to do without a lot of cables. maybe use a regular rear derailleur and screw the high side adjustment in to line it up with a single freewheel. maybe a small thumb shifter or whatever might work just above the front derailleur with the shortest possible cable run (maybe even bare without the housing depending on the shifter and derailleur), and a single reliable front brake.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top