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bought a 13 bike for wee do and it’s got a triple on it with 10 speed cassette
i have some double cranksets but would prefer single on the front
cheapest way of doing it?
Cheapest?
FREE - Remove shifter, cable and front derraileur. Remove All the chainrings and bolts. hacksaw the outer chainring bolts (& nuts) shorter. refit the middle ring. - This won't retain the chain all that well.
£5 - Cheapest to do it properly. As above but replace the middle ring with a narrow wide (There are cheap but decent narrow wide rings on aliexpress for around a fiver).
*I assumed you already have a clutch style rear mech on the bike. If not. For the second option. you might want to add in the cheapest compatible one. But this is not essential. Especially for a kids bike.
My XC bike has a non clutch mech but narrow wide ring and never drops a chain. my other bikes see far rougher use and require clutches/top guides to insure no dropped chain.
cheapest way of doing it?
Fit the double crankset with the small ring removed. Remove the front shifter. Use the front derailleur as a chainguide.
Why????
most kids I know need all the gears they can use......
My lads bike has a triple chainset with the rings removed, and a superstar NW in the middle ring position. I then fitted a bashring in the big ring position, mainly for school trouser chain interface protection but it should also help a bit with chain retention as well.
He's got a non clutch SLX rear mech and has ridden in the alps with out dropping the chain.
I did think of fitting one of those small plastic chain device things that goes where the front mech goes but he doesn't seem to need it.
I think the NW ring does more than the clutch for chain retention...
Exactly what ads678 said. NW rings are awesomely grippy and can be found really cheap. No need to replace anything else, just take stuff off.