Mountain Bike Reviews Forum banner

Advice on Steel Frame and Fork Build!

2K views 16 replies 10 participants last post by  cbrock450 
#1 · (Edited)
I'm looking to build a geared and fully rigid steel 29er and am looking for a bit of advice for which frame and fork to get. Here's the kicker, I'm on a pretty limited budget ($400 for the frameset). I'm short, about 5'6, and only about 135 Ibs with gear. Bike weight isn't important, as I am primarily concerned with long ride comfort. In an ideal word I'd find a used, small MCR or SIR 9 but I don't see that happening. So, what frame and fork should I get? I've been eyeing up the On-One frame and fork from Unreal Cycles...other suggestions? I have no problem buying used, but can't find a small, used, steel 29er frame to save my life (in my budget anyway). Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks for your time. Again, my budget is $400 for frame and fork.
 
#7 ·
The On-One seems to be a lot of bang for the buck. Just refreshed one that I built up in January for someone - so far so good and he is really enjoying his first ride with the big wheels. If you are tired of waiting for the right deal, the inbred29 is a great option.



I will say that if you can hold out for a MCR or SIR, it will be well worth the wait....this thing is awesome...

 
#8 ·
Ebay all the way. You sound a lot like me... you know what you want and are willing to shop for a deal.

$400 will be tough w/ gears unless you buy a used complete bike. But with some thrifty shopping, you can get it done.

There are Redline Monocog frame sets that have derailleur hangers... $130/used.

The Kona P2 steel fork was the cheapest I could find in March. It was $45+ shipping on Ebay.
 
#10 ·
I have both a KM (2010) and a first generation Inbred with the sliding dropouts, and I've run them both singelspeed and geared, and mostly rigid, but I have done suspension on the Inbred.
The Inbred rides great, and I loved the fast handling on it with the stock fork, but I was eventually plagued with issues on the sliders, and no amount of tweaking or hardware replacements seemed to do the trick.
The KM is super versatile, and also rides great. Not as smooth as the Inbred, but I think I like the handling overrall a bit more. I think a better fork on the KM would be my ideal setup of the two, but honestly you can't go wrong either way.
 
#11 ·
Thanks for all the input guys. I actually got a bit impulsive and rather than wait for a steel frame to pop up, I snagged the Niner EMD frame on the classifieds for a price I couldn't refuse. The seller included a CK headset, Thomson post, Reba fork, Niner bar, and Race Face stem for a steal. I'll probably swap the Reba for something rigid and the EMD will hold me over until I find a small MCR. I wanted the comfort of steel but I hear the EMD is actually pretty smooth for aluminum.
 
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
Top