Is this worth it?

That's pretty sweet! Hard to beat at that price for a nice steel bike. It looks like the only issue is the short cockpit. If you can find one that fits, I'd go for it!

 

My only comment is that the rear wheel looks like a QR and with those horizontal drops, you'll want a Surly Chain Tug on that if you are going to use that wheel. I have had numerous problems and maintaining chain tension with QRs and Horizontal drops.

 

Looks like track ends and nuts....

 

Pic in the blog looked like a QR. Good to know.

 

The frame is probably made in China, which is no big deal. That's part of the reason that it's so cheap. I wouldn't worry.

 

One of the nice things about singlespeeds is that there's not much to break. In general, the only problems that I have are going through bottom brackets and freewheels. Bottom brackets are cheap. You can get a Shimano for 10 or 15 bucks. I probably go through one bb a year.

I'm not sure if the Workhorse uses a freewheel or if it has a freehub. I can't find any specs listed. If it's a freewheel type hub, it probably comes with a cheap Shimano freewheel. When that croaks, which it will, replace it with a White Industries ENO freewheel if you can afford one. They're around 70 bucks. It's the freakin' holy grail of freewheels. The things are damn near indestructible. I destroyed the Shimano freewheel on my Bianchi DISS the first month I had it. I've used ENO's ever since and have never had one fail.

 

Did you ask the shop about warranty information? The bike shop by my house offers warranty on all labor, not parts. There fault, they pay or replace, parts fault take it up with China.

 

I hope so. Go luck to you and the new ride.