[Closed] Single speed hub width

142x12 thru axle or 135x10 with fun bolts (in lieu of QR) normally. The overall width stays the same, just the flanges are wider and the freehub body is shorter. Some companies do others (135x12 for example) but they are the main ones

The hub, specifically the OLD, will be the same width as your existing wheel's hub. The freehub body can be any width as it's easiest to buy a single speed conversion kit which will have spacers to fill in around the cog. It's worth getting a cog with a "broad" base so that it doesn't dig in to the splines. Any reason why you don't want to use your existing wheel?

Might as well use the same axle standard. I went from nutted (Alfine IGH) to QR for simplicity but then needed a Surly Tugnut to stop the wheel from slipping.

As it happens I went for a ride on mine today 😄

I supposed that I should have a single speed hub wheel built up and as the single speed swapouts have horizontal "dropout" slots as compared to the geared ones being vertical I would need tugnut things. I would like to be able to change from ss to geared with relative ease. I'm a bit afused.

Ah, forgot about the dropout alignment. With vertical dropouts there's no need for tugnuts or anything similar as the wheel can't move forward, it's in horizontal dropouts that they are needed as you have to move the wheel aft as the chain wears. For vertical dropouts just get a chain tensioner which will do the same job. CTBM does single speed kits with a tensioner included.

To go from geared to SS:

Remove chain.
Remove derailleur and cable.
Fit tensioner in place of cable.
Remove cassette from freehub.
Replace with spacers and the cog in whatever configuration gives you a straight chainline.
Fit SS chain.

Might take an hour or so the first time but once you've done it a couple of times it's not going to take long.

I use the 142x12 dropouts and a normal geary hub with a SS kit on it and use a chain device to tension the chain. It works well and you haven't got to bugger about tensioning the chain each time you take the wheel out cos the chain device doesn't move. It also makes using different gearing/wheels a POP too, just move the chain device if you're using different gearing to tension the chain.

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I have a 1x10 shifter and mech set up (for this bike) ready to fit if I fancy gears for a bit, it takes about 30 minutes to swap over 🙂

Thanks for the help folks, got my head round it now.

I'd go with a ss kit and tensioner with your existing hub. Cheaper and in some ways simpler. Although like most things if it works its brilliantly simple, if it doesn't then it can be utterly infuriatingly ride ruining. To the point you give up and just buy a frame with an EBB!

What chain device are you using there kayla1? My current doofer is causing me a bit of grief with chain slip (or maybe the pro2 pawls have given up).

Just be aware that some combinations of gears result in the chain being quite long (I.e a mm short of being able to take a full link out). This can be a PITA as push up tensioners (even bb mounted) can only do about a half link of tensioning before they hit the chain stay.

It's an RSP chain doofer, they're no hassle at all once you get your gearing sorted out and will do 34-16/17/18 ok, plus dropping the wheel out is dead easy. The gearing in the pic is 32-16 but I'm using a 34 on the front now which gives a bit more room under the chainstay to adjust the chain for higher gears so it [i]might[/i] do 34-15 as well but I haven't tried that yet. On 34-18 (what I use most of the time for the stuff round here) the doofer barely needs to move to tension the chain so there's a fair bit of room to move it round. Obviously it'll depend on the frame as to what gearing works to get a handy chain length (and whether or not there's enough room under the stay to tension it!)