Glad to help out, this is exactly why I made this video 👍

Thanks for the positive feedback and sharing your experience! Much appreciated 🙏

Cheers, thanks for the positive feedback!

You sure? Pretty sure I read in several sources that it's not compatible with thru axles (Would be happy to stand corrected if so)

@@ssmtb ok I see where you are coming from.. to clarify, I am not proposing that the STS is compatible with through axles, just that the component of the STS assembly that captures the skewer of the quick release is unnecessary. Of that I am sure. I have never tried fit-up with through-axles.

@Lt_Henry thanks, good points 👍 my single pulley tensioner worked excellent for 3-4 months, then it started dropping the chain here and there (mostly on bumpy terrain, never under torque). I totally agree that single pulley need to be close to magic gear to work well. I really like my new ISCG mount chain guide though, it looks a lot more cleaner and feels sturdier than my single pulley, but time will tell 🤞

@@ssmtb What about half-link chains? (BMX like). Have you tested it?

@@lt_henry820 Nope, can't say I have, mainly because all the available chainrings I can find are NW (at least the ones that match my 96bcd asymmetrical crank arms)

@@lt_henry820 I use a 3/32 half link attached with two quick links to get my chain length just right for 3-5 gear dinglespeed set ups. But my frame has horizontal dropouts. The Unicorn set ups are just a poor compromise as far as I'm concerned. I believe proper chain tension is really critical to a reliable well dialed singlespeed, most especially a fixed gear drivetrain. Since I climb hard quite often and ride in bad conditions often, my chains stretch pretty fast. Ive also used dummy derailleurs and the Pauls Melvin on a few of my bikes. Nothing can be as efficient as a fixed gear drivetrain. The inertial effect you get out of the spinning wheel is always a big surprise to me! You definately need to use just the right gear for your terrain. Watts and weight usually aren't what singlespeed are concerned with. Affordability, simplicity, reliability and transportation are. My tensioner set ups don't seem to waste much more effort however. I ride singlespeed as well as fixed gear all winter for reliability, simplicity and hard workouts. I don't worry much about watts nor weight. My weight and fitness are generally what's slowing me down !! Humans can generally increase their wattage. Believe it or not. My 'Crossafix' is built like a tank. It's designed for the apocalypse. I like the 'weight training aspect'! Im weird, I like pushing myself. I'm not racing it usually either. I actually prefer to spend more time riding. I dig loooong rides! Its the rider, not the freakin bike!

I have had good results with KMCs x8/9/11

@@ssmtb sadly KMC has always skipped on me /: . No matter the length or tension, i take a couple of pedals and the chain skips.

Good point, thanks for sharing!

Yea, those EBBs never really resonated with me, they seem like a lot of faff while offering fairly limited chain adjustment I know some SS riders really like theirs, so go figure 🤷‍♂

I've had my track ends slip under braking and they require way more clamping force across the axle.

Surly use a Chinese manufacture based in Taiwan (information is on their website)

The point of doing a ss is to get rid of heavy derailleur, and gears. Using derailleur as tensioner doesnt make sense. Use magic gears, half link, or light tensioner instead.

@@marcusmartin5758 There's horses for different courses. The point of a single speed for myself is that it's a simple, reliable bike. There's nothing much to go wrong or fix. I also like that I can build a cheap functional bike from a pile of old junk. For myself, it's just a tool to get from point A to point B. I'm not racing, (usually) so there's no particular hurry. I might as well use this junk, since it's free and otherwise would just be useless landfill. Ever since I was a young kid, I built dozens of these 'frankensteins', ride 'em awhile, thrash 'em until they break or I grow bored, then I sell, trade or just give em away to somebody who needs transportation. Then build another. I have a garage full of old bikes, parts and access to a whole bunch more. I enjoy the fact that it makes riding more difficult and challenging, believe it or not. But for me, that difficulty is even more fun. Like bring a kid again! Its also a better workout. The only weight that truly matters is the extra weight on my body. I own at least dozen bikes in various states of disrepair. . Some are custom made lightweight bikes, some with too many gears, derailleurs and other fancy stuff. I use those for longer rides in big mountains, where weight actually does matter. My favorite, most used, everyday bike is a heavy, steel, fixed gear cyclocross bike. This bike cost me very little besides my time to build it. No more reliable bike exists in my imagination. I built it with the intention to ride it hard and not spend much time fixing it. Being a pro mechanic, I try to spend more time riding than I do wrenching. At least it's an aspiration. I used to race, crash and repair my fancy lightweight bikes all the time. That got old. Pedaling always on fixed gear and no coasting offers a whole bunch of benefits to improve fitness, pedaling technique, even the way I operate and handle the bike. I believe this is what makes the ride a bit more interesting. I need to focus better on what I'm doing on the bike. Especially when I take a fixed on rough mtb trails in the mountains. Then it's the rider, not the freakin bike that makes the most difference. That extra weight is just like weight training. When I get on my lighter bikes it's so easy! When I get on my really heavy bike loaded with camping gear, it's not so difficult.

"I'm a retired machinist and mechanical inspector" So you're old, got it. Guess what people only slightly older than you used to say about Japanese products 🤣🤣🤣 In all seriousness, it's just a tensioner, get over it.

China has the capacity to make amazing products, as well as really cheap products. They cover the whole market

Wow, this looks like a uber nice tensioner, haven't heard of it before, thanks for sharing 🙏

You mean it's too narrow for a 1/8 wide chain? IMHO I'd go for a non dedicated single speed chain, like shimano/sram/kmc 8 speed (3/32 wide), lots of people are running these on SS

An 1/8 inch chain certainly isn't stronger than a 3/32 chain. The pins, rollers and plates are basically the same size. The 3/32 chains see more investment and innovation. They're designed to handle shifting loads. Ive never had an issue with 3/32 drivetrains. Of course singlespeed chains and gears wear a bit faster. You're on one gear, all the time. 1/8" drivetrains are just tradition from long ago. Perhaps the thicker 1/8" gears last a bit longer. I get good use out of my 3/32 drivetrains. I ride my 'Crossafix' nearly every day, commuting and on local mtb trails.

Hi, thanks for the question! I'm actually not sure about that since my riding is mostly off road I don't have much exprience with coaster brakes, if I see something will let you know

@@ssmtb no worries, cheers! I appreciate your response

The Kindernay tensioner also doesn't have any way if adjusting "b-screw" type adjustment. And it no good for rear cogs larger than 18t. Even though kindernay will happily sell you a 22t rear cog...

@@BramBiesiekierski thanks for sharing! I've heard some good things about da bomb, so maybe that kindernay isn't manufactured so great 🤷‍♂️ For me the ISCG has been really bullet proof

@@ssmtb I haven't seen the "Da bomb" in person. But it looks like near identical construction to the kindernay item. I suspect they are manufactured at the same OEM factory. (Probably in Taiwan.) And simply ordered in bulk and resold. As is the way things are done with so much consumer products, not just cycling stuff. There is also another company that also use a near identical looking tensioner. Called "problem solvers". You can look at them yourself and tell me if they look the same??? So no doubt in my mind, they are all sourced from the same component factory. Kindernay use Aligator brand hydraulics which are also a Taiwanese manufacturer. So its no surprise if they outsource the manufacturing of the tensioners. And even on the original shipping/invoicing info on the kindernay delivery box's, they specify some parts as from Taiwan. I think declaring this info must be an EU tax law or something along those lines????

@@ssmtb Right now I am looking at options to replace the worn out tensioner on my bike before it totally self destructs. Which is how I came across your video (thankyou). Full suspension eMTB with IGH and single speed chain, is a slightly different beast than a typical single speed commuter bike. And it does seem to require a very robust design. Also with a strong tension spring (and even damper) to over come the chain slap on off-road / MTB use. I am looking at using either the SB One, or Reverse Components Colab. As they both look very promising. What makes my particular setup interesting and difficult is that I use a comparitively high power mid-drive motor. Which due to the very high torque load, means I need to use a very large rear cog. Currently I run a 44t front, into a 22t rear, Into the 7 speed Kindernay. It's a 2:1 ratio. But I need the large rear cog to get sufficient chain wrap or chain teeth interface, so as to not skip teeth when under full power use. Unfortunately most of the limited number of commercial options available that are tailored to MTB use, tend to be designed for small rear cogs, like 13/14t etc. As they tend to be designed around downhill MTB / bike park / dirt jump MTBs. And not odd ball high power eMTBs like my bike.

Actually. I am mistaken. The Da Bomb RLx is a slightly different design than that of the Problem Solvers and Kindernay. The cage is a slightly different shape. And the upper link is also a slightly different design aswell. So maybe totoally unrelated. Or maybe an "updated" version of the others???

Yea, usually goes together with simplicity, but basically I find that a lot of people ditching gears also want to ditch the rear mech for clean looking bike

Simplicity and reliability are the best attributes of singlespeeds. More riding, less wrenching. K. I. S. S. theory........ Function>form. Its the rider, not the freakin bike. The bike is a mere tool, designed for a purpose, to get from point A to point B. Perhaps logic doesn't work on lots of folks these days.

Thanks for the feedback 🙏 audio wasn't so great on the first videos, trying to improve