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I may have found my problem with the leaky tire. I don't think I had the beads seated properly. I went out to the garage and turned on my compressor, cranking the pressure up around 100 PSI. I hit the lever on the nozzle, and the tire went to full inflation in just a few seconds with several loud snaps as the beads popped in place. I checked the tire again this morning, and it was still at full inflation. It will be nice if that's all that was going on, as I didn't find any cuts or thorns in the tire.
 
Okay, so I decided to add a 2nd chainring which is a 34t and I moved my 40t chainring in place of the bash guard, paired with the 16t freewheel. Now I'm debating if I want go with a quick release adapter setup on the axle since I don't have a hollow axle for a QR skewer (cheaper, more hassle to adjust) or go with a different chain tensioner with a track end/dropout derailleur attached and a new KMC chain made for a geared setup. If I go with a quick release skewer adapter, I won't need additional components, but it will probably take me a minute or two to adjust in the field. If I go with a track end tensioner with derailleur and new chain, the process will only require that I move the chain to a different chainring, but it will probably cost more in additional components. I'm trying to keep this 2x1 gearing as simple and cheap as possible!

Also I need the chain tensioner to keep alignment with my disc brake setup.

So far I think 34/16t should be good enough to tackle a long uphill I have planned this weekend. When I get to the top, I just switch to the 40/16t and go aero all the way down! BTW - the tire liners are like tank treads (also heavy like a tank), but no punctures!

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Okay, so I decided to add a 2nd chainring which is a 34t and I moved my 40t chainring in place of the bash guard, paired with the 16t freewheel. Now I'm debating if I want go with a quick release adapter setup on the axle since I don't have a hollow axle for a QR skewer (cheaper, more hassle to adjust) or go with a different chain tensioner with a track end/dropout derailleur attached and a new KMC chain made for a geared setup. If I go with a quick release skewer adapter, I won't need additional components, but it will probably take me a minute or two to adjust in the field. If I go with a track end tensioner with derailleur and new chain, the process will only require that I move the chain to a different chainring, but it will probably cost more in additional components. I'm trying to keep this 2x1 gearing as simple and cheap as possible!

Also I need the chain tensioner to keep alignment with my disc brake setup.

So far I think 34/16t should be good enough to tackle a long uphill I have planned this weekend. When I get to the top, I just switch to the 40/16t and go aero all the way down! BTW - the tire liners are like tank treads (also heavy like a tank), but no punctures!

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BAHAHA! You've entered the maze of rabbit holes that is cycling upgrades. Welcome to the madness! :D
 
I tried hill climbing at 34/16t and I was able to conquer a hill I couldn't do at 40/16t. Life would be easier on a geared bike, but I like the tuning aspect of a single speed and adjusting for certain challenges!
There is something mentally liberating about having no gears. The 'manager' part of your brain is more relaxed, as it no longer has to think about shifting.
 
There is something mentally liberating about having no gears. The 'manager' part of your brain is more relaxed, as it no longer has to think about shifting.
Aha - I see it now. A fixed wheel on a bicycle is the equivalent of a prime lens on a camera. A geared bicycle is like having a zoom lens.

I'm just trying to work out the parallel for 'zooming with your feet', perhaps 'grabbing the spanners and changing the chain ring' ?

-R
 
That doesn't look too bad for a museum piece - mudguards, front basket, rear rack, chain guard, sprung saddle ... I'd ride it! (any brakes?)

-R
probably only a "kick back" brake on the rear wheel. That was a mechanism that was the norm in old bicycles when I was a young kid.
I don't know if this is the proper translation but it is based on the fact that the rear wheel and the pedals don't turn independently from each other.
Reversing the the rotation would result in braking.
Very simple, very cheap but not all that safe.
Also these bicycles are very, very heavy and have, of course, no gears.
Normally a really comfortable saddle indeed.
 
I've only ever encountered that type of brake on continental bikes (Germany and Holland) and personally I find them a hazard. As a novice user familiar with a hand-operated brake lever and how much force it takes to stop a bike with the muscles of your hand, it's very easy to stand on the pedals with your full body weight and to lock up the rear wheel. Conversely, my partner learnt to cycle on bikes with the "kick back" arrangement, and in a crisis she still tries to do that on British bikes sometimes, with the result that she comes down heavily on the saddle or crossbar and fails to brake at all.

-R
 
I think they're either called coaster brakes or back-pedalling brakes here too. In looking that up, I've been reminded that bikes with that kind of brake are awkward to get started too. You can't easily rotate the pedals to a good starting position as you can with a conventional free-wheeling hub, and that's a real nuisance when you have to briefly stop and then push off again. I remember struggling with that in Germany now.

-R
 
I don't think we've had a "bikes on a car roof" picture yet, so here's mine. This was taken in 2014, and unfortunately the car is no more. Still got the bikes and the roof carrier though!

I think I took this partly for insurance purposes - just in case one of them fell off on the motorway and I needed to prove to the insurance company that everything was fine before we set off.

-R


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I accomplished my first physical challenge for 2021, hill climbing with one gear! It wasn't as hard as I thought especially after I swapped to a 34/16t gear setup. Also I agree, single speed is the equivalent of prime shooting. You have to optimize your ride with one gear and plan ahead! I literally lean on top of my drop bars going uphill while zig zagging. You have to strategize and maximize what you have...like shooting with one prime! It's the same sort of excitement riding a bike like a kid on a BMX! I love single speed/fixed!

A few shots from LA's Griffith Observatory shot with the Nikon 1 J5 + 10mm f/2.8 pancake prime:

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Aha - I see it now. A fixed wheel on a bicycle is the equivalent of a prime lens on a camera. A geared bicycle is like having a zoom lens.

I'm just trying to work out the parallel for 'zooming with your feet', perhaps 'grabbing the spanners and changing the chain ring' ?
-R
I like your analogy, and think the 'zooming with your feet' somehow parallels the the three 'gears' on a single-speed bike, related to hill steepness: sitting, standing, and walking :)
 
I like your analogy, and think the 'zooming with your feet' somehow parallels the the three 'gears' on a single-speed bike, related to hill steepness: sitting, standing, and walking :)
I actually thought and researched really hard about my gearing. My regular gear of 40/16t is like shooting with a 50mm lens a which is a good range, but a little tight when it comes to the hills and my hill climbing setup of 34/16t gives me slightly more elevation range like a 35mm lens allows for environmental portraits!
 
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