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Just converted an older CX bike to single speed. Great fun. Took it for an offroad loop at the weekend to try some climbs and managed 8% (relatively short though).
Plan is to use it commuting on canal and surrounding areas and generally give me another option.
The brakes (used and abused TRP Spyres) are rubbish though - they've previously had 3 or 4 winters of general rubbish thrown at them and never really been touched. Reckon need new compressionless cables and pads as first port of call.
Picture from this morning's commute (if link thing works)...
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Yep, they're a heaps of fun bikes! I've 38-16T for Midlands hills with TRP Spyre brakes that I'm not too fond of. Had the BB7 before and much preferred them to the TRPs...
Mines a Charge Plug. 39-18 freewheel for steeper off road. 16t fixed for commuting on road/gravel.
Struggling with gear choice, had 39-16 freewheel but it felt like it was always too high, 18t feels really quite low on the flat and downhill. A lot of riding round here is fairly gentle gradients so the 16t meant you could pedal for most of the time. Fixed I struggle with high cadence on the flat, spinning out downhill is fine but actually putting power down at 100rpm down gentle slopes feels like harder work than trying to sprint and coast on a free hub.
Thanks k1100t!!
I've gone for 42:18 and happy with that so far - I'm SE Leeds so fairly flat really. I have a 16t cog somewhere if I need to make it harder (don't think I will somehow).