Front Sprocket upgrade
- Thread starter jay p
- Start date
Yes. It measures 104mm. I'm thinking the diameter of the 46t is 193mm. A 50t would seem to be 209mm. The rear wheel frame on the sprocket side is a very close fit. Forget a 52t at 217. Alternative would be stack the larger ring on the outboard of the crank bracket. Currently it is inboard.
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Will Powers
New Member
Hi Jay! I signed up to this forum just to see if you were successful in changing the chainring? I was researching this mod for the same reasons. It looks like a cassette change to an 11 tooth gear would make a bigger difference but cost a lot more and be a bit more difficult to complete(though their is a great YouTube tutorial).
Will Powers
New Member
I ordered the 52 tooth chainring. It will be super close to the wheel frame but might work. The increased top speed from a 46 tooth to a 52 tooth might not help much, but a 50 tooth would have been useless I think.
Will Powers
New Member
Wow Timpo! thanks for helping us figure all of this out. That video was super informative. The 11 tooth freewheel that would fit the Himiway looks like it is not very expensive but I read a review that said they might wear out fast and be more likely to cause the chain to pop off and possibly even bind the wheel which could have some catastrophic results. Do you think that is a likely problem or just worst case worrying? I don't want to be this guy:
Will Powers
New Member
Made the swap tonight. As we expected the teath of the chainring were going to rub on the frame. I was prepared to file the frame back a little for enough clearance but there are cables and ties right there also so I looked at placement on the outside of the crank. The Himiway comes with that guard plate on the outside anyway so there is a shoulder on the outside of the crank. The new chainring was thicker than the original one but when you combine the width of the guard the chainring bolts were perfect. So I rode it a little in high gear and wow! What an improvement! Between 20-30 mph the cadence is so much more comfortable. On a slight upgrade it was much easier to give the bike some help to stay around 27mph. I haven't added chain yet so no shifting into low gears so I couldn't see if the chainring moving over 1/4 inch causes the chain angle to make trouble. I will report back on that later. Here are some photos:
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VeeDubist
New Member
Thank you for responding!! You are quite a help here on the EBR forum!
Will Powers
New Member
Even though the himiway comes with the 46 tooth on the inside of the crank the 52 tooth has to mount on the outside to prevent contact with the frame going around the rear wheel. It fits great on the outside of the crank but I haven’t extended the chain yet so I can shift into the low gears and check how sharp the chain angle is. I hope to get the chain fixed in the next couple of days and be able to report on how the completed upgrade works.
Will Powers
New Member
I think so. The chain is stretched out fairly tight when it is on the 14 tooth sprocket. I don’t think it will even go over the large sprocket.
Max Hunterus
New Member
Hi, I am trying to update my front chain ring on my Rize bike. Looks like most of the frames are made in the same factory in China so the actual name on the bike does not matter that much. I got stuck with the disassembling part of the process. Can anybody help me, how to remove the front sprocket? Any help is hugely appreciated!
Max Hunterus
New Member
Thank you for your reply, though the problem is that the chain ring itself is on the frame side of that protective ring it's bolted onto. So even if I will unscrew those five screws I have no way of removing the chain ring itself.
Like many, I use this bike at the top end of the speed range on roadways. Not likely to ever do "real" trail riding. I just installed the 52t Deckas 4-bolt chain ring. As previously discussed, it WILL hit the frame lightly when replaced on the inside. My ring has an ever-so-slight warp where it touches on about 4 teeth and rides free the rest of the circumference. Plan A, I am going to look into ever so carefully tapping in the frame to allow clearance. Plan B would be taking a bit off those 4 teeth. I prefer a chain ring guard in place to avoid obvious catching of clothing.. Plan C is to mount the ring outside.You're welcome.
Just keep in mind that this isn't always the case. Sometimes you will have to take the crank off, depending on the design on chain ring.
For example, something like this would not work, if you want to mount it inside.
As you can see, the holes are way out of diameter of the inner part of chain ring, in this case, you will have to take the crank off.
But if you're getting a 52T Deckas ring, you will be mounting it outside anyways, so it wouldn't matter.
Also, the stock Himiway chain ring appears to be inside (I don't own himiway, I can only judge from photograph, but because of design on stock Himiway chain ring, you should be fine without taking off the crank.
NOW, time to look for a chain guard with a 52t diameter and 4 bolt configuration.
update: took my beloved Dremel to grind a few thousands off the offending teeth. Many miles later NO ISSUE. It will make a notable change to lower gears.
ASIDE: I find the crank length/position to be short. I have to climb up to get seated only to feel like I lost the proper leg extension while peddling.
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wheelman99
New Member
- Region
- USA
Hi, I appreciate all this info about the chainring upgrade. What did you determine about chain length or bend? I'd like to make this upgrade to my himiway too.
Guys...I have a Himiway Cruiser. I changed my freewheel from a 14 x 28 to an 11 x 34. I liked the difference and all worked OK. Then I changed my chainring from the stock 46T to a 52T. I couldn't mount it on the inside of the crank bracket like the 46T because it hit the frame. So I mounted it on the outside of the crank bracket where the guard usually mounts. And due to the 11 x 34 freewheel the chain was then too short to be able to shift successfully to the lowest freewheel 34T sprocket. I haven't tried a longer chain yet, but not liking the severe angle with the chainring on the outside of the bracket, I probably won't try a longer chain anyway. I really didn't like the looks of the severe chain angle also. It looked unsafe and likely to cause a problem. Then I tried a 50T chainring. The 50T hit the frame also if I tried to mount it the same as the 46T. Same issue with the severe chain angle also again. Now I've got the 11 x 34 freewheel and the stock 46T chainring again. I'm going to order a 48T chainring. 46T to 48T isn't much so I don't know if I'll even notice any difference, but a change is a change and I'd like to try and eliminate ghost pedaling. I'm hoping it will be able to mount on the inside of the crank bracket and not hit the frame and I'll still be able to use the guard on the outside. Another option I've been thinking about is changing the crank arms themselves. Stock Himiway Cruiser crank arms are supposed to be 170mm. I don't want to start having problems with pedal strikes or comfort but I think if it might be possible to swap to 175mm crank arms it might help reduce or limit ghost pedaling. Has anyone here tried that and what do y'all think?
Exactly..... a lot of words for exactly the concerns I had about trying to run the 52T chainring with the 11 x 34 freewheel. Chain control issues like the guy says. His conclusion...DON'T DO IT....which was also my conclusion. And I didn't do it. And like he says at the end, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." I agree 100%. There's a few people on YT and in forums that seem like they know what they're talking about but really, you need absorb as much as you can and "take everything with a grain of salt" as the saying goes, and use common sense........
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