$559 is kinda steep for what it is (frame/fork) but I'd like to see one in real life.
https://www.traitorcycles.com/Bikes_R...r=OldSchoolRaw
https://www.traitorcycles.com/images/...Ringleader.jpg

Ringleader_OldSchoolRaw_4.jpg
Love these forkends/trackends/dropouts/axleslots/etc...

tarck.jpg
Tarck? I don't care. I love it.

Pretty tarck, but still pretty cool. I think it would look like hotness if the rear wheel matched the rear portion of the frame.

iz nice

sexy trackends and purdy fork.

dang jabba, you beat me too it! i think it would look so great if that back wheel matched...

Good looking frame, but $559 is a bit much for 1430.

I like the "Ruben" a lot though, these disk "cyclocross" bikes seem to be a pretty amazing option for commuting if you want gears. I just want to find a good disk fork for my steamroller!

"Double Butted Japanese 4130 Chromoly"

definitely tarck, but i'd ride one -- good stuff.

i wish it had a diff tube material...cus in my opinion 4130 is cheap frame material...but maybe i'm an idiot


yeah, that's pretty possible


other than that, i really love the design

not really loving the purple/white...it's the raw that gets me drooling. i also love the fact that it has a 1 1/8" threadless, track-ish geometry, drilled for a front brake, and no cable guides. the only other frames i've seen like that are the bareknuckle and madison. those track ends are nice too.

Are these guys trying to be the West Coast Surly or something? Some scratchy logo, same overpriced Taiwanese frames...

"Relaxed" geometry and 132.5 dropouts? For $550? And only 3 frame size options? Why?

I am a little confused by this "The geometry is a bit relaxed from a traditional track bike and is meant to be a fixed gear for everyday urban riding without compromising the quickness of a track bike"

The bike has no drilling for brakes. If I ride brakeless I prefer a very low fork rake
and steep angles so that it is easy to get my weight over the front wheel to
skip and skid. More relaxed geometry calls for brakes unless it still
skips and skids like a track bike. Road bike geometry and fork rake
makes skidding harder. I can't tell how this bike rides without
actually riding it but I would want to figure this out before I pulled the trigger

lol@$550. fork looks exactly like the affinity fork to me.

HaHaHaHA!!!

"Those that ride fixed know it's not a trend or a bandwagon to jump on. "

How much are the new Rush Hours?

I would buy the Performance frame/fork for $350 less any day of the week. In a size that fit.

hollow axles that are intended for quick release. very tarck.
no brakes on non-track frame. very tarck.

$550 ? go buy the Kilo TT Pro for less, comes in more sizes and colors, plus drilled for brakes!

I think the hollow axles are standard on Dimension hubs (that's what I have on my conversion). Personally, I would have built up my showcase bikes with better gear if I were them, but still I think it's a good looking bike.

It's good looking, but... I can pick out some pretty colors and isht.

If I'm buying a frame, I want them to do the frame building type stuff, like... space it properly for a bike not drilled for a rear brake. Are there 135mm fixed hubs commonly available? What advantage would they offer?

Seriously, I can buy this
https://www.performancebike.com/shop/...TOKEN=18401853
have it powdercoated any color I want, and still be up $250. And it takes normal track hubs!

(Same fork?)

thats a rip off

This is Kevin from Traitor Cycles. First off, it was a typo on our website that had the Ringleader down as a 132.5mm spacing, the Ringleader is 120mm spacing. On the geo, we never should have used the word "Relaxed" and I agree that it was a poor choice of words. Look at our geo and you will see that we are not using relaxed geo just slightly off from a traditional track bike to make it more urban friendly. On the pricing thing since we just got our frames we are feeling the affects of increased material costs, transportation costs and a US dollar that sucks against most foreign currencies. All this adds up to more expensive frames. You will see that everyone when they release their 09 product will have big jumps in prices due to the same factors. We just happened to be first since we released our product this fall instead of in the coming spring. I think you will find that $550 for a frame and fork isn't going to be super expensive come this spring when compared to other manufacturers.

What no love for 4130? Butted Japanese 4130 is one of the greatest materials for a road bike of all time. What is the issue with it? Just because it doesn't have a fancy marketing label doesn't mean it isn't an excellent frame material that is light and strong with a great road feel. Trust me I have ridden just about every material out there and our 4130 is right up there with any of them. The only reason I see to go to a Reynolds or something is if you are going for super lightweight. We are working on a race pedigree cyclocross frame and will be using Reynolds only because we are trying shave weight off the frame but there isn't a huge performance or feel difference between them. And saving a 1/4 pound of weight for a guy who rides a fixed gear or a commuter doesn't make sense when you have to charge a lot more for it.

Case in Point - EAI Bare Knucke increases from $ 500'ish to just under $ 750 over the past 3 years. I know, it's not Apples to Apples (no offense Traitor Kevin), but it is a good indicator of what's going on in the bike market.

https://www.traitorcycles.com/Bikes_R...m?paintvar=PBR

Will be popular.

But really, sounds overpriced to me, between the frame/fork and build kit. Still, if I were gonna start pushing $1300 on a bike, I would use that for a down payment on a Rivendell or something.

Im not sure how i feel about that fork.