Tensioners, Pros/cons

[Dwarf Shortage]

I've taken my gears off and I'm in the process of going single-speed. The chain is juuuuuuust a little too tight, so I'm going to put in an extra link and get a tensioner.

I've seen people saying that sprung are better than fixed, but never why, and I've noticed a few people getting a fixed tensioner to add a little more path for the chain to travel 'round, and keeping it as close to the chain stays as possible.

Which tensioner would be best suited to my set-up?

And what are the pros and cons of fixed/sprung tensioners?

[Mark W]

Sprung tensioners are generally just less hassle, and tend to need less fiddling to keep tension. Whenever I've ridden with people with fixed tensioners in the past it seems like they're usually having to do battle with them...

I was never really keen on the idea of tensioners unless they were 268mm Sapim spokes, but I've been running a Trialtech Sport sprung tensioner for the past couple of weeks and I really like it. Because it doesn't have the little locating pin thing that most other tensioners have, you can get the main arm flush with your chainstay so it's nice and out the way, then just move the tensioning arm down to get tension. Gives loads of chain-wrap that way too, which is a handy bonus! Mine looks like this when it's setup:

Obviously your frame's going to dictate how hidden it'll be, but it should be fine

[Dwarf Shortage]

Shiiiiiiiiiiit you're quick!*

Cheers Mark Another thing is, I've taken my dérailleur and shifters off, and I'm going to be running a full cassette on the back, just using one cog with a tensioner. Will having the full cassette on 'cause any problems until I get a single-speed kit?

Btw, when I first saw your bike my jaw actually dropped a little haha, looks suuuuper nice

*Inb4, TWSS.