How To Build A Single Speed Mountain Bike

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Күн бұрын

So you want to build a single speed mountain bike. Heres how I did it. This works great on budget mountain bikes because it improves performance through consistency.
Single speed riding will make you stronger and a better rider and I have many learning experiences from doing this.
Please note that this is a generalization of the process. I am not breaking it down into specifics because there would be way to much to cover in a single video. If you want specific tutorial videos please let me know!
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Tensioner
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Пікірлер: 119

@islandmatt843 5 жыл бұрын

Yoo now that you have had the SS for a while now, do you still recommend it? I’m in south cak where our trails are very similar to yours in Fl. Could you feel the weight loss in the bike and has the single speed gotten old or still loving it? Thanks

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

I highly recommend it. In fact, a single speed would work better in an area that had longer steady climbs as opposed to our bursty technical, steep climbs here in FL. Not only is there a cut in weight, it's also a much quieter and smooth ride. Something about it just makes riding much more enjoyable, and arguably faster. It's not a huge investment, especially if you already have a 1X system and if you hate it, simply switch back. I'll say that I rode geared for the first time in months and it was a lot less fun, noisy clunky. But that's because i'm riding pretty low end components and bikes. So here is my 2cents. If you have a budget bike and you want quick results with low investment, it's definitely a lot more fun as a single speed. If you have a high end Santa Cruz/Transition/Trek full suspension that has Sram Eagle/Shimano XTR and flows like a unicorn you'll probably question the sanity of a person riding a hardtail single speed. Love it or hate it, it's definitely worth a try and i'll make it a point to have a single speed in the quiver from here on out. Whether it's a road bike or a MTB, or DJ. It's just more fun. Hope this helps you out!

@kitpulmones2114 4 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure you Sir, have earned my respect and subscription. I've been a fan of single speed setups for a year now and made a cyclocross ss and a mtb ss already. Less clutter, less noise, less weight, more ride.

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

@@kitpulmones2114 YeYeee! Thanks for the support. Glad to be part of the cool kids club 😎😎

@ericrobison8591 3 жыл бұрын

I've had 4 mountain bikes; 2 hardtails (26" and 29"), 1 full sus (26"), and my current which is a rigid SS 29er, and I can tell you my current bike is by FAR my favorite. I just got so sick of the maintenance required on my previous bikes, especially the full sus. Every time I'd get out on the trail I'd be thinking about my fork or shock setting not be optimal or dicking around trying to find the right gear up a climb and missing shifts. The rigid SS is so nice. I just check my tires and go. And the power transfer when you pedal on the rigid is just so immediate and efficient. Also, you'll be surprised what you can get up when your only option is to mash harder or don't. I'd absolutely recommend a SS.

@JiangHongrie 3 жыл бұрын

I done SS conversion years ago...not once did I ever regret it.

@ipodgolfer13 3 жыл бұрын

This was wicked cool and I hope to do this in the near future.

@davidt8546 3 жыл бұрын

I used a new shimano slx crankset with 11 speed narrow wide chainring...a ss conversion kit with a separate tensioner that is spring loaded and mounts to the dropout. When it came to the chain I used a shimano 7-8 speed chain with quicklink. Nice and cheap. Runs lovely and silent and the chain has never come off. Its just solid...simple and so much fun. 32- 16 tooth on the rear ring gives the right resistance in my opinion.

@TaylorBarronn 5 жыл бұрын

Nice work mate, you just earned a sub!

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks bru. Hard work starting to pay off! 🙏

@XCBen 5 жыл бұрын

I want to do this. Loved the video! I was excited for the video about the DIY chain tensioner.

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

I think i'll always have one in the quiver. I rode it geared and it's just not the same lol. I'll still make the DIY tensioner tutorial because it will work for street cruisers and road bikes. Plus it's just fun to make stuff.

@XCBen 5 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure true that. Great editing skills on this one. Definitely looked like it took some time

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

@@XCBen Thanks dude. It all takes time.....you know. It's a balancing act. LOL

@rollinrat4850 2 жыл бұрын

DIY chain tensioner IS old junk you already may have. Use an old (even damaged) rear derailleur. Get a longer limit screw and a short piece of dummy cable to hold the derailleur in the right place. You CAN even get even more creative with this arrangement, add another cog and use the barrel adjuster to shift two gears! There's several cool gear options using this method!

@alexquinn3148 3 жыл бұрын

Love this vid 🤙

@omarcervantes3266 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the vid ima turn my bike into a single speed it’s to much maintenance for a 8 speed

@patalinghugjosephmarkkent6082 3 жыл бұрын

Im really having a hard time looking for a single speed cog for months now. What I did is use a 13t 8spd cog that is super duper cheap, put some spacer and tensioner and it works great! Been using it for many months now without issue.

@rollinrat4850 2 жыл бұрын

Surly makes good SS cogs. So do others. My suggestion is to use a larger chainring and a larger cog no smaller than 17 teeth to get a similar gear ratio you want. Realize that only about 1/2 the number of teeth on the gears have the chain engaged. You are in one gear at all times, so that one gear sees all the wear. All you pedaling power is dependent on those 6or 7 teeth on your cog. More teeth engaged by the chain means more teeth share their load of hard pedaling. There's more teeth to resist wear and tear, not to mention all your rage, aggression and hard efforts to get over hills.

@JFRides 5 жыл бұрын

Great video dude 👍

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

Means a lot to hear! Thanks for joining in on the fun!

@Ivlodded 3 жыл бұрын

I just love to turn my old hardtails into singlespeeds with only a rear brake and nothing else If you want to skip the chain tensioner part you can just use halflink chains depending on your sprocket type

@D_5821 3 жыл бұрын

why no front break

@Ivlodded 3 жыл бұрын

@@D_5821 Its less, and less sometimes is more - as an example when having to carry it up a long staircase

@sir_jerhyn 3 жыл бұрын

What a strange coincidence... I brought the GT Pantera Sport today, and I am wanting to convert it to a 1x1! LOL Interesting, this may be harder to do.

@PJSinohin 4 жыл бұрын

Trail looks familiar.. From early Seth's bike hack videos?

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

Yes, I'm his apprentice

@NikkiNexo777 4 жыл бұрын

Where at in Florida are you? I'm in the Ft. Lauderdale area. I've been looking for a used bike that I can convert to single speed for my local trails here. Thanks for this video. I will use it as a guide when I convert my bike

@n8arellano5 4 жыл бұрын

Great video! Thx

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

you're welcome

@albertohern3276 4 жыл бұрын

i thought the orange was dope but do you looks nice still thanks for tips

@aimbotexe2838 5 жыл бұрын

Sick bro

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

Thank you 🤘🤘

@djsonfire0001 3 жыл бұрын

Now you gotta get a Veer belt drive! Great job!

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

I'd really like to go belt drive! I just wish there were more frame options. Do you know of any trail frames?

@djsonfire0001 3 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure I'm using a gravity frame from bikesdirect and went from there. Just upgraded stuff as I could afford it.... Its been a good base so far

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

@@djsonfire0001 You just blew my mind with that Veer belt..... That is next!

@djsonfire0001 3 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure nice!!! You'll love it, so smooth

@tobiloco7455 4 жыл бұрын

Where were you surfing. It looks sick there

@dragonoidman 3 жыл бұрын

also..invest in half link chains ;) they are life savers

@sushiljoe7933 5 жыл бұрын

Yo this bike is sick! What would be awesome is if u got a fork with 140mm travel and something a bit nicer like Rockshox recon bike would feel amazing, great deals on pinkbike

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks dude! I went back to gears and miss the single life... but it's not as practical since I only have one bike. I actually just ordered the Rockshox Judy 120mm.... wish I would have looked at pink bike now. The price jump up to 140 is pretty big and I'm on a budget. I think itll work better than my blown spring fork though lol

@slatt8523 4 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure why did you go back to gears?

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

@@slatt8523 Well since this is my only bike it was putting some limit on the trails I could ride. I strained my back pretty bad from aggressively climbing in the wrong gear and decided to switch back. When I get my new FS bike I'll be converting this back to single speed.

@cameronhill5653 5 жыл бұрын

I need a video on how to turn a seven speed into a single speed. Idk if I'm to slow and cant find a video on it, but I havent watched this video so I hope this one shows that

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

I covered that process but didnt dive deep into the steps. Did you find your answer or are you still having issues?

@rondraycott9125 4 жыл бұрын

Hey i am just curious what crankset and bottom bracket you use as i'm trying to turn my GT 2020 into a single speed. I have already purchased a chainring and cog set. Any information will be helpful!! Thanks in advance!

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

I used the IXF Crankset from Amazon but I'd go with a Shimano XT crankset now. It's a little more pricey but worth it. Any of the $100 range would be a good choice. Just make sure your chainring is going to match.

@shem2555 3 жыл бұрын

How many spacers does your ss convertion kit have? Is 3 spacers enough to dial my chain line?

@travisroberts8716 4 жыл бұрын

Nice video and I k ow it’s older , but I love my ricochet 27.5+ but other day noticed my bobottom bracket was lose and had play !!! It was because the nine drive side ring was lose , I had my Multitool on me so I was able to snug it up to get home ( riding easy ) but what type of ( spammer wrench ?? ) and what size if you know ? That would be needed to tighten it up correctly thank you and I apologize if I named the tool incorrectly

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

Thanks for tuning in! You would need a bottom bracket specific tool made for square taper bottom bracket. It's a small attachment for a standard ratchet style wrench.

@travisroberts8716 4 жыл бұрын

Thank you ! And I already subscribed previously bea cause of Great videos!! I saw this but don’t know if it’s right size , or how to tell ! Thanks for your time time I appreciate it www.ebay.com/itm/1-of-Bottom-Bracket-Cartridge-Tool-Sleeve-Wrench-For-Shimano-Road-Racing-MTB-BB/303331166021?hash=item469ff24745:g:YKIAAOSwKhJdUlez

@samaelmartinus3273 3 жыл бұрын

Can I just put it in the gear I want then cut the grip gears wire, remove the trash, and use it like that ???? Can we use the same tensioner it came with with the conversion kit if i do need one?

@HoloScope 2 жыл бұрын

Yes to both

@CEOofSleep 2 жыл бұрын

are tensioners necessary? Im planning on replacing sprocket and chain

@lawriehaig5152 4 жыл бұрын

I have a 9 speed cassette. How do I know which conversation kit to buy

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

A majority of freehub kits will work for you. Just make sure the kit comes with spacers to get good chain line with your SS cog. They're pretty much the same thing as your headset spacer.

@jayrivera4174 4 жыл бұрын

How do you keep the bike from rusting since you stripped the color off I'm doing the same thing with a cannondale trail 7 I already started the process but I'm worry after a while its gonna rust on me do you have any suggestions or ideas you might had done to your bike?

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

Well luckily for you, aluminum doesn't oxidize the same way steel does so if you strip any aluminum frame it will not rust in the way you are thinking. Aluminum rusts in a different way and creates a thin coating that protects the metal of further corrosion. No treatment is needed! I hear mixed ideas about treating the aluminum but i've heard it's worst to do that. Mine has been bare for nearly 2 years and I haven't had any issues with it.

@tonyg6 4 жыл бұрын

But what about chain? I have an 10 gear casette, with narrow wide zee in front. It should work with Reverse Cog kit or should I change chain?

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

You shouldn't have an issue with the chain. Chains are different widths for different cassette sizes to shift properly and with a SS cog it doesn't need clearance. Most chains will work as long as they're tensioned properly.

@tonyg6 4 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure Thanks man

@knasicbyer9592 2 жыл бұрын

i love my single speed, way more than any geared bike. especially single speed dirt jumpers

@suvankarsaikia3075 3 жыл бұрын

Nice work bro..plz tell me the gear ratio..you use in this single speed.

@YourOwnAdventure 2 жыл бұрын

1.8:1 or 2:1 will work. 36/18

@suvankarsaikia3075 2 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure Thnx bro😎🤘

@guidoklingbeil8180 5 жыл бұрын

How is the cheap Chinese ixf crankset holding up? All I read is that the manufacturing quality is beyond bad.

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

For me it is holding up. I'm not riding any Mountains or DH but I am constantly hitting jumps and drops. Also, cranking on a single speed puts down much more power than typical riding and I haven't had creaking, looseness, etc. However, I did have a crank arm strip out a pedal hole. Could have been my fault with crossthreading but I can't confirm. Likely that it was user error as much as I'd like to blame it on the cheap "Chinese manufacturing". Anyways, if you can afford to buy name brand parts I would but remember that even those can fail. It's all dependent on what part you get. I've had 4 of these BB kits and they have held up with the exception of the pedal hole. But they did send me replacement for that problem so the customer service is good for the most part.

@oscarburns9471 5 жыл бұрын

What was the bcd on that bike and how many teeth did the chainring have

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

104 bcd. 32 teeth.

@ms-kaos3142 Жыл бұрын

Hey bro, It is ok using rear derailleur instead of tensioner?

@YourOwnAdventure Жыл бұрын

Absolutely.

@ms-kaos3142 Жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure Thanks

@m.a8838 3 жыл бұрын

As for the SS cog, is it for freehub or freewheel?

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

Freehub/Cassette

@Austingtcs 3 жыл бұрын

I can’t figure out what you did to get the crank off this sucks I’m stuck

@YourOwnAdventure 2 жыл бұрын

Crank arm puller

@user-ub4le9mm9d 5 жыл бұрын

Hello, i want single speed bike, can you help me?

@PJSinohin 4 жыл бұрын

Have you tried 32/16 or 38/22 without a tensioner?

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

I haven't tried any without a tensioner

@PJSinohin 4 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure maybe just a coincidence because i had 3 GT avalanche's in the past and all of them accommodated the 32/16 and 38/22 gearing without a tensioner. Cheers.

@va941 3 жыл бұрын

If you have a sliding dropout you don't need the chain tensioner?

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

Nope. That's the dream setup

@va941 3 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure thats what I thought, seems hard to find bikes with that feature, the kona honzo esd has it, but thats a 3000€ bike 😅

@nickladroma7217 3 жыл бұрын

I broke my derailluer hanger and i cannot find a replacement, i plan to make it to a single speed so i can still use the bike, can i still make it to a single speed without it? thanks.

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

Most tensioners use the derailleur hanger. So probably not, but not impossible

@nickladroma7217 3 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure so the hack is i will not use a tensioner right? can i use a chain guide instead?

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

@@nickladroma7217 Yeah I'm guessing you could use a diy chain guide.

@DezorianGuy 2 жыл бұрын

How do you install the chain tightener?

@YourOwnAdventure 2 жыл бұрын

DMR Chain Tensioner

@DezorianGuy 2 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure I know, but where is your video about that?

@Bazz0li 3 жыл бұрын

Anyone know what grips he's using ?

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

ODI Van's

@223eu77 4 жыл бұрын

What handle bars and stem are you using?

@YourOwnAdventure 4 жыл бұрын

Wake stem and something of similar price for the bars on Amazon. Both were budget options from Amazon and held up great. Still running the stem and bars on the bike now no issues with them while riding bigger jumps or drops either. I'd consider and recommend any of the budget stuff on Amazon if you aren't riding PNW/Sedona style trails daily. If you are, go with more beefy, brand name stuff. The quality control/R&D is what you're paying for.

@223eu77 4 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure Ok thank you a lot man keep up with the great videos to man.

@renielsanchez3598 2 жыл бұрын

what chain do you use in the vid?

@YourOwnAdventure 2 жыл бұрын

Probably just a KMC

@nathan_leach 5 жыл бұрын

What is the name of that trail @ 0:52

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

That's Bunker Hill at Jonathan Dickinson State Park South Florida area.

@lerk2009 4 жыл бұрын

The dork disc LOL

@esthelp751 3 жыл бұрын

my dirt jump had 3x7 drivetrain

@the_realMarshall 2 жыл бұрын

LOVE the video. but now all the product links are old... bummer!

@YourOwnAdventure 2 жыл бұрын

I'll try and update that when I get a chance!

@culturebreath369 3 жыл бұрын

The dork disk. 🤣🤣🤣

@YourOwnAdventure 2 жыл бұрын

@hirooandoo5390 3 жыл бұрын

Is it ok without a tensioner?

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

Tensioner is essential

@hirooandoo5390 3 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure why is it the other bikes like dirtjump dont have any tensioner?

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

@@hirooandoo5390 Single speed specific frames like DJ, bmx and some mtb have the ability to move the wheel in and out +/- 1inch to tension the chain(horizontal drop outs)

@hirooandoo5390 3 жыл бұрын

@@YourOwnAdventure thanks bro! Im planning to build my dj. Thanks again for the info ! Stay safe and God bless!

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

@@hirooandoo5390 Yea man. Have fun. I'm building a DJ on here soon. It's a great all arounder to have!

@beaunoel4040 3 жыл бұрын

Hey uhh, I think you're mud flap is backwards.

@YourOwnAdventure 3 жыл бұрын

Notorinnns Nah. It was broken off

@shoeonhead 4 жыл бұрын

Why would you want to get rid of your gears?? You literally can’t mountain bike without lower gears.

@oOoACFREEMANoOo 2 жыл бұрын

@ADP-ll1tj 5 жыл бұрын

Subbed, but this is not really a tutorial.

@YourOwnAdventure 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the sub! I made it clear in the beginning of the video that it was a generalization of the process. Doing a step by step tutorial would take a long time. I'm not opposed to it but the resources are already available through GMBN/ParkTool/etc. I'm better at the story, not filming everything while I'm working..... makes things very difficult. Greasy hands, and cameras don't go well together haha.