The description:
The bike in question is a 531 Raleigh road bike with forward facing dropouts. My current setup is built on a bargain bin stronglight chainset and a square taper BB. It came with a 42,52 setup,and I've run the 42 (in conjuction with a 3/32" 16 tooth Dura Ace sprocket) for a long time. However, the 42 tooth ring and the 16 tooth sprocket are worn and need replacing (the sprocket is shark toothed, the chainring seems to have peened over on the edges). I switched to the 52 tooth ring for my TT experiment - I enjoyed it, but want to go back to 42ish for winter (and hilclimbs!). The BCD of my current chainset is obsolete (122), so chainrings are not plentiful and seem to be mostly in the bigger sizes.
The questions:
1. How do I choose a chainset (preferably one that will last a long time)? eBay has "track/singlespeed" ones from 15 quid to 200.
1a. How do I ensure that the chainline will be bearable?
1b. I assume BCD of 144 or 130 is fine - any benefits either way?
2. What are the benefits/downsides for going 1/8th? (I currently have 2 NOS 1/8 sprockets kicking about, but a 3/32 chain installed)
2a. A half link would probably help keep things inside the dropouts - are they reliable, and is there any benefit to having a half link chain?
What am I missing?
As you can tell, I'm over-thinking this massively, but I've had this bike for ages (in a triggers broom sense) and I want to get it sorted so I can use it properly again.
Cheers
Duncan