Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Recommend me a new frame.

Originally my thoughts were to get a Kilo TT when the new frame/forks come in, but after considering, I'd rather not deal w/ potholes and twitchy response of the frame....

So now I am looking for a road frame to convert, something better than my Schwinn World Sport. Reynolds 531? Chromoly? I don't know what to look for, help please.

Looking for a size 50 or 51cm

Steamroller has decent road geo and tire clearance.

Oh I forgot to mention my budget....no more than $250 but I'd rather spend a lot lot less...

There are plenty of thrift stores and reuse centers around me, so I sort of need recommendations on what to look for..

i'm selling a 51cm nagasawa if you're interested ;)

edit: i just read this part :(

Oh I forgot to mention my budget....no more than $250 but I'd rather spend a lot lot less...

No offense, but "what road frames are good?" is a little too broad of a question. But yeah, look for tubing stickers, made in Japan or England, etc...

I don't know how knowledgeable you are about bikes, but here are some things I have learned the hard way. Avoid cottered cranks, and avoid old Raleighs.

Cottered cranks are fine to use if they are in good condition, but are horrible if you are upgrading your crankset. http://www.sheldonbrown.com/cotters.html

Also, Older Raleighs use their own special threading for their headsets and bottom brackets. Raleigh bottom bracket sizes are also not standard. This causes huge problems when trying to upgrade components on the bike. (I am running into all of these problems and it really sucks.)

About the problems with Raleigh bikes: http://sheldonbrown.com/raleigh26.html

I don't know how knowledgeable you are about bikes, but here are some things I have learned the hard way. Avoid cottered cranks, and avoid old Raleighs.

Cottered cranks are fine to use if they are in good condition, but are horrible if you are upgrading your crankset. http://www.sheldonbrown.com/cotters.html

Also, Older Raleighs use their own special threading for their headsets and bottom brackets. Raleigh bottom bracket sizes are also not standard. This causes huge problems when trying to upgrade components on the bike. (I am running into all of these problems and it really sucks.)

About the problems with Raleigh bikes: http://sheldonbrown.com/raleigh26.html

Right, but very few Nottingham Raleighs with the odd threading are going to be the kinds of frames the OP is looking for. Especially in the US, it's very rare to see anything but a 3 speed cruiser. Also, there are a lot of mega-classic frames from the era of cottered cranks that are actually pretty good, it sounds like the OP has everything but the frame so swapping to the current crankset wouldn't be a big deal.

Especially in the US, it's very rare to see anything but a 3 speed cruiser.

This makes me feel like my PITA Nottingham conversion is going to be worth the work since its a rare frame and all. :)

http://bp1.blogger.com/_kN3XGhlyfAs/RxLRWoOLTgI/AAAAAAAABCg/UFutk039YgM/s1600-h/Canon+002.JPG

Interesting frame, where did you find it? It's not that they're that rare overall, just that they're less common in the US. Any particular reason you stuck with the cottered cranks?

I got it from a bike hoarder on craigs for $40. I then converted it for as little money as I possibly could using a lot of parts I had laying around and the cottered cranks worked well so I left em on. Only thing I bought was bar tape. Now I got some money and I have really started to like the frame so I am in the process of replacing cranks (and everything that entails), new fork, new headset, new stem, new pedals. We will see how it goes. Should get parts in a few days so I'll post about it when I do it.