Morning all,

Just about to build up a hardtail using old parts and want to run 1 x 10.

I’ve got a 34t bach guard and countless front mechs lying around. Has anyone on here locked a front mech using the limiter screws to lock one in position and act as a single ring chain guide before?

Did it work ok or did the chain manage to force behind it and get stuck?

Paul

Yep, works fine.

You might find the limiter screws aren’t quite long enough to get the mech to where you need it to be. I managed to find a longer screw in my box of bits.

As IHN said, the limit screw should be OK just to go to middle position, but if, like me you want to use it on the outer you’ll need a longer M3 bolt. You can pick these up in B&Q or your LBS may have something in a spares box. Just remember to wind off your outer limit screw otherwise you’ll break something.

Another option if your limit scews don’t reach and you have a cable stop on the seat tube is to run a short length of inner cable with the nipple sat in the cable stop to hold the mech in position.

I’ve done it on my commuter. It works fine.

Another option if your limit scews don’t reach and you have a cable stop on the seat tube is to run a short length of inner cable with the nipple sat in the cable stop to hold the mech in position.

Nice idea. a slighly longer limit screw is an awful lot simpler though 😉

£17 job done…

£17 job done…

Like all chain guides though they’re massively over built and ugly. A simple mech (i.e. an old roadie one) just looks so much neater and classier. IMHO, obviously.

Ugly? But look at the beautiful colours…shiny shiny… 😀

Fair enough though, but using something you are trying to get rid of in order to simplify, in a way it wasn’t really designed for is uglier.
Bits of cable stuck in the seat-tube stop? Come on…
imho 🙂

Fair enough though, but using something you are trying to get rid of in order to simplify, in a way it wasn’t really designed for is uglier.

Or, alternatively, you’re replacing something that you’re trying to get rid of with something else that is basically designed to do the same thing…

To be honest, I think chainguides look ‘burly’ on purpose, because they’re aimed (in the main) at burly bikes. There’s no need for them to be so big as they’re under very little stress. In fact a mech is under more stress as it actually has to move, rather than just hold, the chain, yet mech cages are often much smaller than chainguide ‘cages’

Bits of cable stuck in the seat-tube stop? Come on…

Agreed…

Ran just lowered mech on adjusted limit screws for a couple of months and only dropped the chain once or twice.

Now running a Lil Chap (http://www.gussetbikes.com/products-information.php?id=CHGULCFK) and it’s quieter and (imo) neater

I’m running the XCR ST Chainkeeper from Superstar.

http://superstar.tibolts.co.uk/product_info.php?cPath=56&products_id=495

Which looks identical to the Gusset one but a bit cheaper. Not dropped a chain yet and I’ve really tried! Also run a Bionicon c-guide.v2 on the chain as well.

that looks better but £30!

You can buy an XT front mech for less than that and that has more metal and moving bits.

and with that xt front mech you can use two rings up front and get rid of the awful oversized cassette and long cage mech…

Never mind two rings, you could use three. Imagine the spread of gears you’ll have then? 🙂

Mech works pretty well- decent chainguide is better though IME. I’ve got an old mech on the commuter and I can’t fault it but using the same part on an mtb, it was pretty noisy and the chain still came off from time to time- I think the cage is a little too wide. Still, it did the job pretty well.

I plan on running a square taper BB with an old chainset I’ve got knowcking around so a BB mounted chain guide isn’t really an option. I’m trying to do this with parts in my spares box and spend £00000

Thanks to those who replied to the original question, I’ll go get some m3 bolts jsut in case.

Paul