greenwithwheels

Im finding a cross frame to build up. I want something that would be strong enough to commute everyday on but still somewhat racey. ive been looking at the cross check but i just dont know if it is super quality or not. i want something like an "A.N.T. cross race" or a "Steelman eurocross". now both of those are single speed and that is just another one of those considerations. Would single speed be better or worse for alot of commuting and rough road riding and some single track and a little racing? im contimplating weather the crosscheck is an appropiate frame to put things like a king headset and wheels with his hubs and paul neo-retro cantis and thompson stem and post... you get the idea. any thoughts

i_r_beej

The Surly is just fine. It's a smartly designed bike built to last a long after more expensive carbon bikes are bits of toxic trash. They're also extremely versatile, designed to function equally well as a single-speed or geared bike. Here in Portland, Oregon, I've seen plenty of Cross-Checks and other Surly frames built with top-shelf components.

The frames are well made-- by a manufacturer in Taiwan not China. (Don't forget that Giant is based in Taiwan and are one of the largest frame manufacturers in the world and are the OEM for many of the big brands.)

Psydotek

Iro Rob Roy is also a good choice if you only want singlespeed or fixed gear.

Junkdad

I've been waiting months for my Lemond Poprad non-disc. It'll be a commuter.

sfcrossrider

Steelman isn't building anymore. You should check out Rick Hunter @ Hunter bikes.

nopinkbikes

The Surly Crosscheck is a great bike for commuting, and trails. A lot of people
put fairly nice parts on them. I have Ultegra on mine right now. Can go ss, fixed,
internal hub, or geared. Tire choices are great as well for them. That being said,
I think another alternative would be the Salsa La Cruz Complete. It is disc brakes
however.

greenwithwheels

ive done a bit of looking and the iro rob roy is a pretty cool bike. I just cant find much about the frame quality compared to the cross check. Its steel so its probly pretty good (im not one of those steel is real nerds i just think it would be the best material for the job). its a bit less expensive but who knows. any one have opinions

the pope

1) What's your budget?

2) Whether or not a singlespeed is a good bike for you depends entirely on your abilities. Some people race nationals on them; others get too pooped to enjoy them.

flargle

IIRC the Rob Roy has smaller clearances than Cross Check.

I'd also look at the Soma Double Cross and Gunnar Crosshairs. Both have higher-quality tubing than the Cross Check. 4130 is fine but ends up being a slightly heavier frame.

The Cross Check has greatest versatility IMO because of horizontal dropouts and wide clearances.

greenwithwheels

well i would like to keep the frame around 500 or so. I think that a single speed would be best for the job and if i cant handle it in the begining i will just have to deal with it until i can handle it. my commute isnt super hilly so i think it wont be such a problem. i would prefer the frame to have rear exit horizontal dropouts or semi it doesnt really matter i would just rather it be ment for a single speed. if any one knows of a frame that is priced like a cross check but pretty quality please let me know.

flargle

Get the cross check. Unless you lie awake at night worrying about grams, you won't regret it.

rodri9o

my gunnar cross-hairs is almost 10 years old, its hit almost every tree in the local woods, been raced for seasons, commuted a few times...on its second fork! it is also powder coated, and i have ended up removing the stickers since they were all worn from picking up the downtube.

the only (if at all) bad side is that it does not have horizontal drop outs, but has all braze-ons for a rack, good stack height...i can go on...

conglomerate

there's a steel masi speciale cx coming out...strip the components off it, replace with non-crap.

jfmckenna

IMHO SS or Fixed is great and in fact I have a fixed bike and love it BUT. I think you should go geared simply b/c it seems to me that you are unsure. If you want to race and there is no SS class in your local cross series then you will find SS difficult at best to compete. It will be fun for sure but not practical. SS is a great weapon to have in your arsenal but again IMHO get the geared bike first.

Plus if the Surley has HZ drop outs then you can always convert to SS. I've seen many Surly's in my area and they look like a fine bike. My favorite steal off the shelf bike at the moment is the Poprad with the OX Platinum steal.