29er

michaels

Explorer
i'm thinking about getting a single speed or 1x9 29er. so far i've been looking at niner and independent fabrications. i'm trying to stay as close to $1000 as possible, but will go up to $1500 for the right one.

any suggestions?
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mountainsoul

Adventurer
For me there is no comparison. IF make some of the nicest bikes around. Niners are decent, average bikes that are way overhyped imho. But finding an IF for $1000-1500 isn't going to be easy. Their Steel Deluxe is a sweet ride but frame only is approx $1800.

I'd buy an IF in a heartbeat.
 

1speed

Explorer
You can't beat this for the money. http://www.qballbikes.com/

They are made by Scott Quiring http://www.quiringcycles.net/ and the quality is top notch. I have two (1 singlespeed and 1 with gears) that I've been riding for a few years now.

P3120016.jpg


P3120021.jpg
 

Christophe Noel

Expedition Leader
Finding a nice bike for that budget won't be too hard, but finding a good 1x9 out of a box will be a bit more of a challenge. You won't find an IF, that's a given since frames start above your budget. There are tons of nice mid-level singlespeeds out there like a Surly Karate Monkey, Vassago Jaberwoky, Redline Monocog Flight, Fisher Rig, etc. I actually like the Felt SS for the money. The new Salsa El Mariachi is pretty slick for the coin and would give you the option of SS or 1x9.
 

1speed

Explorer
It absolutely blows my mind at how much some people will spend on a bike with no gears. The million dollar hubs that sound like a killer mosquito bussing by, billet aluminum this and that component(s).....I hate guys like that

http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product_10053_10052_502354_-1_201664_10000_200516

or a gary fisher rig would be cool, I almost got the 09 model for cheap, wish I did when i had the chance.

Why hate?

I build, race, ride and enjoy singlespeeds more than geared bikes. If that's what you are into, why not go all out? Is a singlespeed inherently less deserving of the good parts than a geared bike? :confused: I'm not a fan of King hubs, but I use expensive, high quality hubs to build my single speed wheels.
 
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michaels

Explorer
Why hate?

I build, race, ride and enjoy singlespeeds more than geared bikes. If that's what you are into, why not go all out? Is a singlespeed inherently less deserving of the good parts than a geared bike? :confused: I'm not a fan of King hubs, but I use expensive, high quality hubs to build single speed wheels.

exactly. i ride SS on my commuter bike and my buddies use SS on their mountain bikes. i'm in it for the simplicity. i'm a nice 200 lbs and constantly break ****, so going to a bike where i'm not going to mess up my shifts (since i can't shift) just means greater reliability.

the bike i get just HAS to be able to go to 1X9 just in case. i only use the middle cog up front so i have no need for anything else.

there's absolutely nothing wrong with wanting a nice quality bike, no matter how it's set up. i'm a college student so i want something that's going to last and i'd rather shell out a few more bucks for something better while i can.
 

DaveInDenver

Middle Income Semi-Redneck
exactly. i ride SS on my commuter bike and my buddies use SS on their mountain bikes. i'm in it for the simplicity. i'm a nice 200 lbs and constantly break ****, so going to a bike where i'm not going to mess up my shifts (since i can't shift) just means greater reliability.

the bike i get just HAS to be able to go to 1X9 just in case. i only use the middle cog up front so i have no need for anything else.

there's absolutely nothing wrong with wanting a nice quality bike, no matter how it's set up. i'm a college student so i want something that's going to last and i'd rather shell out a few more bucks for something better while i can.
I have a 11 year old Redline CX, I would (will) buy another in a heartbeat. I've beat the snot outta it, race CX, commuting, touring, road centuries. Miles? Lots and lots and lots. At least three wheelsets have given their lives on it and yet here it is. It runs gears, but that's more because it really does everything for me, so the right gearing for a CX race isn't really the same coming home 3 sheets to the wind or dragging the trailer back from Safeway. Changing tires in the summer for a road ride or removing the fenders is the extent of what I have to do to get it ready for the races in the fall. IOW, might take a close look at Flounder's recommendation of a Monocog Flight. It has drop outs you can change for SS or geared.
 

michaels

Explorer
well i think i've pretty much settled on a niner one 9 frame. i'm going to build it up myself, so i'm researching everything else i'm going to need to make it a complete bike.
 

Christophe Noel

Expedition Leader
IOW, might take a close look at Flounder's recommendation of a Monocog Flight. It has drop outs you can change for SS or geared.
The first time I really inspected a Flight, I was blown away by the price. My Spot would easily work out to be over $3000 if I priced it out, and it's by no means three times or even twice the bike the Flight is.

I've certainly had my butt handed to me at 'cross races by guys rolling Redlines. I try to tell them my Yeti is fancier, but they must not care. :)
 

michaels

Explorer
here's my current list. still don't know about headset or crankset though.

what crankset can i buy without the gear? i want the niner 32T gear separately. so what bottom brack and cranks should i get?

NINER
frame ........................................................................849
rear cog ......................................................................35
handle bar .................................................................50
chainring ....................................................................50

Jenson USA
surly rigid fork ............................................................70
brakes (undecided)........................................... ~$130
ergo GC2 race grips with allow bar ends .....................40
Shimano M525 Disc Mavic A317 29Er Wheels ........170
cannondale velo saddle .................................................30 (on sale for 12 now)
crank brothers candy 1 pedals...................................... 60
kalloy laprade seatpost .................................................16
presta valve tube (2).......................................................6
TOTAL.....................................................................1,501

uncertain:
brakes
cranks
bottombracket
tires (need to be good at self cleaning. run into mud and clay on a decent enough basis)
headset

anything else i seem to be missing?

nashbar has their brand of rbakes with EVERYTHING (discs, levers, cables, etc) for $64 right now, but if the sale is gone by next month they are $130.


if you see anything you'd suggest differently let me know. i'll be placing orders in exactly one month, giving me plenty of time to make adjustments
 
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Christophe Noel

Expedition Leader
Let me preface this with - I understand what ever I throw out there as a suggestion, someone else is going to come along to discount said suggestion. Part of the game. I promise I ride a bunch and these aren't random suggestios. Here goes...

Here in little old Prescott, AZ we have one of the largest singlespeed communities in the wild west. Prescott is primo for one cog. As such, our riding community has flushed out a lot of good kit and bad kit. There are some things that have risen to the top as proven faves.

White Industry ENO cranks are one local favorite. I sure like mine. The nice thing about WI cranks is the perfect roundness of the rings. Sounds odd, but a lot of rings aren't perfectly round which makes setting chain tension nutty. I also like having a square taper BB so I can chose my optimal spindle length for the best Q-factor and chain line. Maybe it's because my first race rigs in the mid 80s used square taper, but I'm not turned off by it because it isn't the latest option. By the way, Cook Bro Racing cranks are back and Jack is one of our fellow ExPo bike community members. I'd love to try his cranks some day.

Brakes are easy for me - Avid BB7s. If you nit-pick, you can probably find stoppers that are marginally superior, but BB7s are simple, tough to screw up and will never ruin your day if they go belly up mid ride...which they won't. There's no bleeding, field repair is easy and frankly, they're dirt cheap. I've seen guys with $7000 custom rigs fitted with $60 Avid BB7s.

Headset? Again, that's a no brainer for our riding community. Chris King. I have a 1" Chris King headset that I bought in the early 90s and used it over the span of 85,000 miles of racing until it became obsolete...not worn out. Plus, Chris King is a US company with great bike riding employees, and I support that.

Tires? That's highly regionalized and relative to your riding style and terrain. I ride Kenda Nevegals because they've got mucho rubber and I'll easily put 4,000 miles on my mtb every year. I can't afford tires that ride great for a month before the love of sharp knobs wears off.
 

Cackalak Han

Explorer
You can't beat this for the money. http://www.qballbikes.com/

They are made by Scott Quiring http://www.quiringcycles.net/ and the quality is top notch. I have two (1 singlespeed and 1 with gears) that I've been riding for a few years now.

I have to agree with this 100%. Had I known a little more about QBall frames, I'd have ordered that instead of my Vassago (same price). You can't touch a Made In USA frame for that price. The only thing I'd do is hack off that derailleur hanger for the cleaner look. :sombrero:

I also had a Monocog Flight 29er and it was a good bike. For a low-budget bike, that thing was great. But I'm not a big paragon sliding dropout fan, so went with the good ol' track ends this time around.

As far as your questions on components, personally I'd go:

brakes - Avid BB7. If you must go hydraulic, best bang for buck is Hayes 9 or Shimano Deore.
cranks - XT or SLX. (XT on ebay for $150 with bottom bracket with no rings). Got my SLX locally for $100.
headset - I have Cane Creek S3 on all my bikes. Hasn't failed me yet. $30 at JensonUSA.
tires - I don't deal with mud, so don't know.
 
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michaels

Explorer
well i thought i'd update the thread. i ended up going with a green Vassago Jabberywocky with the matching Odis fork from Hucknroll for $645. i researched for about two month befor ei made the purchase. i knew i wanted a 29er and at first was going to get an Niner One 9, then found the jabberwocky and the Misfit diSSent and went back and forth between the two... the geometry looked GREAT on both, but i ultimately went with the Vassago. i do want both a niner and misfit in the future, but that will wait several more years until i have a job. i wanted a theme for the bike, but i also didn't want it to stand out overtly seeing as i'll be in rural alabama for the fall semester with this bike living in essentially a hut with electricity (no heat or A/C) and on my college campus. the bike is army-ish green and all my components are black. i got a red chain to make it "pop" a little bit and i'm pretty excited to see the color combo. greena nd red are my favorite colors.


it was a huge benefit that i couldn't access the money for the build until late july. i began my search in early june and was able to fine tune my list of components based on cost, reviews, preference, and budget concerns. we'll see how it all comes together!


here's my component list and pictures and a complete price list of them all.
ARGN.jpg


RACE FACE RIDE DH X-TYPE SS CRANKS
Black, 170mm, 68/73mm, 36T
$74 (67% off. MSRP is $226)
cr279k01.jpg

WTB SPEED V COMP SADDLE
$23.99 (40% off. MSRP $40)
sa703a04new.jpg

RACE FACE RIDE XC STEM '10
Black, 90X31.8mm, 6Deg
$21.99 (15% off from $25)
st273a02.jpg

CANE CREEK S-3 HEADSET
Black, 1 1/8", Threadless
$35 (42% off from $60)
hs507a01.jpg

ERGON GC2 RACE GRIPS WITH ALLOY BAR ENDS
$29.95 (25% off from $40)
be408a00blk__mens.jpg

KALLOY RADIUSSED TOP SEATPOSTS
$20.39
se308a10blk__27.2_350.jpg

KMC K710SL SUPERLITE KOOL CHAIN RED
$20.45
ch308d01rdw_18.jpg


except for the frame and fork all of this stuff came from jenson usa. the rest of the components came from about 4 or 5 different websites. i cross checked and compared prices and specs and got everything i want for the amount of money they cost.
 

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