Bought or Homegrown? Let's see!

I bought my most recent one as a frame and built it from there. Santa Cruz Chameleon frame with King wheels/headset and Fox Float 100. I like it but some dont. Lets see everyone else's!

 

I got an old cannondale, black-lightning frame that dad had laying around(he runs a bike shop). I stripped it down, built up some surly hubs with some rims similar to velocity deep-v's and put a higher end chromoly fork on it. Still the stock crank wich is likely pretty heavy and run only a rear brake instead of the front like others do. I run it fixed some and on freewheel some. It's probably my favorite bike to ride most days, with the mountain bike in a close second to it.

 

I'd much rather build than buy. I posted up a few of my singlespeeds in the gallery. I've got a couple more, but haven't taken any pix of them yet.

 

Built.

Custom frame and a decent parts selection. In retrospect, I probably would've gone with a different wheelset, but that can always be changed in due time. As long as the heart of the bike is good everything else is secondary.

 

Here are some pictures of my fixed gear. I have posted them in a few other places in this forum so I apologize if they are duplicative.

I built this bike up when I was working as a mechanic at a shop in Boston. One of the customers came in with it after getting "doored. The door hit the down tube and chipped the frame... he thought it was cracked so he brought it in to buy a new frame and switch the parts over. I explained to him that the frame was fine, but he still wanted a new frame and gave me this one. So I built it up with a mix of parts. Old school campy pista crank, with a 54/18. It looks like I am pushing a monster gear, but with the 18 in the back I get a pretty standard gear ratio... however, I also get a really smooth ride and I don't think I will ever wear out those gears.

Anyway, here it is:

 

Nice bikes!

 

Bought but had to assemble some stuff myself:
Qball 29er


Bought frame, built myself in 2006, and sold this Summer:
Fetish Fixation


Homegrown (fixed commuter):
Marin Stinson


Homegrowns (and sold):
Cannondale


Bianchi Classica


Bridgestone MB-5


Raleigh Super Course MK-II


Fuji Dynamic 10
​

 

Store bought, stock Raleigh Oneway. The opposite of a minimalist bike, Oneway is a cyclocross steel frame with high bottom bracket, canti brakes, fenders and 35c tires. The B17 saddle is great. About half the miles are fixed vs SS.

My winter bike but this summer I rode a 60 mile fundraiser in Vermont, 66 mile solo loop, 56 mile fundraiser in Boston and today a 36 mile rail trail, the last 4 miles rocky gravel that would give a mountain bike trouble.

 

Bought: Motobecane Messenger





Built: 70's Bridgestone Kabuki Mixte for the Mrs.







Coming soon: Kilo S3X! 3 speeds, all fixed gear!

 

Got mine on Ebay. All I changed was the fixed cog and pedals. Replaced it with a 12t and locking ring.

 

From Crosslakes 2 years ago. Some of the components they use currently are different such as the chainring. I have had no problems with the bike, and I am a very large person as is my son who also rides it.

 

It weighs 20lbs. Feels like a feather compared to my original fixie from 1965.

 

Bought mine, tweaked a little. It's posted in the registry here: http://www.twospoke.com/forum/f134/decent-fixie-2454/ . Considering building up a new one one of these days with some random components and frames I have lying around...