I have a rohloff one, but I still get chainslap.
It doesnt work very well with such a large sprocket (20T) as it seems to be too close to it, and makes wheel removal a bastid.

I have a surly tensioner knock off thats ancient, and despite stripping and rebuilding, its unreliable and I think the tension spring comes out of it’s pin sockets as its so worn and knackered. It failed last night and theres no tension in it any more.

So Im after the daddy of tensioners. Something very reliable, silent, OK with 20T, and can be so taught that there is no chainslap.

money no object. Any ideas?
Do the DMR rollers make a racket?
Is the surly one with the fan wheel justify its £30+ price?
CTBM any tips?

the surly one is ace and you can tension it up to what you require so it should make it possible to eliminate chain slap.
Frankly I am disappointed that a man of your means asks if it is worth it – if you push me i can explain supply and demand to you 😉
If you really want [ and you are quick ] I can lend you mine with spanners to see if it works.

this one JY?

its nearly twice the price of this knock off of the older version

First Components EBB or Trickstuff Excentriker 😉

that would require new cranks schmiken! Im still in the world of SqT

If On-One ever get round to getting the new 29er scandals in with swapouts this wont be a problem any more…..But Im not sure how long to wait and whether to just stick with the original frame and get a decent tensioner.

Forward components EBB. Tried the Trickstuff one first: didn’t like it at all. The Forward Conponents one is a keeper. Bearings aren’t too well protected but a doddle to change if you have some mechanical skills / experience. You may need a half link though as it doesn’t have the throw of a “normal” EBB.

I had looked into those EBB externals but at £100 for the EBB and another £100 for a new crankset, I could just buy a new scandal frame…

Yes that one at the top – but silver

Do you want to try it first?
you have a rohloff with chain slap and you want to save a few quid = sell it and buy gears 😀

OK, on your recommendation (and I shall hold you to it) I shall get the surly. Does you have yours push down or up?

I use the rohloff in a trackend frame so no need of the tensioner.

Of course, but I don’t like slotted dropouts, so personal preference. You don’t have to spend that much on new cranks either…..Deore doing me well and I sold the rings and BB, so only cost me £15 new IIRC.

Money no object: personally I’d buy an EBB frame, or commission one in Ti !

Your chain looks a bit long too.

I’ve got a surly clone which looks like the body of the top one (surly) but has the jockey wheel and cage of the second one (but in aluminium with a proper bearing). I got a Surly push up spring from charlie the bike monger and fitted it with a half link in the SS chain and it was perfect.

Easiest way to remove the wheel on any bodged SS is use the powerlink in the chain. I’ve got the knack with them now.

the problem with the rohloff tensioner is that the spring tension is so great, f you shorten the chain any further when you try and pull the axle out of the dro pout it all goes BANG and gets jammed. Combination of big sprocket and big tyre getting rammed into the BB.

Fortunately, CTBM has all the bits I need on his ebay shop (for less than his online shop. Whassthadallabout?) and Ive been putting off getting a descent one for years. Which is silly since all my bikes are SS 😉

money no object. Any ideas?

If money is really no object, get a SS-specific frame with sliding dropouts or, better, a good EBB.

You’ll end up much happier in the long run.

mine pushes down. It comes with two springs so you can do either way. You can get a fair amount of tension in it as well
You need an 18 mm cone spanner as well iirc to tension

If you follow my advice you only have yourself to blame

ta. got cone spanners so no probs.

order placed with beardyweirdy. Wonder how fast he can ship it out?

If you get the surly with those (horrible) side fences you should be able to unhook the chain from the tension to aid wheel removal. The surly tensioner also comes with both springs. It is a bit odd spending £30 on the same part you can get elsewhere for £15-20 though. Mine has the loop which means the chain cannot be removed which is a pain so I might knock up some metal or carbon discs to replace it – if i ever use a tensioner again as I am selling the frame. But i might keep it for quickly converting the C456 to SS in winter to save buying the swap-outs. The one saving grace of a sprung tensioner is it copes with chainrings being slightly off centre.

Another route I might take is an old chain device with lower jockey wheel and use it as a crank mounted fixed tensioner as I can slide the jockey wheel with an allen key to remove the wheel.

I have probably sold more tensioners than times I,ve had sex.

Two or three everyday.

I would go for the 4jeri. The long spring gives great tension and best of all we have never had a warranty claim or failure. Can’t say that about any other tensioner.

http://www.charliethebikemonger.com/4jeri-tensioner-29-p.asp

I’ve got one of the surly ones and it knocks too unless I over-tension the spring.

now you tell me CTBM! 🙁

Im the ebay order for the surly tensioner and those spacers….

so, you say the 4jeri is better eh?…