Originally Posted by
modernjess
Feasible. About 8 years ago I did just this with a Cross Check. Stripped off the decals and ran it single speed for about 5 years, had 2 wheels sets, slicks and studded, I could swap them out in 2 minutes. It has a rack, fenders, drop bars. etc. I've since switched it to 8 spd IGH after a knee injury made having gears a necessity. I've set this bike up with drops, flats, and albatross bars. The cross check has been my dedicated town/commuter bike. It's a trooper and has more miles on it than all my other bikes combined by a factor of 10.
However, This year I picked up a used Santa Cruz stigmata CX bike which might be my favorite bike ever. I commute on it in nice weather, and long gravel grinder rides on it, single track even, it's just amazing.
I would love to be able to build a bike from the frame up. I think it'd be a good learning experience, but I've already purchased 2 bikes in the past 6 months and restored an old vintage one. It might be a bit excessive if I bought another one at the moment.