[OxfordUKRider]

I looking to get a Specialized Langster as my first fixie bike. What type/size of sprocket do I need to put it into true fixed mode instead of freewheel?

Thanks

 

[asterisk]

You need a track cog, available for order at most bike shops. Dura Ace makes quality cogs and is arguably the easiest to find or order. You can order them online through shops that buy through QBP like AEbike.com or track specialty shops like Business Cycles. edit: I assume you're in the UK...I can't think of any international mail order places now but I know they're out there. Try your local bike shop first.

You just need to decide what gearing you want to go with. Either start with the same tooth count as the freewheel or higher.

You'll also want a lockring which threads on to the steped threads outside of the cog threads on the fixed side of the hub. Do a search if this doesn't make sense.

 

[GFocker]

The Langster comes with a lock ring but not a fixed cog.

Fyi...

 

[Cerddwyr]

I looking to get a Specialized Langster as my first fixie bike. What type/size of sprocket do I need to put it into true fixed mode instead of freewheel?

Thanks

Depending on your fitness and typical rides you may also want to look into a smaller chain ring. The Langster comes with a 48T ring and 16T freewheel. That is a pretty big gear if you have to do any climbing. I switched to a 42T ring, with a 20T freewheel and 16T cog. For me that 42/16 is so good for most of the climbing I have to do that I have yet to turn over the wheel. As mentioned, the bike already has a lock ring, you just need a sprocket to lock.

Just something to think about.

Gordon

 

[danl1]

Other part of the question

That we haven't yet answered (and I don't have the answer for)

Is it 1/8" or 3/32" width?

 

[hubcap]

3/32"

 

[Babel Coglioni]

I own a 2007 Specialized Langster. (Brushed aluminium, black anodized parts. Very plain. I really like this bike.)

For the current model Langster, the Specialized website specifies a KMC Z-510HX singlespeed chain, which is 1/8". I've replaced the chain on my Langster several times since new, but I think that was the chain it came with back in 2007, too.

I have only limited experience with the fixed cog on the Langster's flip-flop hub, but various websites say that the original-spec Shimano SF-MX30 freewheel can be used "with 1/8 or 3/32 chains". (I could not find any such statement on the Shimano website.)

I think the original chainring on my 2007 Langster was a 42T Sugino ZEN messenger, which the Sugino website states is for 1/8" chains. (I'm now running a 44T.) The Specialized website now simply specifies "48T" for the chainring on the current model. The higher tooth count on the chainring of the current model - and the omission of brakes! - are clues that Specialized has deliberately made the Langster more track-specific. (I have not yet attained the level of "hipness" required to contemplate commuting on a fixie without brake levers. Yes, I know: my legs are the brakes. And, hipness aside, I'm not sure my legs could handle some of the climbs with a 48T chainring.)

 

[UrbanPrimitive]

Nice contribution to the conversation

I own a 2007 Specialized Langster. . .

Thanks for contributing some actual information on the Langster OEM parts. In the future, however, I suggest double checking the date the thread was started, or the most recent post before replying. Since this conversation is better than six years old I imagine the situation is resolved.

 

[Babel Coglioni]

I saw the dates. I replied because I found this thread yesterday, in 2012, via Google, while searching for details on Langster parts. (The original rims on my 2007 Langster are getting thin; I think I should probably replace the wheels before they catastrophically onion-ring beneath me!) I figured that, if I could stumble across this circa 2006 thread, then other people might, too. Six years old or not, that 3/32" comment seemed to be begging to be replied to .

My mechanical skills are limited (a friend does my geared builds for me), but I'm learning, and I'm curious about the differences between 1/8" and 3/32" chains (and related parts, such as chainrings and sprockets). In particular, I'm curious about the Shimano SF-MX30 freewheel being advertised for use with either 1/8" or 3/32" chains. This is, admittedly, probably naive thinking on my part, but I would have thought that using parts that were not all designed specifically for use with a particular (internal) chain width might result in premature wear (on the chain, or teeth, or both). This is probably food for a different thread, although it was prompted by that 3/32" comment from hubcap... and maybe hubcap is perfectly correct in practice... I guess I was half-hoping to prompt some response from experienced mechanics...

 

[JCavilia]

My mechanical skills are limited (a friend does my geared builds for me), but I'm learning, and I'm curious about the differences between 1/8" and 3/32" chains (and related parts, such as chainrings and sprockets). In particular, I'm curious about the Shimano SF-MX30 freewheel being advertised for use with either 1/8" or 3/32" chains. This is, admittedly, probably naive thinking on my part, but I would have thought that using parts that were not all designed specifically for use with a particular (internal) chain width might result in premature wear (on the chain, or teeth, or both). This is probably food for a different thread, although it was prompted by that 3/32" comment from hubcap... and maybe hubcap is perfectly correct in practice... I guess I was half-hoping to prompt some response from experienced mechanics...

It's pretty simple. If the cog is the narrower 3/32, you can use the wide or the narrow chain. It will have a little sideways play, unnoticeable in practice, and any wear differences will also be very minor. The SS freewheels that go either way have 3/32 cog.

You can't go the other way, because the narrow chian will hang up on wide teeth.

Plenty of ss/fg riders use inexpensive, strong 1/8 chains (e.g., Sram pc-1), regardless of whether their cogs/rings are 1/8 or 3/32. They work fine.

 

[Babel Coglioni]

It's pretty simple. ...

That makes sense. Thanks for the clear information; much appreciated.