i am building up my kinesis maxlight up as a ss. i was wanting to run 32-16 however this seems to be impossible as me and the lbs cannot get the corect chanlength with this ratio, just not possible, so i was wondering if therre is another set of chainrings and sprocets etc to make the equivilnt of 32 16? any help would be appreciated.

thanks

For God sake, get in your car drive it to pitsford cycles, walk into the shop, walk around to the workshop, look at tom and dave.. they will laught and then fix it for you. job done

half link or 34/17 or 36/18.
Or a tensioner: cheaper than new ring/sprocket.

get a chain tensioner.

if you really want a magic ratio, 32-16 is 2:1, so there are loads of posibilities, eg: 22-11, 34-17, 38-16, 42-21 etc etc

get a chain tensioner. Not really a strange situation is it? Or some half links, or try any of the combos leggyblonde suggests above.

100:50 would work

as would 2:1

or 32:16.

do you see where i'm going with this… 😉

you're looking for the "magic" ratio.
which may or may not exist. additionally, the ratio may not even be in the classic 2:1.

get a tensioner – it's far less pfaff.

100:50 would work

Would look cool as well.

TBH, it doesn't sound like a strange situation. It sounds like you and your lbs mechanic don't understand what you're doing..!

1. Buy chain.
2. Buy tensioner (oh, an older post shows you have one)
3. Wrap chain around ring and sprocket and split – leave it slightly too long.
4. Join chain.
5. Install tensioner.
6. Use tensioner to tension chain.
7. Ride bike.
8. Everytime you see someone,. point at your (working) drivtrain and announce loudly "Look, STW did that".

My Cannondale could not run 32:16 using a normal chain and a push up tensioner because the chain came out slightly too long and the tensioner was rubbing against the bottom of the chainstay.

2 cures possible, either use a half link or try 36:18. Or 34:18 which gives a lower gear.

Google 'fixmeup calculator' and you'll find a program to determine magic ratios for a given chainstay length. I wouldn't call this a strange problem. I also wouldn't recommend using a magic gear. Any amount of chain wear and you'll not have sufficient tension. A tensioner is a much better solution.

My Cannondale could not run 32:16 using a normal chain and a push up tensioner because the chain came out slightly too long and the tensioner was rubbing against the bottom of the chainstay.

Would taking one link out not have fixed this ?

Phantom chainring?

Yes. It wouldn't. But as I wrote, a half link would.

Sometimes the chain can be too loose for a tensioner to take up the slack, but if you take out a whole link it's just too short.

Half-links might help but they often don't give perfect tension.
They do however, give a better chain-wrap.
And rather than use a up-tensioner – use a down-tensioner.

Find a new LBS, they sound a right bunch of numpties.

as above – a down tensioner will have a greater range.

thanks those of you who posted a helpful response, the rest of you find something to do with your time instead of just taking the . im not totally stupid, i do have a tensioner and that still doesnt work the chain is either just too long or just too short, i will never go to my lbs again because they are awful and dont know what their doing, i will take it to a different one who do. thank you for the magic ratios, thats what i was looking for

keep your knickers on DJTC!

As no-one has posted the link Sheldon Brown will tell you everything there is to know about s/s, magic ratios etc.etc. HTH

That's where I got the idea for the phantom chainring.

i will never go to my lbs again because they are awful and dont know what their doing

And neither did you ,it's not the hardest thing to sort out

If we take a rectangle whose sides are in the ratios of the Golden Mean, for example of sides M and 1, the nature of the relationship means that if we take away a 1 x 1 square, it will leave another rectangle whose sides are in the same ratio as the original. In fact we can keep doing this forever as we see that the ratio's numerical relations are also physical relations.

This particular ratio might be just as suitably be called the 'magic' ratio since it has so many interesting and unusual properties.

Look at the singleator and other down-tensioners on here on here

http://www.mtbr.com/ssfaqcrx.aspx

looks like it can take out loads…

Put your tensioner to one side, thread your chain and mark where the join will be (I use the drive chainring) Split it and you will have a saggy chain. Stick something like a Superstar tensioner on (10 quid) and away you go?

here's the link for the calculator. A very handy thing.

I've run a maxlight as a SS before… IIRC i used a half link in a regular BMX chain and a gusset tensioner (tensioning down) and it worked real well at 36/16 but there was a fair bit of excess chain being tensioned. The chain stretched enough to remove the half link and tension upwards after a month or so. As said in above posts, it will work!!