I?ve been commuting on a single speed mountain bike for about three years, and am keen to go roadie and try fixed. Although tempted by vintage track, (mmm, lugged steel) knowing that I?m haphazard with maintenance means something new and with sealed bearings will probably work best for me.
Other things that are important to me are
A steel frame for a good ride
Strong, I crack the tonne on the scales, and still want to ride single track too
Rack and fender options, coz I?m getting old and practical in my older age
Sound durability & reliability, a bike that?s up to daily commuting duties, and worth repairing when components wear out.
Fun to ride!!
So I?m considering the complete Pompino. It?s with this that I?d like your thoughts?
How does the complete Pomp delivered for $1700 sound in terms of value? Is there other complete fixies I should be considering?
Has anyone got a complete Pompino, and if so, your thoughts please?
Lastly, if you?re the proud owner of a large (54cm) Pomp in Melbourne, is it possible I could meet you up somewhere? I?d really like to throw a leg over and cut a quick blocky. To test the size & ride would mean a lot as this represents quite an investment for me!
I’ve never ridden one but they look pretty good to me. If your budget is $1700 then you have LOTS of options.
You might want to check out the Jamis Sputnik at Spoke(n).
Reynolds 631 steel, Alex/Formula wheels. The Jamis web site says it’s full of Ritchey stuff but the one in Spoke(n) has Easton stem, bars & seatpost. Easton EC70 carbon fork. All for $1250.
Looks like a much better buy than the Cannondale Capo, IMO. It might even be better than the Pompino. Although, I’m a committed On-One fan, so maybe not
Oh BTW, Bike Boutiquein Singapore is selling the Pompino frameset for USD399 with free shipping to Aus during October.
Des, do you know anything about these guys? I just noticed their ad
I didn’t drop by the bike boutique the last time I was there. Judging by their WI prices I felt that Dan’s prices were better. Also, the area where the shop is located suggested to me that their prices would be inflated.
If you want a pompino, get one from the Oz distributors. They do good prices.
Second the Jamis bike. It’s a good deal. I have a feeling that the one in Spoke(n) is a 2006 model … hence no Ritchey bits. Someone correct me if I’m wrong. Fender options might be tough on this bike though.
I wd sugguest that if you have that much to spend, buy a decent road frame from the 80s and a good set of SB track wheels from Dan and put something together.
And Shannon from MTBPrecision tried to enter into some arrangements to be the distributor but never heard back from them despite several contacts from his end.
Last contact I had with Brant indicated that the Singapore guy is the guy to deal with or else use their US distributor.
Whatever stock is left in Aust. is your lot. If you want more On-One you have to order from O.S. I think that there was a difference in opinion in business models. That’s all I can say because I don’t know anymore. If you need a On-One dist. contact On-One in the U.K.
I will checkout Spoke(n) on the weekend. I did also checkout the Bike Boutique link, I emailed them and they offer the following spec:
Handlebar: 11 Torsion bar
Stem: Uno
Headset: Token
Saddle: Selle San Marco Aspide
Brakes and levers: Paul Components
Crankset: On One Single Speed
Wheels: Salsa Delgado Cross
Tires: Panaracer 70028C
Cost USD 1,569. See picture of the actual bike: Account Suspended Cost of shipping via Singpost USD 50.
So thats AU $2,125 delivered. I sure dig those Paul brakes and that on-one crank set, but seems like alot more spondoolies - is this bling/$$ bordering on ridiculous??
A small but niggling part of me is with you Des. Even though I’m a bike-building beginner, I could probably get an 80s frame, and even given a few ‘learning curve’ mistakes, still come out alot cheaper than $2k for a solid ride. Is just a big plunge, in $ and time.
I guess I have to decide between the journey with the known ending, written by someone else, or the longer road, filled with learning, adventure, mistakes, (injury??), a quest for bike building knowledge and understanding, lessons in chain lines, grease types, and how to quote others on this forum?
Then maybe I shall ride the earth, doing good deeds, like that Kung Fu guy. You could call me… Grasshopper
Yup, what ndf said. Come out for a ride and see for yourself what can be done. Everyone of the regular fixie riders (except maybe one) is riding a bike that was personally put together.
With regards to building your own bike. You don’t have to do all the work yourself. Some of the more technical things like HS installation and wheelbuilding can be done by a shop or even better, Shifterbikes.
I say build it. The bike may or may not come out good in the end but the experience you gain is well worth it. I sure there’s lots of people here that can give good advice and point you in the right direction should you need it.
That’d be me and I’ll happily wave the flag for buying a good pre-built bike off the shelf. Come out one Saturday to get an idea of the options.[/quote]
But it’s rarely in a ‘standard track configuration’ is it?
