okay, now i'm sure you're all fairly sick of this kind of debate, but i'm not posting this to start a war of which is better than which, just which is better for me.

you are the experienced, and i am the ignorant, so help this kid out.

i've done my searches, read some threads, and still can't decide if the rush or the steamroller is the one for me. whichever i went with would be used for some long distance riding, as well as possibly some winter riding (minnesota)...bearing these things in mind, can anyone explain some pros and cons of each frameset for me?

thanks in advance.

also, i hope to achieve street riding brakeless, if thats of any consequence.

I got the Soma cause I wanted a track bike and I like the red
color. I'm very well pleased w/it aswell. It rides like a dream, looks great, handles well,
and is built well. I have no complaints. It is built w/full campy except for the seatpost.
On the build I was going for a chrome look so I went w/silver components, black
components would look great too. It is geared low with 49/20 - 2.45 or 66.2 in. I
use it to spin usally 50 to 65 miles cruising at 20 or 21 and topping out on the
downhills at about 36 or so. I do run a front brake cause I value my life too
much not to. The Soma is pictured next to the Cannondale Messenger
that I run with a 48/21 - 2.28 or 61.7in. or 48/18 - 2.66 72in. The 48/21 WILL teach
you to spin high rpm and smooth out the pedal stroke while running the average
48/18 to build up the legs.

With that said I have looked at the Steamroller and it looks nice aswell
but it to me is a cross breed of bike. You may decide you want to
run wider tires and gears and front and rear brakes someday


Good Day - VÈÑÍ VÍÐÌ VÌÇÍ.

while both bikes look nice, I can testify firsthand that the steamroller is really a built like a tank. It uses straight gauge 4130 chromoly tubing, which is nearly indestructible. It's the perfect bike for city riding, and I even ran full speed into a car that cut me off, and the frame was not damaged at all. I've destroyed lesser frames.

Just get a pista while they are still crome. Definitely BIG PIMP'N!

blech...i'm not really a fan of chrome, nor of pimpin'...

and i've read quite a few noisy drivetrain complaints about the pista, but it sure is cheap for a built bike.

I can testify to the fact that the steamroller is strong and I love mine, but it's not made from straight gauge tubing, it's double-butted. The steamroller has a more street-like geometry than the rush. If you ride fixed with 165mm cranks I'd say either would do well. If you prefer longer cranks, the higher BB of the rush might be a better choice.

Jim

I'v got Soma for the summer, Surly for the winter. Surly bit heavier, but nice frame nonetheless plus you can fit seriously FAT snow tires in it

I run 167,5mm Miche Primato crankset on my Rush, and can second this

from what i've seen, there aren't many spurs that will fit on the drops on the soma... the metal is a little too thick...

spurs? Don't go all equine on me! Please explain

After being at American Cyclery yesterday, the designers of the Soma Rush, I say GO SURLY! They attitude there was: you aren't buying, so we're not really interested. I tried to shop for a lower end 44t and they guy wanted to sell me a $60 ring and a new chain and cog to match it.

No thank you. I'll pass on that place and their products.

I bought my Soma from American Cyclery as a complete bike. As a first fixie, it's worked out pretty well. But they are not the most friendly/helpful people and their parts are way overpriced. Still I think that the Soma is a better deal than the Surly.

the other thing is, i'm in minnesota, so surly is kind of a hometown company...so basically when i think about owning a steamroller my eyes turn into little cartoon hearts.

maybe that settles it. now all i need is 700ish bucks to spend. anyone got any tips for that one? start up my own bicycle drug courier business?

chain tensioners...

I don't like soma's graphics. They all remind me of a bottle of Sobe juice. I mean, they might as well throw a cute little new-age Kokopeli on there too...certainly not my style.

But then again, you could always take the decals off...

Seconded. Then again, I'm not a fan of Surly's graphics either. Can you actually order sans decals?

How do you take the decals off?

I don't think you can order the Surlys without graphics but, there's no clear coat over them so they're really easy to remove. I used a plastic tire lever to remove most of the decals on my steamroller.

Jim

Speaking about decal graphics. It seems to me that there are a lot of great custom frame builder that put some of the ugliest decals on their bikes. People, just because you have a bootleg copy of Illustrator you are not graphic designers.

i think you mean ms paint for some frames.

Oh, right. I'v got Surly Tuggnut, which works well

Step 1) Peel them off.

Step 3) Use goo-gone to take off leftover residue.

Any questions?

Go with surly. I saw the soma rush, built up and I was not very impressed. The tubes are too fat, especially the downtube. All the tubes look fatter than bianchi pista (and about 50% bigger than surly tubes). The frame almost look like some of the aluminum frames out there. As far the graphics, the ones on black are understated enought that they do not look awkward.

I cut through a parking lot today and happen to see a gray battle ship colored
bike on some dudes car. It was just a glance so I did a double take and then
noticed it said Surly on it and then realized what it was so I turned around
and went into a sports store to find the owner which I did. We talked for a
few and I found out his steamer is fixed, so I said kewl lets hookup and ride
he said kewl and told me this other dude he knows is fixed aswell. I said kewl
bring em along and he said kewl and gave me his card. I know of a few
peeps around here that use to ride fixed but these two will be the only two
I've ever done a fixed ride with. That's sad, if all those gearie's only knew
what they are missing...

Good Day - VÈÑÍ VÍÐÌ VÌÇÍ ™.