Love my Felt Z 85. However, this winter I'd like to do some riding and I don't want to fender up my Felt and get it all nasty every ride from road grime and such. I have been thinking about trying a SS anyway, so i thought i could kill two birds with one bike. I know BD isn't exactly everyone's favorite around here, but I've been looking at the Fantom Cross Uno. No deraileurs hanging out in the road grime, simple, ready for fenders, etc. I did a search for posts on this bike but found little. Any thoughts on my idea or opinions on this bike? Thanks!

The Moto PCU looks like a great bike to me.

I've considered it in the past actually.

you might want a 29er.

I think your choice is a good one. Run as wide of a tire that you can fit in there and have fun.

Road grime and such... such what? Snow and ice?

We don't get a whole lot of snow and the days we do I really don't care to be out riding in it. I'm thinking more along the lines of road grime when just riding on wet roads. Even if it isn't full on raining and everything is just really wet, which is most of the time during winter in the Seattle area, my bike gets nasty. So, for where I live maybe wet weather bike may be more accurate than winter bike. I figure a SS will have less to deal with when cleaning up after these rides. No deraileurs, cables, etc, hanging out in the funk.

You want fender mounts. Fender eyelets.

In detail - on the front you want at least one threaded hole by the axle and a hole at the fork crown. If the fork is a cross fork with canti brakes you might not have the crown hole.

On the rear you also want threaded holes at the axle. And a threaded hole at the brake bridge. You might not even have a brake bridge. You also want a hole in the chain stay bridge - which also might not exist.

If you are going to buy a bike just for the rain, then get these things. Or course, you can throw fenders on any bike with p-clamps and zip ties but if you don't want crap rattling around, start out right. Even something as minor as the chain stay bridge hole is a small thing but huge. If you do not have it, the fender will have a clip to clip on the bridge and get rusty, scratch the paint, and break eventually.

Just went through the gallery of pics and everything named here as being necessary to mount fenders is there. The fork is drilled and there are threaded fender bosses. The rear has a brake cross bar pre-drilled and there's a threaded cross-brace for the chainstays behind the bb for a fender attachment screw. The horizontal dropouts have threaded fender eyelets. There are rack bosses as well. Get regular full coverage 35mm fenders from www.bikeisland.com for 34.00 w/no shipping. Wouldn't recommend the 'hybrid' fenders as they're a PITA to mount and the others cover just as well.

Btw, use rubber washers and squares of foam rubber packed in at 'pressure points' when mounting and they wont rattle. Places like where the front fender attaches to the fork crown. Use rubber washers on both sides and glue small squares of foam to the top side of the fender where it presses against the fork. Same w/t rear where it runs under the seatstays' brace. Just a little forethought will save you lots of grief.

Some people say they do not like track ends on bikes with fenders. It is true that you cannot change a tire with the fender on (sometimes). But I find it easy enough to pull the fender bolts at the axle mount which lets it the fender slide out of the way.

Good tips, thanks!

Based on a thread in the SS/FG forum, Nashbar has a great price on a decent fixed gear right now, around $320. The paint is somewhat ugly, but if it's a winter commuter, it doesn't have to a masterwork.

I had not thought about that. Definitely something to consider.

When there is snow or ice on the roads I take my Fisher Opie MTB with Nokian studded tires and clip-on fenders, but if the roads a fairly clear I will take my FG road bike instead, but I rarely flip the rear wheel to SS. I actually feel that as a FG rather than as a SS, my Pake is more stable on wet and grimey roads.

FCO owner here, couple winters on it and it has held up pretty well, wheels have been replaced as I bent mine pretty bad doing stupid stuff (foot-down contest, polo). Ride with studded tires in the winter and love it.