I don't care. I still like bicycles.

I don't really care about the handlebars and seat is comes with etc.

Call me a noob, but to me the biggest pitfall of a fixed gear bike is the chainline. I'd like to see a crank matched with the hub so I don't have mess with this when I put the bike together.

My current project involves an Eno hub only because I'm stuck with a non-adjustable ISIS BB crankset and I don't want to mess with spacing the hub for the chainline.

Maybe when I get more "expert" at this stuff dealing with chainline problems will get easier, but for now I just want it to be a bolt in and go proposition.

N00b :D

Indeed. Enough that before I posted my message, I went and checked a photo of a Kogswell I took this weekend to see how the rear cable was run. I was delighted to see that it wouldn't get in my way and piss me off. Otherwise I wouldn't mind CX style cable routing.

In a sense, chainline issues (in fact many drivetrain issues) have all been solved with modern equipment.

You start w/ a modern triple crankset. If you use the bottom bracket that's spec'd for that crank, then the outer (large) ring is at 52mm and the inner ring is at 45; the MTB S/S chainline and the 'track standard' chainline.

[165/170/175 w/ matching BB]

If you're using a single kog drive (fixed, single, coaster, three-speed, etc) then you use a front chainring w/ no pins, ramps or other shifting aids. If you're using a derailleur, use a 50/39/28 set of rings w/ pins and ramps.

[39/42/45 singles, 50/39/28 triple]

Then it's just a matter of choosing a hub, either a 120 or 135mm single kog or a 135mm 8/9 speed.

The new 8 and 9 speed casettes are kool because you can get a 14-26 or 12-26 which will give you all the closely space gears you need.

So simple.

you should use the competitive cyclist model.

every component is listed with a drop-down menu with the included component pre-selected from drop-down menus.

for each component, you can change the value to something lesser or greater, and the cost of the complete bike is adjusted accordingly.

if you change the cog selection (say default is a generic cog, you switch to EAI cog), the price of the bike goes up by just whatever the difference is (say $15).

of course this would mean some manufacturer stocking an awful lot of components (or at least setting up relationships with all those distributors).

I didn't upgrade a lot. Just the seat, seatpost, bars to nitto bullhorns. Switched to an inline brake lever. He set me up with some kinlin rims that seem decent that he had laying around. I don't think that really counts as an upgrade. I "upgraded" the tires as well, but also don't feel that counts. I left the drivetrain as is, but plan on upgrading the stem when I need to. The point was that with his philosophy, I could upgrade what I thought I needed to, then also get the cheap parts on bits that I thought could wait.