I want to SS my Curtis for the winter but it has a standard dropout.

I don’t really like tensioners (mainly for aesthetic reasons) and came across the Phil Woods thing after looking at Forward components and Trickstuff’s offerings.

Main question is ‘Do they work?’ and second one ‘The PW site says there is a specific tool only available to bike shops needed to fit it. Is this true or can a keen DIYer achieve a good result?’

Had a look at this last year, though didn’t actually get as far as buying. The answers seem to be yes, it does work with a half-link (doesn’t give as much range of length as a normal EBB) and loctite, you do need the tool and Tokyo Fixed thought they could probably order this when I asked them.

Thread on MTBR

Andy

This any help?

Like the Excentriker (which I’ve used) and the FC EBB you might need to use a half-link. I hate to think how much all those blingy special tools cost.

the tools do look expensive.

I’ll maybe have to see if anyone near me has access to them. Not sure there’s going to be many LBS’s that have them.

You will end up spending a lot of time and money on something that doesn’t work as well as a tensioner. Fit a tensioner, go riding, don’t spend too long looking at your bike 🙂

Fit a tensioner, go riding, don’t spend too long looking at your bike

*fears you may have made a good point*

tbh, it’s almost approaching the point where I could get new dropouts put on there for the money…

tbh, it’s almost approaching the point where I could get new dropouts put on there for the money…

That thought had occurred after I posted. There was a thread on here the other day where Curtis had built someone a bike with sliding dropouts; is it worth seeing if they’ll retrofit them?

fit a Yess ETR/B (if you can find one)

Best looking tensioner by far.

I too would like an eccentric BB conversion but **** me their not cheap 8O, that Yess tensioner looks good.

I was lucky enough to pick one up second hand for a reasonable price with the tool included from Mr Onions off here.

It works perfectly well and doesn’t have the noise of a tensioner roller. And the little extra chunkiness is relatively atractive and largely out of sight.

Not cheap, though. I’d spent a fair bit sprucing up a nice frame, so I was into tartiness and didn’t want a tensioner.

pics towards the end of this thread if you’re interested. right click, copy image url and paste into the address bar if you want bigger.

Edit. That Yes tensioner does look good.

Not really sure why you would care tbh
IN operation an EBB [ I have one] feels and acts no different from a tensioner

As well using half links to get the perfect length and much cheaper

Expensive for minimal aesthetic gains IMHO

is a Blackspire Stinger the same same but different to the Yess jobbie?

whadda bout one of these…

😯