Surly Steamroller

sheesh, why's it have to be/seem so complex?

Ok, supplementary question time. I'm now into noob territory, can you decipher the final sentence please? What part is ISO, and what does "Goldtech hubs don't give a 42mm chainline" mean? Am I scuppered? Or is there a workaround?

there is a work around, you just need a different length bb.

most cranks have JIS square taper e.g. shimano, which is a japanese standard, a few (such as the miche) have ISO taper, which is the international standard. you can interchange them but it makes things more complex (check sheldon brown for more).

the standard-ish track frame chainline is 42, so you would expect most cranks and bb to give 42mm chainline. which they annoyingly don't. I believe the miche with a 107mm ISO bb give a 42 mm chainline. i think goldtech hubs give a 46.5mm chainline (someone correct me on this?), so you would need a 111/112mm ISO bb, or you could just get a 107mm ISO bb and use 4mm of chainring spacers. i personally would do this, as then in future if you get a different hub with a more normal chainline you are fine, and cheap ISO bb's are hard to find (sugino 75 are ISO but i don't know what lengths they come in). though i am not sure whether 4mm of chainring spacers is acceptable, i can't see why not but someone else may want to correct me.

ok so i just checked the goldtech/betd website and apparently their rear hub now gives a 42.5mm chainline, which should work fine with the miche primato bb which gives 42mm chainline. unless you have an older goldtech hub.

http://www.mountainbikecomponents.co.uk/items.asp?CategoryID=15&Name=Goldtec+Track+Hubs

and
http://www.londonfgss.com/thread6325.html

gah! missed that thread, try as I did.

This is great, so a 111mm BB axle will give me to within half a mm, right, do I worry about this and get a spacer for the hub or is it within tolerances (really don't want chain noise!).

Brilliant help, thanks.

erm it is within tolerances. but i would check the actual chainline of the hub first, put on a cog and put the wheel in a frame (any old frame) and measure from the teeth to the dropout, then subtract this from 60mm (assuming you are using 120mm OLD hub) to give chainline for the hub.

gah! missed that thread, try as I did.

This is great, so a 111mm BB axle will give me to within half a mm, right, do I worry about this and get a spacer for the hub or is it within tolerances (really don't want chain noise!).

^I've got that wrong then, if they are the newer hubs. I just spoke to BETD and the very helpful Darren told me not to get hung up on chainline too much, but couldn't advise me on the BB axle length. But he did say the hubs woudl have to be VERY old to be 46.5, so I'm going to assume (god help me) they are 42.5

But from what you post I need the 107mm BB axle, assuming no one will do 107.5 (or would it be 106.5?) -why Goldtec in their infinite wisdom went half a mm away from everyone else's standards I can't begin to guess. Darren tells me you can get 0.5mm spacers for the hub, and to call if I can't find them on the BETD website.

So I think I'm sorted, that's for your very helpful advice.

ok so i just checked the goldtech/betd website and apparently their rear hub now gives a 42.5mm chainline, which should work fine with the miche primato bb which gives 42mm chainline. unless you have an older goldtech hub.

http://www.mountainbikecomponents.co.uk/items.asp?CategoryID=15&Name=Goldtec+Track+Hubs

Are miche bb's not pretty shit?

people say that, but i haven't had any problems so far, tighten the cups to the correct torque (i think its 45Nm but i've lost my booklet) and it's fine. any bb that costs £10 a pop is not going to be amazing. and i challenge you to find another 107mm ISO bb that isn't really expensive.

wildgoose - a 0.5mm difference will be dandy. if you need to borrow a torque wrench to tighten your cups, i have a torque wrench and campy bb tool (miche uses campagnolo bb splines)

Thanks! But my LBS guy is happy to do the technical stuff. I just had a chat with him and we discussed 107 over 110 BB spindles. He was worried about chain stay clearance which is a good point, esp as the steamroller's claim to FFF. The chain stays are likely to bounce out pretty early. But I argued that you, as an owner of both the same frame and crankset used 107.

The other thing he did point out is that as I'm using a freewheel, this is going to be considerable wider than a thin fixed cog, and that could throw the hub/chainline out by a good 2 to 3 mm? Where does that leave me I wonder. Maybe I should have the 110 spindle after all.

My head hurts...

Decided to add to my user dictionary "crankset' and "chain line" 'cause I'm sick of clicking on 'ignore spelling'!

yes, i use 107mm bb about a 48t chainring and have fine clearance. don't forget that the steamroller is track legal so it would have been stupid of them to make a trackish frame that couldn't take track cranks.

will you ever want to go fixed (i read this whole topic as you were going fixed)? if so, i'd recommend a 107mm bb and then washers on the chainring for use with freewheel, this will mean that it is easy to get right chainline fixed. alternatively, measure your chainline with the freewheel on (half the O.L.D. minus the distance from the teeth to the nearest locknut), and get bb to suit, bearing in mind that 107mm bb gives 42mm chainline.

oh blimey... I've got a good mind to go fixed now, it's just my knees are not that young and I'm kind of attached to them.

I think the only thing I can do is wait until the frame gets in and start measuring stuff andbuying it bit by bit.

Thanks again for all your patient advice. I really appreciate it...

your knees should be fine, just get a front (and rear?) brake if you don't want to resist the pedals much.

I have the brakes on order, so it's a real option. Thing that interests me is that I'd have thought that -as it's a flip flop hub- one side would be engineered for a freewheel (for correct chainline) and the other as fixed. But that'd just be too convenient wouldn't it?

transmission database, may be helpful:

http://www.londonfgss.com/thread3372-6.html

thanks koai, that DB got me a fair way, but stuff like the chainstay clearances over chainring size, BB shell size etc etc still needed to be squared away.

FWIW, the Miche BB is adjustable by a few mm either way...

^true dat, it has no flanges. i have mine central and still have fine clearance.

What stem you got on there?

Well look like a polished 110mm ahead stem that you can get at a bicycle shop dear boy.

Which he told you just for the hell of it.

It does look like one of those. I also realise where you can buy bicycle parts. But thanks for the tip.

i thought i'd make a trip to the fishmongers... just for the halibut

OLIVER!

i thought i'd make a trip to the fishmongers... just for the halibut

OLIVER!

Mr Schick... he'll luv'it

Mr Schick... he'll luv'it

the codfather of punning