[agu]

Hi. A friend of mine has asked me to build him a bike- he's new to the sport and i figured to start him off on the right foot- on a 29er, naturally! Here's the challenge-

- he's on a tight budget- local equivalent of $750
- our next shipment of voodoo frames won't be in anytime soon

other things to consider-
- he doesn't mind going rigid
- second hand parts are cool for now
- my friend's 5'10" and 210#.

closed in on a pre-owned jamis exile but the seller changed his mind, so i've got my sights on a khs solo one se at a shop. Spec is good but my buddy wants gears so i'll be throwing in my old lx hydro dcl setup. Can the solo one se run gears? Shop's still closed this morning so can't call them yet. i just thought hearing your thoughts on the matter would help. Thanks.

 

[sonoranbiker]

Check out the Redline D440 1x8. You can find them online for as little as $450. Great bike to ride, great bike to upgrade as you go.

 

[agu]

Thanks for the suggestion - though we've yet to get Redline over here (I'm in the Philippines)

Ride on!

 

[grantheppes]

I found some random post where you can put a derailer on singlespeed bike
I think it was on a Karate Monkey.

 

[grantheppes]

<img src= "https://www.ebikestop.com/prodimages/FS3102.jpg" > Google Chain Tugs with Derailleur Hanger and you'll find some. You could get any singlespeed 29er and gear it up. (Anyone that has track style dropouts or the similar.

 

[justinb]

The Solo One SE has sliding drops. I believe KHS makes a dropout with a der. hanger that you can use in place of the non-der dropout it comes with. Just bolt it on, run some full length housing, and you're good to go. I think the stock wheelset is a 8/9/10sp freehub with a spacer kit and a single cog too, so no need to buy a new wheel, just the appropriate cassette.

 

[agu]

thanks guys!

 

[grantheppes]

The rear wheel is built with a singlespeed hub. I haven't seen a derailer dropout for the Solo One SE. http://store.khsbicycles.com/hanger-199.html May fit but I wouldn't gurentee it.

 

[pursuiter]

Sounds like a job for an IGH/Alfine:
http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=449329

 

[grantheppes]

Sounds like a job for an IGH/Alfine:
http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=449329

Don't know much about internal gear hubs, but I think they are sorta looty, wasn't there a budget of 750.

 

[Francis Buxton]

Looks like it runs sliders, and it doesn't look like they offer a 'replacement' slider dropout with a hanger. If, by chance, the sliders are 'compatable' with the Paragon sliders, you could buy just the drive side part straight from Paragon and have them ship it to you. I have no idea on the compatability, so it's a gamble.

Your other option is to use an 8/9 speed hub with bolt-on axle. Swap the regular +/-150mm axle for a 182mm long axle and run a Saint or Hone rear derailleur that bolts to the axle. You can swap the QR skewer on an XT hub for the bolt-on axle.

At the moment, I'm not seeing any other viable options for the KHS.

 

[agu]

Thanks again for all the replies. Got a reply from KHS actually:

<snip>

Agu,

An old Shimano Saint or Hone derailleur and hub would probably work.

Some inexpensive derailleurs have a built in hanger.

You could use:

http://www.amazon.com/Sunrace-Derailleur-Hanger-Bracket-Index/dp/B000C17LD6

A potential issue with every option is the derailleur may end up farther outboard than it is designed to operate. There may be a problem with operation in the smallest and / or the largest cogs. The tree options are listed in the order of likely best performance.

Happy Holidays,

Gene

<snip>

It seems that there's no easy way to go about slapping gears on the Solo One. That's cool, we'll just have to keep ooking. (I;ll try to convince my friend to up his budget and spring for a Hary Mary XC hehe)

 

[grantheppes]

Just get any track style singlespeed and put those DMR chain tugs on that have the built in hanger. or just get a D440 I had one, they are great.