https://ucycle.com/bikes/item.php?nam...e&cat=urbanite

has anyone ever ridden this frame or know anything about it? i'm looking for a new basline ss/fixed frame...somewhere's along the lines of this one (cheap, steel, straight fork) to mount my extra parts on and commute with. not bad for approximately 280 american dollars....

thanks.

Wow, this is a pretty good find -- price is right, and joy of joys it has a threaded fork! There is nothing uglier than a threadless stem. 4130 is the same steel Surly uses on the steamroller, so ride and weight should be similar, though price is lower. surly also has no fender eyelets (they suggest using clip ons -- blasphemy!), this one at least has rear fender eyelets. I'd say go for it.

ooohhhh...threaded straight blades are soooooo sexy. Plus, I will echo the price point.

130mm rear spacing - sounds like your options will be limited when it comes to hubs. Most track hubs are 120mm

You can get an IRO frame for a similar price. irocycles.com.

I'm running a 130mm spacing and had no trouble finding a hub. The suzue basic (110mm resaced to 130mm) works fine enough for the $30 I paid for it. You can get IRO hub with a 130mm spacing (sealed, high flange, and $70 for the pair!) This will be my next set. Why would you want anything else? Well maybe phil's.

Looks good to me for the price.
For the same money you can get a 70-80's steel frame and build an entire bike.

It's straight gauge tubing, so the weight would be a little more than surly, I guess.
but then, it doesn't really matter for a beater fixie, does it?
The price is good, and it looks pretty good. dig those forks.

The Urbane cyclist is here in Toronto. They're the bike shop I deal with pretty much exclusively as they're one of the few shops that deal with fixies in Toronto.

If you have specific questions about the frame, the best person at the shop to ask is Carey, the mechanic (there is a Carey who works the retail end as well). He also builds frames so he's knowledgeable about frame stuff. All the Urbanite bikes are built to custom specs, I think in Taiwan. My partner has one of the touring bikes and she is totally in love with it. I've been eyeing this frame as well, but have been holding out for a lucky find of some inexpensive old italian iron. Because I keep getting sniped on ebay, if I hadn't soaked a whack of cash into a three week bike trip, I'd be lining up this frame too

I go down there too reqularly, so if you have any specific questions, PM me and I'd be happy to pass them along.

Cheers

Cam

has anyone ordered one of these frames yet? I'm interested in making the urbanite frame my next bike.

looks very nice, and the price difference to the steamroller is impressive, do you think that quality will be much different?

All their frames look cool. I've been looking for a while, and I like the one with the curved top tube. I forget what it is off the top of my head...

I'd say wait for a better exchange rate.

I'm in the same spot as you are, actually I work on McCaul street right next to Urbane. I've been eyeing those frames all summer. Yet even for $360, I keep waiting to find that diamond in the rough for $20 at a Goodwill store..... maybe I'll go stir crazy over the winter and buy it.
-Cam let me know if you do end up buying one of they're frames....

Tom

Do a search - we've discussed the one before. I think one of the issues that came up was the price of customs and tax coming from Canada.