3x6 to 1x10 conversion HELP!!

XJ980

Hello, im Lee, I'm new here and I need your help. Recently I received a brand new 2017 Claud Butler Trailridge 1.1 as a gift from my dad. He told me that since it was only a cheaper bike (£250) then I was Free to upgrade it how I like. This being said, I have already put on wider and lighter bars, carbon spacers, ahead headset/stem and a new suspension fork. But my main issue now is the drive train.

I have only had the bike for around 3 weeks now and already the 3x6 system is coated in orange rust, despite being kept very clean and kept inside in the kitchen out of the rain. I also wanted to save a bit of weight by going with a 1x9 or 1x10 system. I just have one main issue..

At the minute I have a 6 speed freewheel. Does anyone know anything about the Shunfeng hubs equipped, and whether I could use a 9 speed freewheel on there? If not, then I know I will need a new wheel set, but how will I know if my new cassette would fit? My main plan for this bike is to upgrade it as best I can, one so I have something to do, and two to make riding enjoyable. I'm not worried if any parts I buy won't be swappable to a new bike in the future because when I get a new bike in 2-3 years then this will be my backup.

Can anyone please help me with those questions? Many thanks to anyone who can help!

cooldad

I don't think you get 9 speed freewheels, so would need a new wheel, cassette, shifter, and depending on the quality and capacity of the mech (I can't imagine 6 speed being too good), a new mech, and a chain.

You also need to check the spacing (OLD) of the dropouts, as 6 speed might be 130mm, 9 speed will be 135mm.

cooldad

Oh, and probably new cranks if you want to go 1x9 - looks like the chainrings are rivited.

All getting quite expensive.

XJ980

cooldad wrote:

I don't think you get 9 speed freewheels, so would need a new wheel, cassette, shifter, and depending on the quality and capacity of the mech (I can't imagine 6 speed being too good), a new mech, and a chain.

You also need to check the spacing (OLD) of the dropouts, as 6 speed might be 130mm, 9 speed will be 135mm.

Alright thanks for your help. Could you please explain how to measure the dropouts?

cooldad

The gap between the rear dropouts. A ruler will do fine.

XJ980

cooldad wrote:

The gap between the rear dropouts. A ruler will do fine.

Okay well I've just measured it. Looking from the rear at the dropouts I measured from the inner side to inner side. Came to about 138mm. This sound right?

The Rookie

No, it will be 130 or 135mm to within 1mm.

To be honest you'd be better off selling it and buying a better suited bike in the first place, if its old 3x6 then nearly every part of the bike is going to be fairly cheap and nasty.

XJ980

The Rookie wrote:

No, it will be 130 or 135mm to within 1mm.

Okay, I'll go check again later, it's just started pouring with rain here

cooldad

About 138mm is probably 135mm.

In any event it will squash up when tightening the wheel.

XJ980

The Rookie wrote:

No, it will be 130 or 135mm to within 1mm.

To be honest you'd be better off selling it and buying a better suited bike in the first place, if its old 3x6 then nearly every part of the bike is going to be fairly cheap and nasty.

I'm sorry but did you not read what I opened the thread with? It was a gift from my dad so why would I sell it?

The Rookie

I did read it, but its going to cost more to make it good than it cost to buy.

1x10 (or even 1x9) is going to cost you at the minimum over £100 and possibly nearer £150 and it will still have ropey brakes, forks, tyres and other parts.

In terms of weight (as well as how good the bike would be) you'd be better of fitting decent forks or even just decent tyres it would be cheaper, result in an all round better bike and then you can swap them on to another bike later.

cooldad

You might have missed this:

XJ980 wrote:

I have already put on wider and lighter bars, carbon spacers, ahead headset/stem and a new suspension fork. But my main issue now is the drive train.

May I suggest sir returns his bifocals to Specsavers and demands a refund.

XJ980

cooldad wrote:

You might have missed this:

XJ980 wrote:

I have already put on wider and lighter bars, carbon spacers, ahead headset/stem and a new suspension fork. But my main issue now is the drive train.

May I suggest sir returns his bifocals to Specsavers and demands a refund.

Haha I agree. I was about to write out a response but you beat me to it!

The Rookie

I read it, you haven't said what forks you have....tyres you don't mention changing

XJ980

The Rookie wrote:

I read it, you haven't said what forks you have....tyres you don't mention changing

Admittedly, yes, I forgot to mention that the tyres have been changed. And I didn't think that 'what' the suspension fork is would matter due to talking about the drivetrain in this thread.

The Rookie

Its because your stated aim was to reduce weight, in fact if the rear wheel weighed the same 1x10 would probably end up heavier than 3x6 given the parts involved so I was trying to look at more cost effective ways of saving weight. Which could well still be forks or tyres depending on what you have fitted.

XJ980

The Rookie wrote:

Its because your stated aim was to reduce weight, in fact if the rear wheel weighed the same 1x10 would probably end up heavier than 3x6 given the parts involved so I was trying to look at more cost effective ways of saving weight. Which could well still be forks or tyres depending on what you have fitted.

My stated aim was to upgrade the drivetrain because I don't really like the 3x6 setup and would like something simpler like a 1x. Reducing the weight is just a bonus as the bike is already quite light. I get what you are saying though

jamski

Give the kid a break. He's had a bike as a gift and wants to keep it because of that. He's also learning while doing this, which can only be a good thing. So cut him some slack and answer his questions if you want, if you don't then just don't post.

XJ980

jamski wrote:

Give the kid a break. He's had a bike as a gift and wants to keep it because of that. He's also learning while doing this, which can only be a good thing. So cut him some slack and answer his questions if you want, if you don't then just don't post.

THANKYOU!! Someone who understands! Much appreciated!

XJ980

Okay so what if I saved the money and used what I already have, convert to a 1x6 setup? Reducing weight and just keeping the 14-28 and 34t rings giving me the gears that I use most anyway?

jamski

XJ980 wrote:

jamski wrote:

Give the kid a break. He's had a bike as a gift and wants to keep it because of that. He's also learning while doing this, which can only be a good thing. So cut him some slack and answer his questions if you want, if you don't then just don't post.

THANKYOU!! Someone who understands! Much appreciated!

No problem. I never had expensive bikes as a kid, at 33 I still don't! But I spent hours, days, weeks, months, changing things and making them my own, and have great memories of it. Make sure you post some pictures so we can see the changes.

Have fun.

XJ980

jamski wrote:

XJ980 wrote:

jamski wrote:

Give the kid a break. He's had a bike as a gift and wants to keep it because of that. He's also learning while doing this, which can only be a good thing. So cut him some slack and answer his questions if you want, if you don't then just don't post.

THANKYOU!! Someone who understands! Much appreciated!

No problem. I never had expensive bikes as a kid, at 33 I still don't! But I spent hours, days, weeks, months, changing things and making them my own, and have great memories of it. Make sure you post some pictures so we can see the changes.

Have fun.

Thankyou. I am now thinking to switch to a 1x6 setup so that I still have the gears I use most but it'll shed a bit of weight off, plus, then if I do decide to it grade to a 1x9/10 later on then a lot of the work is already done

cooldad

Can you change though - looks like the chainrings are riveted on in the pics.

LimitedGarry

Well, I appreciate the fact that it's a gift and you want to keep it, but buying such a bike and then upgrading it to better spec will be more expensive than buy a better bike. It's not my bike and frankly I could not care less about what other people ride, but it just seems like a waste to put significant amount of money into the bike.

If you're considering the upgrade to 1x10, you're looking at spending as much or more money than what the bike cost. New rear wheel, cassette, derailleur, shifting lever, chain, cranks and a narrow/wide chainring or chainguide.

Again, I'm not criticising you or trying to mock you, but for most people, the first advice they can think of is "do not upgrade this bike with expensive components".

Getting this bike to 1x6 will not be as expensive. But you'll probably need new cranks, as the cheap ones are most likely riveted. The question is, whether it's a sensible thing to do. 11-28T is quite a low range. Then again, some people do XC on fixies. It's up to you. But if I were you, I'd ride the living crap out of the bike as it is and save all of my money for a future bike.

Hinaultscrapcousin

Pretty sure Tourney is riveted, but I've not seen one in ages. The whole crank costs as much as a narrow wide so replacing chainrings isn't usually a worry, just slap a new crank on.

In this case I'd swap to a decentish crank and run a n/w with the 6-speed block. 32/28 is a low enough gear for now and you might be able to find a mega-range freewheel in an LBS. When/if upgrading the frame the crank will move across to the new one.

thefinnishcrash

https://youtu.be/EKQbRaMlPHM My video on my thoughts on 1x10 conversion. I explain why i did it and how i feel about it

cooldad

I'm sure it's fascinating.