{"id":2421,"date":"2014-06-04T05:11:26","date_gmt":"2014-06-04T04:11:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.spanner.org.uk\/?p=2421"},"modified":"2014-06-04T05:11:26","modified_gmt":"2014-06-04T04:11:26","slug":"the-virtue-of-paragon-turn-on-tune-in-dropout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?p=2421","title":{"rendered":"The virtue of Paragon; turn on, tune in, dropout…"},"content":{"rendered":"

Checking out Lance’s bike a little while ago reminded me that Paragon Machine Works are folks you should definitely know about\u00a0– they’re\u00a0probably the most innovative and best known US manufacturer\u00a0of titanium frame parts. Famous for their sliding dropouts, that let you control chain tension on a singlespeed, they also produce a range of bottom bracket shells, headtubes and other frame finishing kit like bosses and cable guides.<\/p>\n

Starting off with something a little more conventional – Quiring have used one of their standard dropouts to produce this very\u00a0clean hardtail with chainstay mounted brake calliper:<\/p>\n

\"Quiring<\/a>

Quiring hardtail frame featuring a super neat Paragon dropout with integrated brake mount.<\/p><\/div>\n

But they’re more famous for this, their signature sliding dropout. With the brake caliper mounted on the dropout it’s easy to adjust the chain tension without any additional faffing. Given the range of adjustment you could also experiment with the chainstay length if you wanted to tweak the handling…<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The classic Paragon adjustable sliding dropout – with the brake calliper mounted on the dropout chain tension adjusting is easy…<\/p><\/div>\n

There’s more than one way to skin a cat though – check out their ‘rocker’ adjusting dropout.\u00a0There’s slightly less range of adjustment so they’re just used for taking up chain slack, but they’re super neat and the integral brake mount is a nice touch:<\/p>\n

\"On<\/a>

On a Triton bike: the rocker dropout with very neat integral brake mount.<\/p><\/div>\n

For those people wanting the ultimate in versatility Paragon produce the ‘Poly’ composite dropout. You can chose your axle standard or fit a Rohloff hub and have your choice of brake, derailleur or rack mounts too!<\/p>\n

Because of the split design of the frame mount it’s also belt drive compatible, although you’ll need to use an eccentric bottom bracket because chain tensioning is one thing that isn’t currently on the list.<\/p>\n

\"This<\/a>

This Tomac ‘crosser made by Saratoga shows off the Poly dropout quite nicely. If you look closely you can see the join in the dropout that lets you fit a belt.<\/p><\/div>\n

And finally, just when you thought there couldn’t be anything else to add to the world of dropouts…<\/p>\n

Paragon’s latest offering is the toggle drop. Designed for use with a custom Shimano 12mm thru axle it’s based\u00a0on their rocker dropout and uses a toggle and link mechanism to allow\u00a0quick tension adjustment and\u00a0wheel removal. Personally I think they might have jumped the shark slightly with this one. It looks like it does what it was designed to do but you can’t help thinking we might have made things a little more complicated than they need to be \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

\"Moots<\/a>

Moots show bike with the Paragon Toggle dropout; easy to adjust but just too complicated?<\/p><\/div>\n

And just in case you wanted a closer look at that one (how many parts?):<\/p>\n

\"...don't<\/a>

…don’t let one of those nuts roll under the fridge \ud83d\ude09<\/p><\/div>\n

You can’t deny the appeal of an adjustable dropout, it’s neater than running a tensioner for singlespeed and certainly easier than swapping your frame over to support a new axle standard! Don’t forget though, when you introduce extra elements into the dropout area you increase the potential for\u00a0movement and creaks, even with parts made to high tolerances.<\/p>\n

Hopefully that little insight into what’s available might have helped you with the dropout choice for your next frame. Just be aware that many of the Far Eastern suppliers might be working with ‘Paragon inspired’ parts rather than the 100% genuine article so do check first. Most times this will be fine but I’ve heard tales of sliding dropouts that won’t stay put or suffer from really bad creaking. Unless you’re absolutely sure you’re getting the real thing it might be safer to to with a more simple design!<\/p>\n

Have you had a frame made in the Far East that you’d like to share with the world? Do drop me a line via the contacts page and let me know \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Checking out Lance’s bike a little while ago reminded me that Paragon Machine Works are folks you should definitely know about\u00a0– they’re\u00a0probably the most innovative and best known US manufacturer\u00a0of titanium frame parts. Famous for their sliding dropouts, that let you control chain tension on a singlespeed, they also produce […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2531,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[8,14,5],"tags":[7,6],"class_list":["post-2421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-frame-building-notes","category-gallery","category-news","tag-framebuilding","tag-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9GLNb-D3","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9655,"url":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?p=9655","url_meta":{"origin":2421,"position":0},"title":"Jeff’s Custom Spanner Bike ‘Descendant’ Titanium Hardtail","author":"andrew","date":"22nd January 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"I am totally delighted with the bike, It's very playful and comes into its own on winding single track!As a bonus it's also the most comfortable hardtail I have ever ridden! And you can't ask for a better review than that. Jeff approached me as he had a yearning to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Bikes"","block_context":{"text":"Bikes","link":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/11_QH-900x570.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/11_QH-900x570.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/11_QH-900x570.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/11_QH-900x570.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9803,"url":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?p=9803","url_meta":{"origin":2421,"position":1},"title":"What’s the rush? David’s Spanner Bike Custom Titanium Adventure Machine","author":"andrew","date":"6th June 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"I know, Happy New Year, right? It's been a while and I shouldn't have left you without some fine titanium machinery to err, step to, so let's see if we can take care of that right now... David's story is a very common one, he contacted Spanner Bike to see\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Bikes"","block_context":{"text":"Bikes","link":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/20200501_124824-900x506.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/20200501_124824-900x506.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/20200501_124824-900x506.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/20200501_124824-900x506.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3965,"url":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?p=3965","url_meta":{"origin":2421,"position":2},"title":"Spanner Bike – Project S.Y.D. aka the ultimate Titanium Hardcore Hardtail by Titan","author":"andrew","date":"30th April 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"It's getting late now, maybe 10 or 11 at night and the garage is pretty chilly. I've got a furrowed brow and I'm starting to get stressed. For the past few hours I've been feeding various cables in and out of the frame trying to work out if the 'impossible'\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Bikes"","block_context":{"text":"Bikes","link":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/DSC_0189-e1524912727919.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/DSC_0189-e1524912727919.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/DSC_0189-e1524912727919.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/DSC_0189-e1524912727919.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9833,"url":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?p=9833","url_meta":{"origin":2421,"position":3},"title":"Andy – Endurance Racing on a Custom Spanner Bike 140mm hardtail!","author":"andrew","date":"31st October 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"The right tool for the job? Andy doesn't like to follow the herd - where most people might think a 100mm carbon hardtail would be the best option for long distance racing, Andy prefers to tackle the descents on something a little more substantial! Lovely day for it! He got\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Bikes"","block_context":{"text":"Bikes","link":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/spanner.bike\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/IMG_20210410_082034-1-900x675-1.jpg?fit=900%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/spanner.bike\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/IMG_20210410_082034-1-900x675-1.jpg?fit=900%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/spanner.bike\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/IMG_20210410_082034-1-900x675-1.jpg?fit=900%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/spanner.bike\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/IMG_20210410_082034-1-900x675-1.jpg?fit=900%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4328,"url":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?p=4328","url_meta":{"origin":2421,"position":4},"title":"Steve’s Spanner Bike Titanium Hardcore Hardtail – Licketysplit","author":"andrew","date":"6th May 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Another day another fine addition to the exclusive Spanner Bike club. 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He also\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Bikes"","block_context":{"text":"Bikes","link":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/20190505_101015-1-900x675.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/20190505_101015-1-900x675.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/20190505_101015-1-900x675.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.spanner.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/20190505_101015-1-900x675.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":382,"url":"https:\/\/spanner.bike\/?p=382","url_meta":{"origin":2421,"position":5},"title":"Spanner’s Love You Long Time by XACD","author":"andrew","date":"14th October 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"And number two rolls off the production line: Based on this drawing: This time I'd been reading up about the latest hardtail thinking around geometry and tube sizes. It's got a much more contemporary spec to it which has sorted the handling. 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