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document updated 14 years ago, on Oct 13, 2010

Dinglespeed = Double singlespeed

A "true" dinglespeed has two pairs of gears, with the total number of teeth on both pairs being the same (teeth_front1 + teeth_back1 = teeth_front2 + teeth_back2), so that when you switch between the two, your chain length doesn't change.

Shifting gears requires you to dismount the bike and move the chain by hand, often taking 30 seconds - 5 minutes to do the change. The upside is that you retain ALL of the benefits of a fixie or single-speed — it remains a rock-solid drivetrain.

manufacturers
- White Industries // Double Double
individual bikes
- Robbie Rickman's dinglespeed — pictures, VIDEO
- double-dually-dinglefucker
- Elden Nelson's road+MTB mulatto bike

Dinglespeed with different chain lengths

If you don't have the exact same teeth on both sets, you must use a tensioner (eg. Paul Component // Melvin) to make up the difference in chain length.

Sometimes a 1x2 or 2x1 gear configuration with manual-gear-changing is considered a dinglespeed. For these, it's sometimes possible to shift while in motion, at least in one direction. (I would think this takes some care. There are no limiting screws here, and pushing the chain off the other side would be very easy?)

Once you add the tensioner, it can no longer be a fixed-gear bike, it can only be single-speed. Tensioners can't withstand the pressure needed to brake using backwards force.