Upgrade from Redline 925 to ... help to decide
 

Hi all, first post here.

Currently riding orange Redline 925 (2008 I guess?) in San Francisco. 44/17 fixed (switching to 44/15), 56cm.
I'm 6', 185 lbs, riding street for commuting + weekend rides along the Marina/Embarcadero/GG Bridge/GGP. Sometimes testing myself against some uphills.

My bike is around 23 lbs overall weight, would love to keep the weight as low as possible (SF is hilly, you know).

Looking for more aggressive steel frame which would be distinct from masses. The ultimate goal is to dust carbon roadies in FiDi in style :D

Currently considering (without attachment to the price):

- Factory Five Pista, flamed - really like this one, even considering $75 for delivery. Will buy their lattice + omnium combo then.
- Wabi Lightning SE
- Cinelli Gazzetta
- Affinity Metropolitan
- Pake Rum Runner - seems like hard to find at the moment - SomaFab site has black only frames. Kinda boring frame, no?
- Soma Rush (lettering on the frame pisses me off, as overall SOMA visual design, so would love to remove decals if possible. Or may slap on some stickers)
- EAI bareknuckle - an icon, but hate the colors
- Bianchi Chrome Pista (boring?)

Looking for some comparison to 2008 Redline 925 frame (not enough geo/weight info online unfortunately). What would be the best upgrade from this frame?

I also like pursuits, like Affinity Lo Pro but thinking it would be an overkill for my purpose. And they seem to be heavy in steel. Thoughts?

Additional questions:
1. Does carbon fork add up anything to my pattern of use?
2. Should I consider switching from ThickSlick 25c to 23c (SF streets)? These are skidded/dying soon (I skid occasionally)
3. Riding Velocity Deep V 32h + DT swiss on All-City hubs. Have some thoughts on either: a) Mavic Ellipse wheelset b) H+Son SL42 (back), archetype or TB14 (front) on Formula/Novatec/Gran Compe (probably with Phil Wood bearings). Cons/pros of each wheelset?
4. I feel like bullhorns would be the best bet for uphill climbing - am I wrong?

Some questions/statements may be stupid - apologize in advance, will be happy to provide more details and clarify.

Wabi has a relaxed road geometry. I personally like the look of Cinelli Gazzettas and that Factory Five Pista. Retrogression sells Pake Rum Runner frames. Buy some cheap tires for skidding instead. Bullhorn bars are typically used for hills, although I think you have to have a shorter stem

Retrogression has Rum Runners in dirty nickel and white.

I feel you.

I had a green Redline 925, 2009 I think. It's a fine bike but it's kinda heavy and the geometry is downright weird. The top tube lengths are super long. My 54 had something like a 58cm top tube. Nothing wrong with it, does everything OK but nothing great.

I was thinking about getting something new and came upon a Soma Rush on ebay for cheap. No stickers. Built it up with good parts (Campy Pista cranks, hand built Archetypes laced to Suzue Pro Max hubs etc).

It's like night and day. It feels a lot lighter (never weighed either one but I carry it up some steep steps every time I ride). I'd say probably 4 or 5 pounds lighter. The geometry is much quicker. And bottom line it's just much more fun and satisfying to ride.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=441176

Ain't no upgrading from a 9to5 my friend ;)

Had & loved one myself & in fact you're making me nostalgic for mine

FYI had what is called compact geo nowadays & that sucker could do just about anything...

Commuting, local urban group rides, & a couple metrics - even rode mine fixed out on local mtb trails too

but i can understand wanting something newer...#kilott ?

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=441191

That's exactly the answer I was looking for! Thanks man.

I hate the slope top tube.

Looked up this thread: http://www.bikeforums.net/singlespee...ach-frame.html, leaning towards Soma Rush from this pack. Factory 5 Pista is still #1 for me from aesthetic point of view. Going to research more on Gazzetta.

Nobody here seems to like Affinity, amiright? :)

Please chime in on the additional questions re. fork, tire size, what you switched your old 925 to... I would love this thread to be somewhat helpful for others who thinks about switching their first steel single speed frame to something better/faster on the street.

if youre looking to drop weight, get rid of those boat anchor wheels and stay away from anything like them unless theyre made from crabn. especially climbing this is where youre gonna feel the weight most

2mm in tires isnt gonna change much, except last a little longer.
fork will lighten it up like half a poundish, ride wont be much different than a steel fork (ime)

id advise against dropping 2 teeth in the back and gaining close to 10 gi for those hills. unless you already got bionic knees

i really like the F5 Pista in the flamed finish, but i'm not sure how the finish would hold up.. especially with commuting. With that said i would probably still choose the F5. i'm a big fan of the omni lattice, but i think it looks better on aluminum framed bikes (thicker tubing).

Also, sizing for this frames:

5. On my redline, I wish I had more saddle setback (saddle rails in the furthest position), so maybe bended Thomson seatpost may help. Should I choose the size based on my current top horizontal dimension? I know it's a fit question, and you have special topic thread here, but 925 has weird dimensions.

[MENTION=25248]nightfly[/MENTION] - what Soma Rush size have you switched to from 925 in 54cm?

I see you have Bianchi Pista - it's also on my potential list, but further down - is it D2 Pista Chromoly frame you have? If so, would love to hear your thoughts on it vs redline 925 and Soma Rush. Thanks in advance!

Oh, and I'm not really serious to ride 44/15 all the time. Just want to try and see whether I notice significant difference in speed. I doubt, but why not to try?

My Pista is aluminum, but i did test ride a few steel Pistas before i bought mine, and my girlfriend actually has a Redline 925. I like the Redline and would not consider the Pista Chrome much of an upgrade besides that aesthetically it looks a lot better. Others have stated that the geometry on the 925 is weird but i can't really comment on that since my GF's bike is not my size. If i didn't have any bike i would absolutely choose a Pista Chrome over a 925, but I'm not sure i would switch from a 925 to a Pista Chrome. i feel like the 925 is a good value for what your getting vs. the pista your paying exactly for what your getting.

The one good thing about choosing a Pista Chrome over your other choices tho is that i see chrome Pista's on craigslist all the time. So probably the cheapest to build up if your not looking to switch all the parts.

[MENTION=303015]Mumonkan[/MENTION], what wheels would you put on instead of Deep Vs? Mavic Open Pro, H+Son TB14 or Archetype?

Deep V: 580g

TB14: 490g
Archetype: 470g
Open Pro: 435g

literally any of them would be better

My 54cm Redline 925 with the long tube was always difficult to get to fit correctly. I ran pretty short stems mostly around 80mm and was always playing with bars.

I got a 55cm Rush and run it with a 100mm stem. It's a little short in the top tube but I run it with riser bars and kinda like the upright position with the tight geometry for the city. I ended up getting a road bike for longer rides which has a 56cm top tub which is what fits me correctly. Otherwise I'd probably throw on bullhorns and possibly a 110mm stem for more reach on the Soma.

Attached is the geometry from the Redline 2009 catalog for the 925, don't think it changed year to year:

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=441280

Appreciate your detailed response. I was thinking about 55 but clearly my 56 frame + 90 stem on a smaller side for me (6'), I'll need next size for Soma Rush. Agree on upright position for the 'redlight to redlight' ride + bullhorns.

Dream: The Monkey Lab: Soma Rush Fixed Gear With Belt Drive

I would think in a Rush you'd need at least a 57 or possible a 59 or even 61 if you want to hit close to the top tube length of your 925 (59.4). Probably a good idea to measure a straight line on the Redline from seat tube to head tube to get a better idea of what the effective length is. The angled tube makes the actual length not accurate. If you look at the Soma geo, the top tubes actual length gets shorter as the frames get bigger so my 55 is pretty much a 55 effective top tube length but the 57 has an effective length of 56 and the 59 is 57.8 etc.

http://www.somafab.com/wp-content/up...014_rev514.jpg

Found user and "professionally re-painted" Bareknuckle 56cm + Cane Creek headset fro $300. Yay or nay? Plan to ask why it was re-painted and visually check the geo. Would love to bring it into my LBS afterwards for a check. Should I ask for 2 days full refund before buying just to protect myself from buying a trashed frame? I bought a couple of used bikes and haven't been fooled (yet). Any advice you might have is greatly appreciated.

"Ask for 2 full days refund"? what do you mean by that? Is it on CL or something? If I was selling it, and you asked me that, I'd tell you to go **** yerself. I wouldn't even sell it to you if you had the money!

You should be able to tell if it's "trashed" as soon as you take a look at it. You will(should) know pretty quickly if it's something like a BK, or someone trying to pass off a Thruster as a BK.

I think I know the Bareknuckle you're talking about. Purple repaint? There's a dent in the seatstay, but he says his LBS told him it's not bad enough to worry about. I know from pedalroom. The bike's not trashed but I would see if I could talk him down to 250 or so because of the dent.

you're absolutely right about the subj :) Thanks for additional info - looking it up on pedalroom.