My suggestion is to not be so zero sum. By that I mean you have more than option a) paying for shipping and option b) building a custom frame.

There's a lot of gray there. Is there no LBS you can visit to try some frame sizes and talk about custom builds? I did a search for "fixed gear frame" on eBay exclusively to Japan. Pretty much all NJS, but if you're willing to drop a ton on a custom frame, I imagine these are a major cut in your costs, right?

I'm just saying you don't have to pay an extra $100 for shipping, and the alternate isn't buying/building a custom frame. Consider the gray area.

I'm not so sure about people recommending custom frames when you ask about mass ones, and vice versa. There are reasons for the "Show us your Madison/Leader/Hour..." threads. Yes, I'm sure some mass-produced frames are junk. But at the same time, certain frames are popular for more than aesthetics. And I believe there's often a huge price difference between custom and mass produced. Maybe not always, but more often than not. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong.