Carbon Frame with Horizontal Dropouts?????
 

I want to build up a sweet-super light single speed (not fixed gear) bike. I've found that I really like the simplicity of it and having one moderate gear ratio suits my riding style well.
I'm curious if anybody can recommend a frame that meets the following criteria:[LIST][*]Super stiff Carbon Frame[*]Horizontal Dropouts[*]Integrated seat mast

• 700c wheel size

Or....would it be better to get a standard road frame with vertical dropouts and get a spacer kit for the rear wheel? I would be concerned about chain tension then, I would think.
The one advantage to a standard road frame with vertical dropouts would be that if I got tired of the single speed set up, I won't have painted myself into a corner and could easily convert back to a geared road set-up.
Comments..??

you can always get a chain tensioner with vertical dropouts

I'm not sure what spacers you think you'll need with vertical dropouts. The orientation of dropouts has nothing to do with dropout spacing (except in the more general sense of both spacing and dropout orientation changing over time). Also, there is absolutely no reason why you wouldn't be able to convert your horizontal dropout bike back to geared. Shouldn't be any more difficult even.

If you want a single speed, go for horizontal dropouts, it's just gonna make your life easier. Yeah, there are tensioners this and eccentric thats, but in the long run, starting with the right bike is gonna save you time, trouble and money.

As far as carbon bikes with horizontal dropouts, I think you're looking at two distinct categories of bike:
-Recent model carbon track bikes with track fork ends. These are going to cost you a bunch of money.
-Vintage, first-generation carbon road frames with horizontal dropouts. Hard to find, but if you come across one, it'll be quite a bit cheaper. Think $400-600.

The only vintage carbon frame coming to mind is the Centurion Ironman Carbon, which was around for a year or two in the late 80s. However, there are quite a few other options, rare as they may be--the Ironman just comes to mind because I have the steel version. If you're serious about this, I would go to the C&V forum and ask around about 1980s carbon bikes; the people there are going to know a lot more than this forum.

Why do you want an integrated seat mast so bad?!

The only really stiff stuff you're going to get is going to cost you an arm and a leg, eg Fuji Track Elite, Look 496, BT, Corima...

alright well lets get our heads on straight here and try to be helpful... the OP wants a single speed, NOT a fixed gear, therefore will probably be doing some sort of road riding/training/commuting/whatever, i.e. not on a track.

so, chrisp, you can find frames that fit all of the following
and they will be, like shown in the 2nd reply, an expensive, highly specialized track frame. these frames have a very different geometry than a road frame and i would go so far as to say are totally impractical for anything other than the track. now should you get, as you mentioned, a road frame (i believe the spacers you are referring to are for the rear cassette, no?), you can simply run a chain tensioner, as mentioned in the 1st post, and you won't have to worry about magic gears, eccentric hubs, or anything else, and you have a lot more frames to choose from.

so you are going to have to make a decision between having a bike that has crazy geometry but "track ends" and having a bike that has road geometry and a chain tensioner... that's really going to be the only practical difference.

i vote you go for the later option. i have my own *budget* light-weight single speed Giant which weighs about 14 lbs and i love it. i have never had an issue with my chain tension with a properly set up chain tensioner.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2675/...a71a189e_b.jpg
not the best picture, but you get the idea.

of course, Trek is starting to make almost exactly what you are looking for, if you just want to buy complete...
http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes...istrictcarbon/
http://www.doobybrain.com/wp-content...ict-carbon.jpg

Because they look SWEET!

district carbon is really the best choice. There are plenty of aluminium + carbon fork single speeds. Not to many all carbon frames for a reasonable price.