Hey all,

I'm working in a shop right now, so I get really deep discounts on new bikes and parts, etc. I'm thinking of picking up a lower-end mountain bike (probably either Trek or Specialized, since that's primarily what we sell). I live in the midwest US, where we get as much as a foot or two of snow on the regular during the winter months. I want to go with the big ole' nobby tires (maybe a suspension fork, but really, that's no thing) for the snow rides. I also figure I'll put fenders and maybe even a rack on it, so that it's fully fitted out. I'll probably do an inner-tube wrap on the frame eventually, too, to protect it in the racks and also to keep it cleaner and minimize the maintenance.

Anyone have any thoughts about making this bike into a fixed gear? One of the other wrenches in the shop is a big fan of fixies, and he might help me with the conversion. I'd like to do it with a minimal amount of parts swapping. Does anyone know about a good MTB wheel that I could get that would already be fitted with a lockring and track cog? I'm not necessarily cool with trying to freeze up the threads with gunk; it would be safer and preferable to put this together the right way, the first time.

Any and all suggestions are welcome!
Thanks!
D.