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    3×1 drivetrain


    Somebody talk me out of leaving the triple chainring up front and putting a single speed wheel on the rear of my 1988 Peugeot.

    Basically, my built-in derailleur hanger is pretty bent and I’m not sure if I can get it straightened all the way without it breaking off. I also have a pretty bent rear wheel that I plan on replacing. This got me thinking, what if I put like a 32 or 34 cog tooth single speed rear wheel and just leave the triple front with friction shifter. The triple is 28-38-48 so I’d get pretty cool gear ratios on all three.

    I just need someone to tell me why this is a bad idea. My goal is cheap singletrack fun, so I’m not looking to invest in a modern 1x setup. The wheel needs replaced regardless so that cost is a requirement.

    by Shenandoah_Outdoors

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    20 Comments

    2. eggplantybaby on

      Doable but you would still need the derailleur or tensioner to give enough slack. I also find myself using the front chainrings more often than the rear on my early 90s bikes.

    5. SeaManaenamah on

      I think you would need to choose one crank ring and set your chain length from that. It can only be a single speed without a derailleur to take to the slack.

    6. NomadicNynja on

      The mythical Thringle Speed… I’d say send it! Bonus points for hacking that rear derailleur to be your chain tensioner.

    7. hambonelicker on

      You would be surprised how far a steel derailure hanger can bend. Just single speed it! 26ers make great single speeds with a 2:1 ratio.

    8. ride_whenever on

      You’d probably be better off making a dingle speed, or a tringlespeed

      Two/three ratios with approximately the same ratio, so you can run them all with the same chain, manual shifting, but three ratios

    9. That_Masterpiece_552 on

      hello. If the problem is the rear hanger, you still need it with this solution to manage the chain length variation….and the ratio range is very bad from 48*32 to 28*32. My proposition ti you is to move to 1*x With internal shimano rear hub. You will have the monospeed look you are looking for without using the bent rear hanger

    11. ThatAgainPlease on

      You still need something to tension the chain, which will almost certainly hang from the derailleur hanger anyway.

    12. One-Pollution4663 on

      Just want to say that a bike like this was my first real bike back in 1991.

    14. geomaverick on

      I tried doing 2×1 once with a tensioner in place of the rear derailleur. I was using a single speed freewheel and for whatever reason the chain kept skipping teeth when I applied too much pedal force. I saw the BikeFarmer video where he tried to do the same thing on his Roaduno and ran into the same exact issue. My best guess is that the single speed freewheel tooth profile isn’t designed for a slack chain, it wants a tentioned single speed setup. And it definitely was for a 3/32 chain. So it wasn’t a chain size issue.
      If you’re running a freehub with a single cog, maybe you would have different results.

    17. JohnnyMnemeonic on

      Honestly… pretty smart idea..

      Personally, would try getting it repaired first and if that’s not possible go with your plan

    20. Shoddy_Call2577 on

      Install a chain tensioner and bend the hanger straight, you’re good to go

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