Well I did it. After concluding I have neither the singlespeed mentality (mentally ill that is) or the legs, I converted my Raleigh XXIX singlespeed rig to a 1x9 commuter complete with rear rack and a set of panniers. Now I've got my commute on . . .
The first problem I found myself dealing with was the fact that the Raleigh XXIX SS has only one set of cable guides for the mechanical disc brakes. Jagwire C-Clip Housing/Hose guides problem solvers to the rescue. The only modification I made was to JB-Weld them to the frame rather than use the "peel-n-stick" backing to make them more permanent. After sanding the paint in the areas I planned to attach the guides, I epoxied them in place to allow me to run full length housing from shift lever to derailleur, problem solved. A little touch up paint on the cable guides and sanded areas and it was on to the next task.
Since my macho wrenching caused me to shear off a bolt in the Ergon grips bar-end clamp, I had an extra set of grips and bar-ends with only one usable bar-end clamp. I couldn't find just the clamps anywhere on-line so I resigned myself to using the clamp with the sheared off bolt. I drilled out the old bolt with a larger diameter drill bit, tapped the hole for a 6mm vice 5mm bolt and just like that I had a functional set of new grips and bar-end clamps.
The rest of the build was easy. Install the derailleur and shift lever, run the cable, install a new chainring (40 instead of stock 32), install new rear wheel with a 9 speed hub with new cassette and I was ready for a test ride and it was sweet.
Sunday found me at the GABA Bike Swap on 4th Avenue in Tucson. I sold over $200.00 worth of parts I had laying around collecting dust for a few years and had enough cash with a bunch left over, to buy a set of a panniers I'd seen in the bike shop the day before. Unfortunately, no panniers were to be had at the Bike Swap even though I made two passes through the place before calling it a day.
On went the rear (seat post) rack and panniers, another test ride, a few pannier adjustments and I was in business.
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