Submitted by
GooGuk
a Weekend Warrior
from New Hampshire
Date Reviewed: October 16, 2009
Strengths: steel 26'er with single speed setup. Like a 1/4 BMX 3/4 mountain bike, so it's very nimble and great in corners. Great on uphills and it works well on downhills too... I can go about 90% as fast as my full suspension on the downhills.
Weaknesses: Low bottom bracket, but really it's a trade-off - the low BB helps in cornering. You just adjust your pedaling a bit.
A bit heavy, but again a trade-off - at least it won't break and no flex
Bottom Line:
I couldn't resist when my friend offered me a $150 single speed. His wife wanted him to clean out a few bikes. It was set up as a road bike. I restored it back to MTB status with $100 of various pieces, then after spraining my wrist, picked up a Fox fork on eBay for $250 - so it's really a $500 bike. This is my first single speed (since I was a kid on a BMX) and wanted to try it cheap. I'm having a ball and love the fact that it isn't slowing me down at all. If you can find one and want a steel 26'er SS, go for it.
Similar Products Used: Main ride is Jamis XAM II, Surly Instigator, and others - My first Single Speed, but it seems to be the bike I WANT to ride. I have a dual squish high zoot ride (Jamis above) as well and she's definitely getting jealous.
Bike Setup: 2002 (I think) Redline Monocog 26'er with the 110mm (BMX style)rear hub spacing- original Alex DH-17 wheelset. Avid Single Digit 7 V-brakes, 2006 Fox F80 RL Fork - still have the rigid also. Kenda Karma 2.2 tire in front, Velociraptor 2.1 in back. Race face Riser bars with Specialized bar ends. Oh, 32 front chain ring with a 20 freewheel (very steep where I live). Eggbeaters. About 27 lbs total weight.
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Submitted by
Daniel Ayd
a Weekend Warrior
from Minneapolis, MN USA
Date Reviewed: February 2, 2006
Strengths: Weight, steel, geometry, single speed, horizontal drops with threaded adjusters, not a Surly ($$$), ground clearance, FUN
Weaknesses: Rear hub kept coming loose so now my cones are pretty much shot
Bottom Line:
Fantastic bike for the money...if Surly made their bikes here in the US I'd say it'd be worth the money but they don't so I'll save the money for something else. Such a fun, simple bike, in stock form I top out at a comfortable 15 mph and 18 is causing body shake from the legs pumping...climbs like a champ, super tossable in the turns. I am getting a Nexus 7-speed hub (do have to stretch the rear hub spacing to 126 mm without the roller brake) for some longer legs for my 8 mile commute--the hub does have a direct drive gear (5th I believe) so it'll still be a single speed at heart with the option to go faster but still have that stock gearing for the flats/climbing without ever getting out of the saddle like I do now. Now that my chain is stretched out I'm getting 2.4/2.5 hardpack/urban assault tires for added smoothness...this is simply the best bike I've ever owned. Steel rules! Now for a Reynolds 853 fixie!
Strengths: the ride - all that matters. price (though I probably overpaid - I guess I didn't realize what a great buy this bike was: for a little more I could have bought the complete bike)
Weaknesses: honestly, none. weight? gimme a break, you can shave more weight off your fat ass for less money. (Mine probably weighs 30 pounds but a full hydration pack would make any bike heavy - not to mention a low center of gravity is always better). rear tire clearance, i suppose would be a weakness - 2.1 is kinda pushing it, though that's really not bad.
Bottom Line:
This has become my new favorite bike (out of many). With its current setup, the thing jumps like a rabbit, climbs like a goat, and descends like, well, a good steel hardtail. The huge gauge tubing makes for a stiffer ride than traditional steel, but it still has that snappy steel feel. I love it, and I'd recommend it to anyone - not to mention its unbelievable price. There's no reason not to buy this frame.
Similar Products Used: first factory singlespeed (though I've ridden a fair number of conversions)
Bike Setup: manitou black, cable discs (rigid is cool too, but this has become my #1 bike on a fairly rough trail, and my wrists like suspension)
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Submitted by
John
a Weekend Warrior
from Tucson, AZ
Date Reviewed: January 14, 2004
Strengths: Super fun, bulletproof.
Weaknesses: Maybe a little heavy for an SS, but it is tough.
Bottom Line:
This bike kicks ass and is super fun. It is my first single speed and I am hooked. Parts selection is low-end, but I got it off of e-bay for $250 complete...can't beat that price. There is nothing like smoking a guy on a $2500 full suspension rig on a rigid, cheap ss.
Bike Setup: Rigid Redline fork, Titec bars/stem...otherwise stock.
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Submitted by
Sean
a Cross Country Rider
from Atlanta, GA, USA
Date Reviewed: October 30, 2003
Strengths: Fun to ride, easy to change around, looks slick with no decals
Weaknesses: 110mm rear spacing
Bottom Line:
I could have gotten it a lot cheaper online, but I love Ozone and they switched out all the parts for me for no extra charge. I love it, I bought it to cruise around town and save the wear and tear on my XC bike when I commuted. It is a blast to ride and so comfortable. My MTB got jacked though, so I'm gonna set it back up mountain style and take to the trails. Eventually gonna out a shock out front. Dude from Redline said it was set up for 100mm travel but I could even go up to 125mm!! Can't wait. Buy one.
Similar Products Used: Ridden some other SS bikes and plenty of hardtails
Bike Setup: Mostly stock, but changed to 5" rise Free Agent bars, Redline Flite BMX stem, Snafu seat and Conti top touring 2000 tires
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Submitted by
Biking Brazilian
a Weekend Warrior
from San Jose, CA
Date Reviewed: October 8, 2003
Strengths: -Cheap -Rigid -Tough
Weaknesses: -Weight -Weld quality (given the price, not a big deal)
Bottom Line:
For the price, this frame/fork cannot be beat. I also got some really cheap, but high quality, parts from JensonUSA.com and got the entire bike rolling for about $600. Singlespeeding, if you've never done it, is a breath of fresh air. You will blow by everyone on uphills, who are crwaling along on their $15,000 fancy full-suspension MTBs in the granny gear. (Don't fret, I occasionally take my 38 lb. Bullit out for x-country rides!) You'll soon realize that you can actually ride up inclines on gears higher than you've ever realized.
The only big weakness so far is the Sun Rhyno Lite wheelset from Jenson that comes with the Redline hubs. The rear Redline hub will go bad very quickly. It's a crappy hub, bottom line. The cool part is that, since the frame has a 110mm spacing in the back, you've got access to bomber, bulletproof BMX hubs instead! Yes, they're heavy, but they're built for more abuse than the standard x-country part. King makes a nice SS hubset, but it costs a lot. Redline actually makes (or used to) a nice hubset that I found at my LBS for $80. It uses cartridge bearings, not the standard ball bearings of the crappy, original Redline hubset from Jenson. (Yes, it's $99 for the wheelset, so what do you expect.)
The frame is heavy, but it's steel so you'll get a little bit more supple ride than if you had an aluminum bike (Bianchi B.U.S.S., for example).
Bike Setup: -Redline rigid fork -Sun Rhyno Lite wheelset with Redline Hubs -Truvativ Stylo SS cranket with SRAM PCS-1 SS chain -Titec riser bars and seatpost -RaceFace BB, stem and RealSeal headset -ODI grips -Avid 1.9SL V-brakes -EggBeaters pedals -Selle Italia Gel Flite saddle -Hutchinson 2.0 Python Gold Elit tires
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Submitted by
Tyler Robbins
a Weekend Warrior
from Madison
Date Reviewed: September 10, 2003
Strengths: I already said all that, in my last review, but it's a solid little ride, cheap, reliable. Bashworthy!
Weaknesses: The hubs see to be a little weak.... and this years frame has disc tabs... doh! should have waited.
Bottom Line:
Nice, I ride it daily. I want to lighten it up when I have some money, it's can be a bear to hop up stairs amd what not. The rear hub doesn't like to get bounced on. I have had to re-tighten the cones a few times, which will eventually spell the end for that hub. oh well. The alex rims rock, I have to say, I would consider them for a rebuild, they might be as good as rhinolytes. I haven;t had to true them in a couple of months of hard riding. and when I do, it's only to get rid of a slight wobble.
Bike Setup: I has a marz z5 on it, but I decided to try some trials riding, so the rigid fork is back on it. lx brake levers, panracer fire xc 2.1 tires. claws freewheels
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Submitted by
Miles
a Weekend Warrior
from Jacksonville, FL, U.S.A.
Date Reviewed: August 26, 2003
Strengths: Bomber looking all black frame and matching components. Looks and acts just like a BMX with the proper seat handlebar setup.
Weaknesses: Redline seat post bent riding trails. 19" seat tube is the tallest made for this model.
Bottom Line:
Fun ride, it handles the trails as good as any mountain bike, so far my only reccomendations would be to replace the stock seat and seatpost. the seat is like a rock and the seatpost is too light duty. I've bent the latter already. Due to the stiffness of the frame I might suggest a shock absorber seatpost. good setup for a wheelie bike. It's just like being on a 26" BMX. Great style and lots of fun. The only reason I give it 4 flaming Things is because of seat tube height, I would have preferred 21" for that. If your taller than 6'1" stay away this frame is too small and 19" is the biggest made. 6" and under should be comfortable 17" and 15" frame sizes are also available.
Bike Setup: Stock monocog parts except: replaced stock: freewheel with 16t shimano FW Redline Crankset with 32t truvative stylo crank 180mm Stock stem with BMX style no name stem Titec hellbent HB with BMX 5 piece 7" rise handlebars salvaged from old freestyle bike.
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Submitted by
Steven
a Racer
from College Station, TX
Date Reviewed: August 26, 2003
Strengths: Frame
Weaknesses: grips, and the first time I rode it on the trail I rippeed almost all my tread off my rear, stock tire (KENDAs)
Bottom Line:
I like the rigid fork, but for all the big rocks I ride on, suspension would be nice. This is a nice bike to build stregnth on the trails, so when you get on your regular mountain bike, you can fly by everyone. This is also a very fun bike to do tricks on.
Strengths: 4130 S stays beefy dropouts headtube gusset Black Testors model paint is a perfect match for repairing rock chips or scratches.
Weaknesses: dosn't come in 21" lame decals (removed) my RL hubs are toast..
Bottom Line:
I'm 6'1" 245 & I ride pretty hard.. Constantly braking parts,.. but The mono-cog frame & fork have held up to the mashing quite well. I'd buy another if this one ever brakes.. you can't beat the price with a stick!
Purchased At: eBay for the frame & wheels, parts from LBS & online stores
Similar Products Used: none
Bike Setup: 03 mono-cog frame & fork. Sun Rhino Lites with RL hubs, black wheelsmith spokes & silver brass dt nipples. pretty soon I'll have my new Phil Wood BMX hubs. WTB MotoRaptor 2.4" front & rear specialized E-8 cranks un-52 bb 34t Blackspire Epic Ring 18t Shimano MX freewheel Sram PC-7x chain RL chain tugs Diamondback Cruiser BMX bars Bontreger stem Tioga alchemy headset Avid levers, Tektro brakes RL freaky-G grips Easton EA-50 post Kona SDG seat Paul Tenacious Oil Finishline Grease
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Submitted by
Marko
a Cross Country Rider
from Oklahooma
Date Reviewed: June 30, 2003
Strengths: See earlier post
Weaknesses: See earlier post
Bottom Line:
This is a follow up to the one below. After posting this (and sending a copy to Jenson USA) I received emails from both Jenson and Redline. Jenson told me they were doing a quality Check on all the Redline Wheelsets and if there is a problem they are shipping them back to the manufacturer. Redline said that the headtube was probably ovalized in shipping and should have been warrantied. They both asked me to contact them to "resolve my problems with the Monocog". So that was nice. I did email them both and got no reply from Redline, but Jenson came through and covered my parts for the wheel work I had to get done. That being said, it is nice that someone was paying attention, and Jenson seemed to at least be attempting to stand behind their sales. I am still loving riding the bike, by the way, though it REALLY needs disc brake mounts. Tubless/disc would be a fantastic way to go on this bike
I'll up the review one chili for Jenson's customer care.
OH - One other thing - I developed a small squeak in the front hub - if that happens to you, try shooting a little lube onto the rubber seals - it helped me.
Similar Products Used: Many over the years that never hold up to the pounding.
Bike Setup: running a 15 inch stock bike as a trials ride.
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Submitted by
Dave Traichel
a Weekend Warrior
from Northford CT USA
Date Reviewed: June 18, 2003
Strengths: 4130 steel cheap its a RED LINE
Weaknesses: if I really wanted to complain about it 2.1 is the bigest tire I can fit because of the short chain
Bottom Line:
I you rode BMX back in the day this your bike. I ride it at the track ,in the woods hell I even jack the seat post up ,run 36/14 and play hard core roadee.I love this bike!!! I ride it almost every day. If your a weeine don't by it
This review/ warning is for the frameset/wheelset deal that jenson has for about 225 bucks. The frame is 115 (wow) and the wheels are 90 or so, which is a good deal sice you have to go with the redline hubs due to the 100 mm spacings. Quality review - Anyway, I work in a LBS but could not beat the price even with employee discount. However, it is a good thing I work in a bike shop because the frame shipped with an ovalized headtube that had to be reshaped by the shop owner (which will cost you some money if it happens to you). Even more strange were the wheels. They were slightly out of true when they shipped (no big deal) but when I went to true them I found that they had been built using different nipple sizes, randomly! So now I am in the process of slowly changing individual nipples and retruing the wheelset which is time consuming and annoying. Since I have only had the frame and wheels a week I am still suspicious that more stuff will pop up that needs to be repaired. Due to this, I would not rec this product unless, like me, you have cheap access to parts and repairs. The paint is nice and the welds are true, so no problem there. Fun review - Even with the problems mentioned above, I am enjoying the heck out of singlespeeding. I have done urban assaults, with and without my baby behind me in a trailer, and ridden some fairly mild trails. It is a completely different workout, and is like rediscovering biking! I am looking forward to taking it out on some rougher trails later this week. For me, anyway, I am finding single speeding to be a necessary component of my biking, and will probably enter some single speed races next year. If the qualty problems persist with this bike, however, it will be on a different frame and wheelset, perhaps the Bianchi or Surly, which I considered purchasing before I got the Redline. Final line - if you can do some serious repair on your own and don't have much money, this is a good deal. Otherwise, I would say buyer beware on this one and save your bucks. Rating this is hard - it is cheaply priced but with shoddy craftsmanship - I am loving riding it but am annoyed at the quality.
Bike Setup: redline spec frame and wheelset, s-works saddle, stem, bars, pedros "dice" grips, kalloy seatpost and clamp, XTR V-brakes, Deore levers, IRB Mythos tires
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Submitted by
Gearhead
a Cross Country Rider
from Somewhere in the South
Date Reviewed: April 22, 2003
Strengths: For the price this frame cannot be beaten. It is one tough mother. If you peel the decals off and go all black it looks really slick. Steal is Real!!
Weaknesses: The frame is heavy compared to some others but then again what do you expect for a couple hundred bucks. The 110mm rear spacing kinda sucks but it's not the end of the world. Other than two minor complaints there are no real weaknesses!!
Bottom Line:
This bike is awesome. It took me a little bit of time and money to get it set up the way I wanted it but it was well worth it in the long run. For the price the bike cannot be beat. The longer than normal top tube is great for climbing and the bikes geometry is set up for front suspension. I replaced the steel fork that I bought with the bike. Riding rigid will hone your skills but front suspension certainly makes for a more comfortable, faster ride. I think that about every review on here complains about tire clearance. Buy a longer chain and move the wheel further back in the drop outs. Not really sure what all the fuss is about. I run 2.4's but could easily get bigger tires in there. If you want to get back to the basics of cycling there is no other way to do it than get a SS. Not only will it get your fat ass in shape its really fun.
Similar Products Used: Plenty of other hartails but none single speed specific.
Bike Setup: 175mm Redline cranks with a 38 tooth chain ring and a 20 tooth rear freewheel. Titec "hellbent" bar, cheapy stem, redline post. 2003 Marzochii MX Comp fork, Rithchy headset, 2.4 WTB Mutano Raptor Tires
