Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - $2000 to build a fixed..suggestions?

So I have 400 miles on my 07 Redline 925 which is for commuting. Already have the urge for something better and more refined...Now I need a cooler fast fixed bike I can use to hang with the local club rides. What would you put on this bike, Frame, cranks, seat post ,headset, stem, fork, bars,wheels, cog etc. I am looking to the real unbiased fixed riders for assistance rather that talking to a shop who will sell me on what they have. It will be a road bike not track.

Youwant better and more refined: spend $1000 on a fitness assessment and/or coaching - the other $1000 on a filmore, iro, or even keep your nice redline. going from $1K to $2K on an ss/fg does not yield much, unless you can crank it

Use it all up on a sweet custom frame (http://www.jonnycycles.com/)!

Then it could be as road as you want.

Yeah a nicer bike isn't going to put you in the front of the pack on a group ride but if you want a nicer bike, go for it. Two grand should build you a pretty kick ass ride. What's your interest? Top quality old school, ultimate techno lightweight? I think I saw a 14lbs titanium superninja singlespeed spaceship on fixed gear gallery classifieds for about that price, so you should be able to go nuts.

or I would buy this (http://cgi.ebay.com/Marinoni-track-bike-62cm-street-ready-track-fork_W0QQitemZ190121292535QQihZ009QQcategoryZ98084QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem), twice.

A nice, really well fitted custom frame with solid parts would be lots of fun, though it will probably not make you any faster. for that you need to go on club rides. :)

I really like this custom roadfix: http://thefsb.org/mercy/supervig.html

A nice, really well fitted custom frame with solid parts would be lots of fun, though it will probably not make you any faster. for that you need to go on club rides. :)

I really like this custom roadfix: http://thefsb.org/mercy/supervig.html

Yep. Mercian = Awesome. With a Miche gruppo very doable for 2 grand.

you can spend 2k on a cooler bike which will not make you faster, or you can

take your girl to europe,
or invest the money,
or educate an inner city child,
or invest in your favorite environmental cause,
or do any number of things that'll provide more satisfaction than yet another bike.

If you're not satisifed with your current bike after only 400 miles, you wont be satisifed with your next pick either.

my $.02

A standard EPO circuit costs around $10G, or so I hear... maybe just stick to standard blood doping? That should be more affordable.

If you wanna wait a little while, a close friend of mine is starting his own frame company, and will have the first limited run of frames arriving later this year. Italian steel, lugged frame, two-tone paint, painted logo, classic look, built it Italy. More details to follow...

If you wanna wait a little while, a close friend of mine is starting his own frame company, and will have the first limited run of frames arriving later this year. Italian steel, lugged frame, two-tone paint, painted logo, classic look, built it Italy. More details to follow...


seeing as he wants performance I don't think lugged steel is the choice for him.

The idea that he needs a faster bike for club rides is also pretty absurd. I think bianchi makes just the thing for people who think like this though.

the fremont:
http://www.bianchiusa.com/typo3temp/c707d1d8c2.jpg

i personally think it would be a bit foolish to spend that much money on a bicycle that you aren't going to race

i personally think it would be a bit foolish to spend that much money on a bicycle that you aren't going to race

I personally think that's a foolish statement to make.

I personally think that's a foolish statement to make.

I think personal statements on the internets are foolish.

I think personal statements on the internets are foolish.


I think foolish interweb personals make statements.

Get a rode bike. If it's for local club rides definetely get a rode bike. I had a decent rode bike and a very nice track bike. I wrecked the road bike and am stuck riding my track bike around. I love every second of it, but club rides you want a road bike. So many more opportunities with a road bike.

I would just watch ebay for the right bike to come up. I couldn't build my "ultimate" bike for $2000, just because of frame cost. I'm not into "classic", lugged, threaded or rusted so something like this would catch my attention.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=008&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWN%3AIT&viewitem=&item=180116811266&rd=1&rd=1

Yea, I'd prefer that it were a custom Vanilla, but I don't have four years to spend on a waiting list. :rolleyes:

I wonder if those are record brifters with the shifter part removed or cane creek with record levers.

The idea that he needs a faster bike for club rides is also pretty absurd.

Club ride one-upsmanship is what keep the bike industry going in this country...

Club ride one-upsmanship is what keep the bike industry going in this country...

Agreed but it sounds like he has more serious problems before he worries about that. Apparently he can't even "hang" with his 925 so it is a bit premature to start shopping for a new bike after just 400miles.

club rides?
you're gonna want gears. or prepare to get dropped.
early and often.

maybe it is some kind of fixed gear club? like tuesday night pretzel rides or something

club rides?
you're gonna want gears. or prepare to get dropped.
early and often.

If he is strong enough and there aren't many steep descents he shouldn't.

Still wouldn't be my choice though.

if you want a fixed road bike for group rides, honestly I'd go for a high end conversion, so that if you even find out that you need the gears you can always convert it back.

- CAAD8/9 frame
- ENO laced to OPs/Aeroheads/bling rim of choice.
- ultegra cranks/bb/brakes (chainring on outside should give you good chainline with the ENOs)

I think foolish interweb personals make statements.

I lol'd

If I had $2000 to spend on a bike, I would get two... a nice Cyclocross like a Surly Crosscheck and a Mercier Kilo TT, and still have a lot extra to add some upgrades. :)

or even get two Kilo TT's - 3 bikes all together! :D

And even after this, I think there would a few dollars left over which would go toward doing a BBQ with Beer and Salmon:))

$1200 for a Felt TK2 or a Fuji Track Pro

bank the rest

or

Pick up a Scott Speedster S20 or Fuji Roubaix RC.

Check out http://www.condorcycles.com/

Very nice titanium bike under the singlespeed section (you can buy all bikes as frame only options).

get a really nice frame and then get a groupo set of campy record or something.

there's a jackson frame and a colnago track bike at a LBS where i'm staying...

So I have 400 miles on my 07 Redline 925 which is for commuting. Already have the urge for something better and more refined...Now I need a cooler fast fixed bike I can use to hang with the local club rides. What would you put on this bike, Frame, cranks, seat post ,headset, stem, fork, bars,wheels, cog etc. I am looking to the real unbiased fixed riders for assistance rather that talking to a shop who will sell me on what they have. It will be a road bike not track.Miles

Youwant better and more refined: spend $1000 on a fitness assessment and/or coaching - the other $1000 on a filmore, iro, or even keep your nice redline. going from $1K to $2K on an ss/fg does not yield much, unless you can crank it
Not that I want a bike that will "make me faster" i just want one without fenders, racks, flat bars and big tires like my 925 commuter does. My fitness level keeps meat the front of the pack so I want the $2000 just to build a bike that looks nice and feels good on the road.

Use it all up on a sweet custom frame (http://www.jonnycycles.com/)!

Then it could be as road as you want. Johnny Cycles makes nice bikes. I have been looking at a local builder called Steelman Cycles http://www.steelmancycles.com/. But man the custom stuff really adds up.

What's your interest? Top quality old school, ultimate techno lightweight?

Stiff aluminum or steel frame preferably without a ton of brand name decals, upper end components, 61cm at 18lbs or less. Not sure what "old school" refers to??

you can spend 2k on a cooler bike which will not make you faster, or you can

take your girl to europe,
or invest the money,
or educate an inner city child,
or invest in your favorite environmental cause,
or do any number of things that'll provide more satisfaction than yet another bike.

If you're not satisifed with your current bike after only 400 miles, you wont be satisifed with your next pick either.

my $.02
Nice 2 cents, but don't you think a commuter bike and a road club ride bike meet two totally different needs? My commuter is a great bike for commuting and it could be a great road club ride bike, but the set-up for the two types is totally different. So.....having another bike meets my needs for another type of riding. And I do hear ya on the investing, education and environment.

[QUOTE=JeffS]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=008&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWN%3AIT&viewitem=&item=180116811266&rd=1&rd=1 QUOTE]
Yes that Langster is nice.

the placebo effect will make you faster at least

id say this is a major advantage over your 925

unless you are a rebel and want to wear cut of jean shorts to match your fenders

Agreed but it sounds like he has more serious problems before he worries about that. Apparently he can't even "hang" with his 925 so it is a bit premature to start shopping for a new bike after just 400miles.
Wow you guys are harsh. I am a former CAT 2 road rider currently hanging with CAT 3's no problem. My desire for a new/different bike stems from the excitement of being a new fixed gear rider. True, I can take off the fenders and rack from my 925 and replace the 42 x 15 with a 50 x 13 and do just fine on the club rides, but I don't want to make my year round commute bike into a club racer. Man this thread is tiring.

now that we have established that wallah is faster than dutret


it sounds like you know what you want


Stiff aluminum or steel frame preferably without a ton of brand name decals, upper end components, 61cm at 18lbs or less. Not sure what "old school" refers to??

so what is the question
?

Wow you guys are harsh. I am a former CAT 2 road rider currently hanging with CAT 3's no problem. My desire for a new/different bike stems from the excitement of being a new fixed gear rider. True, I can take off the fenders and rack from my 925 and replace the 42 x 15 with a 50 x 13 and do just fine on the club rides, but I don't want to make my year round commute bike into a club racer. Man this thread is tiring.

This means nothing. Your current level does. I have met 'former national champions' that are fat, unfit and years out of practice. Sorry, pet hate.

I'd get a bareknuckle for fun, a Felt TK2 for the speedy roadie look, but I'm looking forward to my LC. If you want speed, alloy is your bet, especially if you aren't going to drill it on the streets. For this purpose, I'd really like to build up a road converted CAAD7/8/9 with an ENO. It is gonna be the best option for the road. It'll look cleaner than a road bike, it'll handle like a road bike, caad frames are really light and you could put whatever you want on it.

Oh, yeah, you could always get in on the pedalforce group buy, that would be a cheap, fast option too.

jamis sputnik... nice light wheels.

Yeah. Don´t

for pure speed / value, a pista concept is just the ticket. Dura ace track octalink cranks or Sugino 75s with a Phil campy 111mm BB, and whatever stem, bars, saddle, and post that float your boat.

Wheels - cane creek volos and mavic ellipse are both pretty trick. Or for handbuilt, diacompe laced to open pros.

If I had 2g to spend on a fg built for pure speed, I'd have to build up a pista concept. All black, as the stealth factor adds about 8 watts.

This means nothing. Your current level does. I have met 'former national champions' that are fat, unfit and years out of practice. Sorry, pet hate.

.
TRUE....all Pros and below eventually become CAT 5's. Good point.

I'd get a bareknuckle for fun, a Felt TK2 for the speedy roadie look, but I'm looking forward to my LC. If you want speed, alloy is your bet, especially if you aren't going to drill it on the streets. For this purpose, I'd really like to build up a road converted CAAD7/8/9 with an ENO. It is gonna be the best option for the road. It'll look cleaner than a road bike, it'll handle like a road bike, caad frames are really light and you could put whatever you want on it.

The FELT is nice but a bit too modern of a design for me. I was looking at the Cannondale CAAD 9 but man they sure put a lot of decals on it. I agree though that that would be a true stiff road machine. I may get on with gears as many have suggested if I am doing club rides.

for pure speed / value, a pista concept is just the ticket.

Yes the Pista concept is a sweet looking bike. Seems like it is very popular as I have seen them all over the net. Can you educate me a bit on track geometry. The seat post is more upright than traditional road geometry to put you over the pedals more isn't it? Does this make the steering more "twitchy" on the road? Some info on seat and head tube anlgles from you guys would be helpful.

Check out http://www.condorcycles.com/

Very nice titanium bike under the singlespeed section (you can buy all bikes as frame only options).

those are pretty. I -really- like the looks of the first track bike in the catalogue...

Screw the bike and just give the dough to the "inner city child":rolleyes:

Yes the Pista concept is a sweet looking bike. Seems like it is very popular as I have seen them all over the net. Can you educate me a bit on track geometry. The seat post is more upright than traditional road geometry to put you over the pedals more isn't it? Does this make the steering more "twitchy" on the road? Some info on seat and head tube anlgles from you guys would be helpful.

Dave Moulton has the answer to this and every other bike question. There are at least two more awesome articles related to steering geometry on his site.

http://davesbikeblog.blogspot.com/2006/06/squirrelly_30.html

The Pista Concept has the same head tube angle, fork rake and wheelbase as the Pista, and so it should have the same general handling characteristics as the Pista.

I love the way my Pista handles, and, if I had a custom frame made, I would ask the maker to duplicate the Pista's geometry.
That wouldn't make much sense, unless for aesthetic and weight reasons.

I remain a little mystified as to what the original poster really wants in this bike.

Does he want a fixed-gear beach cruiser, or does he want a beautiful, nimble go-fast?

One thousand and ten US dollars will get a Mercian Super Vigorelli in Reynolds 631 delivered to an American address.
That leaves $990 for the rest of the bike.
For a frame this nice, $990 doesn't represent very much money.

Businesscycles has a Nessuno frame and fork for $619.

http://www.businesscycles.com/nessuno.htm

I like the Mercian better.

http://www.merciancycles.com/frame_vigorelli.asp

So, how to spend $990.

I buy a lot of things from either Webcyclery or Businesscyles.

Businesscycles knows their track bikes, and they have good prices, so buying from them would increase the probability of all the parts working together on the frame.

A Sugino 75 crankset costs $244.

A Miche crankset runs about $230.

Going with the Miche, that leaves $760.

DT Swiss RR 1.1 wheels with Miche hubs cost $395.

That leaves $365.

A Miche crank bearing costs $23.50, call it $25 to make the math easy.

That leaves $340.

Now, for a headset.

Threadless or threaded?

I prefer threadless, and, to save money, although I prefer a King headset, I'd go with a Cane Creek S-3 for around $50.

That leaves $290.

A Miche sprocket, sprocket adapter and lockring will run less than $35.

That leaves $255.

A KMC 610 chain goes for $16.50, call it $20 for the math.

That leaves $235.

Performance has a Forte good-enough seatpost for $15.

That leaves $220.

A Shimano Tiagra front brake should run about $35.

That leaves $195.

A no-name stem, $20.

That leaves $175.

Profile Design Stoker bullhorn handlebar, $40.

That leaves $135.

TT brake lever and cable, $25.

That leaves $110.

Forte Classic Saddle, $27, call it $30.

That leaves $80.

Forte Double-sided SPD MTB pedals, $35.

That leaves $45.

Panaracer Stradius Pro tires and tubes cost about $45.

Nothing left over for bar tape.

What else did I forget?

=====

$2000 doesn't go very far, does it?

Personally, I bought a Pista and replaced everything except the frame and fork.

That allowed me to put much nicer components on the bike than those listed above, and, in the end, I still have a Pista, for good or bad.

omg toooo much forte

better up it to 3k