You snooze, you lose, it seems. And I snoozed. Didn't act quick enough and the Surly Cross Check frame I had my eye on is now gone. At least at the price point that made it a no brainer.
I'm still hellbent on building up a singlespeed cyclocross bike, but now if I'm faced with paying full retail for a frame, then my options open up a bit, I think. I have no doubt that the options I'm considering would be roadworthy - the question is just how trailworthy these bikes are as well
In addition to the Surly Cross Check, I've also given thought to the On-One Il Pompino. I was all over the Surly Cross Check because I've read enough about the offroad ability of that ride, not to mention the nice spacing that allows for relatively fat tires. I liked the idea of being able to use 45c tires on that frame.
With the Il Pompino, there are a number of intangible positives. I really dig how Brant (and his On-One crew) have interacted with the MTBR folks. On-One bikes are alos quite a rarity around my parts (who am I kidding - Surly bikes are no more common!). But based on the website copy, it appears that the largest tire that an Il Pompino will take is a 35c tire. Is that big loss versus the Cross Check? I dunno, that was something I was hoping you guys could help me with.
Other consideration is color, as silly as that may seem. New Il Pompino is a smart silver color. Cross Check is a cool blood red. I don't have a red bike.
The Cross Check comes with a fork. I gotta pick up a fork - the On-One carbon one or otherwise - for the Il Pompino, hence higher cost.
Would you guys have any thoughts/recos for me? While this is not a proper 29er question, it relates to big wheels and when it comes to big wheels, I like to ask the folks who know.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
I'm still hellbent on building up a singlespeed cyclocross bike, but now if I'm faced with paying full retail for a frame, then my options open up a bit, I think. I have no doubt that the options I'm considering would be roadworthy - the question is just how trailworthy these bikes are as well
In addition to the Surly Cross Check, I've also given thought to the On-One Il Pompino. I was all over the Surly Cross Check because I've read enough about the offroad ability of that ride, not to mention the nice spacing that allows for relatively fat tires. I liked the idea of being able to use 45c tires on that frame.
With the Il Pompino, there are a number of intangible positives. I really dig how Brant (and his On-One crew) have interacted with the MTBR folks. On-One bikes are alos quite a rarity around my parts (who am I kidding - Surly bikes are no more common!). But based on the website copy, it appears that the largest tire that an Il Pompino will take is a 35c tire. Is that big loss versus the Cross Check? I dunno, that was something I was hoping you guys could help me with.
Other consideration is color, as silly as that may seem. New Il Pompino is a smart silver color. Cross Check is a cool blood red. I don't have a red bike.
The Cross Check comes with a fork. I gotta pick up a fork - the On-One carbon one or otherwise - for the Il Pompino, hence higher cost.
Would you guys have any thoughts/recos for me? While this is not a proper 29er question, it relates to big wheels and when it comes to big wheels, I like to ask the folks who know.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
