fixie conversion Q: freewheel hub usage with lockring...

Ravi said:

I am almost done on my fixie conversion project. I have decided to go
with using the freewheel hub. After i put on the track cog, i have only
about 1.5 threads remaining. I used a threadlocker when i put on the
track cog and have been riding around for sometime - so cog is fully
tightened. Now, i am not sure whether to put on the lock-ring or not. I
have the english threaded BB lockring, but the number of threads on the
hub is only 1 full thread and half of the second thread. BTW, I will
retain both front and rear brakes.

Question: Can i just put on the lockring - even though i have only 1.5
threads remaining?

I wouldn't bother. I just use blue Loctite for such setups, but do keep
two brakes on bikes that don't have proper track hubs.

One side of my fixed-gear tandem is set up this way, it has never
loosened up.

Sheldon "Loctite Blues" Brown
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| Wherever there is sufficient space for a motor vehicle |
| there must be sufficient space for a bicycle, |
| because the bicycle is smaller. Is that not obviously so? |
| -- John Forester |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com
Hard-to-find parts shipped Worldwide
http://captainbike.com http://sheldonbrown.com

Sheldon Brown said:

Ravi said:

I am almost done on my fixie conversion project. I have decided to
go with using the freewheel hub. After i put on the track cog, i have
only about 1.5 threads remaining. I used a threadlocker when i put on
the track cog and have been riding around for sometime - so cog is
fully tightened. Now, i am not sure whether to put on the lock-ring or
not. I have the english threaded BB lockring, but the number of
threads on the hub is only 1 full thread and half of the second
thread. BTW, I will retain both front and rear brakes.

Question: Can i just put on the lockring - even though i have only 1.5
threads remaining?

I wouldn't bother. I just use blue Loctite for such setups, but do keep
two brakes on bikes that don't have proper track hubs.

One side of my fixed-gear tandem is set up this way, it has never
loosened up.

Sheldon "Loctite Blues" Brown

similar question since my fixie is about done as well:

when I put on the track cog, you site says something along the lines of
"after riding for while, the cog with tighten down some more and you'll
need to further secure the lockring" (I think it was your site, maybe
somewhere else, I can't find it right now).

How long would a while be? up the street and back? 1 mile? 20 miles?

\\paul

--
Paul M. Hobson
Georgia Institute of Technology
..:change the words numbers
if you want to reply to me:.

Paul Hobson said:

when I put on the track cog, you site says something along the lines of
"after riding for while, the cog with tighten down some more and you'll
need to further secure the lockring" (I think it was your site, maybe
somewhere else, I can't find it right now).

How long would a while be? up the street and back? 1 mile? 20 miles?

One good stiff climb should do it.

Sheldon "Not An Exact Science" Brown
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
| Want of care does us more damage than want of knowledge. |
| -- Benjamin Franklin |
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com
Hard-to-find parts shipped Worldwide
http://captainbike.com http://sheldonbrown.com

Sheldon Brown said:

Paul Hobson said:

when I put on the track cog, you site says something along the lines of
"after riding for while, the cog with tighten down some more and you'll
need to further secure the lockring" (I think it was your site, maybe
somewhere else, I can't find it right now).

How long would a while be? up the street and back? 1 mile? 20 miles?

One good stiff climb should do it.

Sheldon "Not An Exact Science" Brown

Or lend it to Chris Hoy and ask him to do a lead out lap for the team
sprint :-)
Kinky Cowboy*

*Batteries not included
May contain traces of nuts
Your milage may vary

Ravi said:

Hi,
I am almost done on my fixie conversion project. I have decided to
go with using the freewheel hub. After i put on the track cog, i have
only about 1.5 threads remaining. I used a threadlocker when i put on
the track cog and have been riding around for sometime - so cog is fully
tightened. Now, i am not sure whether to put on the lock-ring or not. I
have the english threaded BB lockring, but the number of threads on the
hub is only 1 full thread and half of the second thread. BTW, I will
retain both front and rear brakes.

Question: Can i just put on the lockring - even though i have only 1.5
threads remaining?

Not necessary. As long as you have a brake, probably won't be a
problem. You would be surprised how many track riders don't use
lockrings. Most do not.

Qui si parla Campagnolo said:

Not necessary. As long as you have a brake, probably won't be a
problem. You would be surprised how many track riders don't use
lockrings. Most do not.

actually here's what happened, i went to my LBS to buy a track cog. I
took my hub along. I showed the hub and asked for a track cog that
matched the same threading. The wrench there looked at the hub and said
it is dangerous to ride without using a 'track' hub. I said i will put
in a lockring to secure it - but the wrench just wouldn't agree. He
cannot believe that it is possible to have a track cog on a freewheel
hub and he wouldn't sell me the cog. i told him that i will have both
brakes on and i wouldn't be doing any 360s or any of serious
backpedaling....
At this time, the guy who knows about my project walks in and he
said its ok to have it that way... and he only got me the cog. and he
asked me to put in a lockring and tighten it down as well - even though
there were only 1.5 threads left.

this being my first project, instilled some fear in me - may be i am
doing something wrong - hence the post.

thanks all for the clarification,
+ravi

Ravi said:

actually here's what happened, i went to my LBS to buy a track cog. I
took my hub along. I showed the hub and asked for a track cog that
matched the same threading. The wrench there looked at the hub and said
it is dangerous to ride without using a 'track' hub. I said i will put
in a lockring to secure it - but the wrench just wouldn't agree. He
cannot believe that it is possible to have a track cog on a freewheel
hub and he wouldn't sell me the cog. i told him that i will have both
brakes on and i wouldn't be doing any 360s or any of serious
backpedaling....
At this time, the guy who knows about my project walks in and he
said its ok to have it that way... and he only got me the cog. and he
asked me to put in a lockring and tighten it down as well - even though
there were only 1.5 threads left.

this being my first project, instilled some fear in me - may be i am
doing something wrong - hence the post.

It's kind of a funny thing...fixed gears and singlespeeds are so very
_simple_ compared to derailer bikes, you'd think it would be easy but...

For some reason there are lots of mechanics, even quite good ones, who
have little or no actual _experience_ with such bikes, and who imagine
all sorts of problems that rarely or never arise in practice.

Good mechanics are often rather pessimistic and conservative about
technologies they are not highly familiar with. I myself am probably a
bit of a "nervous nelly" when it comes to plastic forks, for instance...

Sheldon "Experiments On His Own Bikes, Not On Customers' Bikes" Brown
+----------------------------------------------------------+
| Wink at small faults; remember thou hast great ones. |
| -- Benjamin Franklin |
+----------------------------------------------------------+
Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com
Hard-to-find parts shipped Worldwide
http://captainbike.com http://sheldonbrown.com